Founded in 1689, Husqvarna is one of the oldest industrial companies in the world. Husqvarna begins as a weapons forge, with muskets as its speciality. Although production is largely manual, Husqvarna Gevärsfaktori (Husqvarna Rifle Factory) comes to be somewhat of a cradle of the Swedish high-precision industry. Under the leadership of Factory Manager Joachim Ehrenpreuss, production soon expands.
Water-powered hammer according to a drawing from the 1750s. Instead of forming the parts of the lock using a sledge and hand tools on an anvil, it was possible to let the heated iron be beaten down into a die by the hammer. This way the parts could be made in a similar shape for long series, and the procedure was labour saving as well.
During Sweden’s first period as a great power, from the end of the 1600s to the beginning of the 1720s, an average of 11,000 muskets and pistols are manufactured annually. All in all, Husqvarna supplies the Swedish army with 230,000 firearms during this period!After 1720 there is a period of peace and the orders from the Swedish state decreases to 1,500 annually.During the following hundred-plus years of peace and stability, the firearms production of Husqvarna is relatively small.
Flintlock rifle, made in 1735.
Military revolver, model from 1887.
An elderly Wilhelm Tham.
But production grows dramatically with the increasing political instability in Europe in the middle of the 1860s. Sweden conducts an extensive rearmament at this time. It’s during this period that weapons develop from muzzle loaded to breech-loaded, i.e. the barrel is opened at the back and is loaded with a cartridge. Again, high-precision workmanship is put to the test, since the barrel and the firing mechanism must lock with very low tolerances and high durability. With the introduction of breech loading, rifled barrels are becoming more common, which increases the requirements for precision in boring and machining. Breech-loaded pistols are first manufactured as revolvers, i.e. with a magazine in the form of a revolving drum.Also, with growing orders from the Swedish military, the company can invest in workshops and machines.Husqvarna is transformed into a limited company in 1867 and reorganised in 1877 when Wilhelm Tham is appointed managing director. He is the one who initiates the change by which the weapons production is supplemented with hunting and target practice rifles, instead of the company relying solely on military orders. This proves to be a wise decision and Husqvarna is soon highly competitive in the “civilian” market as well.
Pistol with percussion lock for the Navy. Made in 1855.
A rifle weapon with a Remington mechanism of this type was included already in the 1877 catalogue. The price was 48 Swedish Crowns.
The exclusive Ehrenpreus shotgun that Husqvarna manufactured in 1975 in a limited edition of 75.
August Fredrik Hagström is a legendary arms maker at Husqvarna. One of his inventions is the semi-cocked automatic recoiling hammers. This is a big improvement in safety, since it prevents inadvertent firing, if the hammer should be struck accidentally or if the hammer’s tensioner should release.August Fredrik Hagström’s son, Karl Wilhelm, follows in his father’s footsteps as an arms maker and in 1877 he is appointed head of the arms manufacturing. Karl Wilhelm has earlier studied at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm and has worked for C-E Johansson (Mått-Johansson, or Measurement-Johansson) in Eskilstuna. He develops an original test for prospective employees: The applicant is given two pieces of metal and files. The aim of the test is to file the pieces of metal so flat that they adhere to each other, in the same fashion as the measurement expert C-E Johansson’s “Jo blocks” or gauge blocks.Karl Wilhelm Hagström is head of the civilian weapons manufacturing from 1877 to his death in 1917. He is succeeded by his son, Hugo Hagström. In the same way as high-precision manufacture is a recurring theme in Husqvarna history, craftsmanship is been passed on from father to son through several generations, which makes Husqvarna a highly-respected name throughout the world.In 1970, Husqvarna transfers its arms manufacture to FFV (Försvarets Fabriksverk, the Swedish Defence Factories). But Husqvarna continues to produce a few particular rifles, in extremely limited series, until 1989. That year, in conjunction with the 300th anniversary of the company, 15 of the “Anniversary Weapons” are the last weapons to leave the factory. The Husqvarna factory museum includes an extensive collection of weapons. From the oldest, a flintlock rifle from 1735 to the “Anniversary Weapon” of 1989.