Price of a Chamber job from your gunsmith

[deadlyswift]

Last Smith work I had done was a barrel, threaded, chamber, crowned, recoil lug ground, barrel channel opened up in stock, bead blasted, barrel installed,headspaced, test fired, and a little clean up of bedding from previous in idiot smith. The price was $331 after taxes.

And this was from one of the top smiths in the country!

 

[eww1350]

I wonder if you requested a caliber that he did not have a reamer for...and that part of the price increase was paying for a reamer for you specifically.?



Eddie in Texas

 

[spclark]

I was told nothing about a price increase before or after till I picked them up.

Kinda hard to argue that after the work's done; only options are to pay up or walk away.

I know I'd think real hard next time I had a barrel needed finishing whether to go back to that 'smith.

(Maybe he charges extra for the gloss finish? Were your other barrels done the same way? Is he recently divorced? Have a girlfriend?)

'Smiths I've worked with before run ~ $300 but I'm no fan of a gloss finish....

 

[Nomo4me]

I just paid $265 + tax including 220 grit finish. I supplied the new PTG reamer and bbl blank. Higher than I thought it'd be, plus there was NO caliber marking done.

He's a good man, but I'll go elsewhere in the future.

 

[deadlyswift]

My smith does charge on the higher end for polishing. Point blank he told me he hated polishing. So he charges a little more than most to polish. Since polishing is cosmetic I use another guy to do my polishing. My smith is aware of this and there is no problem on either side. It's a win for all. I get a awesome polish job. That is cheaper than most. My smith don't have to mess with polishing, and my polishing guy makes some extra $$$.

 

[VWguy]

kreiger offers installing their barrel on your action $270.00. i used this one time because it seemed convenient. it wasn't. they kept my action over 4 months and that was after months waiting for the barrel . their work was excellent however. went to bruno's next and saved $100.00 and got it back in 3 weeks. His work is also excellent.

 

[spclark]

...plus there was NO caliber marking done.

Wow... That IMHO borders on irresponsible.

I had a barrel re-chambered about this time last year, 'smith (LR Nat Champ) did the work, charged me under $100 for a perfect job & milled off the old chambering info & engraved the new.

Class act if ever there was one.

 

[Jim See]

Did You watch?

Did you work on it before he did?

Did you call him on the phone 17 times asking when your barrels would be done?

Did you take his wife out on a date and not relize it?

Or may-be his daughter? :-*

 

[bozo699]

WOW!!

 

[Aero]

Looking at what things cost in this day and age, $250 to fit and chamber a barrel is bargain! If a 'smith is charging less, he is selling himself and the skill and tooling needed to get the job done short. I haven't heard of too many 'smiths that are getting rich building rifles. Maybe some are, but most are lucky to make a "good living" at it.

If $250-$350 for a barrel job is getting hosed and you are tired of having to break out the KY jelly to get some gun work done, you could always go out and buy your own lathe, mill, belt sander, bead blaster, cutting tools, barrel vise, action wrenches, reamers, gages, indicators, mics, cutting oils, etc, etc, then watch some youtube videos to learn how its done. Hell, it shouldn't take more than a few rebarrels and all that stuff will be paid for and then you could start doing it for others and rake in piles of money like those stinking greedy 'smiths!

-Eron

 

[shortgrass]

When you run the pros out of business demanding low prices, soon there will be only hobbyists. That goes for any business. Sorry, can't send it to India or China to get it done because of the import/export/firearms laws. I don't think WalMart or Target are going to open shops anytime soon. Did you not get a receipt with a break down of the charges for the work performed? And, you didn't ask about the price first?

 

[NateHaler]

I just picked up 2 barrels from my local smith and was charged over what I have paid in the past. I paid over $350.00 for each chamber and threading and a gloss finish on each barrel. Previous cost was $250.00 each last had done no more then 2 months ago. I was told nothing about a price increase before or after till I picked them up.
Whats your collective opinion...

You didn't ask the price before you handed them over? That's your mistake. And a 40% price hike is out of line. Next time ask, then tell the guy to shove it if he's price gouging.

 

[favload]

First I want to say that Bob Green is the man!! There are some folks here in upstate NY that count on him and his skills. We have 2 current NRA F-class titles and many state top places. his prices are very fair (below many others) and that's why he gets our business and we pass the word around. When your honest, good, have the tools and experience and love what you do you don't have to brake the bank with folks. Thats what we like about Bob.

 

[Hammer]

.

