Guns and Leather, Hendersonville

Guns and Leather is as much an artists' studio as a shooting range. As onsite gunsmith for more than 30 years, Jeff Walle spends his days restoring and customizing firearms, sometimes machining a part for an antique rifle or working on an engraving.

Walle's respect for the tradition and history of firearms characterizes Guns and Leather, started by the Williams family as a humble 800-square-foot shop in 1999. By 2004, the Williams nearly tripled the size of their operation, moving to a 2,100-square-foot facility in Greenbrier. Today, they oversee a 75-foot indoor range split into five standard lanes with electric target retrieval and five computerized lanes with a Mancom system that can make targets pivot and moonwalk. They also supervise a 35-foot, 15-lane range in Hendersonville, which, like its predecessor, is outfitted with climate-control and air-filtration systems. Beyond supervising the ranges, the Williams also oversee a team of state licensed, NRA-compliant instructors that runs the Guns and Leather Shooting Academy, an instructional suite with courses tailored for everyone from everyday citizens to military personnel. To further demonstrate their commitment to responsible firearms practices, the Williams also coordinate a Junior Shooting Sports Program.