Leavitt Works Gunsmithing — Local services in Hayden

I have a 1894 Marlin rifle that's been in the family for three generations and has a lot of character. I had two different gunsmiths look at the rifle. Neither couldn't figure out how to fix a jamming problem. I took it to Pat at Leavitt Gunsmithing and he said they specialize in these guns and could repair it.

But, he also warned me. They have a big backlog of work and that if I dropped it off there, I needed to be patient. He warned it could take 2-3 months to get it done. I figured I already lost a couple years with it sitting around in my house and at other Gunsmiths, so what would be the harm on just patiently waiting and getting it fixed properly?

They called me a couple weeks ago and said the rifle was ready to be picked up. They put a lot more hours into fixing it than what they billed me, but they basically rebuilt and machined the inner workings of the rifle and now it works fine. They do great work, but you need to be patient because they have a a big backlog of...

Communication.

I was recommended to Leavitt by a friend who says they do great work and threading a barrel would be easy for them. I show up and ask to see how long it would take to get a barrel threaded. I am told they will thread it to 5/8 x 24 and they will get it back to me in a week. Which I am thinking that is perfect because deer rifle season is a month out.

Four weeks go by and I haven’t heard from anyone. So I call and get told they haven’t threaded my barrel but will get it to me in a three weeks. I say no don’t thread it I’m coming down to pick it up.

I show up and they say actually it was already threaded to 1/2 x 24 and they are just waiting on the thread cap to come in the mail. So I pay for it and leave because deer season is now 5 days away.

Not only was I told a different thread so now I need to order an adapter for the item I have already purchased but I haven’t shot my rifle once and there is no thread protector.

Threads look fine but I...

I chose Leavitt to restore a very old side by side 12 gauge that belonged to my grandfather. This shotgun is probably over 100 years old and was in very, very rough shape. Barrel, action, and stock. Not a valuable shotgun even when it was new but it’s priceless to me. The finished product months later is nothing short of incredible considering its condition when I dropped it off. I’ve included some before and after photos. They took their time and did the job right, which I appreciate. I can’t recommend these guys enough. I dropped off a gun that was about to fall apart and got back a beautiful gun that’s deserving of being displayed and handed down. The attention to detail was impressive. It’s beautiful but also completely functional, not that I plan on shooting it ever again. Thank you to everyone that worked on my grandfathers shotgun! I...