The gunsmith I have used for over thirty years still charges $150 for complete installation of any Shilen or Hart barrel plus the cost of the original barrel blank.

While he has a large selection of reamers, if you want one he does not have then you provide the reamer, usually a rental.

.

 

[Thud]

Guys,
I know craftsmen need to make a living but. Just inform me when the work is to be done and don't raise a price with no explaination when you have a working relation with your smith. I have no problem paying but let me know when it happens so I can accept the change and not get mad.

 

[Jim See]

I take it this smith dosen't list his prices on his web-site or posted on the shop wall?

I can understand being a little upset, but, I have seen some blanks come in from certain suppliers that looked like they were used as rollers for moving machinery, that may have caused him to charge more for polishing.

I would just ask the smith, he shouldn't be offended, if he is he is being defensive.

 

[areaone]

Why not call your smith and ask him for an itemization of charges??? If he had "increased" his chambering fee since the 2 month previous chambering, ASK WHY AND WHY you were not informed of the price increase previous to work being started, A simple explanation is there, just ask and why keep speculating on the increased charges. I Know there a excellent Smiths that do fine chamber, crown and polish work in the $150.00 -$250.00 range, just ask yoursmith for the details and share them with us all.
It will settle all the postulating and discussion as to what is fair and acceptable for a chamber job.

 

[Rustystud]

I should not have posted to this thread as it has only pissed me off. Every "good professional gunsmith" is a good machinist, plumber, carpenter, and fabricator. Anyone of them could quit working on guns at anytime and do automotive, motorcycle, areo machining, tool and die work, prototyping and make just as good or better living without the aggrivation, of the BATF, Tax man, Zoning board, EPA, Insurance man, Vendors, Delivery companies, bill collectors, and bitchin customers.

Take some responsability, ask the cost up front, get a contract price. If you don't like the price given then check around and find some one who meets your needs. It seems every Tom, Dick, and Harry is getting a lathe and hanging up a shingle "Gunsmith".

I know a gunsmith who use to post here regularly, he made quite a name for himself. I have seen his work and it is top shelf. He an I have talked on the phone several times. He does work for a number of posters here on this site. He told me that his work load had grown out of control. He said I am going up on my prices just to rid myself of those headache customers. And at least he would get paid for those who stuck around. An he has done just as he said he was going to do.

Most gunsmiths talk with their customers and in 5 minutes decide if they want to do the customers work. "Nimrod know it alls"and "Cheap asses who want something for nothing" and those who supply their own inferior parts and want miracles.

I went through a divorce 20 years ago and went to a marrige counselor. The one thing that I walked away with was "stop and look at yourself from the other side before your make a judgement or decision". That was some of the best advice I have every received.

Every good gunsmith I know has 6 months or more work in his safe to be done. They should all unite and tell the customer base "we are not taking in any more work for 6 months, and all jobs in the future will be put up for bid". The higher bid customers work will move to the front of the line. Not FIFO as most do.

Most good shooters use the better gunsmiths. If you want to get your work done by a good gunsmith expect to pay a fair price for that work. Those who take advantage of their customers and and those who do inferior work will not survive it is a small world, everybody knows everybody. The internet is a powerful tool, it can make you or break you.
Nat Lambeth

 

[SDDasher]

Nat:
Your advice is sound in my opinion. One of the problems is that there are a lot of those "posers" out there as you suggest that buy a lathe and chamber a few guns and are all of a sudden experts and want to receive expert prices for their work. These guys are in every profession and gun smithing is no exception.

I would suggest most of us on here are not in the sport to "make money" from the local matches we shoot each Saturday and are in this for a habitual need to be the most accurate shooter we can be on any given day. Having said that, a lot of shooters I meet want to compete with the "big dogs" (read those willing to spend whatever it takes to get a gun that shoots all one hole) on a budget so we can say I hung in there with the
bigs today even with my inferior in price, yet well smithed equipment.

I learned a long time ago that whenever I purchase something, I always know what the cost is going to be before agreeing to having the work done and as my dear ole dad used to say "you get what you pay for". Pretty simple plan and no one gets mad at the end of the day.

 

[alf]

The point that seems to be getting lost in all of this, is the OP has had work done in the past, as recently as two months ago, and was not told up front that there was a price increase.

If he had been told so, it would be then up to him to whether or not to have the smith in question do the work.

Providing, of course, the work to be done was the same in the past, he was not given that option......

BTW, the same thing happened to me a couple of years ago. The guy raised his price 47% over what I had been paying without saying up front. He has no idea how much money that's cost him since.........