Gunsmithing Certified Gunsmithing

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texasvmi

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Apr 11, 2010
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WHERE EVER UNCLE SAM SENDS ME
#1
Gentlemen and Ladies, I am looking to turn my hobby into something a little more. I am interested in furthering my skills on Gunsmithing, Do any of you have a recommended school or reputable program I can put my hard earned money in to. I fully intend on finding a good smith that I can study under and glean years of know how off of, but I need a solid primer to get a correct solid basis in the art without the Senior man having to take time to teach me the little things that can be gotten else where. I appreciate any and all help in this matter I can get. I am also looking for a Gunsmith that knows his trade from which I can study under, Thank you all again.

D. Gray
 
#4
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

force_multiplier and BPA Woodwalker, thank you for the information! It looks like both Tuition Assistance (provided by Uncle Sam) and the GI Bill could pay for these courses. I just wanted to be sure I wasn't throwing money at a "Diploma Mill." Thank you, again.

Dave Gray
 
#8
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

ok, there are really what 5 good gunsmithing programs... I'm from oklahoma and don't personally know anything about the others except by reputation, but even if I was somewhere else Murray State would be my pick simply because of the cost of living while going to school
 
#9
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

If you have time before you make the decision, I'd recommend a class or two at the local community college. A skill that seems to get glossed over a bit with some of the 'smithing schools is welding proficiency. Taking a basic machine shop class and a welding class will be time and money well spent. A good welder is worth his weight in gold at any shop. TiG welding especially.
 
#10
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: texasvmi</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Gentlemen and Ladies, I am looking to turn my hobby into something a little more. I am interested in furthering my skills on Gunsmithing, Do any of you have a recommended school or reputable program I can put my hard earned money in to. I fully intend on finding a good smith that I can study under and glean years of know how off of, but I need a solid primer to get a correct solid basis in the art without the Senior man having to take time to teach me the little things that can be gotten else where. I appreciate any and all help in this matter I can get. I am also looking for a Gunsmith that knows his trade from which I can study under, Thank you all again.

D. Gray </div></div>


Spend it on tooling and machinery. Then quit your job and go work for a machine shop for pennies and soak every bit of smarts from the sharpest guys in the shed.

Then tinker with the bangsticks. It's easy at that point.


I ran the production effort for Nesika Bay Precision. I was given 5 1st year graduates straight out of gunsmithing school. What it taught ME is that vocational schools aren't about education, they are about job placement and filling a student's head with illusions of Hollywood calling. 3 of those guys were fired or run off. Two actually made it and are capable of producing a gun that looks like something.

Your not going to graduate a votech and make 50K a year. Tuition got you a job, that's all it got you. Now it's time to actually learn something.

Good luck.

Chad

Chad Dixon
Gunmaker
LongRifles, Inc.
 
#13
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

OK, if I'm wrong, I'm at least open to enlightenment. Enlighten us, please.

C. Dixon makes as much sense as any I've read in this thread, and not just about gunsmithing. I admire a good school as much as the next guy, but I also think a lot of what's being hyped these days as education is a lot more like snake oil in the long haul.

Greg
 
#14
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

I agree Greg.

The owner of CST, Robert Martin, is a tool and the curriculum is very rudimentary. You learn the basics and there are good instructors and great people there but you'd get much more for your money elsewhere. There's no advanced machining options (CNC, CAD, etc). There are schools with that option. Robert Martin screws the students out of tuition and provides as little education as he can get away with. He purchased the school in the 80s and used the same machine shop equipment for 25 years that should have been replaced long before. He replaced some of the equipment recently but for years it was more important to line his pockets than reinvest some profit into the school and improve the students experience / education.

Their policy now is that all instructors must have gone thru the school (not inherently bad). He ran off some of the best instructors in the business because he could make more money paying graduates. Darcy Echols used to teach the stock making (amazing stock maker).

I'm not saying you can't get a good education there but you have to work much harder than you should need to when you are footing the bill. Other schools pay top notch instructors good money to teach their students and offer much more current technology and theory.
 
#17
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

I agree with the previous post in many ways. Learning machine work is the way to go. That is the reason I picked my program. It allows me to get all the basics in gunsmithing while taking as many machine shop courses as I want a with lot shop time and with very little classroom time.

Thanks,
David
 
#18
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Maniac2 Currahee</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I go to Wabash Valley College in Mt. Carmel, Il. It is a new program but I a very good one. I have a lot of options for extra machining classes and very low tuition rates and cost of living.I use the Post 911 Gi bill and the school is very military friendly. If you would like more info, pm me.

http://www.iecc.edu/wvc/programs.html

Thanks,
David </div></div>

I may be way off just looking at the course schedule, but it appears to be 2 semesters of gunsmithing classes followed by 2 more semesters of general ed classes like english/math and an elective of choice. Am I missing something here? Just looking at the machine shop tech class offered and comparing it to the gunsmithing, if I were going to that school I'd probably look at either double majoring or go for the machine tech degree and pick up the gunsmithing as electives. The machine tech looks to have a much more thorough curriculum, just based on the course descriptions.
 
#19
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Immorteq</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I agree Greg.

The owner of CST, Robert Martin, is a tool. Robert Martin screws the students out of tuition and provides as little education as he can get away with.
</div></div>

fwiw,
Could not agree more... You'll learn at your own rate and you'll learn how much you want to learn. Many guys going through the school on mom and dads coin and could not clean a pellet rifle after graduation.

And yes I am a graduate...

Regards, Matt.
 
#20
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Blackburn2888</div><div class="ubbcode-body">+1 for Yavapai </div></div>

CST A average graduate. Would have been far better to have gone to Yavapai...fwiw & imho

Regards, Matt Garrett
 
#21
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

I've known a half dozen gunsmiths fairly well over 30 years or so. Number one, its a business and you have to bring in customers, do good work and get PAID for the WORK that you do.

Machining is one part of the business. But most also need to know something about stock work, trigger work, gun repair and the endless options of customizing anything that fires a bullet. If a reasonable number of customers want a service learn it and provide the proper fix or solution. Don't get into a mind set that you only want to build rifles, or chamber new barrels.Or that you won't work on "xyz" because that rifle is beneath you.

You have to learn as much as you can about most every aspect of the gunsmithing operation. Such that you turn a repair job into a lifelong customer who buys a couple complete rifles from you and sends his friends to you as well.
 
#22
Re: Certified Gunsmithing

[/quote]

I may be way off just looking at the course schedule, but it appears to be 2 semesters of gunsmithing classes followed by 2 more semesters of general ed classes like english/math and an elective of choice. Am I missing something here? Just looking at the machine shop tech class offered and comparing it to the gunsmithing, if I were going to that school I'd probably look at either double majoring or go for the machine tech degree and pick up the gunsmithing as electives. The machine tech looks to have a much more thorough curriculum, just based on the course descriptions.[/quote]


I just looked up the link and they are updating it. It is not correct. The new program is 1 year of gunsmith courses for a certificate. Then you can take the take machine tech and gen ed courses for an AAS. There also is a night topics in gunsmithing class were we can work on any projects we want. Sorry about the confusion.

Thanks,
David
 
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