How Guns are Made: Tolerances, Methods, and Metallurgy (Q&A January 2026)

Duration: 1:30:17

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0:02:41 - Could the US scale up small arms production to wartime mass levels?

0:08:57 - How were wood gunstocks made?

0:13:36 - Barrel attachment; alternatives to threading?

0:15:50 - Decline in gunsmiths and gunsmithing

0:20:34 - What would emergency small arms look like today?

Video - "Last Ditch" M16: https://youtu.be/1SDL4n8yUe8

Video - Croatian Crogar M91: https://youtu.be/Ruif6Qym3zw

Video - Croatian Vila Velabita: https://youtu.be/vLOwArnKWV8

Video - Croatian Sokac: https://youtu.be/d82b4xb6bAA

0:23:36 - Lost manufacturing methods

0:25:19 - Metallurgy and alloys in gunmaking

0:29:31 - Manufacturing tolerances

0:41:54 - Simplification of designs

0:44:18 - Why don't we have stamped guns today?

0:46:49 - Venezuelan AK-100s in the US?

0:48:58 - Home-scale metal 3D printers?

0:50:43 - 3D printing applications besides suppressors?

0:54:17 - AI and 3D printing for reproduction guns?

0:56:46 - Books about the gunmaking business

0:57:37 - What if Stoner didn't get into guns?

0:59:37 - Ammunition production quality

1:05:46 - Do I have my own gun design I want to make?

1:06:46 - Historical metallurgy in gun manufacture

Book - "Fighting Iron": https://amzn.to/3Z89Fsk

1:09:04 - Why are magazines so hard to make?

1:14:47 - Advice for new reproduction gunmakers

1:19:47 - Pros and cons of different manufacturing methods