What was originally several different small companies, with diverse names, was combined under one name when we reincorporated in Idaho in 2010, and of course, has just been added on to with Crispin Arms and Crispin Fabrication.
Those companies are:
Crispin Consulting -
This is masthead for my consulting activities; primarily including information systems; physical, electronic, and information security; storage, archive, and HA/DR; architecture, administration, engineering, management, managed services consulting, and training.
Crispin Press -
A small, special interest, and short run; publisher and printer. Offering editing, layout and pre-press, publishing, and distribution services on both a shared venture, and a custom published or contract published basis.
Crispin Press offers specialty printing, formatting, and binding that conventional publishers and printers can't, or that they charge prohibitively high rates for; as well as offering authors with a very small potential audience, an opportunity to publish and be distributed; that a larger publisher, with higher overhead, otherwise could not offer.
Crispin Fabrication -
A custom fabrication, repair, restoration, and finishing shop for wood and metal.
Services including custom machining, custom sheetmetal work, welding, custom electronics and electronics repair, wood and metal finishing and refinishing, wood and metal repair and restoration, and antique repair and restoration.
Crispin Fabrication has particular expertise in automotive, powersport and motorsport applications; aviation applications; boating and marine applications; guitar repair and fabrication; and furniture repair and restoration.
We also manufacture specialty tools and fixtures, and custom and reproduction parts, for all of the industries and interests above.
Crispin Arms -
Crispin Arms is a small gunsmithing shop, and soon will be an FFL dealer, Class 3 SOT, and manufacturer of firearms and class III items (paperwork is pending on those); maker of custom knives; and manufacturer of high precision, custom loaded ammunition.
We specialize in custom gunsmithing, ammosmithing, bladesmithing, custom fabrication in metal and wood, and firearms repair and refinishing; including repair of class III items, and fabrication and fitting of hard to find and out of production parts for firearms and class III items.
Crispin Arms has particular expertise in 1911 type pistols, and long range rifles.
We specialize in custom gunsmithing, bladesmithing, custom fabrication in metal and wood, and firearms repair; including repair of class III items, and fabrication and fitting of hard to find and out of production parts for firearms and class III items.
Crispin Arms has particular expertise in 1911 type pistols, and long range rifles.
Why? ...and what's the history?
Basically... I prefer to work for myself, and I have a diverse set of skills and interests.
I'm an engineer by nature and by education; and a trained and experienced metal fabricator, finish carpenter, and cabinet maker (both by interest, and by periodic employment).
I have periodically worked professionally in firearms since I was 21, and in fabrication and restoration of metal and wood since before high school (I was 13 when I first apprenticed at my uncles furniture restoration shop, and 16 when I learned welding and machining at a local custom bicycle maker). I started my first computer business when I was in high school. I've been doing all four since, on both a personal, and a professional basis.
Basically, the reason I haven't worked in gunsmithing or fabricating (or guitar repair, or publishing) full time; is because I can make a lot more money in IT consulting, for a lot fewer hours worked, and a lot less effort in developing new business. It has just made more sense.
My wife and I have these businesses, because they align nicely with our interests, and our passions.
We have all of them, because it gives us more opportunities for revenue; and frankly, because other than IT consulting, none of them individually can generate enough revenue to support our family at the scale we want to operate on (small home based or small shop based; with no, or very few, employees).
Why Crispin?
That's easy. I'm a big Shakespeare fan, and as it happens, my favorite piece of dramatic prose in all of history happens to be Henry V; Act 4, Scene 3:
This day is called the feast of Crispian:
He that outlives this day, and comes safe home,
Will stand a tip-toe when the day is named,
And rouse him at the name of Crispian.
He that shall live this day, and see old age,
Will yearly on the vigil feast his neighbours,
And say 'To-morrow is Saint Crispian:'
Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars.
And say 'These wounds I had on Crispin's day.'
Old men forget: yet all shall be forgot,
But he'll remember with advantages
What feats he did that day: then shall our names.
Familiar in his mouth as household words
Harry the king, Bedford and Exeter,
Warwick and Talbot, Salisbury and Gloucester,
Be in their flowing cups freshly remember'd.
This story shall the good man teach his son;
And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remember'd;
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition:
And gentlemen in England now a-bed
Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.
The eventual goal of my wife and I, is to have a ranch and farm, as close to self sustaining as possible (not self sufficient, that's impossible these days. But self sustaining. We want to sell to everyone, and buy as little as possible, from as close as possible); up here in north Idaho.
When we made the decision to move here almost three years ago, we decided to figure out the name for our enterprise. The name we came up with, was Crispin Ranch. From there, it was a simple extension to Crispin Enterprises as the overall name for our business, and Crispin Press for our publishing company.
