Why does it take so long to build a rifle from a custom maker

[thewho66]

I would like any of the custom gun builders to explain the reasons behind there turn around times. Also there procese of making their guns. This is not for me but for anyone new to the hobby so they know what to expect. I am in the process of raising funds to have a pistol built from a maker. when I told some of the people at work they thought that the price and time seemed expensive and a long time to wait. I know that there is a waiting list due to orders place before me as well as the actual time to create the end result. But lets here from the actual makers in detail, plus what they would like from the customer to make there job easier.

John

 

[nchawkeye]

Heck, just make it yourself....

It only took me 2 years and about 200 hours to make my first flintlock...Parts were about $600, in 1988...

How much are you worth an hour???

These guys ain't getting rich....

 

[Stophel]

First off, many builders are simply not full time gunsmiths. Some like me just do this part time when we can. Second, there is just a LOT of work involved with making a gun. Third, finishing takes more time than just the act of putting on varnish.

I have built a plain gun in three weeks once...but at that time I was in an "employment transition period", and had nothing else to do. :grin:

IF ALL GOES WELL, with nothing else to distract me, I usually can get a gun completed within 3 or 4 months. Here lately, this hasn't been so for me, as I have had a lot of other things occupying my time...

Also, when you order a gun from a smith, you take a number and wait your turn. Some of our more well known gunsmiths have a long list of folks in line ahead of you. :wink:

As far as price, well, the parts alone are going to be probably $500 right off the bat. On top of that, add 40, 50, 60 hours or much more of labor to build the gun.

 

[rabjr]

You do realize that most of the builders if not all have a list of guns to build. They aren't just sitting there waiting for your order to get busy.

 

[Roy]

Like Swampy said, there is a list... Some builds just take longer than others too, could be the style or could be the wood itself. Just the way it works out. As far as the process check out gun building 101 tutorial and that should give you some idea.

 

[RC]

I'd say, in a word, ""CUSTOM"and & one builder...explains time and cost...but WELL worth the wait an expense!

 

[Vaino]

Evidently the demand exceeds the supply of MLers produced by builders who are able and willing to sell their skills. Long lead times of some builders are a good "sign" that their skills and products are in demand and if building MLers is their sole source of income, that's a good situation for them and MLing in general. There must be an ever increasing demand for custom built MLers judging from the fact that I turned down 6 requests for MLers last year and I'm not anywhere near being a "noted" builder. Personally I won't build "to order" although all my MLers are sold. At 75 I don't want to contend w/ customers' whims and fancies and those builders who do, should be admired and should be well compensated.......Fred

 

[rabjr]

At 75 I don't want to contend w/ customers' whims and fancies and those builders who do, should be admired and should be well compensated.......Fred

Ack! Fred did ya have to say that before my gun was finished! :grin:

 

[RC]

At 75 I don't want to contend w/ customers' whims and fancies and those builders who do, should be admired and should be well compensated.......Fred

Ack! Fred did ya have to say that before my gun was finished! :grin:

Double ACK! Mine ain't started yet! (?? that's, admired, AND well compensated?? 1 outa 2? :haha:

 

[Dane]

I can only re-interate what everyone else has said, but will add a little as well.

#1 Cost of parts. A good flintlock, good barrel, good piece of wood...... $600 to $900. Not to mention hardware, patchbox, and any embellishments you choose. You could use a cheap lock, a cheap barrel and a plain piece of wood. But why?

#2 Labor involved. It usually takes me 100 to 250hrs of labor to complete a gun. The more frou-frou, the more hours. At just $10/hr, well, you figure it out.

#3 How many are ahead of you. If a builder's product is worth having, he should be busy. He also should be worth waiting for.

I'm having a gun built by someone who's work I admire. His starting price is $6000, and the wait is 3 years.

I'm waiting, saving my money, and looking VERY anxiously forward to seeing the results. I know it will be amazing.

Hope this helps.

 

[renovato]

John, it's not much different for modern guns either. I have a friend who is having a Mauser customized. The stock was pre-inletted, so not much work there. The barrel isn't a big deal to fit. The receiver needed to go out for a heat treat, but that's about a 10-14 day turnaround time. The wood and metal finish will take some time of course. But he's been waiting for over a year now.

I've built many custom Mausers and it never takes me more than a couple weeks. He's going on his second year now. Why? Because the smith had other projects ahead of him, and works on his as he's working on others, so he can get several guns done at the same time without having to change his machinery setup, etc. I've had a lot of work done in the past and even simple 1-2 hour jobs can take a few weeks, depending on the gunsmith's backlog. That's a big part of why I started doing my own work.

