Why Priority One Gunsmithing

Welcome, My name is John Schanz and I am the owner/operator of Priority One Gunsmithing. 

When I began the journey of starting my own shop rather than just going to work at someone else’s, the decision came down to a few specific reasons. For one I can focus on my customer(s) with the freedom to do what I need to do to make the customer happy without constraints. I can focus on my goal of optimizing firearms for the hunter/shooter without worrying about anyone’s time requirements or schedule other than that of my customer. This allows me to work directly with the customer using however much time is needed to get it perfect. Working for myself will also allow me to directly interact with my customers to build more of a relationship. I don’t want to be the smith at the bench in the back. I want to offer more than just the general maintenance and repair that everyone expects from a gunsmith.

I’m the father of two wonderful but growing children who are both avid shooters and hunters. I also have a wife who has dabbled but was never comfortable enough to make shooting a hobby. Like many people in the shooting and hunting communities who have a spouse and or children, I have lost valuable real estate in my safe to shotguns and rifles that were purchased for family members that for one reason or another just don’t work for them. The gun is too big or kicks too much, the trigger is too hard to pull or they just cannot get a good sight picture. This leaves us with two options. Sell or trade in a practically new gun for a fraction of what we spent on it and try our luck again, or let it sit there in hopes the intended user will grow into it or eventually get used to it. This is where I want to come in.

What if you could take that shotgun or rifle to someone and have it fit perfectly for whoever is going to use it? It’s every gunsmith’s job to make sure firearms work. I want to make sure the shotgun or rifle works for the end user. Porting the barrel, shortening a composite stock, upgrading the recoil or decelerator pad, lightening the trigger pull, or adding comb height. It only takes one bad experience shooting to deter a new shooter from keeping with it but you can make a life long shooter by making the gun fit correctly and comfortably.

I am not only here for the young or small-framed shooter. I am 6’6” with a larger frame . Because of this I have struggled for years trying to make firearms that are designed for the average gun buyer. I thought I was doing well until I actually truly set up a rifle for myself. Shooting honestly became a new and better experience. Shooting as a sport and a pastime reached new levels of enjoyment. This is why I have decided to use my skill and knowledge to help mold and form “off the shelf” firearms into well-fit tools for the new or long time shooters. I want to end buying firearms hoping they’ll work. I want you to bring them to me and we will make sure they do.