Why I hate Home Gunsmithing or Wear your safety Glasses

W

Wildalaska

Moderator
The Gun...A p17 Enfield chambered in 300 mag, mismatched bolt, barrel band front sight, Williams rear.

The problem: Wont feed

Evaluation: Bolt face is 30-06. Open bolt face. Check headspace...OK...

Test fire: First round, rear sight blasts off barrel, flies up barely missing face of gunsmnith and puts hole in aluminum door! Numbnuts who did the work drilled rear sight hole too deep.

No injuires, safety glasses were worn.

I love home gunsmithing. Watch my responses to the next bunch of "Hey how do you fix it yourself" questions.:barf:

WildguesswehavetocheckallthesehomeprojectsnowAlaska
 
I'm impressed most folks dont have the equipment at home to do drilling like that. :eek:

I take my stuff to a gunsmith. I just purchased two lyman 10d sights for shotguns that required the bead sight hole to be drilled an tapped. No sense in messing something up that costs 400-500 dollars by trying to save a few bucks myself. :D
 
What's the matter WA...You're sounding a little porky here lately;) First "Bargain Guns" then "Home gunsmithing".

Hey some of us, actually have a clue when it come to home gunsmithing (although maybe only a clue):D

donewithabitmorebutnotthatmoremuchofacluefaugh
 
Im cranky...Im running low on used guns and nobody will trade me anyhting with all the nice shiny new colts I have. All they offer is home ghunsmithed Tauruses

WildhespiffdoubleheaderlastnightAlaska
 
whatja tradin?

I gots me a colteer 22 mag and I wanna 22 hornet, Colteer is is great shape but I would rather have another hornet.
 
WildAlaska-
That is known as barrel porting. But seriously, your first clue should have been the bolt face that wasn't opened up to take a cartridge. Not that I never took a gun in trade that was "fixt reeeel good" . . . Like the supposed "30-06 Improved" that was chambered with a drill to give the improved shoulder.
 
We were fixing this one, not taking it in trade, although we own the action and stock right now :) (the owner was real apologetic, hes a good customer)...

We just found an air leak in the air lines, after rebounding from the door the sight flew up and cracked a PVC joint:eek:

WildalwyssomethingnewAlaska
 
I have seen a rifle drilled by a "real" gunsmith (or at least he had a shop and a shingle), with the front scope base hole drilled right into the chamber. The same guy put on a new barrel and found the headspace too short, so he ground off the back of the bolt lugs. Fortunately, he went on to some other line of work.

Jim
 
Jim,

No comment, except to observe there is a special place in hades for that kind of "professional". It's called the civil court system.

Nick
 
My gunbuddy has his shop out back of his rural home.

I go in one day "You want a new pencil holder" - and plops a cylinder from a Model 10 in my hand.

"So you replaced a cylinder...?

He then "plops" a .357 ctg into the cylinder...and I do mean "Plop" - wiggle room to "allow the spent brass to fall out easy". :eek:

At least the fellow "kinda sorta figured" it was not safe and never tried to fire it.


Me? I launch recoil guide plugs, shotgun plugs across the garage still...a bit of a challenge to hit that certain light bulb ...

I made a deal as did my gunbuddy, we won't play surgeon, dentist, banker, lawyer, LEO, Semi tractor trailer driver/mehanic....if'n them folks don't do our work.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm going to have you double check my measurements on fitting this shotgun to this young lady"

"What are you going to do while I adjust /cut the stock?"

"Drink your coffee/ sodas, and go out back and shoot something...that shiny Colt still in the safe? Told her she could shoot a shiny Colt, need to borrow a box of ammo too."

He does not gripe too much, he sold a shiny Colt and a really nice used Model 37 to the lady.


Old man Bulova once said :

I can teach a person to fix a watch - I just cannot teach them to quit fixing it


Steve
 
Homegunsmithing

Sometimes I even make a little money on them. I have a Mauser action that the "gunsmith" ground off about 1/4 off the front face. My customer bought it at a swap meet. It came with a new barrel to boot. And he got it "cheap":)
At least the barrel is ok. I think he will want me to use another of his actions with that barrel.
 
I love the home gunsmith that brings his gun in to me to fix, and then proceeds to tell me how to fix it. The "home gunsmith" accounts for about a quarter of my business. God love 'em.
Oh yeah, it's always "his brother" that screwed up the gun.
 
When I first started professional gun work, I was amazed by the level of intelligence and skills of the children in the area. I got in a whole lot of "paper bag" guns that the owner assured me his kid took apart. Since in some cases I knew the kid was five or six, I wasn't surprised that he couldn't get a Luger or an H&R breaktop back together; but I thought it was pretty amazing that he could disassemble the gun in the first place.

Jim
 
When firing the first shot out of an unknown gun, where a "helper" or "friend" is not available to do it for you, put a blanket over the rifle.
 
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