A number of interesting jobs in the firearms industry have become available in recent weeks. The NSSF maintains a regularly-updated listing of employment opportunities with gun-makers and shooting sports organizations. On the NSSF’s job board right now there are gunsmith openings, engineering offerings, sales and marketing positions, and even high-level legal and executive career opportunities. Here are some of the jobs we found this week posted on the NSSF Website. CLICK HERE for a complete listing (many more jobs).
Brownells’ 6th Annual Gunsmith Career Fair will be held at the Des Moines Marriot Downtown in Des Moines, Iowa, April 27-28, 2012. The Sixth Annual Gunsmith Career Fair is expected to draw hundreds of attendees along with representatives from three dozen potential employers. As in past years, the Career Fair will include gunsmithing seminars along with opportunities for individuals to interview for jobs with arms-makers and government agencies.
Gunsmith CareerFair.com.
In addition to industry and government representatives, many trade schools and colleges offering gunsmithing programs will be exhibiting at the 2012 Gunsmith fair. These include:
Robert Whitley of AR-X Enterprises visited the JGS booth to review the Oregon-based tool-maker’s offerings for 2012. In the video below, Cary Pugh of JGS Precision Mfg., spotlights some popular JGS products including chamber reamers, headspace gauges, core drills, counter-bores, and more….
The Ruger 10/22 rimfire rifle is one of the most popular rifles ever made. Over five million 10/22s have been produced by Ruger. The first thing many 10/22 owners do with their new rifles is customize them — swapping stocks, barrels, triggers and other components. While some 10/22 upgrades are simple drop-in operations, it is wise to have some professional guidance when doing more advanced modifications.
To assist Ruger 10/22 customizers, the American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) now offers a 4-DVD bundle for 10/22 owners. This includes four DVDs demonstrating how to build tricked-out custom 10/22 rifles (and do your own trigger job). Hundreds of different options and accessories are shown. Also included is a complete tutorial on how to convert the rifle from a .22 LR to .17 Mach 2. The four DVD titles in this $149.00 bundle are:
Ruger 10/22 Trigger Job (Product ID#3324)
Ruger 10/22 Rifles (Product ID#1094)
Disassembly/Reassembly of the Ruger 10/22 Rifle (Product ID#7074)
Building the Custom Ruger 10/22 Rifle (Product ID#3454)
This 10/22 DVD package from AGI provides over nine hours of video instruction by master gunsmiths. The AGI Custom Ruger 10/22 (Package #5) is available at www.americangunsmith.com for $149.00. Gun Club of America members pay just $119.20.
Frank Galli, aka “Lowlight”, runs the popular SnipersHide.com website. Frank recently completed a gunsmithing course with Robert Gradous. Frank recounts the learning process in an informative, nicely-illustrated article on the ‘Hide. Frank explains how he put together a new 6.5 Creedmoor tactical rifle using a Bartlein barrel, Bighorn Action (Rem clone with floating bolt-head), and a “lightly used” Accuracy International 1.5 chassis. The HD video below shows the process start-to-finish. READ Full Article.
During Frank’s “hands-on” training sessions with Gradous, Frank learned to thread and chamber a barrel, fit a recoil lug, and install the barreled action in the AI chassis. Chambering was done with great care: “We spent the better part of the day working the barrel. I feel this is a critical component and seeing the attention to detail in Robert’s approach confirmed it for me. When it came time to chamber Robert had a custom tight chamber reamer there for a 6.5CM but I’m shooting a tactical rifle, tight chambers aren’t for me, and this was clear, as out came the standard SAAMI reamer.”
Frank also learned how to modify an aluminum chassis: “the AI chassis had the recoil lug opened up, but it was opened in the wrong direction. This was going to require milling increasing the gap to at least a 1/2″ in size. Robert was really leery of this, but my attitude was, ‘it’s just a chassis and nothing a little Marine Tex can’t handle’.” Thankfully the chassis mod came out OK.
Once the barreled action was complete and the AI chassis was successfully milled, Frank applied a tan Cerakote finish to the barreled action. This would give a proper tactical look to the rifle, while providing superior corrosion resistance for the metal parts. To learn more about Cerakote finishing, check out the Cerakote Application Video, published last week in the Daily Bulletin.
When the rifle was complete, Frank took it out for testing with a variety of ammo, both factory fodder and handloads. There were some initial worries about accuracy as it took a while for the barrel to break in. A few sessions of bore cleaning were required before the barrel stopped fouling and then — like magic — the rifle started printing really small groups.
