Is gunsmithing a dying trade?

[TMiller556]

As I've been browsing through various sites and forums, I've been hearing how many local gunsmiths have been going out of business. Is there any reason why the gunsmithing business isn't booming like it used to be? Also, why is the trade more readily taught by family or friends and/or passed down from generation to generation rather than being taught in vocational schools or institutions. Do you feel that it's on the decline as well?

 

[JSH1]

Gunsmithing is a trade that will always be in demand as long as there are guns. It is a specialty of machining which is taught in vocational schools all around the world.

 

[ID-shooting]

There are guys who install parts and mount scopes who call themselves gunsmiths. Those aren't gunsmiths, those are armorers. Gunsmiths can make guns out of raw materials. Yes, I do believe they are dwindling in number.

 

[David E]

Gunsmithing is a trade that will always be in demand as long as there are guns.

Looking at any Gunstore displays, you see rows and rows of.....plastic.

Not much call to machine that.

Part broken? Buy a new part online. Remove and replace at your kitchen table.

 

[Fat Boy]

I'm not sure of numbers or percentages but it seems like a lot of Glock and Glock-like (polymer- drop/in parts) guns are being produced today. I think this certainly contributes to less of a need for true gunsmiths- as described above.

Being old enough to remember when guns where predominantly steel and being raised on S&W revolvers I am sad to see the trend

 

[jdh]

People are not willing to pay the cost a true gunsmith has to charge to stay in business or wait the time required for the job to be done properly. Then run straight to the lawyers office and try to sue them into oblivion for what ever comes to mind including their own misuse of the item.

 

[xxjumbojimboxx]

huh

Why would polymer frames contribute to less gunsmithing? when was the last time you went in for some frame work? All of the internals are still there., everything else is the same. Perhaps cause they're easier to work on?

 

[deputy tom]

I have a good friend that is a Gunsmith. He can hand fabricate a metal part, make a stock from scratch, etc. His business is slow as so many people are fixing broken Glocks, ARs and those types of firearms with drop in parts. But if you really need custom work he is still the man. tom.

 

[jim243]

Gunsmith, what's a gunsmith. With build it yourself AR's, drop in triggers, and more DIY equipment and parts, a gunsmith or those that call themselves gunsmiths (maybe, maybe not) are becoming a dying breed. Liability insurance is part of it. But when was the last time you went to a gunsmith instead of sending the gun back to the manufacturer under lifetime warranty?

Jim

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I know a true gunsmith. He is near 75 years old. I know a guy that called himself a gunsmith because he got a near worthless degree from a community college program. He was more a metal butcher than a gunsmith.

 

[TMiller556]

If you ask me, I think it's unfortunate. Years and years of craftsmanship and technique that has survived this long just thrown away. My take on it is that from a financial standpoint, it is nearly impossible for a smith to stay afloat. Owning a shop itself is costly, as is equipment. It also seems like they're also less likely to set up shop in bigger cities now, which hinders the amount of business. It seems lucky if the gunsmith could make a small profit, if any at all. I'm sure the gunsmiths at Glock or SIGs factories aren't feeling the effects.

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

The number of gunsmiths is declining at about the same rate as is the number of most other skilled tradesmen due to a number of things in my opinion. One is the shift in public schooling away from the trades, industrial arts classes are an endangered species because of the push to get everyone in a 4 year college, pregnant, or on drugs. The application of modern technology in elementary education where children are allowed to learn math through pushing symbols and numbers on a keypad has eliminated the construction of the mental paths necessary for deductive reasoning in their minds so it becomes difficult to reason out a solution for a problem. Lastly I believe the natural gift of mechanical ability is being ignored or pushed aside by those who look down on such talents to the point it is disappearing from humanity, at least in this country. There are still people with the talent to create and repair things, but now they are better able to name their own price in a society that is becoming helpless if a reboot doesn't fix the problem. I say these things from being in the commerciaol refrigeration business for the past 30 years and observing those who are entering the trade or the education system which is supposed to prepare them to be technicians.

 

[Jim Watson]

If you are told every day on the www that there is nobody in the country smart enough to work on a Colt revolver, it kind of dampens the interest.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I wish the interest in Colt revolvers would go down. The prices I see on GB and at the local gunshows sure don't show it.

 

[David E]

Why would polymer frames contribute to less gunsmithing?

Need some checkering on the front strap of your 1911? Take it to a gunsmith. Need texturing on the front strap of your Glock? Watch a ten minute video on YouTube and do it yourself.

when was the last time you went in for some frame work?

Decades on steel. Polymer, I do
myself.

All of the internals are still there., everything else is the same.

Compare the internals of a Glock to a 1911 and tell me they're the same.

 

[thump_rrr]

If on of my HK's or AR's has a problem I order a new part and drop it in myself.
If one of my 1911's has a problem I take it to a gunsmith.
I know a gunsmith who is nearly 70 years old.
He has a small gunshop and has been practicing for nearly 50 years.
He would have liked one of his sons to take over but one is an air traffic controller and the other works for the FBI.
Neither will take up his fathers trade.

 

[Black Knight]

I am an armorer for my agency and in my opinion while there are fewer real gunsmiths each year there will always be a need for them. I can work on some guns but a real gunsmith can work on any gun even to the point of fabricating some parts if need be.

