Alliance is a weird little town of about 22,000 with a rich, but now stagnant industrial history. For the plane enthusiasts, Taylorcraft Aircraft originated here. Due to the proximity of mega steel producers like Pittsburgh and Youngstown, Alliance was a booming manufacturing hub 100 years ago with rail service running right through the city, then and now. We still have a (barely used) AmTrak station. Our mall just officially closed after sitting vacant since I was a child and I guess a Meijer is coming in. Big news for a small town. Real estate is absurdly cheap out here. You can buy a completely livable house for less than $70k.

Local activities include machining gun parts and watching the grass grow. We have a Starbucks. I have never seen a city with such dichotomous neighborhoods. You can be in a ghetto with abject poverty, drive 5 minutes and sit among million dollar homes.

We also have an odd amount of airfields in the area. One of our most interesting talking points is the actual, honest to god castle right in the middle of the city, which currently houses the school administration offices.

The Cat Fanciers' Association inexplicably decided to move their headquarters here. There are a few larger corporations with major offices or headquarters in the industrial park.

There's a couple machine shops, too, including my little one-man gig.

IMPROVED IN OHIO

The Improved In Ohio graphic indicates I have taken a product NOT ORIGINALLY MADE BY ME and modified (and hopefully improved) it in some way. Whether it's a Crosman factory part or from some other seller, I've gotten my hands on it and made it better.

MADE IN OHIO

If a listing on my site features the Made In Ohio graphic, it means it was machined completely from raw materials right here in my small shop. I am blessed with the tools at my disposal, even if they're nothing special compared to a "real" facility. Nevertheless, I take pride in what I machine. If Made In USA is important to you, look for the graphic.