Before America had a Constitution, We the People had the right to keep and bear arms. This is a natural right, proceeding from the basic human right of self-defense. The very language of the Second Amendment — “the right…shall not be infringed” — makes it clear that our Framers were acknowledging and protecting a pre-existing right of the people, not granting Americans a government-bestowed privilege.
Likewise, before our Republic had a Second Amendment, we were crafting, customizing, and making our own guns. The most famous firearm in American history, the Kentucky Long Rifle, was crafted by private gunsmiths in Pennsylvania in the early 1700s.
Before the advent of mass production, the self-manufacture of personal firearms was recognized as an integral part of the right to self-defense. Many were forced to build, repair, or customize their own firearms to defend their small communities or, eventually, to fight in the Revolutionary War.
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