It was factory. Heated handles are BIG in Scandinavia.
Lol...that's because it gets colder than phuck there!
I think Tilton Equipment started in Minnestoa.....so my guess is that a lot of heated handle J'reds were sold/distributed through there. I question how many were actually sold through Tilton of Portland, OR. But in all honesty, I've only really paid attention to the larger cc saws of that era.
Kevin