pisgahrifle Posted February 10, 2005 Share Posted February 10, 2005 Is there, anywhere out there, a list put out by the American Pistolsmiths Guild of "accreditied" pistolsmiths? I'm hesitant to name the gunsmith, but I just had a job mutilated pretty good, and I'll need someone to fix it. I also can't exactly afford an arm and a leg, either. Does anyone know if such a list exists, and if so where can I find it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sixgun Posted February 10, 2005 Share Posted February 10, 2005 I haven't heard of a list like that. There are a number of talented gunsmiths on this board, in no particular order: Bob Londrigan from Brazos, Benny Hill from Triangle Shooting Sports, J.L. Hardy, Dan Bedell from Bedell Custom, Brian Hawley from Hawley Custom, and probably a few more that I don't remember. I'd start with any one of these fine gentlemen and see if they can't help you. I don't see a location in your profile, but if you are in the Detroit, MI area, I can highly recommend Doug Jones from Acc-U-Rail. Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soligen Posted February 10, 2005 Share Posted February 10, 2005 I can second the Doug Jones recomendation. Also if you are in the Detroit area, come by the Detroit Sportsman's Congress (actually north of Detroit). We've got a good group of shooters and monthly matches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhino Posted February 10, 2005 Share Posted February 10, 2005 Their web site has lists of members smiths by name, specialty, and location. American Pistolsmiths Guild Neil Keller is the current president. He's done good for me in the past and I will go to him again. KustomBallistics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pisgahrifle Posted February 11, 2005 Author Share Posted February 11, 2005 I'm in the Western NC area. Has anyone here had Phil Flack of PF Custom do any work? I was by his shop earlier today and saw one of his L-10 guns and an open gun- i was very impressed. He did some very slick machine work on a Springfield slide that was very, very clean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waktasz Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 I'll add George Smith at EGW to the fold. www.egw-guns.com Just got my Para back from them and am LOVING it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 I checked out the Guild members list & there are some great USPSA/IPSC smiths there. HOWEVER, Guild membership is not the last word in quality smithwork because the guild failed to list some some equally talented gunsmiths. For example, George Smith at EGW (responsible in part for Doug Koenig's guns) Bob Londrigan (sp? - a contributor to Frontsite) and Dave Dawson (who helped develop the S_I) are not listed. I do not believe Hawaii's Ed Masaki of bullseye fame appeared either. I would certainly not discount a gunsmith with a good reputation simply because they did not pay to be memebers of the Guild. It is apparently just one place to start the search for the right smith. Regards, D.C. Johnson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mistral404 Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 First off, It is a Guild. Their "accreditation" is not. These are members of a Guild who have been invited to submit firearms for review. Based on the recommendatons of the reviewers the person is invited to join. It has its good points and bad. C&S is probably the only shop in the country that has two members in the Guild. And I have had them work on my BHP. It is fantastic shooter. But as others have said there are many good smiths out there. I honestly think this is the best place for a recommendation. If they pass muster with this group of folks then they must be better than adequate. Personally I think Don Golembieski's at Kodiak Precision work is the best for me. But there are others out there who do good work also. If want a recommendation from someplace other than here go to a local match and ask around. Someone might express an opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill H Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 I give another vote to EGW. Simply fantastic! Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Action Pistolero Posted February 12, 2005 Share Posted February 12, 2005 Pigahrifle, Try Predator Custom Shop in Knoxville, Tn. They can be reached at predatorcustomshop.com. The gunsmith's name is Bob Howard. He's built quite a few guns for me and they are all top notch. Kevin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidwiz Posted February 13, 2005 Share Posted February 13, 2005 There are some top gunsmiths who, for whatever reason, choose not to belong to the Guild. American Handgunner magazine has a "Top 100" list: http://www.americanhandgunner.com/Club100.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DWG007 Posted February 18, 2005 Share Posted February 18, 2005 Try TJ at tjscustomgunworks.com TJ has fixed problems on my pistols caused by other so-called gunsmiths. He's very fast and professional. He builds/modifies great IPSC/IDPA guns. I can recommend him highly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XRe Posted February 18, 2005 Share Posted February 18, 2005 There are several other threads that mention recommended smiths on this forum Be sure to check those. I'd wager that a recommendation from this forum might be worth something like a BBB recommendation... For what it's worth, don't overlook Rusty Kidd at David's Gun Room in Norcross, GA. Extremely fine work. (He designed the AFTEC, BTW....) Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Boudrie Posted February 18, 2005 Share Posted February 18, 2005 It is important to see some guns from yourself, and talk to people who are not customers of the gunsmith you are considering as well as people who are. I have seen customers of mediocre gunsmiths (none of which were mentioned on this thread) talk glowingly about work which was just plain unacceptable. In all cases, it appeared to be customer who had spent big $$ on a mediocre gun - and could choose to either admit their gun was not that great, or convince themselves they had a wonderful gunsmith. Fortunately, the examples of the good seem to outweigh the examples of the bad when you deal with the serious players in the cusotm gun bsuiness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tightloop Posted February 18, 2005 Share Posted February 18, 2005 You get what you pay for in most cases.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuckbradley Posted February 18, 2005 Share Posted February 18, 2005 Sometimes you get more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tightloop Posted February 18, 2005 Share Posted February 18, 2005 Very true, but sometimes, you don't....but usually those guys aren't around long enough to mess up very many guns.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidwiz Posted February 19, 2005 Share Posted February 19, 2005 I agree with Rob. Don't go just on a recommendation, though they are helpful. Ask to see the gun and try it out. See if the fit and finish is good (meaning, that it doesn't rattle, there are no gaps between the parts, everything is blended like it should be, etc.). I've known quite a few people who go on and on about how great "X" gunsmith is, but in a match, these same people almost always have major gun-related malfunctions. -David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
21 shooter Posted February 22, 2005 Share Posted February 22, 2005 You might also check with Baity's Custom Gunworks in North Wilkesboro. They have done work for me over the years, and it is excellent. His work is right up there with any of the "big names". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert Snyder Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 The problem I have seen with Smith's that belong to the Guild,( and this may not be how they all work) is that they get an attitude of send me your gun because I am a member of the Guild and when it is done I will call you. This time frame could be anywhere from 3 months to a year. One Smith that I know personally that belongs to the Guild and he is a great guy and has done work for me and some friends of mine and stands behind his work 100% and that is Mark Hartshorne (Pinnacle High Performance). His work is fantastic and you will get what you pay for from him without an attitude! There are many people who are gunsmiths that are members of our sport who don't advertise and do just as good of a job without the wait. Check with other shooters in your area and see what they say. The Smith's that have been mentioned are really good and I have seen or had work done by many of them. Make sure you find a Smith that knows the sport. Masaki is great for Bullseye guns but I am not sure that I would have him build a race gun for me, Dave Dawson built a great limited gun for me a few years back and it still runs great but Dave himself did the work and he has gotten so big now that I am sure that his wait time has increased. Benny Hill built a 9mm Major Shorty Open gun for me last year and I am in Love with that gun and he had it back to me within 6 weeks! I too have seen many a hack job done by Smiths and don't understand why people keep them in business other than they might be convienient. Gunsmiths are not regulated other than by what each State says is an acceptable trigger pull. They just have to carry Liability insurance and hang out a shingle. I could be wrong on this but this is what I found to be the case in Maryland. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tightloop Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Just shows you what can be done if you work at it.....Benny is such a good ambassador for the sport, as a shooter, pistolsmith, ...too bad he is so modest.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Merricks Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 pisgahrifle, Tommy Aberthany is in Mt Holly, NC. He has built several guns for me that you can see in the gallery. He has good prices and his guns work. If you need his number send me a pm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaG Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 I'll second Bob Howard @ predator custom. I saw the Bianchi gun he did for action pistolero.......very nice. DaG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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