Rifle Barrel Accuracy - A definitive work on the selection, installation, and evaluation of rifle barrels for supreme accuracy.
by Norman E. Johnson
As the gunsmith/rifleman takes on the role of machinist and ballistic technician in the extreme accuracy arena, his or her every skill will be tested. In this treatise I will delve into the selection, installation, and evaluation of two match grade rifle barrels, both chambered for the same cartridge. Each will be used as test barrels on near-identical, highly accurate Model 40X Remington switch-barrel rifles. Following the installation of these two match grade barrels, I will perform comparative tests on them, carefully analyzing performance of each one. (Feb 2016 issue)

Workshop Aids On A Budget - These shop-made helpers are easily made, often with materials on hand.
by Dick Maheu
I have known a lot of gunsmiths in my time, and the vast majority of them did not have a pocket full of greenbacks to throw away. Ingenuity and frugality were common attributes with most of them and they made do where they could, without compromising the quality of their work. I have had this mindset from day one of taking my first gun apart. It makes good sense to save your money for the tools and equipment you can't make and to make those that you can. (Jan 2016 issue)

The Basics of Cut Rifling A Rifle Barrel
by Charles J. Moore
Because gun barrels have been rifled for so long in so many different regions of the world, the device that is used to guide and support the hook cutter during a rifling operation is known by several different names. These names include, but probably are not limited to, rifling cutter box, rifling cutter head, rifling head, rifling box, rifling bar, and cutter box. As far as I know, there is no one correct name for the tool; all of the preceding names seem to be equally valid. I use the term rifling cutter box simply because that is the first name for the thing with which I became acquainted. (Dec 2015 issue)

Quick Detach Sling Mounts In Hollow Synthetic Stocks - A simple and reliable method for installing sling mounts, even in a totally closed and sealed hollow synthetic (plastic) rifle and shotgun butt stock with no access to the inside.
by Richard B. Davis
Hollow synthetic stocks often do not have enough wall material thickness to reliably mount sling swivels as a wood screw into a conventional wood stock. For those who prefer side mounted rifle slings, the side walls of synthetic butt stocks are often thinner than the bottom edge. Consider commercially available sling mount hardware with hollow stock use. Uncle Mike's is one of the most common sources and most conventional sling mount hardware comes with a screw/stud having tapered threads, very similar to a wood screw. This attachment is generally not reliable into hollow synthetic stocks which do not have sufficient wall thickness to support the threads. 3/16" wall thickness is not uncommon on the sides of plastic rifle stocks.   (Nov 2015 issue)

Electropolishing & Fire Lapping
by Joe Carlos
When I first came on board as the Armorer for the Army Reserve Markmanship Program, I machine tested 135 A2 National match uppers. The results made my jaw drop to the floor. Only 39 of them would shoot MOA. I seriously questioned my sanity in getting talked into accepting such a project given the hand I had been dealt. 96 of those uppers were very sick! On top of that, we had no replacement barrels and our budget couldn't afford that many barrels at one time. On taking throat gauge readings and bore scoping those 96, it was immediately obvious that hardly any of them were really shot out. They just weren't shooting well. Either those 96 barrels were born bad or something else was wrong with the guns that kept the barrels from giving the accuracy they were born with.   (May 2015 issue)