This documentary was made in 1969, two years after I was born. Just 50 years ago television programs did not consider their viewers dumb. No hyped-up fast-paced narration. You can actually see every single operation. The combination of a narrator and a first person singular account works amazingly well. A treasure.

Nowadays, I can make my own gun by ordering parts, simple machining, 3D printing, a Dremel, and hand tools from Brownell's and Home Depot. If I had the space, I could set up a lathe, drill press, table saw, CnC, and make everything but the barrel bore from benchstock. This guy makes me look like I'm playing with Lego. Make a forge. Make a hammer. Make a crucible. Make your own chemicals. They say that any sufficiently advanced technology will seem like magic to a primitive, but as technology progresses past us needing to do these things, "The old fashioned way" looks like pure alchemy to a modern eye. Being able to tell time and date by the moon and stars makes my friend think I'm some kind of sorcerer. Watching this guy make his own screws has me similarly in awe.

EDIT: Thank you to many people for correcting me - the master gunsmith Wallace Gusler is still living. Another person with his same name passed away in Virginia in 2022. Apologies for spreading misinformation! Rest in peace Wallace Gusler, 1931-2022. A true master of his craft!

I spent three years building custom 1911 pistols on an assembly line. My hands were like raw hide when i left. I used modern mills, lathes and surface grinders. But I also used files every day. It really makes you appreciate the skill of a guy like this to do what he was doing. It's hard to explain but when you look at the same steel parts day in and out for years you can see a half thousands of an inch difference. My mentor there said that, that some of the guns he had from the late 1800s had much tighter tolerances on fine fitted parts than today's guns. And those dudes did not even have electricity. Lol great video.

This is a fine example of what a TV show should look like. Clear, concise, informative, no "hidden messages" wonderfully narrated, with only what the viewer needs to know. Zero waffling.

As a retired mechanical engineer I watched with fascination the craftsmanship and precision of this gunsmith work. It is a true work of art! I am very very impressed with a skill of this man.

Really enjoyed this throughout the whole program. Wish they could do tv like this today. No flashy scripts. No fast cutting between 50 different camera angles. No host screaming "VERY DANGEROUS" every 15 seconds. Just focused on the art itself and the artisan. Thanks for sharing this gem. Cheers!

I've watched this video at least 50 times over the years. I started building muzzleloaders in 1975. I'm nowhere close to Mr. Gussler's level, but I enjoy doing it. He was a true artist. Even if you're just a kit-builder, you'll learn a lot about the craft.

I was a friend of Mike Walker of Remington in the last 12-14 yrs of his life. He was retired but still working 3-6 hrs every day doing gunsmithing/reloading and benchrest shooting.. Mike's last rifle that he built before his death at 101 yrs old was a 260 ackly. I was able to help some on this rifle. He built it for me to deer hunt with. One of many over the years..... What a great man with lots of interesting stories from his work at Remington!! I still have some of his tools and rifles I bought that he used in benchrest competition.. This video was well made. Thanks for posting!! .

It was released in 1969 My birth year It’s a different level of gunsmithing They had to know absolutely everything from steel fordging to wood finishing They were definitely true craftsman

I love the documentaries of that era. We had the same in USSR. Thorough, slow paced, very detailed and beautifully narrated. Made to educate people as a primary goal, not for a momentary entertainment.

The rifle built in front of our eyes is a treasure indeed. I have been to Williamsburg three times in my youth, and was always drawn to this foundry to watch the Gunsmith at work. He was different each time, and in the different time of construction on a musket or rifle. But I learned to appreciate the skills and patience needed to have a finished product. The last time I was at Williamsburg, I was 14, just three years short of my first .22 rifle. It was a real learning experience as I was able (with careful monitoring) to shape the stock somewhat. Real experience that I was able to take into my 20's and 30's as I specialized in restoring stocks on rifles that were burned or broken. "Furniture" stocks, handguards, and forends were called, and quite rightly so as it took many hours to restore or replace the burned wood from house fires and neglect. I really learned to appreciate the work that goes into gunsmithing (it doen't stop when sights are installed, many things you have to learn and apply to your calling). I am 67 now, a little slower but much more learned.

I saw this movie back in 1976, in metal shop, when I was in high school. I never forgot it.

This has to be one of the most interesting videos I've ever watched. I never considered the skills needed to be a gunsmith, particularly the blacksmithing.

I'm not sure what people are watching, but documentaries in this style are still made today, slow and patient but with better camera work, more thorough details being shown for longer and some with no narration, just subtle pleasant music and the sounds of something being made by hand. Blacksmiths, cobblers, wool suits, everything.

