Jon Eulette 1" hardball gun

For those that frequent this forum, you may be familiar with contributor, gunsmith Jon Eulette. He makes some pretty bold claims about easily achieving 1.5" from his guns, but I have never seen a test target. Well here you go... a test target from David Sams HEG rest. Springfield Custom Shop National Match Hardball, re-barreled by Jon with a Kart barrel. Showing a 1", 10-shot 50-yard group with factory Zero 185 JHP, which as you may know is about the limit of mechanical accuracy a .45 ACP is capable of.

Some caveats:
If you are familiar with David Sams, you are probably aware that he is extremely critical of other gunsmiths work, and when testing he does not fire multiple targets and throw out those with flyers or cherry pick the best ones. He bolts a gun into the HEG fixture, fires 2x 5 shot groups and whatever ends up on paper is what he sends you. Prior to shooting this springfield, Dave noted that the gun had loose slide to frame fit vertical/horizontal; excessive tolerance between barrel hood/aft and sides, loose barrel bushing and that slide stop/lower lug fit was also loose but next size up (0.001" larger) pin would not fit. Why are all these tolerances off? Because I have been shooting the piss out of this gun for 3+ years since Jon rebarreled it for me! Dave was astonished that after this diagnosis, the gun shot a 1.2" group with Zero, which is exceptional for a .45. I had him go ahead and replace the loose barrel bushing with a new Kart, then he threw it back on the rest and it shot the group you see here.

This is my main gun. Nearly every CF and .45 shot I have fired in competition, from my first shot in a bullseye match in 2013, has been with this gun. My main 22, a marvel conversion, was also built by Jon. I have an accuracy X .45 as well. Its a beautiful gun, but I don't shoot it in matches, and will not until Jon puts a new barrel in it. You do the math on that one.

So to sum it up: After 12-15k rounds of punishment, with minimal cleaning and occasional lube with motor oil, my gun is still shooting 1" groups with factory Zero JHP. You may have to wait a long time, because Jon has a family, animals to take care of, a day job, and a bunch of customers in line ahead of you. But as you can see, his work is built to last.

Typical Eulette quality....

Nice!

Greg Walloch wrote:Typical Eulette quality....

+1000

However there is one thing left unspoked.  That is the quality of the man Jon is.  I was looking for a gunsmith, - I found a friend, and …….. best gunsmith there is too!

AP

nice pistol Jon. Bob would be proud.

SmokinNJokin wrote:For those that frequent this forum, you may be familiar with frequent contributor, gunsmith Jon Eulette. He makes some pretty bold claims about easily achieving 1.5" from his guns, but I have never seen a test target. Well here you go... a test target from David Sams HEG rest. Springfield Custom Shop National Match Hardball, re-barreled by Jon with a Kart barrel. Showing a 1", 10-shot group with factory Zero JHP, which as you may know is about the limit of accuracy that can be expected from a .45 ACP.

Some caveats:
If you are familiar with David Sams, you are probably aware that he is extremely critical of other gunsmiths work, and when testing he does not fire multiple targets and throw out those with flyers. He bolts a gun into the HEG, fires 2x 5 shot groups and that is that. Prior to shooting this springfield, Dave noted that the gun had loose slide to frame fit vertical/horizontal; excessive tolerance between barrel hood/aft and sides, loose barrel bushing and that slide stop/lower lug fit was also loose but next size up (0.001" larger) pin would not fit. Why are all these tolerances off? Because I have been shooting the piss out of this gun for 3+ years since Jon rebarreled it for me! Dave was astonished that after this diagnosis, the gun shot a 1.2" group with Zero, which is exceptional for a .45. I had him go ahead and replace the loose barrel bushing with a new Kart, then he threw it back on the rest and it shot the group you see here.

This is my main gun. Nearly every CF and .45 shot I have fired in competition, from my first shot in a bullseye match in 2013, has been with this gun. My main 22, a marvel conversion, was also built by Jon. I have an accuracy X .45 as well. Its a beautiful gun, but I don't shoot it in matches, and will not until Jon puts a new barrel in it. You do the math on that one.



So to sum it up: After 12-15k rounds of punishment, with minimal cleaning and occasional lube with motor oil, my gun is still shooting 1" groups with factory Zero JHP. You may have to wait a long time, because Jon has a family, animals to take care of, a day job, and a bunch of customers in line ahead of you. But as you can see, his work is built to last.

Wow, impressive!!

PhotoEscape wrote:

Greg Walloch wrote:Typical Eulette quality....

