Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Custom Rifles & Wildcats cerakote and barrel issue

Ok got a question and need opinions. I had a light 6Br built on a model 7. A local smith reworked and lightned the action, new PTG coned bolt Bartlien barrel. I sent it out to have another person install one of his less then pound kevlar stocks on it(weighs 18.125 oz when i got it) and cerakote the metal brown. Ok so the gun is sent back to the local smith today and he notices a little grit and takes a look in the chamber and barrel, he calls me and said he didnt plug the chamber when the other smith blasted the gun. So the chamber and the first 1/4" at the muzzle is roughed up a bit. I called the smith who coated the gun and he says its nothing just polish it out. The local smith is not that bugged by the chamber but is about the muzzle and still is not happy about polishing out what was a perfect chamber. both him and I think that it is a big deal that the muzzle is roughed up at all. My questions are first the stock if told it WILL be under a pound shouldnt it be, this one is not a huge issue but still. The local smith did say the stock is very stiff and looks real good. Then the big one is the barrel, are we over reactting or what do you think? What would you do? What do you think the smith who did the stock and coating do? I will try to post pics of the gun soon, doing this from my phone.
Thanks

I certainly don't think you are over reacting. No way would I want my custom chambered rifle blasted like that.

I'd be mad. But, what are you gonna do? You could take him to small claims court if you just want a new gun out of the deal. He should be forced to make restitution if that is what you want.

we live in an already massively overly litigous society. while some lawsuits are in fact very necessary in order to right a wrong, i would recommend giving the smith who erred a chance to right it with you man-to-man.

if that DOESN'T work, you could probably do the small claims route.

Yes it is a big deal, breech and muzzle always should be plugged so this doesn't happen. Your throat is going to be a copper catching area if it is roughed up from blasting. Yes the chamber can be polished back out with some 400 grit carefully but, this should not of happened.

I would push for a new barrel and chamber job, unless you agree to having the barrel shortened and a new chamber cut (on his bill) if you have the available shank.

Have a lawyer send him a letter, that might be enough to scare him into doing the right thing.

Short cuts do not save that much time, and most often, it cost in the end no pun intended..

Plug plug plug.....

Sorry to hear of your bad experience, hope all works out well..

Chamber and muzzle should have been plugged. No ands, ifs or buts.

MtnHtr

Do note that in my being upset and typing on my phone in the middle of an hour bike ride I typed throat and should have been 1/4" at the muzzle. Better then the throat but still wrong.
Sorry for that.
Brad

the hack needs to be blasted in his chamber and muzzle then let him pay to fix the thing Clint

He should have plugged the muzzle, I use wooden dowels that fit snug and tap 'em in gently. I also keep the blast gun at an angle so the muzzle/crown area is not hit with blast media. My barrels are SS and I prefer not to coat the muzzle end as it is a sensitive area accuracy-wise.

Coated SS barrels:




Glass beaded SS barrels:





I plug the chamber with an empty shell casing, then cut a round piece of plumbers tape to fit over the breech and then stuff a cotton ball over that. I do not like blast media in the barrel/action threads and this method has worked out well for me.

It's stories and experiences like yours that motivated me to do much of my own 'smith work. I found that for the price a 'smith charges for a refinish job or two I could purchase my own equipment and complete much better work than even some of the big names out there. One advantage by doing your own work is there is no pressure to "rush" the job. I found by going slow and methodically, (and not taking shortcuts) I could bed and refinish my own and pard's rifles better than some of the hacks out there rushing folk's projects in order to make a buck.

Don't get me wrong, there are some good 'smiths out there, you just have to choose them wisely. Get references and check out their work if possible, and don't go by any jobs they hand you - check out a customer's completed project without the 'smith present if possible. I've seen some 'smiths that show you their work on their own personal rifles but when they work on your rifle the quality of work is lower (and that just chaps my a$$!).

MtnHtr

Give him the choice of paying for a new barrel, or paying to have 1/2" cut off and recrowned. He will surely take the latter, and you will get your accuracy back. No way a muzzle can be polished out and retain all of the original accuracy potential the barrel had.

If he won't make it right, I for one would like to know who it is, so that I don't find myself in the same situation.

Thanks,

Jerry

Brown Precision makes a Kevlar Pounder...hmm

If he doesn't make it right I will say who.
I will say it is NOT Brown

While the guy should make it right, it would kind of bother me to send the gun back to the same guy who messed it up to start with. Makes one wonder what the next screw-up will be. Might be better to accept your losses and move on. I doubt your hack would recognize the quality of the crowns Mtn Hunter has pictured...those look familiar...

Well the gunsmith/stocker(Wayne York Oregunsmithing) said sent ti back and he will just lap it out! He said you won't lap enough out of the muzzle to matter. I am going to have a tough time sending it back to him and trust that he will not screw up the rest of the barrel then do nothing.

No way would I be sending it back!

Same here. I would NOT send it back to someone who is too lazy to plug the barrel and then try to tell me that an internally blasted barrel can be "lapped" to original quality.

Regardless what he says, material (however minor the amount) has been removed from the bore, and lapping/polishing will not restore that material.

That sucks big time. I hope you get it all worked out.

I would not send it back either. If you want to correct the issue or at least try{if possible}, I would let someone else do it.

If I read this right, I'd be good and peeved with the guy who did the blasting. Seems the barrel wouldn't need much set back to clean up the chamber, and a shorter barrel would be ok if your ok with it.
I don't know what to say about the stock, maybe the butt can be hollowed a bit if it isn't already? If it bothers you, call the manufacturer and ask for an exchange.