If It WereYou... A “WWYD” Question

[raz-0 1,259]

On 2/2/2019 at 8:24 PM, Bully said:

Thanks Jer.  Problem is, I like them both.  There are pros and cons to both as well.  

If it were you, which would you concentrate on?  IF you had to stay in the NJ area?  

I think the question is how busy do you want to be, and how one off do you want your guns to be? 

IMO the rifle world seems to closer to pumping out a niche commodity than making things really custom. There are more artsy and cool 1911s just sticking to machining than there are rifles. Most of the bling on rifles seems to be relegated to the guy doing the stock. 

I've also never met a competent 1911 smith who wasn't as busy as he wanted to be or more regardless of what state they called home. And the business has space for everything from the commodity pick from the menu type smiths to straight up competitions of creativity. 

Also in NJ, there are a lot more locations to function test a 1911 than a hyper accurate bolt gun. 

For bolt guns it's always seemed to me that there are a handful of "commodity" smiths. I.e. nice and built, but a stocked item you just buy and or pick form the list and wait. Other than that it's I know a guy who knows a guy. And good or bad that guy never seems to be all that busy. 

On top of that, for a lot of people who might have dropped 4k on a rifle, the factory PRS style offerings in chassis systems seem to me like they might eat into that market. 

 

 

[Bully 749]

21 hours ago, raz-0 said:

I think the question is how busy do you want to be, and how one off do you want your guns to be? 
I'm comfortable not being slammed but do enjoy staying busy.  I can't imagine that that will change as I age.

IMO the rifle world seems to closer to pumping out a niche commodity than making things really custom. There are more artsy and cool 1911s just sticking to machining than there are rifles. Most of the bling on rifles seems to be relegated to the guy doing the stock. 

I've also never met a competent 1911 smith who wasn't as busy as he wanted to be or more regardless of what state they called home. And the business has space for everything from the commodity pick from the menu type smiths to straight up competitions of creativity. 

Also in NJ, there are a lot more locations to function test a 1911 than a hyper accurate bolt gun. 
Unfortunately very true however the litmus test for bolt guns is 100 yards.  Easy enough to find.  

For bolt guns it's always seemed to me that there are a handful of "commodity" smiths. I.e. nice and built, but a stocked item you just buy and or pick form the list and wait. Other than that it's I know a guy who knows a guy. And good or bad that guy never seems to be all that busy. 

On top of that, for a lot of people who might have dropped 4k on a rifle, the factory PRS style offerings in chassis systems seem to me like they might eat into that market. 
Again I agree however there are plenty of very busy rifle guys.  I know a couple.  But the rifle takes about a quarter of the time to build.  So things move quickly.

 

 

Thanks again to all that have responded.  

[Zeke 5,504]

On 2/3/2019 at 8:28 AM, Maksim said:

Congrats!  1,000,000th post! 

@fishnut could you imagine if it was me? Lmao! @67gtonut would birth a kitten, and then punch it.

sorry @Bully.for a little side note 

[Bully 749]

18 hours ago, Zeke said:

@fishnut could you imagine if it was me? Lmao! @67gtonut would birth a kitten, and then punch it.

sorry @Bully.for a little side note 

You, send something sideways...  hogwash!!!

[remixer 1,645]

19 hours ago, Zeke said:

@fishnut could you imagine if it was me? Lmao! @67gtonut would birth a kitten, and then punch it.

sorry @Bully.for a little side note 

You would have been showered with praise then deleted from the forum.

[Malice4you 627]

Having watched the progress of your projects from the sidelines, I would be quite sad if you only ever ended up making a handful (armful?) of rifles.  I've been impressed by the skills you have and hope that - if you do get an 07 - that I might be able to afford one, because I do appreciate the work and skill involved in building something incredibly precise.  Considering that in the back of my mind, I'm constantly thinking about selling some of the guns I own to buy an Anschutz or Vudoo .22, and how I still want an Accuracy International, like I have wanted for a good 18+ years, I do appreciate a quality rifle...even if my nicest rifles at the moment are a bone stock Savage and a mildly worked on (by me) Savage.

