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Gunsmith training

cervelorod

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Anyone here have any experience with online gunsmith training? I have been getting asked by more friends to help mod their firearms, as I have all the machine tools in the shop already ( kinda the same way we got into revalving snowmobile shocks ). I have been a licensed aircraft mechanic for 7 years, 5 years running my own shop, and have pretty good mechanical and fab skills, but would like to get a bit of specific training in smithing. I haven't found many positive reviews of some of the bigger advertisers of online gunsmith training, and our local comm college doesn't offer anything.

Rod
 
Seems like one of those things where hands on would be required to make it valuable.

Not sure the remote training would be ideal. Hence the reviews
 
There's a bunch of machining yes, but also woodworking and chemical related stuff involved and that's more hands on than online frankly. Now if all you want to work on is the metal bits then its an armorers deal more than anything.

BTW Trinidad State is one of the better "hands on" places but the gunsmithing is only at the school...

Academic Programs
 
Your better off attending some of the manufacturers armorers schools. I'm a gunsmith in the fact I have my 07 and fix guns, no formal training other than general machinist stuff.

Most people DGAF if you can fix their problem.

Glock, Sig, etc all have their own programs which are generally pretty dang good.
 
Sonora Desert Institute sponsors a lot of 2A YouTube channels. Maybe they are good, maybe not but their web site might help you decide.
 
Can you use your machines?

Most gunsmithing is going to be boiler plate "find the broken part and replace it". Some will require some fitting.

If you have general mechanical ability and can reverse engineer stuff looking at a pile of parts you don't need school.

Get an FFL. While you're at it may as well do an SOT and 04/07 so you can fix, manufacture, etc.


You'll need a few tools. Stuff like bore sized alignment rods so you can indicate off the bore to cut threads and chambers. Small odd taps like 6-48 and 8-40.
Mostly just need a handful of cutters and tool holders and a lathe that has a decent headstock size.
 
cervelorod said:
.......... I have been a licensed aircraft mechanic for 7 years......... pretty good mechanical and fab skills.....

Rod
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Not exactly inspiring confidence there butch!:flipoff2:

I have nothing to add with the gunsmithing deal other then I've learned to fix alot on my own and end up fixing other people's junk pretty regularly.
 
Chevy_man said:
Get an FFL. While you're at it may as well do an SOT and 04/07 so you can fix, manufacture, etc.


You'll need a few tools. Stuff like bore sized alignment rods so you can indicate off the bore to cut threads and chambers.
Click to expand...
An 07/02 SOT will allow you to make and sell SBR/SBS/AOW, suppressors and that's where most of the $$ is. Typically, smaller $ is in assembling and modification and simple sales. I'm 100% self taught and it's a heck of a way to figure out how everything works. I started by taking everything apart since I was 5, but if you can get specialized schooling, do that.
 
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[486] said:
Don't bother with schooling, just start bubbafucking whatever junk is cheap and interesting to you

may I recommend belt-fed conversions for retarded things like lever guns
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If you can make me a belt fed lever gun, I will suck your dick from the back.
 
eraser5 said:
Sonora Desert Institute sponsors a lot of 2A YouTube channels. Maybe they are good, maybe not but their web site might help you decide.
Click to expand...
Pretty sure a video shitting on them for being shit passed through my feed yesterday or so. Maybe it was bullshit, maybe it wasn't. I didn't watch it. :flipoff2:
 
KarlVP said:
If you can make me a belt fed lever gun, I will suck your dick from the back.
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Quoting so you can't take it back. :laughing:



It would not be hard (from an engineering standpoint, making the prototype would fucking suck) to take an existing belt fed action and use a lever to make it cycle instead of gas.
 
Yeah, theres a few drasticaly different catagories that would be called "gun smith"

Designing and building new systems
Refurbing classic
Unfucking some drool monkeys 80% ar/g

Which are you wanting to do?
 
subybaja said:
Sounds a lot like Wyotech.
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I looked into them a few years ago. Not looking to change careers or anything, but figured it might be cool to learn some stuff if it wasn't too expensive. Ended up being like $16k and every review I found talked about how shitty it was and basically like Wyotech lol

Most online schools are a waste of time unless you need paperwork to prove you know something. Otherwise you can learn pretty much whatever you want online yourself for free.
 
I dunno, I don't think wyotech is all that bad. It is an outlet for people with basically no frame of reference to get some exposure and knowledge. It's expensive, but the price beats wasting the same amount of time scrubbing floors and draining oil just to figure out you hate it or some such
 
[486] said:
this

I'd bet a lot of those friends looking for custom work also happen to glow in the dark
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Or are cheap as fuck when it’s time to actually pay the cost for quality work.
 
There are a couple of schools around pittsburgh, PA. One of my customers at my old shop went to one and had positive things to say about it. He seemed to know marginally more than me about gun repair (timing revolvers, etc) but had just graduated and needed hands on experience.

I wanted to be a gunsmith when I was a kid. I probably should have done that instead of going to business school and then fixing cars in the rust belt. :laughing:
 
I’ve got an associates degree in gunsmithing from MCC in North Carolina. 2 year long program that was pretty in depth. I don’t work as a gunsmith :lmao:. Most “gunsmith” jobs end up being cleaning nasty junk and fixing broken crap guns. Or explaining that “I can fix your great-granduncledaddy’s crappy old rifle but it’s gonna cost WAY more than you’re willing to pay for me to make the missing broken parts that have been lost for 20 years”.

One of the guys in my class had done the entire American Gunsmithing Institute online program and gotten hired at a shop as their gunsmith. He had to quit the very first day on the job after realizing he didn’t have a clue about actually doing the hands on work. I’d strongly suspect SDI is pretty similar.

There’s like 3-4 NRA accredited gunsmith schools in the country. If you really wanted to get deep in it, I’d look into those but they’re all 2 year programs. MCC does offer several different week long specialty classes though that are very worth it if they line up with what you’re wanting to learn.

» Gunsmithing
 
I doubt you’re gonna learn or even see how to do stuff like this in an online program. I hand carved the stocks from blocks of walnut and there’s not a single piece of either of these that hasn’t been altered or worked on in some way.

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