I've watched this 100x and it gets better every time! Will make a grown man cry.

This is the video that molded me in my formative years. My family [reluctantly] also knows this video by heart. 11/10 So many lessons in this movie.

My dad was a gunsmith in Ranson WV for 50 + years. He had one of Wallace Guslers flint lock rifles in his shop. A man brought in a couple of rifles from Harper's Ferry and one of W. Gusler. Guslers rifle was beautifully ingraved. The customer wanted them fixed up for display. Seeing this video was an amazing experience for me, and I thank you. I lost my dad on April 4th, 22. You brought back so many memories for me, and I'm grateful to you for that. This video was amazing.

I’m 4th generation machinist/grindhand in my family, and this stuff is a passion. When I started watching the gun drilling procedure, I immediately wondered how many bits he breaks. I got my answer. That takes so much skill to do that without the “feel” you have on today’s feed mechanisms. Pretty amazing that guns have been made for as long as they have.

When I was stationed at Fort Eustis, VA, I'd frequently visit Colonial Williamsburg. At that time the gunsmith was backordered 2 years for a custom made rifle or pistol. A rifle cost $2,500.

As Armoury is part of my profession and the quest to understand how guns were made, I miraclosly stumbled on this film a few days after thinking how they did it and I was blown away by the artistry of Mr W Gustler. I was mesmerized by his ability of completing every facet and after watching realised that he was more than just a gunsmith he was a Grand Master Gunsmith. I hope people can apreciate that a gun from that era was made with blood sweat and tears. I am still in awe............

Wow!!!! No bells and whistles to keep people's attention! Just straightforward narration with no assumed ignorance of the viewer. Where have we gone to??

Wow, that was one of the best documentaries I’ve ever watched! I am a locksmith by trade which, compared to many other trades today, is still pretty old school. Yet this is just in a league of its own! I wish I was a tenth as skilled as Mr Gusler! What a craftsman, what an artist, what a tradesman. I believe that that is truly what a great tradesman is and should aspire to be. Though I know that with today’s technology spending 300 hours building such a work of art from such raw materials is truly in a completely different realm in actual feasibility. It really does become art! Just how proud this craftsman must feel about his work I cannot fathom and can only be left in complete awe! I enjoyed every second watching that. 😮

one of the best clips I have seen in my entire life. Now I am 56 years old and intersted in firearms since I was a kid at the age of 4 years. Among decades I always was interested in gunsmithing and this clip brings back the importance of these skilled men. Without them in the 18th century USA would never been founded. This clip should be seen by everybody in the whole world to show and remind in the great history of the early decades of the young USA. This outstanding nation is built and crreated by strong, skilled and free men who decided to settle down in the new world from Europe to create a better world. AND THIS HAPPENED AMONG THE CENTURIES......

As a manufacturing junkie I’m always amazed at the tooling and methods used in the 1700s to build something like a rifle, or clock

THOROUGHLY IMPRESSIVE....!!!!! CRAFTSMANSHIP AT IT'S FINEST....!!!! THANK YOU EVER SO MUCH FOR THIS INVALUABLE PIECE OF AMERICAN HISTORY....!!!!!

You Tube didn't recommend me this. I just wanted to watch a 60s show...this didnt disappoint.

Всем доброго дня! Дамы и господа, это же настоящее наслаждение: смотреть за работой людей с поистине золотыми руками! Старинное искусство, воспроизведенное в полноценном фильме-исследовании - замечательная работа! Браво и низкий поклон мастеру! Спасибо всем! С уважением А.Т., Россия.

I have watched this so many times in the last ten years , i wish i was born back then , back when humans were people and not sheep

They played this film in my grade school history class in the mid-80’s. I never forgot it and am super psyched to get to watch it again after so long. Over the decades I have become a very competent knifemaker and woodworker. And, the seeds of all of that could have very possibly been from seeing this as a kid. Blew me away then, and still does now.

That’s the best hour I’ll spend today, thank you!

Saw this back in high school in the early 70's. Absolutely astounded. For those who don't know, Mr.Brinkley,the narrator, was part of the nightly news for NBC ,a distinguished journalist during the the tumultuous era of the 50s, 60s and 70's. Mr. Devane, who voices the gunsmith, a prominent actor of the time. Never got the chance to visit Mr.Gusler at work in his shop sadly. Brilliant film,thank you for posting.

This man is certainly a Master Craftsman and is amazing what boggles my mind is that someone long before him thought of and designed each and everyone of these parts and figured out how to make this whole thing work as one unit. Not to take anything away from this man of course.

