Av price of chamber job
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I guess I'm just slow it takes me 5 hrs. to do a barrel.That is dial in and crown,dial in and thread ,and chamber .All dialing in is done to one tenth.The threads are cut to a class three fit .Headspace to one or two thou.of target measurement. Allow for 5 thou. clearance on the bolt nose cone or otherwise.All done on a manual machine with out a flush system.Timing the high end up on the barrel .I don't see how I could ever do a job in two hours.I look like a fry cook at Waffle House any way on a lathe.
that sounds more like what it would take me. (5hrs) Time seems to go by fast when Im doing one. I dont think many people doing it for a business take that long though. good to see ur still with us mollett
I’m fortunate to have an amazing smith within driving distance and he’s amazingly affordable (less than most rates quoted here). That being said he has minimal overhead and lives off repeat business.
For anyone who questions why chamberings or other gun work can get so expensive I’d recommend spending some time at your smiths shop while he’s working if they’ll let you. In the beginning I had crazy ideas of what chambering a barrel entailed but after watching the process I have more respect than ever. Doing a barrel right is an art, not a process. Go ahead and laugh but I thought they just chucked up a barrel and put the lathe on auto-bore (as if that’s a real thing
) and walked away to work on someone else’s parts. Having spent time around him years ago I never bitch about pricing now....and if I had to pay a little more because he quit I wouldn’t question it if the work was stellar, and I have 2-3 barrels chambered a year. That being said some of these numbers being quoted seem crazy to me.
For anyone who questions why chamberings or other gun work can get so expensive I’d recommend spending some time at your smiths shop while he’s working if they’ll let you. In the beginning I had crazy ideas of what chambering a barrel entailed but after watching the process I have more respect than ever. Doing a barrel right is an art, not a process. Go ahead and laugh but I thought they just chucked up a barrel and put the lathe on auto-bore (as if that’s a real thing
) and walked away to work on someone else’s parts. Having spent time around him years ago I never bitch about pricing now....and if I had to pay a little more because he quit I wouldn’t question it if the work was stellar, and I have 2-3 barrels chambered a year. That being said some of these numbers being quoted seem crazy to me.
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I suspect that those who complain about the price of a chamber job don't really understand the process or the cost of just having all the equipment and tooling.
I bought a quality lathe and milling machine a couple years ago, mainly to build my own LR BR and hunting rifles. My setup is similar to what a low volume custom accuracy gunsmith might have. The lathe and mill cost about $11k. Since I am only working for myself I have minimal tooling, say $2k-$3k worth. A real gunsmith could easily have $20k-$30k in tooling. I work from my garage, and I would expect most small accuracy gunsmiths do as well, though some cities, counties, and HOAs won't allow that.
If all he does is chamber/fit barrels and do bedding jobs, he can probably do one job a day. Add in action truing and it it would be a long day or a day and half. Given that other stuff comes up, things go wrong, and tools break; I would bet the best a typically good gunsmith could sustain is one rifle every two days. There are nominally 262 work days per year so figure he builds 131 rifles a year.
Let's say he gets $300 to chamber/thread/crown, $150 for bedding, $200 for truing an action. That yields a gross income of about $85k a year. By the time you add in small business taxes, consumables, tool breakage, unhappy customer requiring rework, etc. net income could be half that.
While chambering a barrel and bedding a stock isn't hard, it's hard to make it look pretty and if you are paying you want it pretty. It takes time to develop those skills. So why would anyone work to develop those skills to a high level and fuss with all that for $42.5k a year and no benefits?
I'd say not many and that's why we see so many gunsmiths that are retired or do it as an add on to their day job.
I bought a quality lathe and milling machine a couple years ago, mainly to build my own LR BR and hunting rifles. My setup is similar to what a low volume custom accuracy gunsmith might have. The lathe and mill cost about $11k. Since I am only working for myself I have minimal tooling, say $2k-$3k worth. A real gunsmith could easily have $20k-$30k in tooling. I work from my garage, and I would expect most small accuracy gunsmiths do as well, though some cities, counties, and HOAs won't allow that.
