Gunsmithing Correspondence Schools

I have been a full-time, professional gunsmith for about 11 years working from a shop I built on my property. When I retired from law enforcement after 30 years, I wanted to do something fulfilling with my retirement. Since I had a love for guns, gunsmith school was the natural choice. I wanted nothing more than to have my own shop and hang my shingle.

While I did consider attending a full resident course and investigated those options, I ultimately chose taking a correspondence school instead of attending a trade school. As with most major life choices needing careful consideration, education was based on time limit, money, location, and what I could get out of the training. A resident gunsmith trade school can cost $20,000 to $40,000 or more for tuition alone, not including the cost of living expense for a two year school or longer.

Instead, I went with distance education courses offered from the American Gunsmithing Institute (American Gunsmithing Institute. net) out of Napa, California. They area private proprietary institution approved to operate by the California Bureau for the private Postsecondary Education Act of 2009 (as amended) and division 7.5 of Title 5 of the California Code. This course put me in the right direction and fulfilled all of the requirements I needed to become a qualified gunsmith.

All of the subjects are taught by master gunsmiths. For example, Bob Dunlap taught gunsmithing at a college for 30 years. Each subject is taught in segments, such as pistols and revolvers, rimfire guns,

Hands-on work is required to complete the AGI correspondence course and samples showing off things like your machine work are sent in for evaluation. shotguns, and rifles. I was taught the theory of gunsmithing and how each gun works with a demonstrated understanding before working on guns. Other topics included heat treating, case hardening, spring making, stock work and refinishing, trigger jobs, glass bedding, rebarreling, and finishing work such as bluing, slow rust, and nitro bluing.

Each subject is taught as a series of segments on DVDs. What’s very helpful about this approach is the convenience of reviewing any segment as often as needed to better understand what is being said or shown. Instructors lecture on each topic, telling the story of each gun, how they work, and what can cause them to not operate, just like in a classroom environment. Demonstrations are given with full-size cutouts showing how things work internally along with black board drawings and other illustrations.

The close-ups on each gun part and the repairs shown are fantastic. It’s as if you were sitting in a classroom listening to your instructor as they show every intricate part of the gun. Just like sitting in a classroom, you must take notes while listening to help you learn. The important theories of gunsmithing are covered by learning how each part of a gun works. You learn quite a bit on fire control systems. Math is also involved, especially in firing pin protrusion.

You are taught trigger jobs and how to do it right along with what parts are hardened or case hardened. Other courses cover machine shop work (lathe and milling), welding such as TIG, MIG and gas, and the like. Beyond shop work are also lessons on business concerns, such as managing your shop, advertising, tax records, product liability and other insurance, and obtaining your FFL. Written tests follow each segment which are taken on your computer and must be passed before going on.

In addition to written tests, various projects must be completed and submitted for grade. For example, test bars on the lathe and milling machines to evaluate your shop work. The instructors send a metal test bar or block with instructions and blue prints of measurements of what is needed to turn and cut them. When done, send them back for final testing. The total tuition is not cheap at $15,000 but the course is very thorough.

Even though it is distance learning, it is formal learning with the same sort of lecture, demonstration, hands-on work, and testing you’d take in any good class. Since completing the course I opened my own gunsmithing shop named Jerry’s Gunsmithing in Dallas, Oregon where I do general gun repair. In addition to individual area gun owners, there are four gun shop dealers in my vicinity and I am their gunsmith. I have been told that I do a very good job for them.

I have made firing pins, hammers, springs, small sights, and pins. I also have reconstructed parts that were broken, TIG welded parts together, and use heat treating to harden parts. I was able to do this because of what I have learned through the American Gunsmith Institute. I do not know what the best gunsmith school out there is. Each one is a little different and some are not as good as others. Distance education is now offered for full Bachelor’s Degrees and higher.

In away, American Gunsmith publishes good articles and takes reader questions so this is also a form of distance education as well. If you learned something useful and it helped you as a gunsmith, then distance education can be good. I completed my AGI course and am nowa professional gunsmith. Yes, I was taught by a correspondence gunsmith school, but I chose the right one for me and business is good. AG