# Gunsmithing career.



## smitty8765 (Nov 6, 2009)

I have always loved firearms was raised around them. I was recently laid off and was wondering how someone would pursue a career in gunsmithing. I have always wondered how you would get started in something like this? I think this would be an awesome job to have.


----------



## quackertackr (Nov 6, 2009)

There are several schools that offer gunsmithing. There is a lot to learn to be proficient. The equipment can be bought fairly cheap in todays economy, but will still cost several thousands of dollars. I would research extensively before jumping into this full time. Experience is what makes money.


----------



## Doyle (Nov 6, 2009)

The most talked about school for gunsmithing is over in Colorado.  I can't remember the name, but it has a really good reputation.


----------



## Ga-Bullet (Nov 6, 2009)

Trinidad Jr. College In Colorado.


----------



## mike bell (Nov 9, 2009)

i went to trinidad 91 - 94


----------



## Cknerr (Nov 10, 2009)

I have no formal education in gunsmithing, however it is what I do for a living.

Think my way of learning was the hard way. Some schooling would have been a real asset! On the other hand, I am in a niche for  gunsmiths. There aren't many school specifically for restoring old firearms, making by hand wood gun stocks (all one of a kind and really are carved by hand -kinda pricey), and gun fitting.

Depending on what direction you want to go in might require a different eduction. I grew up in my father's machine shop and have been a life long wood worker. Made my first gun stock with Dad's guidance at 12 (40 years ago). Those 2 things have really helped me a lot....but I am pretty hopeless when it comes to more mundane gunsmithing tasks. I just don't want to do them so don't. Please don't take this as having my nose in the air, really hope I don't. Just my interests don't lay in the usual path of the 'smiths such the folks at places like Adventure Outdoors, Deercreek, etc. 

Think about what really interests you. Also, look around the Internet at all the possible things you can do with firearms. You might find something you where unaware of and might be interesting. Think about it and then figure out what your education should be. Did you know there is a very famous engraving school in Italy that is almost free? Payment to them is you teach just one person how to engrave. (I am pretty much all thumbs engraving metal, now wood is oddly an entirely different matter)

Like most career choices, there will be odd twists and turns as time goes by. I was a mechanical engineer in days of yore and chucked it all for this. Never looked back. There is a tricky balance to all this. You will have find out what you like to do plus find out what you can do. That couple with finding out what people will pay you to do equals a new and wonderful career path that can pay the bills.

Welcome to a wonderful world of craftsmen,
Chris


----------



## smitty8765 (Nov 11, 2009)

thanks Chris.


----------



## RJY66 (Nov 11, 2009)

Smitty, don't know what your background is but maybe you could start out taking some basic machine tool and welding classes at a local tech school.  A gunsmith is going to need to know his way around that kind of thing and you can see if you like it.


----------



## smitty8765 (Nov 11, 2009)

I worked in on heavy equipment for 6 years so the welding/braising is'nt a problem. Lathes and milling machines are covered too.


----------



## mike bell (Nov 11, 2009)

Learn the basics of all of it and understand the workings and relationships of the guns and parts.  Refinishing, trigger jobs and parts mending are pretty easy with practice as long as you are fairly skillfull with your hands. 

A gunsmith is not something to drop everything and become overnight.  Well I take that back, anybody can open a shop and drop in parts...but long term success is in the art.  New engravers wont last long if they dont have the artistic ability.  Building your 'smithing abilities, your gun knowledge and your name as a reliable smith is paramount to being successful enough to make a living.

Stock makers like Chris are wood working artist.  It has taken him years of experience to be able to make a living at it.  You said you have lathe and milling experience, look more into rifle building and turning barrels. Think about specializing in your favorite part about gunsmithing.  If you are good at it go for it.  But learn everything you can!


----------



## rayjay (Nov 13, 2009)

Right off the bat you need $10,000 to $15,000 worth of machines and tools plus probably another $6000 minimum for the start up costs inherent in any new business. The BATF will then drag their feet for at least 8 months.