 

[Many Klatch]

If you know the gunbuilder well, sometimes you can cut the process a little short. A lot of the guns are built for people that are saving up the cash for when the gun is ready, so there isn't a tearing hurry to get the gun ready quickly. If you put down 50% or more then you may get moved to the head of the line. Then it only takes 6 months to a year. Also, the more freedom you give the builder, the more fun they may have in building it and if they are having fun then the gun may move ahead of others as well.

Many Klatch

 

[Dobson]

Just to give you an idea this last weekend i probarbly spent ten hours tuning the lock and trigger unit for the hawken i am building from a pecatonica parts set. Polishing all the moving parts and shaping and polishing the sear tumbler arrangement to get as good an opperation as possible is not a five minute job. This does not include polishing the outside to make it look pretty this is just the stuff you dont see. As one chap said make one yourself and see how easy it s to get good results and you will appreciate and have huge regard for the top custom smiths.
Regards to all
Dobson

 

[Vaino]

Well....at 75 I'm quite fortunate to be able to turn my energies from a lot of hunting and fishing to building Mlers. Every time I buy a bbl, wood or components, my wife reminds me... "you won't use them in a million years and besides, can't you make them guns a little faster? You're way too fussy and you could sell more guns if you just weren't so particular." Thanks guys :grin: ...never realized the true reason for not "taking orders"......Fred

 

[thewho66]

Hey this wasnt for me I might have generalized it to much, but this is to let other people know whats involved. I've delte with one semi-custom maker because I know that the time involved was 2-4 months and they make what I wanted. And as I said I am working with a full custom maker to have a pistol made and can wait the time need to get it made. :surrender:

 

[MikeChapin]

I'll second what everyone else said. It's not uncommon to have a good builder have a two or three year backlog. Once they get to work on the piece there is a lot of work involved to create it. A pistol only takes a little less time than a rifle. Thats why they are priced to build about the same as the rifle.

I am impatient and did not have bundles of money so I learned to build them myself. You are still looking at a chunk of change just for the parts. The last rifle I built was a full stock plain jane flinter in .32. The parts were still $500. I used a plain maple stock and just the minimum brass furnature. A good barrel and lock will run about $250 by themselves.

Actually, as I have said before, I don't know how most gun makers make a living. For the hours put in, and the amount of stuff they keep tied in inventory they are only making eight or ten dollars and hour. In some places that is what a McDonald's worker makes. They definitly do it for love of job rather than riches.

 

[Roy]

I do it for the travel time to work :haha:

 

[RC]

I do it for the travel time to work :haha:

yea, thats a perk! plus ya can't afford a sitter fer smushy an spot! :haha:

 

[Mike Brooks]

I've been building guns full time since 1996. I've always had at least a 1 year to 2 1/2 year waiting list. My list ranges from about 18 to 35 guns at any given time. When you put a down payment down that starts you at the bottom of the list. I don't take bribes to move you up. I get a gun done every two to four weeks.
In the past couple years I have started to design and sell my own kits. I promise a 3 to 4 month turn around time on these just because I'd rather build guns from my kits these days than build a gun from a blank.That, and I just can't see making a guy wait for two years for me to build a gun from a kit. My wrists and elbows are falling apart and kit have less back breaking labor involved.
Parts are expensive these days and the prices keep going up. Shipping is outrageous these days too. It takes almost $20 to get a stock blank shipped to me. Then I have to send it to the guy who makes my kits, that's another $20. Then he has to send it back to me which is about another $15. That's $55 in shipping the stock alone....doesn't even count the initial price of the wood. :surrender:
There are many more profitable ways to make a living. :haha:

 

[thewho66]

Mike is one of the builders I hoped would chime in on the this. The people at work are used to the idea that they know what the want so they can go duy it. Most new shooters need to know why a custom make will have a wait time. Its a lot of work for them build a ML gun. At work they think I am crazie to spend the money that I do for an front stuffer. One person said just get an inline and you won't have to get another. I tried to tell him its not the actual kill or target score its the thrill of doing it the way they did it back then. I have almost gotten rid of most of my moderen guns simple becouse I enjoy shooting my muzzleloading guns more. If any other makers full time or part time will tell us what it takes for them to build guns let us know. The new people to the hobby need to know that there are choices out there that will vastly improve the make up of our hobby/life style.

John