What a Way to Run a Rail Road

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KEYBEAR

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Last year in October I took a Ruger Super Blackhawk to a gunsmith for some work . Today he called and I thought good it is done but no .


He said he got some contracts for parts and does not have the time and please come pick the Ruger up . He has two of my Rugers one needed to have the barrel cut and the front sight reinstalled (not done) . The other a Ruger Super Blackhawk Predator also needs some work (Not Done)


it is over three months I have not called him in this time . He did some work for me two years ago and did a great job and fast . No big deal it is winter and way to cold to shoot much . I really makes me mad I drove 280 miles to his shop (three trips) now one more THE LAST ONE .
 
Gunsmiths are getting hard to find. Good ones even harder I guess.

I had an excellent pistolsmith years ago who closed shop, went back to being an armorer in public service and exploring a business manufacturing choke tubes. Apparently, there isn’t much money at all in gunsmithing.

I can imagine most people won’t pay fair for top quality work or have reasonable expectations.

On the other hand, what is Hamilton Bowen’s waiting time like these days? I have a signed cooy of his marvelous book, and even the book is on eBay for $400!

I would make a terrible gunsmith.
“Can I make your $125 Plinkster feed on any old crap ammo, including grandpa’s stash of .22 short? Sure. $200. Come back next week.” Hand them a Savage bolt action .22.

“Can I put a suppressor on your deer rifle? Get out of my shop.”
“Can I put a suppressor on your 10/22 to shoot supersonic rounds quietly? Give me $20. No, I can’t unless you shoot in a vacuum.”
“Can I fix the Chinese flashlight laser beam and waffle maker you bolted on to the front end of your tinker toy ar-15?” $20. Get that piece of crap out of my shop.
“Can I give your Glock a trigger job? $600. Here is a 1911.”

No one says “I just bought a new shotgun- does it fit me? Can you modify the stock so I can shoot better? I know your time is valuable...”

More and more the solution would be to buy what you want then sell what you have, do it yourself, or send it to a real specialist.
 
stinkeypete said:
Gunsmiths are getting hard to find. Good ones even harder I guess.

I had an excellent pistolsmith years ago who closed shop, went back to being an armorer in public service and exploring a business manufacturing choke tubes. Apparently, there isn’t much money at all in gunsmithing.
Click to expand...

Anyone who has the skills to be a good gunsmith can make a lot more money doing other jobs without having to deal with the public.

Anyone who does gunsmithing as a job has to love doing gunsmithing.
 
Years ago every small town had one or two Good Gunsmiths . They were people that retired from a shop that they had work at for forty years . Most were very good some better .
 
Most gunsmiths are terrible businessmen.
They think having a large backlog of work is a good thing- good security. Some are afraid if they put the customer off for a while that they will lose the customer.
Once they have a large backlog of items, it becomes a nightmare. A customer starts griping, so that work is prioritized-putting other work even further behind. The process repeats itself until working on anything is overwhelming.

While I don't do gunsmithing per se, I do make some parts and my primary business is repairing knives. I refuse to let work pile up and try to get everything out in 2-3 weeks. There have been some major jobs that have taken years-but they are the exception. If I have to put the customer off sending work for a month or two, I do so.

A major reason that work gets backed up is best explained by an analogy- If a mechanic makes most of his money doing oil changes and tune ups, your engine rebuild is going to take a long time.
 
A guy I worked with told me this story about a gunsmith we both know. He is a really good smith, and has done a couple small jobs for me. Both excellent. Almost everybody in this area knows this gunsmith and knows how ornery he can get if a customer gets under his skin.

My friend took a rifle to said gunsmith, and was told he would get a call when the job was completed. A few months went by, and my friend wanted his rifle back before hunting season. So he stopped by the gunsmiths shop, and asked how long till he would get his rifle done. The gunsmith got out his card file, found my friend's ticket and put it at the back, as if the gun had just been brought in. Moral of the story--when your gun is done, you'll get a phone call, and till then, you get to wait.
 
There's an old saying that goes, "a good gunsmith seldom gets rich, but he rarely starves..."

Skilled metal and woodworkers are getting fewer and fewer, and of them the ones who do guns are even fewer yet. And they only have the same amount of time as the rest of us. Some of them even have lives....

Something I learned a long time ago, don't tick off your gunsmith, mechanic, plumber, or cook. Or anyone else who does things for you that you don't want to, or can't do for yourself.
 
stinkeypete said:
Gunsmiths are getting hard to find. Good ones even harder I guess.

I had an excellent pistolsmith years ago who closed shop, went back to being an armorer in public service and exploring a business manufacturing choke tubes. Apparently, there isn’t much money at all in gunsmithing.

I can imagine most people won’t pay fair for top quality work or have reasonable expectations.

On the other hand, what is Hamilton Bowen’s waiting time like these days? I have a signed cooy of his marvelous book, and even the book is on eBay for $400!

I would make a terrible gunsmith.
“Can I make your $125 Plinkster feed on any old crap ammo, including grandpa’s stash of .22 short? Sure. $200. Come back next week.” Hand them a Savage bolt action .22.

“Can I put a suppressor on your deer rifle? Get out of my shop.”
“Can I put a suppressor on your 10/22 to shoot supersonic rounds quietly? Give me $20. No, I can’t unless you shoot in a vacuum.”
“Can I fix the Chinese flashlight laser beam and waffle maker you bolted on to the front end of your tinker toy ar-15?” $20. Get that piece of crap out of my shop.
“Can I give your Glock a trigger job? $600. Here is a 1911.”

No one says “I just bought a new shotgun- does it fit me? Can you modify the stock so I can shoot better? I know your time is valuable...”

More and more the solution would be to buy what you want then sell what you have, do it yourself, or send it to a real specialist.
Click to expand...
Lolz.
 
Keybear, the gunsmith in question in your original post wouldn't be G.R. on Bardstown Rd. in Louisville KY would it? I've had LONG delays in getting anything done there myself. Rod
 
rodfac No not the same .
Over three months ago I took two Rugers to this GunSmith Today I have them home no work done . This Shop is a two man operation both young guys been open for a 1 1/2 years . They were doing a lot of work for gun shops and walk in people .
It is sad what they did not just me but the rest of the customers . The shop is called Custom Firearms And Repair or CF-GUNWORKS East OF FRANKFORT Indiana .
 
IMG_0320_zpswivk7m5k.jpg


This Is the Ruger Predator on top that needs work The Other one is an old RCA Tomahawk .
 
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