If all he does is chamber/fit barrels and do bedding jobs, he can probably do one job a day. Add in action truing and it it would be a long day or a day and half. Given that other stuff comes up, things go wrong, and tools break; I would bet the best a typically good gunsmith could sustain is one rifle every two days. There are nominally 262 work days per year so figure he builds 131 rifles a year.
Let's say he gets $300 to chamber/thread/crown, $150 for bedding, $200 for truing an action. That yields a gross income of about $85k a year. By the time you add in small business taxes, consumables, tool breakage, unhappy customer requiring rework, etc. net income could be half that.
While chambering a barrel and bedding a stock isn't hard, it's hard to make it look pretty and if you are paying you want it pretty. It takes time to develop those skills. So why would anyone work to develop those skills to a high level and fuss with all that for $42.5k a year and no benefits?
I'd say not many and that's why we see so many gunsmiths that are retired or do it as an add on to their day job.
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Hengehold
Silver $$ Contributor
SBS
Gold $$ Contributor
Gunsmithing is a trade like many others. Skilled tradesmen usually charge what the traffic will bear. Before you think this is an awful way of doing business, consider: a gunsmith who charges too little will usually be covered up with business, never catches up and will generally not make it financially. One who charges too much does not get enough work. The man who keeps his workweek full and is able to keep his backlog reasonable is the one who is charging the correct amount. So the price will certainly vary by location (think of how much of a variance there is in the cost of living in various places) and by the fame of the gunsmith. You will usually pay more for one with a national reputation, for otherwise he would covered up with more work than he can do. Likewise, it's usually less expensive with a local smith (who may turn out comparable work), since he has less demand. It's supply and demand of labor in a capitalist economy.
My gunsmith, a long time shooting friend from last century, just under my age, who has been doing my barrel work for about 17 years now charges me $160 for all the services you list...$130 without tuner threading. I furnish the cutting oil and barrel and assist in the chambering operation (squirt the cutting oil, keep the compressor primed, furnish and do the reamer set up, bolt breakdown, GO/NO GO gauging, and tend to other little things). I have pre-positioned barrels with him, he lets me know when threading is done for rear and muzzle, and I get to his place about 0900 and leave town at 1400 with a finished barrel. He is not in the business, except for a couple of us. He adamantly refuses to put out a shingle for additional customers...does not want the hassle, he sez. I realize that is well under the norm, but he and I have a good get-together at his place now and then, and I take him out to lunch, his choice, afterwards.
You might get in touch with Greg Walley, who would be my choice if my friend were to fail and who used to be with Kelbys for a more reasonable price. He has done about one-half of Team Berger's work for many years.
Dan
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I learned to seek out the best smiths and don’t even ask the price or time required for individual services. They all end up charging somewhat similar prices for services. I fully believe its attention to the smallest details that make some of them stand out. Those things take time and that time costs money.
While I can certainly understand wanting to know prices ahead of time, if you find a smith you trust, you will likely be treated fairly.
Dave.
Fast14riot
Gold $$ Contributor
Generally, with skilled work, you pay for the years it took them to become skilled and able to do it efficiently. Not for the time they actually take to do it.
Link
Silver $$ Contributor
It's my OP, I guess it is what it is. A person applied for a welding job. In his interview he was told the pay scale is $30 to $50 a hour. He had to perform 2 welds. The 1st weld looked like krap the 2nd weld was like art. When asked why the difference in quality he replied the 1st weld is the $30 a hour weld.
Thanks for your great input.
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Thanks for your great input.
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I like that one
When I was young(er)
The first three guns I had work done on by a gunsmith all took probably a year each, at least-- After that i decided either to do it myself or it wouldnt get done. Thats one of the main reasons i fit my own barrels now. I know now there are some guys where you can get quality in a reasonable time frame. that would have made a big difference to me back when i started.r u guys a father, son and grandson team?
Yes
You know I think that is really terriffic and I envy you.
Sitting around the campfire Saturday night with several of my shooting buddys/customers, I passed my phone around with this thread on it. Heard a collective NOOOOO. Stop looking at this. You are just right. Please stop! I was fdlmao.
well monday is a good day to raise your rates.
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