By the end of his load testing session, Frank was getting good groups with Hornady 120gr GMX factory 6.5 Creedmoor ammo, and really superb groups with handloads. The 120gr GMX ammo “was going 3100 fps with no ill effects”. The best handloads were approaching 1/4 MOA for three shots, and Frank’s load with Berger 130 VLDs shot even smaller than that: “In my opinion the load development we did was worth its weight in gold. Where else can you build in a rifle in two days, then go out and develop a baseline load using everything from 120gr ammo to 140gr ammo with a few in between? My favorite load and clearly the rifle’s too, was the [Berger] 130gr VLD. This gave us great velocity, awesome groups [with some one-holers] and really nice results at distance.”
Lowlight’s Gunsmithing Story is a ‘Must-Read’
We recommend you read Frank’s story. It shows that, with the right tools, and the supervision of a master smith, even a novice can produce an ultra-accurate rifle. For those of you who have considered taking a gunsmithing class, Frank’s successful experience with gunsmith Robert Gradous should give you plenty of motivation.
The 5th Annual Brownells Gunsmith Career Fair will feature some of the biggest names in the gun trade. These experts will share their knowledge to help budding gunsmiths learn new skills and grow their businesses. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) representatives will also be on hand to answer questions. The Gunsmith Career Fair runs April 15 and 16, 2011, at the Downtown Marriott Hotel in Des Moines, Iowa. The event is FREE to gunsmiths and exhibitors.
Wide Range of Scheduled Seminars
Seminars range from advancing your career in the gunsmithing profession to starting or expanding a gunsmithing business. View the full seminar schedule at gunsmithcareerfair.com. Scheduled Seminars are listed below:
Seminar Title and Seminar Leader
Am I Gunsmithing or Manufacturing — ATF Technology Branch (4/15)
Alternative Careers in the Industry — Bill Gravatt, Sinclair Int’l (4/15)
Essential Components of a Business Plan — Tom Shay (4/15)
Creating Your Niche in Life — Doug Turnbull (4/15)
Marking Variances & When are They Required — ATF Technology Branch (4/15)
Finding Your Specialty in the Industry — Sharon Dressel (4/15)
Small Businesses Don’t Die; They Commit Suicide — Tom Shay (4/15)
Responsible, Professional Gunsmith Opportunities (Keynote Address) — Ron Power (4/15)
Professional Techniques on Gunsmithing Guns — Ron Power (4/16)
Creating a Great Customer Experience — Bart Miller (4/16)
Understanding Ballistics — Paul Dressel (4/16)
Communicating with the Public — Reid Coffield (4/16)
It’s Not Too Late to Register
There’s still time to register to attend or exhibit, just go to gunsmithcareerfair.com or call 641-623-5401 and ask for Stacy or Jill. Attendees and exhibitors are urged to book hotel rooms and flights early.
The Competitive AR-15 Builders Guide, a new book by Glen Zedicker, is now available. Following Zedicker’s New AR-15 Competitive Rifle (2008), the new Builders Guide provides step-by-step instructions that will help non-professional, “home builders” assemble a competitive match or varmint rifle. This book isn’t for everyone — you need some basic gun assembly experience and an aptitude for tools. But the new Zedicker Builders’ Guide. provides a complete list of the tools you’ll need for the job, and Zedicker outline all the procedures to build a AR15 from start to finish.
Along with assembly methods, this book covers parts selection and preparation, not just hammers and pins. Creedmoor Sports, which sells the book for $31.00, explains: “Knowing how to get what you want, and be happy with the result, is truly the focus of this book. Doing it yourself gives you a huge advantage. The build will honestly have been done right, and you’ll know it! Little problems will have been fixed, function and performance enhancements will have been made, and the result is you’ll have a custom-grade rifle without paying custom-builder prices.”
The Competitive AR-15 Builders Guide is not yet available from Amazon.com or most large book vendors. However, Creedmoor Sports has plenty of copies in stock (item BK Builder, $31.00 on sale). To order, visit www.creedmoorsports.com or call 1-800-CREEDMOOR.
Brownells has added a new Professional Drill Jig to its collection of gunsmithing tools. The $194.99 jig, made by B Square, aligns hole-spacing for popular scope bases on most popular military bolt action receivers. According to Brownells, this jig: “aligns mount hole-spacing for Weaver, Redfield and Buehler bases on all Springfields, U.S. Enfields (not SMLE), Japs, Mausers, Remington 30s and similar bolt actions.” Brownells says this unit saves time and eliminates tedious measuring as it “automatically locates holes in reference to recoil shoulder, and aligns and spaces holes vertically on the centerline of the receiver.”
Brownells’ Drill Jig features all-metal construction. The jig bars, base block and top piece are gold-anodized aluminum while the bore arbor and “V” bushings are blued steel. For the $194.99 price, the Pro Drill Jig includes two bars (Mauser and Spgfld/Enf/Jap,), complete mounting assembly, and an interchangeable No. 31 drill bushing.
Editor’s Comment: In the past, we haven’t been particularly impressed with B Square consumer products, particularly B Square rails and rings, but with CNC machining these days, the Professional Jig should be a quality tool. Remember that Brownells offers a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee on everything it sells: “If you aren’t completely, 100% satisfied with any purchase you receive from Brownells, for any reason, at any time, return it for a full refund or exchange. No hassle, no problem.”
