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Dan Cooper and two other former employees of Kimber of Oregon founded Cooper Firearms, Inc. in 1990. With a little over 50 years of combined experience in manufacturing custom quality long guns and funds provided by a small group of investors, the Cooper crew set out to manufacture America's finest rifles based on their belief that rifles should shoot as well as they look and vice versa.

Believing that there was a market for an American made 3-postion ISU rifle, Cooper first designed and manufactured the Model 36 TRP-1 (Target Rifle Project-Phase 1). The M36 TRP-1 was a 3-front locking lug single shot rim-fire based on a stock design that met ISU rules. Only about 50 were produced before the decision to implement designs for a center-fire version of the 22WMR, called the 22CCM (Cooper Center-fire Magnum) was made and the TRP-1 was discontinued. An even fewer number of "MS-36's" were made on the original M36 action as a metallic silhouette rifle.

The 22CCM was put into a center-fire repeating variation of the original M36 action and called the Model 38. The M38 was a 3-front locking lug 4-shot repeater. About 280 22CCM's were produced from 1991 to 1994 along with another 500 produced in the necked down (and more popular) version of the 22CCM, the 17CCM (designed by Mike Hill). These were produced in a variety of traditional sporting rifle custom stock designs that represent the beginning of one of Cooper Arms' reknown skills, that of being able to hand craft custom quality stocks on a production basis.

This was also the beginning of Cooper's accuracy guarantee (guaranteeing that all M38's were capable of shooting a minimum of 1/4" 5-shot groups at 50 yards) with targets shipped with every rifle proving accuracy. Stepping out on the market with America's best accuracy guarantee put an extreme amount of pressure on design and (mainly) production to live up to the promise. From the M38 project came the bulk of Cooper's research and experimentation in accuracy techniques that are applied to today's production.

The repeating version of the M38 was discontinued in 1994 due to cost of manufacturing and the lack of mass produced brass for the CCM's. (A single shot version of the M38 is manufactured yet today. Brass can be obtained from Schroeder Bullets, 619-423-3523.)

In 1992 Cooper redesigned the Model 36 into a 3-mid locking lug 5-shot repeater. Introduced in 1993, the M36 was met with great success becoming the first American made production 22LR with an accuracy guarantee, providing finished-rifle targets with every rifle. The M36 repeater was produced in several sporting rifle stock designs along with a BR-50 and IR50/50 version. The M36 repeater was discontinued in 1998 with the introduction of the "version one" Model 57.

In the latter part of 1993, Cooper began experimenting with a single shot varmint rifle in 223 Rem. With all emphasis on accuracy, Cooper designed the Model 21, a 3-front locking lug bolt action single shot designed specifically to handle the 223. Along with this new action came a new stock design called the "Varmint Extreme". This is a style and fashion that combine traditional beavertail design with slender and sleek classic lines. Using a 24" stainless barrel with a .960" to .750" semi-heavy taper, Cooper took its accuracy guarantee to the next step, guaranteeing the M21's to shoot 1/2" 3-shot groups at 100 yards. (The first 25 M21's ever produced are signified by a small brass inlay on the bolt handle with the stamp "VE" and a very few with "CC".)

Responding to the increased demand by the varmint hunting and target shooting community, Cooper introduced the Model 22 and re-introduced the M38 in a single shot version in 1994. The Model 22 was designed to take on cartridges in the 22-250 and 25-06 range in a 3-front locking lug short lift bolt-action single shot. At the same time, the M38 was re-introduced in a single shot version to handle the smaller rimmed standard and wildcat cartridges. Along with both of these models came the introduction of the Model 40 in 1995. The Model 40 was a 3-mid locking lug 4-shot repeater designed around and for the 22 Hornet. About 75 of these were produced from 1995 until 1996 when it was discontinued due to manufacturing costs. The Model 40 was produced in Cooper's standard classic stock styles along with a very limited (10) produced in a "Classic Varminter" style (essentially a Varmint Extreme with ebony tip) all in a repeating version.

In 1995 founder Dan Cooper left the company. From 1995 to 1998 the history of products produced under the trade name of "Cooper Arms" is vague at best. However, during this period there were about 250 Anschutz barreled actions stocked and shipped by Cooper. They called the project the "Anschutz USA". (This was the internal name of the project, not the name of the rifle.) Under this project Anschutz barreled actions were put into stocks manufactured by Cooper. A new trigger guard (designed by Cooper) was used and the actions were glass bedded and barrels free floated.

In 1998, Dan Cooper and many of the original Cooper Arms crew began production of the original designs under a new company called "Cooper Firearms of Montana, Inc."; under which all Cooper Arms products are manufactured today. All "former Cooper Arms" products manufactured by Cooper Firearms, Inc. bear the barrel stamp of "Cooper Firearms, Inc.". All newer "Cooper Arms" product produced under the ownership of Dan Cooper bears the barrel stamp of "Cooper Firearms of Montana, Inc.".

Having lived through the rocky period from 1995 to 1998, Dan Cooper and many of the former Cooper employees regrouped. Standing fast to their original goal of making America's finest and most accurate production rifles, the new group decided to make the Cooper rifle more affordable. Without sacrificing accuracy or the quality of its handcrafted stocks, the new Cooper introduced the M21 and M22 in the "Varminter". With a strict 1/2" at 100 yards accuracy guarantee, Cooper began producing its most popular model at half the cost to the consumer.

In 1999, Cooper produced a very limited number (50) of a "version-1" Model 57, 22LR. Based on the former Cooper M36, the M57 used a new extraction system based on the Winchester M52. It was to become the basis of the Model 57-Match, designed for all of Cooper's future rim-fire designs.

In 2001, Cooper added the M57-M to its line. The M57-M is a combination of the Winchester M52, the former Kimber of Oregon M82, and the Anschuetz M54-match. The M57-M is a 3-rear locking lug rim-fire bolt-action repeater. It is currently available in 22LR, 17 Mach 2, 22WMR and the 17HMR and in a variety of stock styles and designs.

Dan Cooper founded Cooper Firearms, Inc. and is the founder of Cooper Firearms of Montana, Inc. He is a 1979 graduate of Lewis and Clark College and is known as the first person in modern history to hike the entire length of the Continental Divide from Mexico to the Bering Strait (North American Divide Expedition, 1980-1985). Dan is a former employee of Kimber of Oregon and Cooper Firearms, Inc.

Please Note:
Independent counsel provides the following history regarding Cooper Firearms, Inc. Cooper Firearms of Montana, Inc. is not responsible for this portion of its content. This history is provided as a chronology and description of Cooper Arms products only. Cooper Firearms of Montana, Inc. manufactures and sells rifles under its trade name "Cooper Arms".