Gunsmith shooting Courses/instructor

[buckyjames1]

1. So I'm on my 4th S/W (60-10, 617, 686, 586) and would like to advance my gunsmith skills beyond the current "Not afraid to disassemble but usually lose a small spring" guy into being able to perform action jobs, tune, diagnose. I ran across S/W courses @ around $550 travel expenses not included. My questions are:

i. Would it be unheard of to find local smith who would allow me to
perform under his supervision (fee of course) or is this a trade
no-no.

ii. Retiring soon (military) in Virginia area and would definitely consider
apprenticeship.

2. Shooting Instructor:
i. yeah I can shoot, yeah I've taken some courses, no I'm not at a
competition level. What I am finding out is that military quals don't
necessarily transfer to the outside (RSO-static/dynamic/waterborne,
small arms/heavy weps instructor.

ii. Is the NRA path worth it as a credential builder or should I just use
the business card and reference route.

*long story short, interested in others "getting into the shooting/smithing paths, lessons learned, stories.

 

[richcory]

I'm curious what you find out

 

[Pig Hunter]

Anyone can say they are a "gunsmith". Doing NRA classes is great. Working for someone may be better.

 

[flintsghost]

There are accreditation courses and groups who will certify you as a gunsmith. None of these courses or groups are any good. Most amount to you paying money to get a "certified gunsmith" certificate that means nothing. A lot in the business have gone that route. That's why there are so many guns that have been bubba'd. If you desire to take courses and learn the trade...the Trinidad State Junior College has a 2 year gunsmith program that is a associates degree possible with the rest of the JC classwork. There is also Colorado School of Trades. I went through Trinidad myself and think it is superior but I know people who are excellent who went to Colo School of Trades. Most of the manufacturers offer armorers courses, some are cheap and some are expensive. Usually those are offered only to persons who are employeed by a gun store, gunsmith, or Law Enforcement. I went through Smith & Wesson which was moderately expensive and also through Glock, SIG, Colt, and H&K which were all Free or very low fee types. When I did Colt it was by invitation of the local Rep and was not a formal course. It was a week of learning in the Custom Shop under the tutelege of one of their Senior custom smiths. Now Colt has a formal program which travels around but deals mainly with the M16/AR15 and not with their other weapons. During the summer, the NRA offers special classes that are usually taught at a place like Trinidad State Junior College and deal with specific things. These are excellent, can get College credit for some, but may have some expensive fees. Usually taught be very good people who may be well known in the expertise.

 

[teletech]

Maker's armorer courses are good and some general machining classes would help. The trade-school by mail thing is mostly a joke. A lot of purported smiths aren't worth studying under.
Disassemble a few guns and have a friend mix all the parts up, let it sit for a week and reassemble, keep doing it until you can get them all back together properly.
Read all of the tech-notes from Brownells.

It seems like a lot of the guys who are good started out working in a factory setting for a larger gunmaker or gunsmith, the guys who are great often started on their own guns.

 

[hobby-gunsmith]

gunsmith shooting courses/instructor

Consider what you would feel the most benefit as a career or hobbyist. To start off, if you are interested in becoming a gunsmith, I would pursue looking into the American Gunsmithing Institute. They have a proven track record and you work with some of the knowledgeable and experienced master gunsmiths in the business. The method they teach is design, function and repair. You can start with the practical gunsmith course and then to the professional gunsmith course and the master gunsmith course. You receive the package and videos and the step by step method is fantastic. Plus, you have the instructors that will guide you or answer your questions. The courses are at your own speed and the testing is somewhat difficult but if you digest the courses, they are not as intimidating as you may perceive. Also, becoming a Gun Club of America member is a plus with the latest gunsmithing advances and at least one new disassemble and and reassemble courses each month. With last month's edition of the Gun connection and Gun club of american marks 10 years of publication. I would strongly look into the program and they have student counselors to guide you for payment and what would be to your benefit. If you desire to become a firearm instructor, I would start with the NRA Basic pistol course. As of the 15th of this month, the course will be completely on computer learning, phase one, and once you complete that portion, you can take the phase two with an NRA certified instructor. Once you complete that course, take a least one or two of the NRA advance pistol courses, Personal Protection in the home and Personal Protection outside the home which is a two day course and you will need the Personal Protection in the home completed if you take the Personal Protection outside the home. Then you will have a complete understanding of the NRA lesson plans and you can then take the pre-qualification written and firearm tests for the NRA Pistol instructors course. Both are huge steps and take a great deal of determination in what you will pursue. Good luck in your endeavors and if you need additional information, please feel free to contact me.

Nick

 

[EK2944]

You mention in your OP that retiring soon and Virginia area.
This school is east coast and has a great reputation.

Gunsmithing Home

 

[buckyjames1]

Appreciate the input.
Going to begin the NRA route

 

[gnystrom]

If you are asking, is the NRA RSO, Basic Pistol class a good program? I would say yes. It is long and sometimes drags a bit slowly but I have found that I revert to much of what I learned in those classes whenever I am teaching a new student. Their program is "old school" but effective and is a great springboard for further instruction. Plus there are some gun and accessory manufacturers that offer great pricing for NRA certified instructors. ie, Kahr and Crimson Trace as two of the best.

 

[2152hq]

Getting a chance to sit in with a good 'smith and learn is not a bad thing and certainly not looked down upon as a way to gain knowledge.

Any time you can learn directly 1 on 1 , take advantage of it. It doesn't
matter if it's a general gunsmith operation or a specialty 'smith that does rust bluing, stockwork or what ever.

The schools I know nothing of. I never went to any of them.