Beautiful craftsmanship needed today. Jacks of all trades.

there always have been people who built things with their hands in a really stunning way. Mr. Gusler for sure is an artist in what he did.

It has been nearly 30 years since I saw this video. I remember the video well. I first got into muzzleloading in the mid 70s. Movies like this never really get old.

You certainly need a huge amount of skill when making a masterpiece like that .

I’m a 35 year old blacksmith in Kentucky, I’m a one man shop. THIS was incredibly inspiring!!! I wish they made documentaries like this today, thanks for sharing.

A wonderful culture that sadly is fading away... and I'm not talking about Colonial days, but the value that was once placed on knowledge such as this, and the remembrance of how we came to be Americans.

Superb documentary television. If programmes were made like this, no artificial drama and no skipping over the detail to pander to short attention spans. I'd watch tv if it were like this, hence why i watch largely instructive videos on KZfaq. This programme really makes me appreciate my 1904 Pratt and Whitney 10" engine lathe let alone my more modern workshop tools.

THE OLD GUNSMITH'S HUT From dust to dust we go, meanwhile working wood and rock, it's metal so tedious and slow, he makes it working like a clock. A gunsmith lives by iron and coal, together with piles of wood. Made by the template of his soul, a pride for his neighbourhood. The gunsmith's hut is falling down, the anvil's heartbeats no more. Modern times has come to town, no gunsmith here for sure.

I had never seen this before. Brilliant and lovingly made. David Brinkley (Huntley and Brinkley) is the narrator and William Devane, the veteran character actor (recently starring in Bosch-Legacy) is the voice of the gunsmith. Very much worth a watch, even if you don't care for firearms you may appreciate the art, engineering and craftsmanship that these 'tools' encompass. They forged and sustained our new and vulnerable Republic. They are a significant part of who we are and what we would become.

Hence, the word "boring"? What an amazing art!

As a person interested in history I have read about gunsmiths of the 18th and 19th century and tools they used. On a tour through the Oregon Trail Museum in Montpelier, Idaho, I saw a pair of wooden lathes and was curious. The tour guide did not know what they were used for but allowed me to take a closer look. History kicked in. One still had the rifle grooving bit installed. When I told him that I believed they were for boring and rifling rifles he was surprised. Today, 10 years after seeing the lathes and 65 years after getting interested in history, I finally got to see the manufacturing of a flintlock rifle, from raw metal and a block of wood. Wonderful documentary work.

I was fortunate to be able to spend an afternoon in the shop (violating the rules) with Wallace in the early 80s. Absolutely fascinating.

As a layman, this was incredibly fascinating to watch. Much respect to the talent and craftsmanship of a master at work. It would take approximately 37 continuous days to create this masterpiece.

It's so nice to hear David Brinkley"s voice as the narrator. It is so distinctive and takes me back to to the Huntley Brinkley reports in the 60's.

This video,if you like guns was absolutely incredible! It is incredible to see how a gunsmith of the time could make such a beautiful weapon. Of all of the KZfaq videos that I have seen this is the most enjoyable video I have ever watched. Please get you a cup of coffee, sit back and enjoy this! YOU WILL. THANK YOU MR.GUSLER!

This is awesome. I saw this film in a machine tool tech class in 1976. I never thought I'd get to see it again.

I’m in absolute awe ! Thank you for posting this historical beauty!

Starting the video: "This is an hour long? There's no way I'm watching this whole thing" 58 minutes later with a tear in my eye: "This is the greatest piece of cinema I've ever seen..."

Excellent Documentary. What quality work and artistry.

I have seen tens of thousands of videos on youtube here, and this is the best thing I have ever seen. My jaw dropped and stayed there the entire way through! Absolutely amazing thanks!

These old documentaries are truly national treasures, what a remarkable thing it would be to still have this level of skill at our disposal. Sadly those days are gone for the most part and will never return, such a shame to lose this form of art in gun making.

I have stuff to do but I can't seem to stop watching this. It's so refreshing watchable

I’ve studied every aspect of guns and their makers for four decades now. I think I learned more in this ONE HOUR than any other in 40 years… BRAVO!

I realise this is a hunting rifle, but its hard to believe how much work went into making all the weapons for an army.

That is an incredibly detailed video. So glad it is available here.

Brings the meaning to the term "Lock, stock and barrel"

Thankyou sooo much for uploading this vhs copy.. 68 I was born n live in bham UK where BSA are.

