I am hoping for some collective advice and couldn't think of a better place to ask.
I bought a .30 cal barrel from a well known barrel maker back in July 2013 after making arrangements with a reputable gunsmith to have it chamber in .308 and installed on an action that had previously been blueprinted. I turned all the parts over to the smith in mid Aug and returned to his shop in mid October to shoot the rifle. I don't think its important but let me add that he is a 2 hour drive. There are other gunsmiths closer, but this gentleman is highly thought of in these parts.
At his range, we starting shooting in the new barrel...shoot once...clean once, etc, etc. We followed all the proper procedures but the gun refused to shoot. I brought 3 boxes of GMM (2- 168 + 1- 175) to use for the barrel break-in. It would not shoot groups less than 2" and most were bigger than that. The gunsmith suggested that perhaps the barrel would season as I shot it some more. So I brought the gun home and shot it 4 times at a local range using loads of RL15, Varget, and 2000MR with no better results. By this time the barrel had right at 150 rounds through it.
The gunsmith asked me to bring it back to him. He wanted to figure out what was wrong. He shot it again with the same results. He then decided to cut an inch off the barrel and recrown it. After completing that work, he shot it and called me and told me that he actually thought it was getting worse rather than better. He cleaned the rifle and re-shot it 5X using more GMM 168s with no luck. Its important to that at this point it is gunsmith clean with 5 rounds down the tube. He borescoped it and discovered pretty nasty copper fouling in the last 4 inches of the barrel just before the muzzle. This is worth noting because the borescope revealed that the fouling was occurring in the grooves of the barrel and not the lands. I believe he said that he had never seen that in his years of gunsmithing. He has been great throughout this ordeal.
I have since ordered another barrel from a different barrel make and having him chambered and installed it for me.
I have been in contact with the original barrel maker and explained the situation. Of course, they want to see the barrel and I have no problem whatsoever complying with their wishes once I go and get the barrel.
My question - If the barrel is found faulty, what can I reasonably expect from the barrel maker? Of course, its only reasonable to get a new barrel, but what about the money I spent to have it chambered, threaded, head-spaced, cerakoted, and skim bedded. I have right at $550 beyond the cost of the barrel. Can I expect to get any of that back?
Allow me to thank you in advance for your advice. I certainly appreciate it.
Thank you,
Gerald
I bought a .30 cal barrel from a well known barrel maker back in July 2013 after making arrangements with a reputable gunsmith to have it chamber in .308 and installed on an action that had previously been blueprinted. I turned all the parts over to the smith in mid Aug and returned to his shop in mid October to shoot the rifle. I don't think its important but let me add that he is a 2 hour drive. There are other gunsmiths closer, but this gentleman is highly thought of in these parts.
At his range, we starting shooting in the new barrel...shoot once...clean once, etc, etc. We followed all the proper procedures but the gun refused to shoot. I brought 3 boxes of GMM (2- 168 + 1- 175) to use for the barrel break-in. It would not shoot groups less than 2" and most were bigger than that. The gunsmith suggested that perhaps the barrel would season as I shot it some more. So I brought the gun home and shot it 4 times at a local range using loads of RL15, Varget, and 2000MR with no better results. By this time the barrel had right at 150 rounds through it.
The gunsmith asked me to bring it back to him. He wanted to figure out what was wrong. He shot it again with the same results. He then decided to cut an inch off the barrel and recrown it. After completing that work, he shot it and called me and told me that he actually thought it was getting worse rather than better. He cleaned the rifle and re-shot it 5X using more GMM 168s with no luck. Its important to that at this point it is gunsmith clean with 5 rounds down the tube. He borescoped it and discovered pretty nasty copper fouling in the last 4 inches of the barrel just before the muzzle. This is worth noting because the borescope revealed that the fouling was occurring in the grooves of the barrel and not the lands. I believe he said that he had never seen that in his years of gunsmithing. He has been great throughout this ordeal.
I have since ordered another barrel from a different barrel make and having him chambered and installed it for me.
I have been in contact with the original barrel maker and explained the situation. Of course, they want to see the barrel and I have no problem whatsoever complying with their wishes once I go and get the barrel.
My question - If the barrel is found faulty, what can I reasonably expect from the barrel maker? Of course, its only reasonable to get a new barrel, but what about the money I spent to have it chambered, threaded, head-spaced, cerakoted, and skim bedded. I have right at $550 beyond the cost of the barrel. Can I expect to get any of that back?
Allow me to thank you in advance for your advice. I certainly appreciate it.
Thank you,
Gerald
