Upon reaching the age of 21 in 1842, Eli Whitney Jr. assumed command of his late father's gun making empire. Although he realized that the armory required updating to meet improved tolerances adopted by the U.S. War Department, he also realized that a profit might be made in turning out arms of lesser standards for independent sale to militia or the states. As a result, younger Whitney's product line included not only several of the regulation U.S. longarms, but also a number of "good and serviceable" militia arms, including: