concerns about fit and finish of new Lyman GPR

[BrownBear]

I got this one and this one from TOW. The peep is huge from side to side, and I'm not likely to use it right now. Besides, it will require a lot more filing to bring the base down to dimension for the GPR. At $7, it's no big loss if it sits in a drawer till my eyes get worse or the right project comes along.

In either case, filing a sight base to fit is easy and a much better solution than shimming, in my book.

 

[captaincaveman]

so does the GPR have a 3/8 dovetail for the rear sight?

Josh

 

[Rebel]

It is listed as having a .350" dovetail for the rear sight.

 

[BrownBear]

The dovetail mikes .350, but the primitive sights shipped with my factory-built rifles and my kit mikes .330. Those span something close to three years of production. Like I said somewhere, the sights slip through the dovetails like a sod poodle diving down its hole.

 

[ryoung14]

Don,
Fit and finish on my GPR was less than great as well. Sizeable gap between the tang and the breech plug, sloppy forend nose cap, trigger guard had a noticeable side-to-side cant to it, and then an issue with the trigger (forget what it was exactly).

Everything but the trigger guard was fixed at Dixon's, plus they filed out a decent notch in my rear sight. The trigger problem cropped up later so it took a second trip to Dixon's to fix that. Dixon does Lyman warranty service (or did then).

All the monkeying sort of cooled me on the gun, but I must admit it's a good shooter. It wears a Lyman peep sight now, but I haven't noticed any accuracy advantage over the filed out buckhorn that came with the gun.
Bob (Spoiled by T/C's)

 

[captaincaveman]

Ya know, I was all set to order a GPR next week. I have had a .50 T/C Hawken and .54 Renegade for years. I have absolutly no complaints about the quality of T/C parts or there workmanship. They just don't fit me real well. I shouldered a GPR a couple monthes ago and it fit like a glove. I didn't have to make any effort at all to get on the sights. Should I be at all concerned about buying a rifle from a company where NOBODY has enough understanding of basic math to realize that .330 and .350 ARE NOT the same thing? :hmm:

Josh

 

[BrownBear]

My pard talked to the Lyman folks about the problems with the kit he sent back, and they were pretty startled to hear that the sight is only .330. They hadn't checked and no one had complained before. I thinkn it's a case of the kits being produced in Italy and the boxes distributed once they get here.

On the plus side, my pard reports they were very helpful to talk to, concerned about the problems he found, and anxious to ship him a replacement for the one he returned. In fact, the guy he talked to opened the box and checked out the new kit while they were on the phone. I take that as a sign that the folks at Lyman really do care about rat hindquarters, which is good enough for me.

Now Traditions is another matter. I emailed their warranty shop about a serious problem with a Crockett more than a week ago, and they haven't even bothered to answer it. I think about Monday it going to be time for a telephone call to the main office to negotiate for scalps.

 

[captaincaveman]

well I just ordered a GPR from midsouth I'll let yall know if the sight fits when it gets here. Also do the Lyman ramrods take 8/32 or 10/32 accesories?

Josh

 

[cowpoke1955]

Hi Josh,
So what did you get? .50 or .54? Flint or Percussion? I had problems with the primitive rear sight. The dove tail was slightly large for the sight. It would slip in and out under finger pressure. I called Lyman and they are sending me a new one. The adjustable sight fits properly. As for the ram rods, they have 10-32 threads. Hope you enjoy your new rifle :thumbsup: .

 

[captaincaveman]

.54 percussion. Lyman has sent out new sights to a few people on here, but I guess the replacement sights were as loose as the first one. I'm still debating on which .36 flinter to get :hmm:

Josh

 

[cowpoke1955]

That was my first rifle. Great pick! It's a real work horse. After a year or so the factory nipple will start to flatten and won't explode the caps. Replace your nipple with a Hot Shot nipple from Dixie or Track. Been shooting mine for over 25 years with no problems. The Lyman nipples are 6 x .75mm threads. Saves you from pulling out your hair later.

 

[captaincaveman]

I ordered a couple spit fire nipples with it. Now I just gotta wait for my neighbor to buy my T/C Hawken and savage .17cal. so I can get a .36

Josh

 

[greenneck]

The thread on my GPR ramrod is 10-32.

HTH, Steve

 

[barebackjack]

Sights on mine fit just fine.

But the tang on mine was about 1/8" deep in wood near the forward end, and about 1/4" deep in wood near the rear of it. Needless to say, the rear end of the tang is still deep. Someday when I get more proficient at this gun building Ill fix it.

Other than that and a few other small things I love mine and loved building it.

Oh yeah, you gotta love Sportsmans Warehouse, got mine in .54 kit for $275. They just dont move traditional MLers up here. Maybe I should go get one in .50? :hmm:

 

[BrownBear]

All the previous points and this about tangs makes me wonder if there's been a shift in QC at the plant in Italy, and Lyman is slow to catch on and put their foot down.

I don't mind the inletting being a little proud so I can work it down, but mine was also to deep. I had to glass bed it to bring it back up where it belongs.

Worse yet, my shooting pard's tang inlet was crooked to the line of the barrel. With the tang attached to the barrel and slipped into its slot, the barrel at the forend was shifted more than a quarter inch out of the channel. Certainly not enough wood in the forend to correct there, even if you didn't mind a quarter inch gap in the channel on the other side. You coulda reset the tang if you didn't mind filling the screw holes and filling the stock at the new gap. Who knows if the foreward bolt would have engaged the imbedded nut after all that? I suspect rebedding would have been required there.

To their credit Lyman is sending him a new one, but they seemed quite surprised that either of us had problems.

Seems like the time has come for Lyman to start sampling the kits they receive and checking for fit. Maybe their Italian producer would tighten up production specs if they got a fwe hundred kits back.

 

[barebackjack]

Thats what happens when you farm your work out oversea's.

Which is why my next one will be made in the good ole USA.....BY ME! That way I can only blame myself.

 

[ryoung14]

The GPR is built in Italy by Investarms. So is the Cabela carbine. I have one of each. The GPR's fit/finish is a bit sloppy as detailed above. The Cabela carbine fit/finish, on the other hand, is top notch. If anyone's noticed, the prices on the Cabela carbine and Hawken have increased sharply lately. They've gone from being $250 guns to almost $400.

I believe Investarms is capable of putting together guns with fit/finish ranging from poor to excellent....as dictated by what the customer (Lyman or Cabelas) is willing to pay. Lyman, probably trying to hold the line on prices, may have balked at paying more for the GPR from Investarms to offset increased production costs. As a result, they've had to accept a lower level of f/f. Cabelas has let the price rise and, based on my sample of one, is selling a better quality product.
FWIW
Bob

 

[Bougalee]

Brown Bear, after reading your post I took the triggers out of my gun and went to the local hardware store for a longer screw (set) because mine is too short as well, but they didn't have anything that small. It would be a big help because the trigger has too much creep and this would solve a bunch of it. I saw a screw kit assortment in the Midway catalog and I'm thinking I may buy it hoping to get the right one, course I don't know what size I need. Love your state by the way, killed me a brown bear there once, hope you weren't related.

Boug.

 

[redriverclerk]

Actually, the Lyman barrels, which are made in Italy, have a .360 dovetail. I've contacted Lyman, measured mine, and replaced both the front and rear sights over time. That .360 is a pain in the @$$ when it comes to trying to find a good rear sight.

 

[redriverclerk]

What is MidSouth and do they have a website?