History of Sendra Corp.?

Torino

I'm wondering if anybody out here is familiar Sendra rifles. The only info that I have been able to accumulate so far is very limited. I had a guy awhile back tell me that serial # 07XXX was probably made in or before 91. Old AR 15 site mentions alittle about pre and post ban receivers. What would be sweet is to find out roughly what year a certain ser.# was produced.

Torino

budmott

Sendra
Post-ban receivers have a circle milled into the side of the magwell. They were originally bead-blasted to a non-glare finish. All others are pre-ban. (This is unverified info.) Also, they used to be NESARD. Rumored to have been owned by Dick Drasen (currently M&A Parts) and produced lowers only out of Barrington, Illinois. No complete guns were sold (again, unverified info).

bud

If it weren't for lawyers, I wouldn't need a lawyer.

Torino

Bud,

I appreciate the comeback, but this is verbatim off the AR 15 site. I hoping to find out alittle more. With the forum as big as it is I was thinking somebody might have some first hand knowledge about them.

Torino

kimberkid

Starting back in the early 90's when I was setting up at gunshows every weekend, I bought a lot of parts from M&A, some from Model 1 Sales and some from what is now called American Sprit Arms. M&A had by far the best customer service and didn't jerk you around making promisises to ship inventory they didn't have or whatever. If they said they had it, they did; If they said it would be 2 weeks, it was.

Anyway, I'd noticed the parts from all three seemed to be of the same quality and maker and mentioned it to another dealer friend of mine (Dean's Guns in St. Joseph, Mo.). He said he used to set up at shows with Dick Drasen "Back in the day" (60's) until 69 or so when Dick got busted for possesion of a class 3 weapon without a tax stamp. Actually what it was, was all the parts (including the receiver) to assemble a select fire AR-15. He said Drasen's company (Sendra) was originally set up in the early 60's as a sub-contractor to the government for M-16 parts ... when the orders slowed he (Drasen) started advertizing in ShotGun News and other "Gun Rags" for mail-order and setting up at gunshows to stay in business.

Now keep in mind, back then there weren't as many gun laws, you could get your class 3 tax stamp, go to a show visit a few different dealers and buy all the parts needed - but no one dealer could have EVERYTHING on his table without being in possesion of a class 3 weapon ... its a common belief that he was "set-up" by the BATF but could never prove it, and went to jail.

After he got out he started his business back up but HE could no longer produce recievers ... just parts. Then Drasen and his wife had 3 daughters that grew up, married and started business of their own: M&A, Model 1 Sales and whats now called American Spirit Arms (ASA has had several names ... probably because of their pi$$ poor service)

This is second hand information, as I have never met or spoken with Mr Drasen, but I did ask the daughter that runs M&A (her name escapes me )if she was Dick Drasen's daughter and she confirmed she was, so I have no doubt that the information is fairly accurate.

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The only bad thing about choosing a Kimber ...
... there are so darn many models to choose from!
kimberkid@gunbroker.zzn.com