Gunsmithin: Part 1

I have been enjoying the hell out of my new suppressor. What could be the only thing that could make it better? The ability to use it on more that one firearm!

My JR Carbine is also .45 ACP and it even uses Glock 21 magazines! It's only natural for it to share even more with his little brother!

So I took them both into my usual gunsmith to get the barrel threaded. Not as simple as I thought.

 

Threading a barrel for a suppressor is very precise work. Any small deviation will cause an internal impact and the destruction of the can. Threading for a muzzle break can be off a degree or two with no adverse effects. A suppressor threading must be perfect.

Next the Gunsmith has to have special Class III permits to be able to do this kind of work.

A lot of guys that call themselves "Gunsmiths" are in reality "Gun Mechanics". Part replacement guys. Most in fact have very little ability to fabricate parts from scratch or do precision milling or machine work. That's ok for most work. Like replacing my trigger group on my Saiga for 922r compliance, a new mag extension on my shotgun or other simple work.

So... I am now in search of a Gunsmith that has a Class III license and can do precision threading (in metric) on a lathe. 

--I will be talking to another Smith on Monday.

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4 comments:

  1. MSgt BJune 25, 2012 at 10:04 AM

    I haven't done work like that myself, but I've worked with a lot of machinists who have. (Sadly, not Class III guys)

    You've got your work cut out for you this time. Small, intricate work like that is the toughest. You're going to find a lot of machinists who won't touch it.

    Also, I'm betting that barrel piece doesn't lend itself easily to mounting on a lathe, which means threading by hand.
    Do that successfully, and you just moved from machinist to artist.

    Good luck.

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  2. Old NFOJune 25, 2012 at 8:20 PM

    Call these guys... http://www.warriflesonline.com/

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  3. TheFazJune 26, 2012 at 11:10 AM

    It's a 16" barrel, anyone can thread it. There is no special Class 3 licensing (SOT stamp) required. Any decent gunsmith with a lathe should be able to do it, if they can't than I wouldn't trust them to do any other work.

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  4. AnonymousJune 28, 2012 at 1:28 AM

    Might be cheaper to get a threaded barrel from the rifle manufacturer. Or from an aftermarket supplier.

    There are guys who make barrels for contenders for around $200, and a gunsmith can't charge much less than that and stay in business.

    On the other hand, TheFaz may be right, and the guy you talked to just didn't want to do it, or was trying to jack up the price.

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