When I saw Dave Mason Precision Reamers on my list of vendors to visit, I was like “Wha?!?”. Not being a gunsmith, I wasn’t really sure how to approach them. I’ve got some basic tools to do maintenance on my firearms, but no real experience at this level.

What ended up happening was a pleasant conversation with Dave Manson himself. He took a decent amount of time describing his business and the tools he sells and how they are used. Suffice to say there was a bit more material than I could reasonably absorb. One of the biggest services he offers is providing information to the gunsmithing community, operating as a clearinghouse for info and maintaining a knowledge base of things like tooling specs for a variety of processes.

Tool for holding 1911 in a vise and allowing rotation of frame

A few tools he suggested highlighting were his Muzzle Crown Refacing Tool Kit and Military Rifle Muzzle Re-Crowning Tool Kit. The first is a professional kit that allows for the cutting or re-cutting of a precision crown without removing the barreled action from the stock, and can be completed in five minutes by hand. The Military Rifle kit is a more of a basic kit and only includes one pilot assembly (you specify the caliber).

Another interesting product they have (though not a tool) is a set of Safety Barrels for Glocks. The aluminum barrels, in a number of sizes, replace the stock barrel and are red anodized. You can cycle and dry fire the weapon normally.

I assume that a number of you readers have experience with gunsmithing. Have you used their tools?