Gunsmith Seeking Employment

**jersgiltinan** · June 16th, 2014, 01:40 PM

I am a graduate of the Pennsylvania Gunsmith School and am looking for a gunsmithing or related job in the firearms industry. I am currently living near Pittsburgh but am willing to move. Does anyone know of any job openings? Thanks for any suggestions.

**justashooter** · June 16th, 2014, 02:43 PM

try talking with IWI (israeli weapons industries) in harrisburg. they are assembling the new tavor semi-auto rifle. think about relocating to the new remington plant when they move south.

**jersgiltinan** · June 16th, 2014, 08:52 PM

I'm pretty sure I've already tried contacting IWI and received no response, though I could try being more persistent. I don't suppose you know anybody who works at any of these manufacturers; I've been finding that trying to get a response, let alone an interview, from large companies such as IWI and Remington is almost impossible (even when they have a job opening posted). I appreciate the tip, though.

**BAC** · June 16th, 2014, 11:55 PM

Are you on LinkedIn? It's a good way to network with industry people.

**jersgiltinan** · June 17th, 2014, 10:15 AM

Originally Posted by BAC

Are you on LinkedIn? It's a good way to network with industry people.

I am on linked in, though I have the most basic (free) membership. Thanks.

**ForeverPA** · June 17th, 2014, 10:28 AM

Just curious, how did you pick this line of work? Very unconventional thinking which I hope will land you a job you enjoy.

**internet troll** · June 17th, 2014, 10:29 AM

Have you considered openIng your own business doing smith work?. Maybe combine it with being an FFI. Everyone I've met that does this seems to have more than enough business.

**BAC** · June 17th, 2014, 02:47 PM

Originally Posted by jersgiltinan

I am on linked in, though I have the most basic (free) membership. Thanks.

Me too. This is my second time on LinkedIn. The first time I just connected with people I actually knew, and when I got laid off a few years ago it did me no good, because most of the people I knew were also laid off. The second time, though, I took a different approach.

What I've done is connect with famous people in the industry (Julie Golob, Randi Rogers, etc), who will usually connect with you without question. That gives you access to the people on their networks. If you try to connect to 2nd degree connections it will generally not ask you to provide info on how you know the person. Go to the people you may know list in the upper right corner and scroll through the list to send invitations.

I have gotten over 400 contacts in the industry that way. About 1/2 the people I invite will connect with me, further growing my network. Try to connect with recruiters and HR managers for the different companies, they will often post job openings on LinkedIn.

I'm at the point now that industry people send me invitations to connect, and I've gotten more than a few emails asking if I was interested in this job or that. Not currently looking, but always willing to listen.

Good luck, and hope that helps.

**jersgiltinan** · June 17th, 2014, 03:21 PM

Thanks BAC, that sounds like a really good strategy that I'll start trying right away. If any of your current contacts informs you of a job opening, please let me know. As for the previous two questions, I got into gunsmithing because I really love guns and have always enjoyed building things and doing things by hand, not much more to it than that. At this point in my life and with my minimal experience, I have no intentions of starting my own business. In gunsmithing school, they give you a really good idea of just how much time, money, effort, and risk goes into starting up a business.