A small manufacturer, like Jemak, is based on quality over quantity. When you become a quantity manufacturer you accept that a certain percentage of your product is not going to operate as intended. A small manufacturer of rifles must make sure that every rifle is built to the highest standard, and will exceed expectations. Here are a few things to look for when determining if you want your rifle to come off an assembly line, or if you are looking for a hand built rifle.
Price
Mass produced rifles will be less expensive. This is because they are coming off an assembly line, which means you never know who is building your rifle, and how good they are at their job. Fit and finish are hit or miss, because the rifle must be built quickly, packaged, and sent out for sale. Prices are kept low by controlling the cost of parts and labor.
Hand built rifles are more expensive. Attention to detail is key to quality, and it takes time to build a rifle by hand. A good manufacturer spends time making sure every rifle is built to a high standard, and you know your rifle was built by an expert.
Details
Rifles built in large quantities lack attention to detail. "Good enough" is the key to building in quantity and details suffer. Everything must be done quickly to turn a profit, which means if you have a bad rivet, hammer marks, or damaged furniture they may pass a quality inspection because this is "good enough."
Attention to detail is key in a hand built rifle. Fit and finish must be done to the highest standard, which also takes more time. Rivets are hand pressed and wood furniture is restored to a better than when it was new condition. You will also get a rifle that has an even finish on all the parts, because hand built rifles must be built to the highest standard.
Finish
Large manufacturers need to finish rifles in large quantities, so you will see more parkerized and nitride finishes. These finishes are good, and they are very cheap to apply. As we discussed earlier, controlling costs and "good enough" is important to mass production. I have even seen some manufactures nitride, or oxide AK pistons, and more than likely this was done because it was cheaper to not remove the piston before the finish was applied.
A quality manufacturer knows that the finish is important to a customer that wants the best. As a small manufacturer, you need to listen to your customers and provide the best. Cheaper is definitely better for profit, but quality and cheap don't work when you want to build a high end product.