Gunsmithing Question

[novaman64]

So, theres alot of great gunsmiths on this site and I was going to send my rifle out to one of them... After talking to a few friends I shoot with, they recommended me going to a local gunsmith who they had do work on their rifles.

Currently I have a bone stock Remington 700 SA, the work to be done is thread and chamber my 6.5mm blank, I wanted it chambered to 260 rem shotting 140 vld's, i loaded a blank and brought it with me, OAL of 2.952". Also have a Wyatts extended box to be installed.

When I walked in, the first guy I talked to told me it would be $250 to have the barrel threaded, chambered and crowned, and $150 to blueprint the action...

As he was writing it up, the gunsmith came out and said it would be $50 extra to "customize" my chamber to the bullet, and $50 more to index the barrel so that one of the flutes is completely centered on the top, and he said it has to be done that way and looks horrible if it isnt....

I also asked him if i should replace the recoil lug and he said they just grind the stock one and its fine....

About the chamber, he said they have to keep cutting, and testing with my blank until it fits in without the bullet in the riffling, does that sound correct???

After leaving I started feeling a bit hesitant about having them do my work...

Does this sound legit or should I pick up my rifle and ship it off???

 

[goose]

I think pac-nor will thread and chamber for 125 or so, heard of several others doing it for around that price.

 

[zuba]

I have seen work by almost all of the 'smiths on this site and there work is second to none. I wouldn't hesitate to send it off...

 

[WesB]

Call Chad at LongRifles Inc. He'll explain everything to you in detail. I guarantee you won't be disappointed
LongRifles, Inc.
Wes

 

[J E Custom]

If you want him to set up the throat anything but SAAMI spec. I will require a special reamer
or the use of a throating reamer.(Extra labor and tooling).

In my opinion indexing the flutes is a must for many reasons. and truing the recoil lug is normal
in fact when you go with an after market lug, they are normally thicker and require some extra
inletting of the stock plus the cost of the lug. the factory lug is fine unless you are shooting
one of the big 338s or bigger.

I recomend the use of all three tools, The Go Gauge, The sized brass, and a loaded round , to
get the best fit and still be SAAMI spec as far head space.

I would set down with them (The smith ) one more time and make sure he explains how and
why he would do the things he wants to. If he will not take the time to explain things better
then grab it and run.

Just my opinion

J E CUSTOM

 

[shortgrass]

I would set down with them (The smith ) one more time and make sure he explains how and
why he would do the things he wants to. If he will not take the time to explain things better
then grab it and run.

Just my opinion

J E CUSTOM

A knowledgeable customer is a happier customer. Use a custom lug! The idea is to have the surface that bears against both the barrel and action be 90 deg. to the hole that fits over the tenon and to have that bearing surface the same thickness everywhere the barrel shoulder and receiver touch when the barrel is torqued on (with the lug sandwiched inbettween). Ya', they're thicker. But I think that is for manufacturing purposes not for strength. The original lug is 3/16" thick. You would need to put it in a vise and use a hammer to bend it. If that 3/16" lug isn't strong enough when used, you got serious problems. I think the "thicker, stronger" lingo is advertising. "Wider" might have some merit with heavy recoiling calibers.

 

[Kevin Cram]

Everything you stated sound pretty legit. I prefer to use a Holland recoil lug rather than regrind the factory one, not necessarily due to the thickness but to the larger surface area when bedding and the draft angle make it much nicer for removal. Indexing the flutes to the top does take a little extra time and care but to me that's part of chambering a barrel with flutes. There is extra tooling and time to custom throat to a supplied dummy round as long as the reamer they have has a shorter throat than what you want it can be throated out to match. If their reamer has a longer throat then they would have to get another reamer or have the throat ground back on the one they have, adding cost to them. It's a matter of cutting and test fitting but that's part of the job. Everything you mentioned that they are doing sounds about right. I may have to re-think my prices after hearing they charge $50 extra for some of the "customizing" though.

 

[Chas1]

There's no harm in getting 1 or 2 more quotes from some of the smith here on LRH. Then you'll be able to do some comparisons on what services are needed and cost...couldn't hurt.

 

[Coyboy]

So they want 350 to fit a fluted barrel and throat to your dummy?

I charge $200 to fit a barrel. If it's fluted I time them and if They send a dummy I throat for it. Might add 20 -30 minutes to the job. I still charge $200.

May-be I should be charging for it.

$150 in shipping and ins. could cover shipping your parts to PA, WI, ND, or MT where the smiths stand behind there work.