In the last year I have seen 2 bbl tenons done by 'gunsmiths' that had threads in name only. One looked like a 60 degree V file and the other looked like a ratchet with nothing even resembling a 60 degree surface. Imagining yourself as a gunsmith and actually being one is not the same thing.


----------



## Cknerr (Nov 13, 2009)

Rayjay,
Your equipment price is a bit light I think, but not by much. The other expense is where are you going to set up shop? Workbenchs, cabinets, shelving ....never freakin quits! Then there are consumables..... you get the point I guess.

I would suggest working for someone awhile. You'll find out what tools you REALLY need. 'course, finding a gunsmith job might be a bit difficult. 

Starting up your own shop is like starting up any other business. Since there are not enough gunsmiths around, you likely can make it work. Contact the SBC for some advice and Kenesaw Tech has some small business courses I found very useful.

Getting an ear full!

Best of luck,
Chris

PS: thought about working on friend's broken stuff? It is a way to learn if you have an aptitude for it. The Internet can show you just about anything you need to do and folks here can fill in the gaps. Since they are friends, hopefully they will understand that if you don't success they will have to take it to a gunsmith. If you do it, then it is free.


----------



## LawnStalker (Nov 25, 2009)

Montgomery Community college in Troy NC another school to look into.


----------



## blackbird47 (Dec 2, 2009)

Great advice guys!!. What a wonderful community!!!


----------



## acmech (Dec 3, 2009)

Fixing broken guns you've found at pawn shops is a good place to get experience I'd think.  I'm not a gunsmith nor a machinists but I know a little bit.  I bought a lathe a mill a couple years ago, and taught myself how to use em so I can do alright with them.  Years ago, when AK kits were cheap, I went to the ATF site, found the regs on building your own legal semi-auto AK's and started tinkering.  Friends of course wanted their own, so they bought kits, bent tapco flats on the jig I machined, and I walked them through the builds.  Never charged anyone or tried to make any money off of helping them, some guys donated shop supplies on occasion.  After doing a large no. of builds that way, I've got ak's figured out. 
My point is, knowing what I know about ak's now wasn't my goal, learning machining was my inclination.  I know a guy who took an online gunsmithing course because he loved guns and thats something he wanted to do.  Well, having  little mechanical ability, he gave up his dream after screwing up a couple of guns with bad trigger jobs.  Luckily they were his guns and made by Taurus so he sent them in under the lifetime warranty for repair. 
 Don't know, but in a slow economy I'd think when people are cutting all sorts of corners, gunsmith work wouldn't be booming unless you had already made a name for yourself, thats just my opinion though.  I'd encourage developing it as a hobby though.  Being a local cheap guy who can bend a bolt on a yugo mauser, or mill a .45 slide for custom sights would be a way to start.


----------



## ford97 (Dec 4, 2009)

Im kind of like you Smitty, I just turned 18 years old and have been around guns all my life. I have worked at baygall sporting clays in Rockyford GA for over 2 years now and love the long guns! In the past 10 months I have made over $12,000 just fixing, modifying, and selling shotguns and rifles that I have won in sporting clays tournaments. I never have really done any real gunsmithing, just stuff like fitting recoil pads, changing firing pins and hammer springs on many shotguns, building a few 10/22s and doing a few trigger jobs on some of my rifles and stuff like that, but shooting sporting clays is my passion. My dream is to open my own outdoors store when im out of college. I just hope the economy picks up so this is possible. Good luck with the gunsmithing carreer.