+1000

However there is one thing left unspoked.  That is the quality of the man Jon is.  I was looking for a gunsmith, - I found a friend, and …….. best gunsmith there is too!

AP

He also has a great beard.

Okay, here to vouch for Jon as well, not that he needs it.
I have a full build from him and that thing is the best shooting gun I've ever shot in my life. I approached Jon after being screwed by some other high profile gunsmiths previously. I have spent a lot of time talking to him, pretty much every day which I'm sure he is tired of by now but he has so much information that many people do not know.  So he will have to deal with it for now. LOL
All that aside, Jon has got to be the best bullseye gun builders in the USA. He doesnt need to sell his guns with fancy photos because the results speak for themself. I am proud to have Jon do my work and he is the only one I would ever trust to work on anything I own. He may be slow, but it will always be worth the wait.

PhotoEscape wrote:

Greg Walloch wrote:Typical Eulette quality....

+1000

However there is one thing left unspoked.  That is the quality of the man Jon is.  I was looking for a gunsmith, - I found a friend, and …….. best gunsmith there is too!

AP

+1 on this as well
Jon is very good guy, he may be 30 years older than me. Sorry Jon
But I would consider him a great friend and I'm glad that I've had the pleasure of working and talking with him

I will dig out the target Roddy made with my Hardball gun back then. 
Nosler bullets, N310 powder, Starline, I think.

PhotoEscape wrote:However there is one thing left unspoked.  That is the quality of the man Jon is. 

I couldn't agree more!

He will also stand behind his guns when they are resold!

Yeah, -1 on a few other high profiles...iy you can't talk, you can't learn. A two way street...

bruce martindale wrote:He will also stand behind his guns when they are resold!

Yeah, -1 on a few other high profiles...iy you can't talk, you can't learn. A two way street...

Yup, I wanted someone I could talk to because then you really get to understand what's going on with your gun.  Great guy

Jon is also willing to answer my newbie questions, offer coaching tips AND let me work on my own gun (with his expert advice).

It's nice having a pistol so tight that most people think it is jammed when they try to cycle the slide

SmokinNJokin wrote:I have an accuracy X .45 as well. Its a beautiful gun, but I don't shoot it in matches, and will not until Jon puts a new barrel in it. You do the math on that one.

Just to clarify, I have nothing unkind to say about A-X. Steve is a hell of a guy, runs a great business and has done a lot for our sport. Their customer service is top notch, and they are completely transparent about their products. I did not spring for the top dollar (pro-plus or x-series) model that comes with the 1.5", 50-yard guarantee, so its not like they sold me a dud or something.

My point was, that Jon's gunsmithing is so good, his barrel fit so tight and slow-wearing, that its hard to go back to my other guns made by reputable, good gunsmiths. The real heart of the gun, that everything boils down to, is barrel fit and trigger. Jon's work is the best there is. Once you drive a Porsche, that mustang is still nice but its just not the same. So when he puts a cone-sleeve barrel in that A-X for me, expect to see some test targets posted for that as well.

You may hear people say things like "It shoots better than I do" or "you don't need a 1.5" gun because you are still jerking the trigger and throwing 7's, or only have expert/sharpshooter/marksman classification". While i think we can all agree dry fire and consistent practice is more important than having the best possible equipment, having a CF gun that shoots exactly on call is an absolute game-changer on the long line.

Another reason to have an X-ring quality gun is that you always know that the shots outside of the X ring are because of you and not the gun, sure nice to remove that doubt.

Then....you have to use either match ammo, or really up your reloading game. Common plagues for a GS is a lousy loader...

How do I get a hold of Jon Eulette?  Does he have a business name I should look up?  I'm new to Bullseye and would like to have my SA RO .45 accurized.

Here is a thread that Jon started.

https://www.bullseyeforum.net/t16145-hard-fit-barrel-vs-bomar-accuracy-tuner-vs-kart-xact-fit-pistols

Send him a PM. (private Message) The little icon just below his name on the right of the page.

SmokinNJokin wrote:

PhotoEscape wrote:

Greg Walloch wrote:Typical Eulette quality....

+1000

He also has a great beard.

And he knows things!

Thanks

Jon is a great guy just in general but also very knowledgable and skilled.  He knows a LOT about the sport and is very generous with his knowledge and help to others.  I've got numerous projects with Jon...a complete build of a wad gun...some warranty work for MG...some rebuilds of Clark, Sr builds, etc.

Jon is a friend and a gentleman.

I will also say Jon's triggers are the best I've encountered if you like a good roll on your trigger and a good reset.  He spends as much time as needed to get that right.  Good triggers are so important.