At home gunsmithing scool/training

[wyodeseertrat]

Sorry if this is the wrong place for this.

My best friend and I have been interested in becoming gunsmiths for a long time, but havent had much luck finding much infomation about schools and other types of training. But then last night reading my copy of Guns&Ammo The complete book of the AK47 I came across an ad for a company called American Gunsmithing Institute and. They offer in home, at your own pace training. They say that you can become a certified gunsmith in as little as 90 days. It sounds like its just what i need as since i have a full time job and a other bills to pay and cant just leave and go to some school. Does any body know anything about this company? Know any body who has done the training. It kinda seems to be to be true so before i order their stuff I decided to ask this wealth of knowledge and experience.

[bill8333]

As with any company do a little research before you jump in with both feet. And if you choose that route keep us posted.

Bill8333

[blaked]

ive also been looking into becoming a gunsmith. but the idea of just watching a bunch of videos and in 90 days becoming a certified gunsmith doesnt sound right at all. i just dont see how watching some videos and never actually doing any maintenance on the weapons certifies you to do anything.

[fedmanshooter]

^agreed, you have to have some hands on and feedback on problems/questions/progress. Not to say you can't learn alot from books and video. Heck, I've learned how to do alot of my mods online.

[blaked]

You can definatly learn alot but i would never take my guns to someone who had never done any of the maintenance and only had watched it done. But from my research it doesnt look like theres alot of options for a hands on gunsmithing school

[zinker518]

I recently completed the Gunsmithing course through Ashworth College. There's 19 lessons total ranging from revolvers, shotguns, lever, bolt, semi-auto pistols takedowns/maintanance/trouble shooting, shop/work area setup, barrel bedding, buttstock install and mounting optics. Didn't cover any AR/AK type weapon systems however-kind of disappointing on that aspect. There's also tips on job search, cover letter/resume and interviewing. Lucky, between my father and I, we had just about every type gun covered, so that's what I used for my "hands-on" work. If i would have researched it a little more, I probably would have chosen AGI or Penn Foster since a lot of people have mentioned them, not too many have heard of Ashworth. It's a good start, I've learned a lot and made me want to find out more about certain subjects (i've since bought several DVD, CD and books on gun schematics and watched a ton of videos). It's only the beginning.....
Hope this helped.
Good luck

Just remembered: they also sent me a couple of punches, a set of hollow ground screwdrivers and "Gunsmithing: Pistols and Revolvers" 3rd Ed. by Patrick Sweeney 383 pgs (with a good chapter on xD and xdm).

[Errokk]

This is something I've always been interested in and am considering doing. I'm so sick of the seasonal work I'm stuck in right now and almost bound to it because I went to school for two years to learn the skills necessary for the job not to mention the $10,000.00 I spent to go to the school. Gah, decisions... Good thing is, finally got my wife out of school and graduated! That was 3.5 years of headache. Well worth it now though! She doubled her salary and loves her work now!

I guess I've got a few things to think about...

You want fries with that!?

[usmc2311]

my buddy went to penn foster online and is one of the better gunsmiths i know you really only learn from hands on and experience and he just practiced with his own weapons and he bought some "toys" for class aids. I could sit in a room all day and work on guns and not retain anything unless im doing it on my own and figuring out what works and how.

[Groo]

I wouldn't do it that way, and I probably wouldn't even get into gunsmithing now. There are no new FFLs being given out under this administration, and who can say about the future?

If you really want to play with guns and make a living at it, best to become a first rate machinist first, then learn the gun specific items and get the little piece of paper.

[Selta]

One thing I'm interested in is learning just how to mod my own firearms. Putting in trigger kits, fixing things when they break etc. I don't necessarily want to do full-on gunsmithing for other people, but I do want to be able to do most things for myself. Any suggestions in that area?