As the rest of the Basque firearms industry was hit by declining demand, one company after another closed its doors. Various solutions were suggested, the most common being some kind of amalgamation of small shops into one large company that would be globally competitive, with the most modern production methods and centralized marketing. In the early 1980s, <strong>AYA</strong> and about 20 other companies combined into one, called Diarm S.A. A new factory was built in the town of Itziar. Unfortunately, for a variety of reasons, the new enterprise did not last. After a couple of years, Diarm closed down. Imanol <strong>Aranzabal</strong>, a descendant of the founder and a former executive of both <strong>AYA</strong> and Diarm, assembled the best gunmakers from the Diarm shop and resurrected the <strong>AYA</strong> name. They repurchased the remaining stock of <strong>AYA</strong> parts, and set up shop on the second floor of a building on the Bidebarrieta in Eibar. With Imanol running the company and a dozen top craftsmen working in the shop, the new <strong>AYA</strong> reissued the last catalog of the old <strong>AYA</strong>, and by 1989 the company was back in the business of making fine double guns. At first, the new <strong>AYA</strong> concentrated on only the best-selling models — the Nº 1 and Nº 2 sidelocks, and the Nº 4 boxlock. Gradually, they added other great models from previous years — the Model 37 over-and-under and the even more elaborate Model Augusta, the XXV guns (similar to Churchills, with 25 inch barrels), the competition side-by sides (Model Nº 53 and Model Nº 56), and a range of more elaborate boxlock guns. Sadly, the Senior was not among the offerings, and probably never will be. The basic frame for making a Beesley action is no longer produced in Spain, and obtaining the raw materials elsewhere would be cost-prohibitive. In the United Kingdom, Anglo Spanish Imports resumed its relationship with the new <strong>AYA</strong>, and began looking at how the line might be expanded to appeal to a new generation – 13 – Spanish Treasure of English lovers of fine guns. The result was the Nº 1 “de Luxe”, a gun comparable in quality and finish to the finest English guns, yet selling for a much lower price. The de Luxe would be finished in the white in Spain, with stock-finishing, engraving, blacking, and case-hardening carried out in England. The Nº 1 “de Luxe” was a sensation. <strong>AYA</strong> then took the concept a step further, for the rest of the markets, the Nº 1 “de Luxe” is built and finished completely in Spain. Since 1988 the company had steadily expanded its network of dealers and customers in all the world. Each dealer had his own ideas of what guns would sell to his clients, and <strong>AYA</strong> enthusiastically took to making variations on its standard models to suit individual tastes. Model Nº 1 “de Luxe”
– 14 – <strong>AYA</strong> in 1992