Wow, this is without a doubt the most interesting video I've seen in a very long time. The craftsmanship is astonishing, over 300 hours to make a beautiful work of art, I wonder how much he would be paid for that.

My dad (who died in 2014) loved making flintlock rifles. He bought the barrels and flintlock mechanisms from Dixie Gun Works and made his own gunstocks; we lived in the country, with a lot of walnut trees on our land. And yes, he used them to hunt deer.

This should be in the Library of Congress. This is a national treasure.

SMAXING CRAFTSMANSHIP! I'm so proud of the heritage of the people of the United States! Good and bad, these people created a beautiful and amazing country to live and be a part of today. Thank you to all who's past, RIP.

Unbelievable to see how much intellect, skill and hard work goes into making one of these rifles. Our people have mastered it all.

This is hands down the coolest, most interesting and informational video I’ve ever seen. I’ve always wondered how such beautiful guns were made and the type of tool used to make them. Not only did they make beautiful rifles they made the tools used to make it also. I’ve always wanted to get into blacksmithing I have some wood working skills. I think I want to make my own black powder rifle. Since they’re not regulated by the government I think I’m gonna try. Thanks for the amazing video.

My dad still makes rifles and pistols by hand. Although not like this, he has lathes 6 axis CNC machines 3d printers to make the process quicker. It's far better than anything you get from a big box gun store. His Semi-Autos are like swiss watches. He also makes small bore and big bore competition PCP air rifles which are rebranded by other companies. I love competitive air rifle shooting. There is nothing like shooting 1000 rounds for 15 dollars. With modern medium bore .25 .30 and 357 PCP air rifles you can shoot up to 600 yards. But for the paper competition, we keep it under 150 yards as we can get Sub MOA groups on target. I have shot Rock Chucks and squirrels at 180 yards with a .357 cal air rifle. If you love to shoot get a PCP air gun, you won't be disappointed you can shoot in your own backyard without anyone knowing. Thanks for sharing this classic.

I used to spend hours watching the Williamsburg gunsmiths in the late 1970s.

the amount of workmanship that goes to the barrel is absolute madness

Thanks for posting! I visited here in 1967 with my family when I was 15 and fascinated with firearms. Unfortunately the gun shop wasn't manned but I distinctly remember the spiraled timber and rack used for the rifling. I also remember hundreds of smooth-bore muskets lining the walls of the armory. I did get to see them demo one of the muskets with a cloth wad as a blank. Even if the blacksmith had been there, only a very small part of this lengthy process would have been seen, and now I know the whole story, so thanks again for posting!

I thank you for putting this film up! I watched this film in about 1970 in an industrial arts metal shop class a at about age 13, and loved it. Thought about it many times since, and even remembered the gunsmiths name. Thank you again!,

The first time I watched this I was in 9th grade metal class. 1974. We had the option to build a blackpower pistol kit. Now you get kicked out of school for drawing a gun.

All I can say is I'm utterly impressed in every station of this rifle build. This man and those equal of his extreme ability, were masters, and men of astounding caliber and character..

As a gunsmith my self, i find it super interesting how hard all the cutting jobs were, especially deep hole drilling, when all you had was carbon steel made tools, constant reshaping, constant re hardening and resharpening just to do a simple boring job. Going from carbon steel tools to HSS was the same big leap back then as we advanced from HSS to carbide Tools. I actually own some very good gunmaking literature from the 1950's and there is still described how to make your own rifling buttons out of carbon steel. Also the use of simple carbon steel drill bits was still the norm.

I grew up in James City County just outside of Williamsburg in the late 60's early 70's and had the pleasure of watching the gunsmiths make rifles by hand many times. Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful memory.

Every single American that served in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War was watching this man make this Rifle with a smile on their faces. 😊

Amazing film. Thanks for sharing. He is a young man here and yet he has mastered all these different skills. Truly an extremely talented person.

This documentary is one of a kind. It should be remastered and produced in HD quality.

As a mechanical engineer I found this an enthralling video, wonderful workmanship.

2023.ilove gun and how its made... For those who love old gun these video is Gold...

My sixth Great Grandfather, Abraham Honaker, was a Master Rifle Smith which one of his Rifles are in the Colonial Williamsburg Dewitt Museum of Art

I just bought an 1830’s double barrel shotgun for $100.00. I appreciate it even more now. I’m totally impressed how they were made.

I swear, I've not gotten more excited by a '...but there is more!' exclamation. What an astonishing video!

Brilliant documentary. Educational as well as entertaining! Thank you!