If you use an AR-platform rifle for varminting, multi-gun matches, or Service Rifle competition, one simple upgrade you can make to enhance reliability is to replace the mil-spec gas rings with a one-piece McFarland™ bolt gas ring. The McFarland ring is a single spiral of spring steel that loops around the bolt three times and leaves no path for gas leakage. With conventional gas rings, you need to correctly rotate each ring so the “gap” does not line up, thereby allowing gas blow-by that can cause cycling problems. The one-piece ring is an inexpensive, “set and forget” solution that eliminates the need to monitor your ring position on the bolt body.
The one-piece McFarland gas ring is recommended by Fulton Armory and other AR experts. Installation is simple and the one-piece rings last a very long time. One AR user comments: “Ever since I tried single rings I would never change back to mil-spec rings. I’ve experienced more consistent recoils and cyclic rates of fire. And, as to wear — I haven’t worn one out yet.” On Brownells.com, two gunsmiths offered these reviews:
“Easy install, zero chance of a gap, one less thing to worry about in the bolt carrier group. This item should greatly improve gas pressure consistency. This is a ‘must have’ item.” — Jake, SC
“The concept is simple and sound. The one-piece gas ring removes the possibility of gaps lining up. It installs easily, holds great tension, and is cheap. Doesn’t get much better.” — Lane, TN
The McFarland™ one-piece bolt gas ring can be purchased from Brownells for $3.99 (item 100-001-257) or from Fulton Armory for $2.99 (item FA-AR-300-109). Purchase three or four at once to save on shipping costs — that should be enough for a decade of AR shooting.
Brownells’ 4th Annual Gunsmith Career Fair takes place on April 23 and 24, 2010, at Des Moines Marriott Downtown in Des Moines, Iowa. The event, free to gunsmiths and exhibitors, is designed to help new gunsmiths find work and otherwise advance their careers and businesses. Expert gunsmiths and gun industry leaders will be on hand to share their experience and lead seminars. Scheduled Seminars include:
- Time = Money (The Cold, Hard Facts)
– Financing your Business
– Gunsmithing Tax
– Increasing your Revenue through Engraving
– Gunsmithing for a ‘Big Box’ Retailer
– Merchandising Tips
In addition, Tom Shay (Profit Plus) will outline the essential components of a business plan and BATF Reps will host two seminars on Federal rules and regulations pertaining to gunsmithing.
Frank Brownell told us, “I’m delighted to see the seminars growing. Our goal is to make the Career Fair much more than just a place to find a job.” There’s still time to register to attend or exhibit. Sign up now at gunsmithcareerfair.com or call Stacy or Jill at (641) 623-5401. NOTE: Attendees and exhibitors should book hotel rooms and flights early as other major events are scheduled in Des Moines that same weekend.CLICK HERE to watch Gunsmith Career Fair VIDEO (Recommended).
A number of interesting jobs in the firearms industry have become available in recent weeks. The NSSF maintains a regularly-updated listing of employment opportunities with gun-makers and shooting sports organizations. On the NSSF’s job board right now there are gunsmith openings, engineering offerings, sales and marketing positions, and even high-level legal and executive career opportunities. Here are some of the jobs we found this week posted on the NSSF Website. CLICK HERE for a complete listing (many more jobs).
Gunsmith CareerFair.com.
The Ruger 10/22 rimfire rifle is one of the most popular rifles ever made. Over five million 10/22s have been produced by Ruger. The first thing many 10/22 owners do with their new rifles is customize them — swapping stocks, barrels, triggers and other components. While some 10/22 upgrades are simple drop-in operations, it is wise to have some professional guidance when doing more advanced modifications.
Once the barreled action was complete and the AI chassis was successfully milled, Frank applied a tan Cerakote finish to the barreled action. This would give a proper tactical look to the rifle, while providing superior corrosion resistance for the metal parts. To learn more about Cerakote finishing, check out the 
By the end of his load testing session, Frank was getting good groups with Hornady 120gr GMX factory 6.5 Creedmoor ammo, and really superb groups with handloads. The 120gr GMX ammo “was going 3100 fps with no ill effects”. The best handloads were approaching 1/4 MOA for three shots, and Frank’s load with Berger 130 VLDs shot even smaller than that: “In my opinion the load development we did was worth its weight in gold. Where else can you build in a rifle in two days, then go out and develop a baseline load using everything from 120gr ammo to 140gr ammo with a few in between? My favorite load and clearly the rifle’s too, was the [Berger] 130gr VLD. This gave us great velocity, awesome groups [with some one-holers] and really nice results at distance.”
The 5th Annual Brownells 
The 
Brownells’ 4th Annual 