Someone mentioned doing general gunsmithing in addition to whatever you do decide to work on, and I would agree that it might be a good way to help get an income flow while building a name for yourself.  If you choose to go rifle, things like bedding rifles or other accuracy enhancements might help get your name out.  Other accessories might help the bottom line, since you have the right tools, maybe things like custom bolt knobs, comps, or other metal products.  I've bought a specialty bolt knob off ebay, so if you had some made up, you could sell at your convenience.  Or maybe offer truly custom products - I'd like a bolt knob similar to what I have now, but in steel and larger...so if you were willing to do customs, might be worth looking into.

All that said...it is all about what will make YOU happiest.  If building and fitting 1911s is what will make you happiest, then I'd say go that route.  If making insanely precise rifles is what you're all about, go for it.  Or listen to the people who say machining is machining and do both.  I'm sure you'll find buyers and be successful in either direction, even if it starts with selling to someone here first.  I do envy you, because I would love to have an 07, but lack the money, business sense, or any other skill one might need to actually make any use of an 07 may hold me back a tad...

 

[Bully 749]

On 2/14/2019 at 11:55 PM, Malice4you said:

Having watched the progress of your projects from the sidelines, I would be quite sad if you only ever ended up making a handful (armful?) of rifles.  I've been impressed by the skills you have and hope that - if you do get an 07 - that I might be able to afford one, because I do appreciate the work and skill involved in building something incredibly precise.  Considering that in the back of my mind, I'm constantly thinking about selling some of the guns I own to buy an Anschutz or Vudoo .22, and how I still want an Accuracy International, like I have wanted for a good 18+ years, I do appreciate a quality rifle...even if my nicest rifles at the moment are a bone stock Savage and a mildly worked on (by me) Savage.

Someone mentioned doing general gunsmithing in addition to whatever you do decide to work on, and I would agree that it might be a good way to help get an income flow while building a name for yourself.  If you choose to go rifle, things like bedding rifles or other accuracy enhancements might help get your name out.  Other accessories might help the bottom line, since you have the right tools, maybe things like custom bolt knobs, comps, or other metal products.  I've bought a specialty bolt knob off ebay, so if you had some made up, you could sell at your convenience.  Or maybe offer truly custom products - I'd like a bolt knob similar to what I have now, but in steel and larger...so if you were willing to do customs, might be worth looking into.

All that said...it is all about what will make YOU happiest.  If building and fitting 1911s is what will make you happiest, then I'd say go that route.  If making insanely precise rifles is what you're all about, go for it.  Or listen to the people who say machining is machining and do both.  I'm sure you'll find buyers and be successful in either direction, even if it starts with selling to someone here first.  I do envy you, because I would love to have an 07, but lack the money, business sense, or any other skill one might need to actually make any use of an 07 may hold me back a tad...

 

Thank you for the compliments.  I truly appreciate it.  

I'm really just trying to figure out how I can make some spare scratch and get myself in the gun game.  I like niche work and would like to carve one out for myself.  Looking around some forums it seems that anyone with a lathe and a little practice can put a decent rifle together.  That's also been my personal experience.  It's not incredibly difficult.  

I've built a 1911.  It was quite a challenge and I had to seek professional help to get it completed.  I also didn't know as much then as I do now.  I'm pretty sure I could do it and carve out a little spot in the world working on them.  They are fun to shoot and funner to look at.  

I just did some work on two of my revolvers.  A Ruger and a Smith.  
I'm a HUGE revolver fan.  I like shooting them more than any other handgun platform.  They are the most "mechanical" of all the platforms.  The grip angle on both is comfortable and I like the reloading cycle.  I like the calibers that they are available in: 357/38, 44, 40, 9, 45, 10 for the common ones and the mags for the big honkers.  The are fun to make ammo for as well.  I shoot them very well and the very last pistol I would ever sell is my 3" 357.  Working on them is a challenge and learning to balance the springs as well as all the little details inside and outside the gun is fun.  
So, now revolver are in the mix as well.  

We'll see.  Right now I'm gonna build my match rifle and see what happens next.