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Posted By: Mark Larson Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/22/08 04:51 PM
I am curious why no enterprising gun maker/entrepreneur has decided to offer extra barrel sets for popular makes, i.e., Parker, Fox, Smith, Lefever, etc. I realize there is hand-fitting involved with each one, but that is what smiths are for, and I'm sure they would appreciate the extra business.

Who wouldn't want an extra barrel set in a different configuration for their favorite sxs? I believe many would prefer to go that route than to buy another gun. It just seems like a no brainer to me. No doubt it would be expensive, and require a lot of different tooling, etc., but no worthwhile business venture is ever easy.
Posted By: Anonymous Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/22/08 05:22 PM
Very few people would be willing to pay the five to ten thousand dollars that it would cost to have an extra set of barrels custom made, fitted and finished.
Posted By: Dave Katt Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/22/08 05:38 PM
Mark, I am sure it depends on the price and quality of another gun. But I always have room (maybe not the money!) for another gun. I have though picked up and fit another used barrel to some of my guns. Depending on the gun, some are rather easy to fit. Sad part is, I never use the other barrel. I use another gun that needs to out to play.
Posted By: Amigo Will Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/22/08 06:41 PM
I think folks have looked at it and relize there is no money in it.Even a cheap set would cost $2,500. and people would complain of the quaility and you would be broke.Not sure but H&H might make a spare set for your Fox like they do for their guns but if you got that kind of money you could just buy their gun.
Posted By: KY Jon Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/22/08 07:15 PM
Having H & H make a set of barrels for a Fox would be like having Ferrari make a new fender for a Chevy. It would be perfect but just a little too expensive.

Doubles are just too labor intensive for new barrels. Heck this is why most makers dropped them in the first place. High cost and falling demand do not make for a bright future in any manufacturing sector. Parker, Smith, Fox and Lefever would all still be in business, making guns, if they could. From a cost viewpoint it just makes more sense to buy another gun.
Posted By: Researcher Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/22/08 10:09 PM
Even back in the day these old smokepoles were being made, an extra set of barrels was half the price of the gun or more. Note the new list of options for the RBL-12 and RBL-16 from CSMC. They include the option of an extra set of barrels for $2000. You can buy a second gun with the base wood and no options for $2750 with the PIF discount.

Back in the late 1950s, early 1960s, Atlas was offering new sets of Belgian or Italian steel barrels for Parker Bros. and L.C. Smith shotguns, and you run across these from time to time.
Posted By: Drew Hause Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/22/08 10:19 PM
Atlas Arms (Chicago) Parker barrels, made by Vickers (England), fit and finished by Armaf (Belgium), with a 1954 proof date code.



When CSMC brought out their 16 ga barrel sets for the Parker Repros ($1895 plus fitting?), it seemed to take a long time to move the merchandise. That's with a gun is is plentiful (relatively) and owned by a lot of people with disposable income (at least until recently). CSMC also had a bunch of aftermartket barrels for the Win Mod 21, and those wound up in their closeout section. There was a shop discussed on the Parker site (among others) that claimed to have original barel tubes or complete barrel sets for Parkers, and all the hype never seemed to produce a satisfied customer, even though posters kept asking if anyone had received a completed/fitted barrel set.

I have three Parkers with aftermarket barrels. One has Bohler barrels with vent rib and seems to be up to Parker standards. The other two have unidentified Italian barrels and, while nice, are not up to usual Parker standards. There's a lot of variation out there, and thus a lot of risk to the buyer.

The barrel sets I'd really like to see would be 30" fixed choke from CSMC for the RBL 20.
These Belgian made barrels of Vickers steel for Parker and LCS shotguns cost about $75. The last 10% of fitting to particular frame plus blueing was extra $35. Was that a good deal?
PS. The cost of 11 pounder Holland & Holland .465 bore 'Royal' gun at that time was cool $2500.
Posted By: eightbore Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/23/08 01:26 PM
Up until the eighties, Frank Lefever and Son advertised installation of original Parker barrels for $250 for V through D Grades, $25 more for higher grades to engrave the breech, a few bucks more for real high grades. They didn't get that much business because you could buy a good VH 12 gauge for $200.
Well, that is certainly interesting info from all concerned. I think the crux of the issue is not that extra barrel sets are prohibitively expensive (costs would come down if demand were higher), but that we seem to want more guns more than we want more barrels to perfect the guns we already own. Alas, so be it.
Posted By: Recoil Rob Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/23/08 04:51 PM
Right now CSMC is closing out extra barrels for ICD's & NID's.

they're in the white, need fitting and finish.

I'd rather have another gun.
Posted By: Amigo Will Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/23/08 05:05 PM
With barrels I don't think cost comes down the more you make. In fact it may be the more orders you get the higher the cost as you can only make so many unless you expand which encreases the cost.I would guess the cost difference you would recieve from say Kirk Merrington would be very little if you bumped your barrel set order from five to ten or from one to five for that matter.Hours at the bench are hours at the bench.
Are you sure about that $200 tag for the legendary Parker Bros? Back in those days used Fox B was $125 and Stevens 311 $90.
Posted By: 2-piper Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/24/08 02:17 AM
First gun I ever filled out a BTF form on was an FE grade Lefever. Paid $125.00 for it. Bought it very shortly after the 68 Act went into effect. I recall a Parker Trojan for $75.00 but that was late 50's.
Posted By: GregSY Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/24/08 03:57 AM
The truth is, why would anyone want to develop a product offering for a customer base comprised mainly of whining titty-babies?

What I mean is you would be selling a semi-finished product to a group of people who would scrutinize it with a microscope and find fault in every detail, and they'd neglect buying it until you gave up and sold off your inventory cheap. Then they'd break up into two groups: the ones who bought 8 sets of .410 barrels for next to nothing (we'll call them the Chest Thumpers) and the ones who moan for years that they sure wish you (the villainous maker) still made them because when you were making them they were still helping pay off their Aunt Louise's hysterectomy and they couldn't afford a set. This group, the Victims, will pester you with phone calls and emails offering you the opportunity to make amends if you will tool up to make them one set of 14 gauge 36" tubes - if the price is right.
Posted By: Amigo Will Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/24/08 05:09 AM
Well stated
Posted By: Tinker Re: Extra Barrel Sets. What's the holdup? - 11/24/08 04:17 PM
Well stated indeed.
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