| Vyatskiye Polyany Machine-Building Plant | |
| Type: | Open joint-stock company |
| Industry: | Firearms |
| Predecessors: | --> |
| Successors: | --> |
| Founded: | 26 April 1940 |
| Founders: | --> |
| Hq Location City: | Vyatskiye Polyany |
| Hq Location Country: | Russia |
| Areas Served: | --> |
| Parent: | Rostec |
| Website: | Official site |
JSC Vyatskiye Polyany Molot Machine-Building Plant (Russian: Вятско-Полянский машиностроительный завод) is a Russian company based in Vyatskiye Polyany. The plant manufactures rifles and shotguns under the Molot-Oruzhiye (Hammer Weapon) and VEPR (Wild Boar) brands, and is a subsidiary of Rostec.[1] It is one of the largest companies in Kirov Oblast.[2]
Molot was established in 1940, and was originally based in Zagorsk, Moscow Oblast. It was the main manufacturer of the PPSh-41 submachine gun.[3] In 1941 the plant was evacuated to Vyatskiye Polyany with its workers, including G. S. Shpagin and N. F. Makarov, designer of the eponymous Makarov pistol.[3] In the 1950s the plant manufactured the Vyatka motor scooter.[4]
In the 1990s the company diversified by launching a line of sports and hunting weapons.[3] Rifles manufactured in the Molot plant are exported to the United States under the VEPR brand.[5]
The company entered bankruptcy proceedings in 2012; as of 2017 it is being controlled by a bankruptcy managing company.[6]