Copyright 2002 The Detroit News
All Rights Reserved
The Detroit News
October 29, 2002 Tuesday One dot Edition
SECTION: METRO; Laura Berman; Pg. 1C
LENGTH: 534 words
HEADLINE: Bushmaster rifle took on life all of its own as killing machine
BYLINE: Laura Berman
BODY:
I know, I know: The gun didn't do it. You cannot blame the sniper murders on the Bushmaster XM15 carbine-type rifle used in the killings of 10 men and women.
But the gun was a character in the drama, an accomplice -- not unlike teen-ager John Lee Malvo -- willing or not. In the Washington, D.C.-area sniper drama, the Bushmaster XM15, the sniper's high-powered rifle, exerts its own fascination. Throughout the long killing spree that terrorized the area, more was known about the gun in question than the man or men wielding it.
The gun's power was on display, like a commercial for firepower: We knew the sniper was using a weapon that could be fired with great accuracy, from a long range.
And maybe that's why this particular gun, the Bushmaster XM15, seems like quite the personality.
One police official was repeatedly quoted describing Muhammad's blue 1990 Caprice with the hole in the trunk as "a killing machine."
Whereas a Bushmaster XM15, which retails for $899 or so, depending on configuration, is, in fact, a killing machine.
Unlike a 1990 Caprice, engineered for your mother to drive, the Bushmaster carbine-type rifle is engineered and manufactured for the sole purpose of extinguishing life from a long range.
Prairie dogs, insurgent rebels, innocent citizens buying gas -- the Bushmaster is a versatile machine. It's built in 29 variations, including the fully automatic model used by 38 foreign governments.
I wanted to eye a Bushmaster up close, but the Bushmaster dealers are sensitive right now. At Target Sports in Royal Oak, Ray, the manager, told me over the phone that he didn't want to contribute to any negative coverage, and that he couldn't imagine any good coming from talking to me.
In Clawson, a manager at Double Action Indoor Shooting Center declined to show off his Bushmaster. "You're a reporter?" he asked. "I don't think so."
And a few of the other dealers said they didn't have any Bushmasters in stock.
So I spoke to the chairman of Bushmaster Firearms, Richard "Dick" Dyke, an entrepreneur and corporate-turnaround specialist, who is happy to talk about his product.
He took the Wyndham, Maine, company out of bankruptcy 18 years ago, and breathed new life into it by marketing a civilian model of the U.S. military's M-16 automatic assault rifle.
"The model used by the sniper was a 16-inch barrel, which isn't what snipers usually use," he said. "Military snipers we sell to prefer a 24-inch or 26-inch barrel."
But the model found in Muhammad's Caprice was equipped with a flat space designed to mount accessories -- a scope, a carrying handle, a laser sight.
It slices, too.
Dyke, the Bushmaster chairman, was friendly and charming. He said his company employs 300 people, and that it's just one of the 48 companies he's bought and profited from over the years. From poker chips to after shave to assault rifles, Dyke knows how to buy and sell companies.
"We sold almost 50,000 (Bushmaster rifles) last year," said Dyke.
One was shipped last June to Bull's Eye Guns, a Tacoma, Wash. distributor.
That gun became the property of John Allen Muhammad and then proved its accuracy, superior firepower and versatility to the world.
All Rights Reserved
The Detroit News
October 29, 2002 Tuesday One dot Edition
SECTION: METRO; Laura Berman; Pg. 1C
LENGTH: 534 words
HEADLINE: Bushmaster rifle took on life all of its own as killing machine
BYLINE: Laura Berman
BODY:
I know, I know: The gun didn't do it. You cannot blame the sniper murders on the Bushmaster XM15 carbine-type rifle used in the killings of 10 men and women.
But the gun was a character in the drama, an accomplice -- not unlike teen-ager John Lee Malvo -- willing or not. In the Washington, D.C.-area sniper drama, the Bushmaster XM15, the sniper's high-powered rifle, exerts its own fascination. Throughout the long killing spree that terrorized the area, more was known about the gun in question than the man or men wielding it.
The gun's power was on display, like a commercial for firepower: We knew the sniper was using a weapon that could be fired with great accuracy, from a long range.
And maybe that's why this particular gun, the Bushmaster XM15, seems like quite the personality.
One police official was repeatedly quoted describing Muhammad's blue 1990 Caprice with the hole in the trunk as "a killing machine."
Whereas a Bushmaster XM15, which retails for $899 or so, depending on configuration, is, in fact, a killing machine.
Unlike a 1990 Caprice, engineered for your mother to drive, the Bushmaster carbine-type rifle is engineered and manufactured for the sole purpose of extinguishing life from a long range.
Prairie dogs, insurgent rebels, innocent citizens buying gas -- the Bushmaster is a versatile machine. It's built in 29 variations, including the fully automatic model used by 38 foreign governments.
I wanted to eye a Bushmaster up close, but the Bushmaster dealers are sensitive right now. At Target Sports in Royal Oak, Ray, the manager, told me over the phone that he didn't want to contribute to any negative coverage, and that he couldn't imagine any good coming from talking to me.
In Clawson, a manager at Double Action Indoor Shooting Center declined to show off his Bushmaster. "You're a reporter?" he asked. "I don't think so."
And a few of the other dealers said they didn't have any Bushmasters in stock.
So I spoke to the chairman of Bushmaster Firearms, Richard "Dick" Dyke, an entrepreneur and corporate-turnaround specialist, who is happy to talk about his product.
He took the Wyndham, Maine, company out of bankruptcy 18 years ago, and breathed new life into it by marketing a civilian model of the U.S. military's M-16 automatic assault rifle.
"The model used by the sniper was a 16-inch barrel, which isn't what snipers usually use," he said. "Military snipers we sell to prefer a 24-inch or 26-inch barrel."
But the model found in Muhammad's Caprice was equipped with a flat space designed to mount accessories -- a scope, a carrying handle, a laser sight.
It slices, too.
Dyke, the Bushmaster chairman, was friendly and charming. He said his company employs 300 people, and that it's just one of the 48 companies he's bought and profited from over the years. From poker chips to after shave to assault rifles, Dyke knows how to buy and sell companies.
"We sold almost 50,000 (Bushmaster rifles) last year," said Dyke.
One was shipped last June to Bull's Eye Guns, a Tacoma, Wash. distributor.
That gun became the property of John Allen Muhammad and then proved its accuracy, superior firepower and versatility to the world.