----------



## EMC-GUN (Dec 4, 2009)

ford97 said:


> Im kind of like you Smitty, I just turned 18 years old and have been around guns all my life. I have worked at baygall sporting clays in Rockyford GA for over 2 years now and love the long guns! In the past 10 months I have made over $12,000 just fixing, modifying, and selling shotguns and rifles that I have won in sporting clays tournaments. I never have really done any real gunsmithing, just stuff like fitting recoil pads, changing firing pins and hammer springs on many shotguns, building a few 10/22s and doing a few trigger jobs on some of my rifles and stuff like that, but shooting sporting clays is my passion. My dream is to open my own outdoors store when im out of college. I just hope the economy picks up so this is possible. Good luck with the gunsmithing carreer.



I would say you have gotten off to a good start with gunsmithing on a hobby level.


----------



## GAJOEY (Dec 14, 2009)

I graduated back in 95 from a School in Atmore Alabama with a degree in gunsmithing  I think it has since stopped offering the program due to lack of intrest and funding...The fact of it is if you have the $20,000 for a decent shop and another $15,000 for machinery you can maybe break even after a few years . there are so many other cost involved with working on guns, like insurance, your FFL, buisness liscense, chemicals for bluing and wood working , all sorts of permits (depending on the county you live in ) that really add up ..If you learn your trade you can make something out of it but it takes tons of work, time and a plan ....you may make a killing certian times of the year,then all of the sudden it will dry up and you are eating beanie weenies .. I have tried to run a shop and I failed because of the cost involved , my  lack of a plan did not help either .I can do the work and  I am confident in my work ..But My kids have to eat so I had to get a real job. Not to say I won't try again but you can bet I will have a better plan next time....I would say draw up a plan and work your plan and you can make it.Work on anything anyone will let you work on to learn as much as possible


----------



## rayjay (Dec 15, 2009)

I just thought of another downside to being a gunsmith nowadays. A lot of people working on guns are old retired guys. Their machinery is paid for, their shop is paid for, house paid for, no dependents at home, probably some sort of pension coming in, living expenses are real low, etc. Gunsmithing makes them a bit of spending money and gives them something to do with their time.

There is also another set of gunsmiths that have a daytime job and work on guns at night and on weekends. They might have their shop at home = low overhead. 

Kinda hard to compete against these guys if you are starting from scratch and want to have a brick and mortar shop. Rent, insurance, utilities, payroll, parts bills, supplies, tooling.....


----------



## gator37 (Dec 15, 2009)

*Gun smith*

My dad was an aeronautical engineer. One day I asked him how did he learn so much about metals, treatment, etc. He told me that he took home study and shop coarses to be a gun smith when he was younger. It had to be in Virginia somewhere but that would have been about 65-70 years ago. He did know his matals, metal treatment and finishes.
Wished he was still around.

I told my kids when they were growing up to  find out what you would like to do for the rest of their life for a living and persue it, not necessarily what your parents want you to be, or you will never be happy.


----------



## jo_dawg69 (Dec 31, 2009)

definately tinkering around first and getting to know a few guns out of hobby is a great start. i have been around them all my life. always wanted to work on them. no local schools around, so i just started tearing apart my own guns and studying them. now i can fix whatevers wrong with them. and then once you have a decent foundation, you can start projects for people like say on this forum. thats the best way i know how to do it, unless you go to school for it.


----------



## Doyle (Dec 31, 2009)

I think that you also need to make a distinction between a gunsmith that is simply trained as a "parts replacer" and a gunsmith that actually does custom machine work and parts making.   I would think that the training for the latter is significantly more than the former.


----------



## usmc2112 (Jan 2, 2010)

Tinkering is a great start, in times like these when the crime rate goes up gun sales/mods go up.  But I still wouldn't go into a full blown business right now.  I'm with GAJOEY....if you want to do it right, your gonna need a 20k shop, and 15k in equipment, then an ffl, shop overhead etc. etc.  sure you can squeak by without an ffl and peacemealing a  shop together, but all it takes is one broken screw or misplaced stroke of the file and your reputation in ruined for life, or one gun that is not yours and "questionalbe" and the BATFE will be on you like white on rice....so... tinker some more to see if you like it, and then if you do jump in feet first.  just my 2 cents.


----------

