Book Review: "Gunsmithing Modern Firearms" by Bryce M. Towsley

by Jeff Quinn

photography by Jeff Quinn & Boge Quinn

August 16th, 2019

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In 1976, I bought my first revolver; a Ruger Security-Six 357 Magnum.  I wasn’t old enough, so my Mom had to sign the paperwork, but I had saved up the price of $121 to buy that sixgun. It was tough and strong, but the trigger needed to be a bit smoother, so I found it necessary to disassemble and smooth things up a bit. The only reference I had at the time was a small book written by Mr. Bob Milek detailing how to properly work on revolvers.  I found that book to be very helpful in getting that 357 running smoothly.

In the years since, while I am certainly no gunsmith, I have found it necessary to work on a few of my firearms, doing things such as shortening and re-crowning a barrel, modifying triggers, and improving function on auto-pistols.  While doing such, having a good reference book with detailed instructions and photographs has proven to be the most-valuable tool on my bench. This new book, “Gunsmithing Modern Firearms” by Bryce Towsley is such a tool.

Towsley details many various projects in the book, helping the reader to avoid such pitfalls as are common when working on a firearm. He lists the tools and techniques needed to do the project correctly, the first time.

I have known Bryce for many years now, having spent time with him on the firing line and around the fire.  He has been a prolific writer for almost four decades, having written for several magazines, as well as many books, both instructional and novels.

The book contains hundreds of helpful photographs, along with detailed text. This is not Towsley’s first book on gunsmithing, and he has hands-on experience to back up his instructions. He knows this stuff, and has written it down to use as a reference tool for others. It is a book that would be useful on any workbench where one might be modifying a modern firearm. I highly recommend it.

To order “Gunsmithing Modern Firearms” online go to www.brycetowsley.com. Signed copies are available.

Jeff Quinn

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