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Who would you nominate as greatest gunsmith?

Back in my stool shooting days, for metal work, as in chambering, TJ Jackson from my hometown gets my vote. He would be the first one to tell you that he does not do furniture, aka. stock work. He left that to the specialists in the business.
 
My experience is a great gunsmith can only do so much to accuracy. I’m convinced that the best barrels go the best shooters. Like any sport, manufactures equipment gets judged by results. Think about it...... isn’t it mostly about the barrel?
Ben
 
BenPerfected said:
My experience is a great gunsmith can only do so much to accuracy. I’m convinced that the best barrels go the best shooters. Like any sport, manufactures equipment gets judged by results. Think about it...... isn’t it mostly about the barrel?
Ben
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You can't make a bad barrel shoot good, but you can sure make a good barrel shoot bad. The top barrel makers do not make "seconds". Tolerances are within 0.0001". My last 28" barrel had as near as we could determine 0.00015" bore taper from the breech to muzzle from final lapping. And I'm not anyone special to somehow get a "secret squirrel" barrel. That rifle wouldn't shoot nearly as well without an excellent chambering job with a custom reamer, the bore, chamber and receiver perfectly on line, perfectly mounted to the custom action, pillar bedded in a best quality stock, good match bullets, premium brass, premium dies and powder charges weighed to 0.1 grain and a lot of load development. That and say many years of practice.

I think any of the premium barrel makers would be seriously offended at the suggestion they saved the best barrels for a favored few and sold seconds to everyone else.
 
Rust said:
You can't make a bad barrel shoot good, but you can sure make a good barrel shoot bad. The top barrel makers do not make "seconds". Tolerances are within 0.0001". My last 28" barrel had as near as we could determine 0.00015" bore taper from the breech to muzzle from final lapping. And I'm not anyone special to somehow get a "secret squirrel" barrel. That rifle wouldn't shoot nearly as well without an excellent chambering job with a custom reamer, the bore, chamber and receiver perfectly on line, perfectly mounted to the custom action, pillar bedded in a best quality stock, good match bullets, premium brass, premium dies and powder charges weighed to 0.1 grain and a lot of load development. That and say many years of practice.

I think any of the premium barrel makers would be seriously offended at the suggestion they saved the best barrels for a favored few and sold seconds to everyone else.
Click to expand...


I don't think any gunsmith could pick out the "hummer" barrel. I've borescoped some "hummer" barrels and some of them looked like "SH!!T. I've seen some that had bores do funny things in the direction the bores take.
Yes, I prefer a straight bore with a very slight taper lapped into it, but that doesn't make it a "Hummer".
 
butchlambert said:
I don't think any gunsmith could pick out the "hummer" barrel. I've borescoped some "hummer" barrels and some of them looked like "SH!!T. I've seen some that had bores do funny things in the direction the bores take.
Yes, I prefer a straight bore with a very slight taper lapped into it, but that doesn't make it a "Hummer".
Click to expand...

No disagreement here. Pretty is as pretty does and all. The barrel I described above turned out to be a real shooter as did its predecessor. Luck of the draw or improvements in the barrel makers art? Twenty round strings are a real test.

Of course I recall hearing stories about Tony Boyer getting a half dozen barrels and testing them all looking for the "hummer" among them. That sort of dedication/effort might be one reason (among many) he has all of those hall of fame points.
 
Does anybody think Tony bought those 5 barrels? IMO, it is not about the rest of us getting seconds, it is about marketing for the barrel companies.
Ben
 
A hummer helps, but as much as Tony shoots, he will actually wear out 10-12 barrels per year. Knowing Tony is very very serious about his shooting. He throws a tremendous amount of bullets down range every year. He is single minded about his shooting and has made the necessary sacrifices to win. It ain't about just barrels.
 
butchlambert said:
Where did you get that info? The barrel makers usually give a barrel for certain wins during the year and the rest are purchased. Probably at a good discount, but not for free.
Click to expand...
Butch, your group of words was better than mine. In any sport, the manufacturers use they products for marketing and part of that marketing is supporting their best players.
Ben
 
Butch does any one in the gun industry know how to look at a barrel and know if it is any better than any of the rest?
 
ebb said:
Butch does any one in the gun industry know how to look at a barrel and know if it is any better than any of the rest?
Click to expand...

I will say no. I've had folks say that such and such shooter was great until his barrel gave up. He returned to being mediocre. Lots of theories of how they happen, but I've seen some that didn't have a straight bore and they shot lights out. Maybe it is the "lot" of steel. I remember taking a few barrels to the first Long Range Nationals in Georgia. The fellows all said they were "hummers".
Several years ago a shooter said that Tony Boyer could take any rifle and win. Tony said "NO",.
I have yet to hear a person could inspect a barrel and know it was a "hummer".
 
So if no one in the gun industry can look and tell a hummer from a tomato stake how does the barrel company know which barrels to give to Tony and Mike and Bart and Col Billy?
 
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