glocking26
Member
Tell you what where I live you can't find a gunsmith good or bad. If you can find one the waiting list is 2-3 months for any work you want done. Seems to me you can make descent living doing it. A least here in Pa. anyway.
Is there a niche of gunsmithing where a guy could still make a great living?
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xfyrfiter
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I had an old smith tell me one time that " to make a small fortune in gunsmithing, start with a large fortune". It seems that a lot of the craftsman trades are like this. To do fine work takes time and skill, most people can't afford to pay for the time, and if they can, they already have their source figured out.
If you learn to smooth out the triggers and actions, install luminous sights, build up frame tangs into "ducktails' all for the pocket 9's and 380's, that might be a niche. Terry Tussey did will with it, 20 odd years ago. Somebody needs to do it, for sure. More to do with working with plastic than steel, these days.
jimmyraythomason
Member
The reason competent gunsmiths are ALWAYS backed up is because there are so few of them. The reason there are so few of them is because of a lack of new talent entering the profession. The reason there are so few entering the profession is because they are constantly being told it isn't worth it.
Pointshoot
Member
I'd sure be curious to find out from long-time-in-business gunsmiths why there are so relatively few of them out there . . . especially good ones. As others have mentioned, they are hard to find locally and often backlogged for a very long time. Why is that ?
Years ago, they actually had t.v./electronics repairmen. I remember as a kid (who was interested in electronics) speaking to the local t.v./radio/stereo repairman. - - Well electronics became cheaper over the years and people now are more likely to throw out something that breaks down rather than try to have it repaired. I see even fewer t.v. repairmen (like none !) than gunsmiths. But guns aren't like t.v.s, with prices falling tremendously over time - so what happened ? Is the hassle and regulations associated with firearms keeping people away, or what ?
An old friend of mine who passed away was a master machinist, welder, millwright, mechanic, and pretty good cabinet maker. I imagine he would have had no problem doing the work associated with a gunsmith if he had chosen to go that route. I think there must be plenty of people with the needed skills & aptitude for general gunsmithing.
Years ago, they actually had t.v./electronics repairmen. I remember as a kid (who was interested in electronics) speaking to the local t.v./radio/stereo repairman. - - Well electronics became cheaper over the years and people now are more likely to throw out something that breaks down rather than try to have it repaired. I see even fewer t.v. repairmen (like none !) than gunsmiths. But guns aren't like t.v.s, with prices falling tremendously over time - so what happened ? Is the hassle and regulations associated with firearms keeping people away, or what ?
An old friend of mine who passed away was a master machinist, welder, millwright, mechanic, and pretty good cabinet maker. I imagine he would have had no problem doing the work associated with a gunsmith if he had chosen to go that route. I think there must be plenty of people with the needed skills & aptitude for general gunsmithing.
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Sam1911
Moderator Emeritus
I'd say it is something like that example, Pointshoot.
There are millions more guns in folks' hands these days. Just like there's millions more television sets. But several things conspire against having a neighborhood gunsmith employed to tinker with them.
For one, the products themselves are generally better. They meet folks expectation and needs more readily out of the box. They largely work fine. They're more ergonomic, and they are more accurate right off the shelf. They also are increasingly modular and user-serviceable. Hundreds of operations that would be a gunsmith's bread-and-butter 30 years ago are now easily handled by the average end user at his own kitchen table. (The single most common rifle in America can be built from a bare receiver to a read-to-fire battle rifle in an hour, sitting on your couch, if you don't mind a few "dings" in the coffee table.
)
Plus, shipping has changed a lot. Remember how everything you might order was "please, allow six weeks..."? Now folks expect the factory service department to handle anything that wasn't perfect about their new gun, and have it back to them in two weeks or even less. Why take it to the local guy?