 

[StrawHat]

For years, I worked on S&W revolvers, now, not so much. Not knocking 1911's but much is drop in. Even more so with Ar's and other similar non metal firearms.

Is it a dying trade? Yep, and WWII helped kill it off.

 

[oneounceload]

For those who only think in terms of tactical, plastic and mil-surp rifles and handguns the answer is yes./ To those of us who think in terms of quality shotguns, custom rifles and semi-custom handguns, the answer is no - there will be a demand for those folks.

Folks who think $200+ is too much for a gun are not going to use the services of a gunsmith - they will bubba the job themselves. Folks who think nothing of dropping $2000+ on a shotgun, rifle or handgun will always appreciate the skills needed to make and repair those fine guns

 

[Deltaboy1984]

I know a guy whose family owns a local GS and he had been going to school from time to time to pick up the trade, he was a machinist before returning to GS after his job was outsourced. But they dying art.

 

[xxjumbojimboxx]

Need some checkering on the front strap of your 1911? Take it to a gunsmith. Need texturing on the front strap of your Glock? Watch a ten minute video on YouTube and do it yourself.



Decades on steel. Polymer, I do
myself.



Compare the internals of a Glock to a 1911 and tell me they're the same.

Fundamentally yes... they are the same... maybe different applications... but the basics are the same... ive never heard of anyone hos gotten their steel frame checkered... theh again im new to the game... it doesnt seem unlikely...but i dont think the lack of poeple needing checkering on their steel frames pistols is whats slowing down the smothing trade... either way i think the declining popularity of revolvers sort of boosts the lack of a need for gunsmiths... i can do just about anything myself with a semi... wheel guns are much more intricate...

 

[il_10]

Drop in parts, low-priced guns, and the internet are all contributing heavily. Not many people are going to drop $200+ for serious work to a gun that only cost $500 or less to start with. Prices are down because parts are drop-in, not hand fit, for the most part, and replacing/fitting parts is a good chunk of a gunsmith's work.
The internet provides detailed technical information on most any firearm or gunsmithing technique you could imagine. It's allowed a lot of people, myself included, to learn how to work on our own guns. After a few overly expensive and botched jobs by "gunsmiths" I started learning myself, and am now doing bluing jobs and keeping my colts in good working order, fitting 1911 parts and rebarelling rifles. I'd be a good alternative to the local smiths if I spent more time with woodworking.
BUT, I don't see much profit in trying to hang a living on it. I enjoy it, and I'll continue to work on my own guns, but between the insurance costs, the tax and fees for ITAR and ffls, not to mention the overhead of the brick and mortar building, the tooling, and the specialized tools and bits and reamers for every conceivable gun that has to be laying around, you really do need steady, high-dollar work to make any money at it.

 

[bainter1212]

The number of gunsmiths is declining at about the same rate as is the number of most other skilled tradesmen due to a number of things in my opinion. One is the shift in public schooling away from the trades, industrial arts classes are an endangered species because of the push to get everyone in a 4 year college, pregnant, or on drugs. The application of modern technology in elementary education where children are allowed to learn math through pushing symbols and numbers on a keypad has eliminated the construction of the mental paths necessary for deductive reasoning in their minds so it becomes difficult to reason out a solution for a problem. Lastly I believe the natural gift of mechanical ability is being ignored or pushed aside by those who look down on such talents to the point it is disappearing from humanity, at least in this country. There are still people with the talent to create and repair things, but now they are better able to name their own price in a society that is becoming helpless if a reboot doesn't fix the problem. I say these things from being in the commerciaol refrigeration business for the past 30 years and observing those who are entering the trade or the education system which is supposed to prepare them to be technicians.

This.

I am an appliance technician and there is a shortage of technicians in this country. If I get laid off I can walk over to the next company and get instantly hired, because of the lack of experienced techs.

Used to be, dads taught their sons to change tires, oil, tuneups etc so that a boy would have a basic technical knowledge. It used to be shameful for a man not to know how to swap out a flat tire. Now it's the norm.

 

[SleazyRider]

I built my first firearm---a two-shot derringer---in my high school metal shop class. We had several Clausing lathes, a Bridgeport, a small surface grinder, and a forge/foundry area; and I put them all to good use during my lunch, study hall, and any classes I'd care to cut. The gun I manufactured I carried with me on my newspaper route in Newark, NJ, an area that saw a significant increase in violent crime during the late 60's and early 70's, and I did not care to be a victim. And, no, I did not have a permit.

Today, Industrial Arts (shop) classes have disappeared from the curricula of most public high schools, replaced by "Technology" classes where students manipulate images on computers and power kit-bashed vehicles with rubber bands. Though that is all well and good, kids with mechanical aptitude (or in the parlance of that generation, "good hands') are left out in the cold, unless they choose to forego college and attend a vocational school. The fact that college-bound students may have mechanical abilities and abstract thinking skills seems to have eluded school boards these days. Twain's contempt for these astute bodies of men and women was apparently well founded.

So it comes as no surprise to me that true gunsmiths---skilled craftsmen/machinists with highly developed mechanical reasoning skills and specialized knowledge---have all but disappeared.

 

[Queen_of_Thunder]

The only reason I haven't had any major problems with my firearms is that I take them to him first for his ok before I buy them. Once purchased I drop it off with him to take care of anything that needs fixing. I don't know who to take them to if he passes. He is the only one I TRUST to handle my firearms.