Thoughts on Finding a Gunsmith

Some years ago, a sporting gentleman and his pair of Dickson 12-bores took a trip to shoot driven birds in the American West in early autumn. The Teton Range served as an impressive backdrop, and the birds—both pheasants and partridge—were “testing” to say the least. After a fine morning of shooting, the gentleman settled himself on one of the centermost pegs and uncased his guns. While waiting for the horn to sound, he admired the fine double in his hands and noted something wrong. With a sinking heart, he realized that somehow the Anson-style pushrod had slipped out of the forend and was now lost somewhere in the Idaho dirt. Despite a valiant search, the rod never resurfaced. Presumably, what followed was an inordinate amount of time, effort and money allocated to having a new one made. 

So what of this question? In establishing some best practices to connect those in need with fine gunsmiths, let’s recognize two fundamental “givens.” First, there really is no singular clearing house for gunsmiths. Yes, there are online boards and forums as well as resources made available through organizations such as the American Custom Gunmakers Guild, but, generally speaking, there is no singular hub for those seeking gunsmithing work, especially work related to fine shotguns. The second given asserts that there is no universal standard for fine-gunsmithing work. Rather, the gun owner needs to clarify the problem in need of a fix, and then needs to be honest about the standard to which he or she would like that fix executed. Hence, “good” gunsmithing becomes a highly subjective service—one that hinges on the self-education of the gun owner.

Let’s unpack this latter point a bit. Say, for example, an individual inherits his grandfather’s old Model 21, complete with some surface rust and a stock gone pulpy from too much oil. That individual may want to do right by a valuable and somewhat historic gun but may not know that certain metal finishes, stock-wood selections, checkering patterns and so on would be appropriate choices for that particular project. Moreover, the gunsmith who the individual selects to do the work may not know, either, and therefore the work may not stay true to the “period correct/appropriate” standard that a Model 21 should arguably be restored to. Then again, if the owner is happy, who cares?

The upshot of this second given is that customers seeking gunsmithing work should educate themselves as best they can or at least be honest about the standard of work they’d be happy with. Gunsmiths should be similarly educated and up front about their particular level of expertise in a given discipline of repair. Were a person to bring a Purdey to a gunsmith for a complete re-stock, he or she would likely want to know that the gunsmith had done a few Purdey stocks previously and would want the ’smith to show some examples and explain why he or she was capable of working on Purdey. If the gunsmith could not, the customer likely would want to move on. Author Del Whitman addresses the gunsmith’s responsibility by recalling his mentor Bruce Lepage, who said, “Del, you are certainly good with your hands, but I could teach a monkey how to make the cut. To work on really fine guns, you have to know right from wrong and what’s correct and what’s not. You have to know that you can’t checker a Purdey like you would a Holland, and vice versa.”

With these givens established, a gun owner in search of a gunsmith should first and foremost tap the network. The owner of fine old British guns is likely to be aware of the shop where the guns were purchased or of a collector group focused on similar guns. Often there are Internet bulletin boards or other online forums specific to makers and manufacturers that can generate leads. All of these resources are incredibly valuable in helping locate a gunsmith. Fine gunrooms—even those that do not offer gunsmithing services—are likely aware of gunsmiths specializing in fine doubles. Shop owners may even take in a gun and outsource the work, much as a general contractor would. Though you may pay a premium for such help, a lot of the headache is removed. Furthermore, bigger shops like Orvis, Griffin & Howe, Gordy & Sons and so on likely have in-house gunsmiths available to work on guns similar to those they sell. These bigger operations can oftentimes provide a level of confidence and security in that bigger brand stands behind the services provided. Additionally, some fine contemporary gunmakers as well as some older companies may offer repair services. Westley Richards, Purdey, Holland & Holland, Krieghoff . . . .

After a period of time in the trade, many gunsmiths tend to specialize. Del is a bit of a unicorn in that he can deliver excellent restoration work, woodwork and stockmaking, metalwork and so on. He would be the first to say his “specialty” is the manufacture of obsolete parts (like a Dickson pushrod . . .), but his range is quite extraordinary. Despite his breadth of abilities, he is still highly focused on projects involving double guns. He does not work on rifles, and he does not work on handguns. He’d be the wrong person to ask to clean a dirty Beretta autoloader. But there are many ’smiths and companies that have distinct specialties. Rich Cole, for example, is “the” aftermarket Beretta guy; Doug Turnbull Restoration is “the” case-hardening company. Briley Manufacturing is “the” choke/barrel-modification outfit. If you, as a potential customer, poke around the industry and the Internet a bit, you will quickly see patterns. If a name keeps coming up in reference to a particular type of work, it’s likely that that person or provider has specialized and should be explored as a resource.

Once a prospective gunsmith has been identified, the customer should do some degree of vetting and reference checking. The ’smith should have examples of past work in a portfolio or in an online gallery, and requests for references should be given happily. As mentioned earlier, a gunsmith should generally have a theme to his or her catalog of work, meaning that if a portfolio is requested and the examples of work include a Cera-kote job on an AR-style rifle, a stock refinish on a Stevens 311 and some action work on an old Ithaca pump, you may want to find someone with a bit more narrow focus. From there you can assess whether said focus meets your needs.

Once a good fit between the project and the gunsmith is identified, ask for some clarity around pricing and turnaround time. Both matters can be elusive but ballpark figures should be manageable. It is also a good idea to confirm the exact extent of repair work to be undertaken and/or a budget threshold beyond which you are not willing to go. Remember that some gunsmiths charge by the hour, and their specialized abilities may be out of scale with the desired project. In the end, the cost of the work and the time it takes have to be justifiable, and that calculus should be considered before any work is committed to.

After that it’s time to wait. Good gunsmiths are in high demand, and even Del would say they are a quirky bunch. The more esoteric and specialized the project, the more you must see the gunsmith as an artist at work—and artists can’t be rushed. Some projects take months; others take years . . . . You can certainly check in for updates, but it is fairly rare that demands make the work go faster.

So, in closing, remember the following:

• When looking for a gunsmith, think about the work you want done and the degree to which you wanted it done. Educate yourself about the gun and the repair, and understand the full scope of work and the varying levels (and costs) at which it might be executed.
• Tap the network in search of a gunsmith. Ask friends, fellow shooters, collectors, dealers and manufacturers. The shotgun ’smithing space is small, and there are few secrets or unknowns.
• Specialized work requires a specialist gunsmith. Ask a prospective gunsmith what he or she is best at, ask for references, and ask to see examples of work.
• Remember that good work takes time—and costs money. If we wanted to ensure that we’d rarely need a gunsmith, and if we wanted to ensure that the needs we did have would be cheap fixes, then we’d all be shooting synthetic 870s.
• Finally, remember: An ounce of prevention is worth a ton of cure. Take care of your guns and avoid the need for gunsmithing. The best gunsmith out there is the one you don’t need.