The guys who are really doing well are often doing quite intensive stuff. Like Bowen, and Yost, and Turnbull, Gemini Customs, and Ford's refinishing, and Simmons' Guns, etc. These guys are out there, and do awesome stuff. But they've really found a niche and then made their own legends based on the very high quality of their work, and the universally high quality of the various craftsmen who work under their banner. (i.e.: TIG welders, polishers, case-hardening experts, barrel regulators/solderers, action-work guys) and someone with the vision to hold all those crafts together into a distinct, signature product.
I'll add another point. Back in the 40s, 50s, 60s, and 70s there was a resource that we don't have any more: The super-cheap military surplus firearm that was very good "breeding stock" for high-end custom guns. Mausers, Springfields, 1917s, 1911s, S&W wheelguns, etc. (to say nothing of the "worthless" old 19th century lever-action and SAA type arms no one wanted any more) all available for nearly free, and available for honing skills on, and making masterpieces out of. Then, consider taxes, environmental regs and requirements, OSHA, and all the other little nibbles that take profit and time away from the craftsman. These days there's a totally different dynamic about guns. In some ways it is a lot better.
There are millions more guns in folks' hands these days. Just like there's millions more television sets. But several things conspire against having a neighborhood gunsmith employed to tinker with them.
For one, the products themselves are generally better. They meet folks expectation and needs more readily out of the box. They largely work fine. They're more ergonomic, and they are more accurate right off the shelf. They also are increasingly modular and user-serviceable. Hundreds of operations that would be a gunsmith's bread-and-butter 30 years ago are now easily handled by the average end user at his own kitchen table. (The single most common rifle in America can be built from a bare receiver to a read-to-fire battle rifle in an hour, sitting on your couch, if you don't mind a few "dings" in the coffee table.
)Plus, shipping has changed a lot. Remember how everything you might order was "please, allow six weeks..."? Now folks expect the factory service department to handle anything that wasn't perfect about their new gun, and have it back to them in two weeks or even less. Why take it to the local guy?
The guys who are really doing well are often doing quite intensive stuff. Like Bowen, and Yost, and Turnbull, Gemini Customs, and Ford's refinishing, and Simmons' Guns, etc. These guys are out there, and do awesome stuff. But they've really found a niche and then made their own legends based on the very high quality of their work, and the universally high quality of the various craftsmen who work under their banner. (i.e.: TIG welders, polishers, case-hardening experts, barrel regulators/solderers, action-work guys) and someone with the vision to hold all those crafts together into a distinct, signature product.
I'll add another point. Back in the 40s, 50s, 60s, and 70s there was a resource that we don't have any more: The super-cheap military surplus firearm that was very good "breeding stock" for high-end custom guns. Mausers, Springfields, 1917s, 1911s, S&W wheelguns, etc. (to say nothing of the "worthless" old 19th century lever-action and SAA type arms no one wanted any more) all available for nearly free, and available for honing skills on, and making masterpieces out of. Then, consider taxes, environmental regs and requirements, OSHA, and all the other little nibbles that take profit and time away from the craftsman. These days there's a totally different dynamic about guns. In some ways it is a lot better.
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Pointshoot
Member
Sam1911 - maybe you're on to something. Maybe the new out of the box firearms work well enough for most gun owners purposes & those who have desires beyond that go to the specialists. (And if they run into an immediate problem send it back to the factory.)
That's just one very small reason I wish my old friend, who I mentioned earlier, who had so many skills was still around. He had the machine tools, welding gear, etc and ability to do many small gunsmithing type jobs. But I doubt he would have chosen to be a gunsmith as he made a lot more money working in other areas (Boeing - experimental aircraft, manufacturer of custom parts for race cars, etc.)
That's just one very small reason I wish my old friend, who I mentioned earlier, who had so many skills was still around. He had the machine tools, welding gear, etc and ability to do many small gunsmithing type jobs. But I doubt he would have chosen to be a gunsmith as he made a lot more money working in other areas (Boeing - experimental aircraft, manufacturer of custom parts for race cars, etc.)
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