Thread: Teach Me
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Unread 09-09-2018, 03:28 PM   #15
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Mike Poindexter
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For less than the cost of the Roubert Louis gauge, you can arm yourself with a much better arsenal of tools. From top to bottom and left to right are two Walker chamber gauges, 12 and 16, from Brownells, which are simple go-no go devices, but accurate. $20 bucks apiece. Then comes a 3 1/2 inch inside dial caliper that is my go to gun show tool for assessing chambers and chokes. It is accurate, but has some variation because of operator inconsistency. $50 bucks at the local pawn shop. Next down is the Skeets bore gauge in 12 and 16 ga size. It will measure chambers, chokes and full bores of 28 inch barrels going in 14 inches from each end. More accurate than the inside caliper, because with three balls or prongs it is not so susceptible to operator inconsistency. $100 bucks used from a member on this site, now available again new from a different maker for about $140. Last is a Manson wall thickness gauge I got from Brownells. Used properly, it is the only tool of the bunch that can accurately, but not perfectly, measure wall thickness in up to 28 inch barrels. Operator skill is crucial in obtaining good accuracy. $100. Not as good as a Hosford gauge, but 20% of the price. Altogether , I'm invested less than $300 and feel relatively comfortable with the array. Don't let slick advertising sway you. He also sells a shotgun stock measuring device that is not as good as a flat table top and a tape measure in my opinion. Good luck.
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