Black Dawn is armed (with inventory) and ready (to sell it)

Black Dawn Armory is not your typical gun shop.

Owners Tim Padgett and Kim Utz take it a step further by offering their customers education, along with selection and service.

And not only do they sell a wide range of guns and accessories, they manufacture their own brand of semiautomatic rifles.

Padgett said the retail side of the business opened in March, followed by a grand opening on June 5. Work on production of the rifles began in early 2008.

“We produce our own rifles and accessories,” Padgett said. “We’re trying to make accessories that work across the board to make them more convenient for our customers ... so people can customize rifles.”

Black Dawn also offers custom spray-on coatings and personalized logos for the weapons.

Padgett said the rifles are used mainly for home security, target practice and “a lot of people will hunt with them — coyote hunting, prairie dog hunting.”

Utz said there is a general “lack of education” about guns and stressed the importance of understanding the difference between the guns that Black Dawn manufactures and what people may see in an action film.

“People see in the movies where someone pulls the trigger and the gun just sprays everywhere. These don’t do that,” she said.

Much of the manufacturing work for the rifles is done in Sedalia in different locations, Padgett said, and although some of the products the store carries do have origins in other parts of the country, many of the items are either produced or distributed from sites in Missouri, and that’s something important to Padgett and Utz.

“We do as much stuff in Missouri as we can,” Padgett said. “Our flashlights and scopes are distributed from a company in Springfield. ... And there’s a line of holsters made in Springfield.”

Utz said Black Dawn works to stay competitive, citing the Internet as a gauge for keeping their prices in check.

“By the time they pay for shipping when buying on the Internet, it comes out about the same,” she said.

But Black Dawn strives for service along with the sale, and that’s something Padgett and Utz believe sets them apart.

“We offer a lifetime guarantee with everything we manufacture,” Padgett said. “If any of our rifles do fail, I want to know why. I want to figure out how to keep that from happening again.”

Padgett said he worked in a pawn shop for four years before starting Black Dawn. He said he always had an interest in guns, but believed he could make a better product and provide better customer service.

“We felt Sedalia could use a shop that had more accessories and products, and we try to stay real customer-oriented,” he said.

Besides handguns and rifles, Black Dawn strives to keep the store well-stocked with just about anything today’s shooter could possibly need.

Utz pointed out one section of the store filled with a variety of shooting clothing, including conceal-carry shirts, camouflage garments, tactical pants, belts, boots, safety glasses and gloves. The store also carries clothing for law enforcement, emergency medical services and fire personnel — and there’s even part of the store selling women’s lingerie.

“It’s just cool,” Utz said.

“It’s something for the guys to pick up for the ladies,” Padgett added.

Black Dawn also tries to keep popular ammunition in stock, “but we can special order if we don’t have it,” Padgett said.

And that goes for guns, too.

“Absolutely,” Padgett said. “We’ll be more than happy to special-order guns.”

Padgett said their customers range from beginners to well-trained shooters, but no matter the skill level, both Padgett and Utz agreed that gun education is a key component of what they do.

Utz teaches concealed carry weapons classes, as well as private lessons and classes for women.

“Sometimes women are afraid, but education is the whole key,” she said.

And to help the education along, as well as to make more room for the growing number of products Black Dawn sells, the pair hopes to expand their operation and even open a gun range in Sedalia.

“We’re hoping to open a larger facility because there is so much in here,” Padgett said.