doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com SxS Restocking & Refinishing ?

Yeah, that's a great idea ---- send some more of our jobs overseas & put more Americans out of work. What are you thinking anyway ??

I have a better idea. Let's turn a blind eye to illegal aliens coming into the U.S. and allow the low wage workers to come here instead, so we can depress domestic wages for the few jobs that are left here, and overload our welfare and health care system. That way there will be no export-import problems. Of course, we must re-elect the politicians who say that the country that put a man on the moon can't build a fence. Then we can solve those other minor problems by electing a naked Marxist who will promise Hope and Change. Then he and his V.P. will perhaps eliminate the Second Amendment, and we won't have to worry about the high cost of quality American gunsmithing anymore.

keith, thats a great idea, and seems to be well on the way to full implementation.......Scary

Jerry,

your idea is not far fetched, the problem are the risks associated with shipping and redtape both ends. As to the training of people, you can start with some that already have previous training. For example, here in Chile, you can have a fairly good quality custom made walnut gunstock for US$800-1000 including the stock blank. I know of at least two stockmakers here that would pass a high standard examination. Some Europeans have found to their surprise that local stockmaking can be as good as in Europe. My bet is that you will find similar skills in Brazil and Argentina. Knowing the market conditions both ends and doing the right maths is a first step. The quest here is not finding the right artisans but finding the responsible middleman able to built a bridge of trust both ends and willing to make an honest business out of it.

Regards,

EJSXS

GUYS,

I don't think this project would eliminate any American jobs. The SxS's I have in mind are the field grade Americn classics that are not worth a $3k restoration job by a quality domestic gunsmith.

But they may be worth a $1k "foreign" restoration....

I'm sure you all see "rough SxS's" with $300 to $500 price tags on Sterlingworths, Ithacas, Elsies, Remington 1900's, etc. that really need a new stock to be used. Maybe the old stock is cracked, broken, too short, too much drop, etc. so the gun sits unused, even though the basic metalwork is still sound.

The idea would be to bring these oldtimers back to usage, instead of them resting in someone's closet.

JERRY

Keep the money and the jobs in the USA, just send them to me, I work pretty cheap myself!

DES:

I have one of those Kimbers you finished (a Model 82, serial number 26xx, I bought new in the box as a grad school graduation gift to myself). Nice job.

Rem

This is a ridiculous idea. The only reason you EVER go into business is TO MAKE MONEY. This would be a VERY hard way to make any money, not to mention all of the above reasons why it wouldn't work.
JR

You guys are missing the obvious. Spend the money on nice wood and have the stock turned and inletted and do the finishing yourself. You get much more for your money. I have artcicles on picking stockblanks and finishiong on this site under my name on this site. Go to Pete Hiatt Gunstocks on this site and then go to the articles.

Pete is quite correct. I took it a step further and beat the high cost of gunstocking by buying a bandsaw, a large quantity of black, claro, English, and French walnut slabs and blanks, a good assortment of chisels and gouges by Addis, Marples, Buck bros., etc, planes, scrapers, rasps, drills, bits, checkering tools, veiners, drawknives, spokeshaves, sandpaper, Foredoms, Dremels, an MMC electric checkering tool, cradle, vises, clamps, finishes, sealers, etc, etc. Oh, don't forget a small library of books by guys like Steven Dodd Hughes, Monte Kennedy, John Bivens, and many others. Then all you do is cut away everything that doesn't look like a stock. We're saving money now.