In Memory Of CALVERT N. FOSTER SR. 1940-2002

After years of supervising a machine shop that specialized in aerospace manufacturing for clients such as Pratt & Whitney, Cal decided to move his family back to his beloved Vermont hills and open his own facility. Foster Industries soon obtained a reputation as a shop that could be counted on for its on time, high precision machining. Cal soon got the reputation of being an innovator and problem solver.

Being an avid hunter and Post Korean War veteran from , Cal had a long time interest in firearms. He actively solicited work in that field and it paid off. In the early eighties Cal had a good portion of his family working with him for companies like Auto Ordnance, Detonics, and Randall, his fascination with the 1911 began. Cal soon learned that manufacturers can come and go. He needed his own product, and Caspian Arms was born in 1983.

There was a segment of the 1911 community that was being ignored, the custom market, and Cal was determined to serve it. By 1985 Caspian Arms had already gained a reputation as the premier supplier of match grade 1911 components. No longer did the pistol smith have to buy a production pistol, throw away the parts, hammer the rails and bend the slide to make a match grade 1911. Now he could build one from the ground up on precision components. A new generation of custom 1911's had begun.