In 2008, I started my North Carolina-based business to focus on refining the performance of Modern Sporting Rifles, with a special focus on AR-style firearms. In 2009, Citizen Arms began doing business as a licensed manufacturer of firearms. As the owner/operator, I’ve been manufacturing custom ARs and accurizing / tuning / repairing existing firearms ever since.
Prior to opening my shop, I spent 22 years in the US. Army–first as a Paratrooper and mountaineering Ranger Instructor and then, for the bulk of my career, as a Special Operations Assaulter and Sniper. After many years of plying and refining my trade in far-off places, I finished my Army time serving as my SOF unit’s Subject Matter Expert on sniper weapon systems and then as the head of all small arms systems development and testing. These positions blended my skills and experience as an operational user of precision arms with the knowledge of what it takes to make them perform well in demanding environments.
I’ve been a freelance writer since 2007, with several hundred print articles published in American Gunsmith, American Hunter, AR Guns & Hunting, Guns & Ammo Tactical Guns & Gear, Precision Shooting, Shooting Illustrated, Shotgun News, Special Operations Report, SWAT Digest and several technical publications. Since 2010, I’ve been privileged to serve as the Rifle Editor for the NRA’s Shooting Illustrated magazine. I’m also a multi-disciplined firearms instructor with certifications from the NRA, the state of North Carolina and several other commercial and governmental entities.
I hold a Bachelor’s Degree from Liberty University, teach occasional NRA Short-Term Gunsmithing courses at Montgomery Community College in Troy, NC and serve as a member of the school’s Gunsmithing Advisory Committee. I’m an NRA benefactor member, an NSSF retailer member and a life member of Grass Roots North Carolina.
I’m blessed by a wonderfully-large family and the help of many gracious friends and mentors. Above all else, I’m guided by my faith in God and acceptance of Jesus Christ as my Savior. –Steve Adelmann
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