Does a gunsmith know when a barrel will shoot?

Besides being competent and confident, is there something in the process of barrel lets a smith know if a barrel is going to be a 1/4" gun or a 1" gun?
The use of quality components goes a long way. That's why most builders including myself find components that work consistently well and that they can stand behind being a precise product. Checking the total runout between the chamber, throat and bore will give a pretty decent idea, as well as checking your bedding with an indicator to ensure a truly stress free bedding job. That being said I have thrown together "leftover parts" guns that usually consist of a remington 700 action and a $150 barrel from brownells that were absolute shooters. I hunted for many years with a 7mm mag that was built just that way and there's a lot of critters that met they're end a hell of a long way from the muzzle of that gun.
 
The manufacturer might make that claim !
When a manufacture make the claim on a it is due to many barrels being made the same way with the same process every time with the same results.
I know rifle custom builders that guarantee 1/2 moa , but I bet that most of the will shoot <1/4 moa.
Hunting barrels made in bulk production may say 1MOA.
First buy all good components have great machinery, tooling. and measuring devices, Check the barbell for any defects. Barrel setup is most important having concentricity when threading and chambering the barrel, After that it is all up to the stock it is bedded into. You can have the best barrel And the worst stock, Good trigger and a competent shooter. The next thig is the bullet and charge have to be in sync with Everything.
A good GS knows that he/she has built a one hole just by the components and her/his workstyle.
 
1/4" or 1" gun is what exactly? 3 shot group? 5 shot? 30 shot?

1/4 or 1/2 inch 3 shot groups aren't very impressive
Agreed, unless it holds the same MOA out a good bit farther (300+) repeats time after time and year after year, on a hunting weight hunting gun.
No need in wasting components, barrel life or time in that situation, is it?
 
When I started gunsmithing, it was in long range BR. Its still half what I do Br and F-class, the other half of my work is long range hunting stuff. I have chambered 1000s of barrels, Im on the lathe every day. I pay really close attention to any detail I can to give my customer an advantage. In the BR world every little thing matters because matches can come down to the .001". I have chambered barrels that have won Nationals and broken records. And there is nothing that anyone can see or measure about them thats any different than a mid pack barrel. Truly bad barrels are rare. Say something that will not shoot .5 moa. I have only seen a few. Theres nothing about them you can see or measure. Even when they go back to the manufacturer for inspection. It comes down to steel quality and theres no way you know until you shoot them. Now Im talking about the better barrels. Hand lapped cut barrels. I am not talking about low quality barrels that you will find machining issues with. In the BR world the accuracy guarantee is not even a thing. Because competitors know some barrels are good and some are great. The bad ones are so rare we dont worry about it.
 
1/4" or 1" gun is what exactly? 3 shot group? 5 shot? 30 shot?

1/4 or 1/2 inch 3 shot groups aren't very impressive
For a hunting rifle I'd say a 1/2" MOA is impressive if done as a 3 shot group where each shot is a cold bore shot done on separate days and, is MORE important than any 5-shot group done as consecutive shots. 😊
 
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