I think I discovered this video a little over 40 years ago, bought VHS copies and DVDs of and everything else offered by Colonial Williamsburg, but this one remains one of a handful of life changing introductions that have opened up a world of study I might have missed. I am so glad it is still getting viewed. One never fully understands the past until you know something of the technology of the times, and without that, you can't fully appreciate our own time.

This was such a lovely video. A final shot of the whole gun shown just on it's own against a plain background would have been satisfying. This video shows a glimpse into the changes and adaptions over the history of making rifles and many other firearms. Thank you so much.

I was a Stocker at Daniel Fraiser Gun and Rifle Makers In Cromarty Scotland.. but this is mind blowing craftsmanship …!! Thanks for sharing.

I just learned so many things. I always wondered how such precision needed to cut rifling could be achieved without power tools and such, using paper and wooden shims is beyond brilliant. The labor and meticulous expression of the craftsman poured into these creations is beyond the pale. I feel like I've witnessed something truly special, seeing this. I'm glad it's preserved. This feels important.

During WW2 my Father was in the Royal Engineers then the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. the closest he got to action was having to handle Mules in Italy. Whilst he was in the UK he constantly got into trouble because his issued rifle barrel had rust pits in it. Having no use for his rifle it became upsetting for him. (His job in the UK was dealing with unexploded bombs in and around London and lifting and replacing land mines on the beaches) Hence before leaving for Italy he strung a length of rope from one end of his hut to the other and coated it in cutting compound. He then threaded the rope through his barrel and ran the barrel up and down the rope until it shone. On arriving in Italy they had a weapons inspection where his rifle was taken away from him smashed and he was issued a new one!! Apparently the rifled barrel was now a smooth bore barrel.

Awesome video, the multiple skills involved and the sheer volume of work involved just to make one rifle is mind blowing. Just remember people that this process would be done over a number of days but what you don't see is the amount of time it takes just to make the tools to make the rifle, multiple files in multiple shapes and roughness, god knows how many different drill bits, as he said a few get broken with every rifle made screwdrivers chissels engraving tools, mandrill's, the rifling machine /bore drill. It's a mamouth task just making those let alone the rifle. True craftsmanship indeed

This was one of the best documentaries I have seen in KZfaq. Very nice .

As a gun enthusiast I found this fascinating ; what a craftsman!! Wonderful, thank you.

That was amazing to watch from start to finish. I have so much admiration for the gunsmith's art and skill in this era. The broad nature of what are really specialist skills, all in one craftsman, allowing the creation of such a rifle shows the height of what a person could achieve in the pre-industrial period.

Amazing movie clip, I was born in 1969 watching this makes me realise how life just creeps along slowly so that you don't fully appreciate the changes the world is going through, seeing a movie from the year you were born shows the huge contrast between then and now. I remember how all documentaries and informational films were in this style. Anyway, here I am in 2022 watching a documentary film from 1969 about an artisan craftsman practicing a craft from the 18th century.

As a Gunsmith and 07/02 SOT, I love seeing how firearms use to be made. Now we manufacture full autos and suppressors like its nothing lmao. This took true skill to do

Years ago, late 1990’s, I saw this film at the Minneapolis Institute Of Arts. Of special interest was that such a rifle by this young genius was on display! Wow! I took three metalworking junkie friends to see the film. Should have brought Huggies! How I can only dream of such skills! A few years ago I found and old caplock musket in an antique shop. Bought it for a friend who loves antiques of any sort. We thought the engraving on the barrel was a maker’s mark. Turns out the piece was a gift to a Royal Navy officer, 1772. Bore, something around .700, maybe a shotgun? I’m not a firearms person so beats me. Too bad it was not a flintlock. Now that would have been a real chunk of history! The trick was getting it from the store to my car, three blocks away. One does not walk through a downtown area carrying a gun. So I bought an old broom and a ragged tablecloth, wrapped both with the broom sticking out obviously. Folks presumed I was a tradesman en route. Did not get shot on sight by law enforcement.

reminds me of my old neighbor who used to make .22 airguns with brass tubes. he was filing everytime i saw him. amazing crafts. worth watching every second of the video 👍👍👍

This is no doubt the most interesting video i have seen on youtube. The people with the copyright to this video should send a copy of the master to be digitally restored.

I watched this for the first time in trade school decades ago. I later got my hands on a VHS copy. I watched it so many times I wore it out. I just never get tired of watching it. Thanks for posting it on KZfaq.

thanks for sharing this.. what an incredible artisan and craftsman.. its amazing to see how he builds it all from first principles.. and you can really appreciate the work and effort put into making this gun. Truly amazing.. when he makes his own spring you can really feel he is the master of his craft