Mark Chesebro

 

I grew up on a dairy farm in Michigan and spent a lot of time hunting and fishing. My first gun was a single shot 12 gauge with a bulge in the barrel. This was the family starter gun and I used it to shoot my first wood duck. Then when I finally turned 14 my older brother gave me an Ithaca Model 49 22LR for Christmas. I couldn’t believe it!  For a young boy there was nothing better than the feeling of a full box of long rifles in my pocket, the trusty Ithaca and 160 acres of farm land to roam.

 

After high school I was working in Arizona hand dipping culverts in hot tar.  It was 108° and the tar was 400°. There was no guard rail on the ground level tank of tar and one day I dropped my glove in the tar and before I could fish it out it turned crispy and crumbled to pieces. And I thought to myself, “This is crazy! As long as I have to work so hard, I might as well do something fun.” And what could be more fun than guns!

 

So in the fall of 1978 I enrolled in the Yavapai College Gunsmith program.  After college I worked at HS Precision and learned chambering and rifle smithing from master gunsmith and barrel maker, Bill Atkinson. While I was at HS I built and shot benchrest rifles with owner Tom Houghton. I also built and shot silhouette rifles, Palma rifles, and XTC rifles.

 

Then I headed up to Washington to fish for a while and worked at The Gun Works.  To refine my machinist skills, I worked in the aerospace industry. There is where I really learned to work with tight tolerances and exotic metals.

 

In 2004 I returned to the world of gunsmithing when I met Mac Tilton. Mac hired me on the spot to build Palma rifles using Barnard actions, Mastin stocks, and Trueflite barrels.

 

After three years in South America, I returned to MT Guns in 2009. As Mac thought about retiring (though we all know Mac will never fully retire from the world of Guns!), he offered me his inventory and machines. Read press release here: mtguns.com

 

And so began, Chesebro Rifles.

 

As the owner and gunsmith of Chesebro Rifles, I commit to providing and manufacturing rifles that are the highest quality and most innovative rifles in the shooting industry.  From our centerfire BSA Martini in .223 to our Anschutz .22LR Repeater with CZ Magazine, Chesebro Rifles is at the forefront of design and quality.

 

I’m committed to providing you with the highest quality custom rifle to meet your specific needs.