In Walmart Today...

T

ThomasT

New member
I went to WM to get oil to make an oil change in my truck and stopped by the gun counter to inspect what was in stock. The had a stainless steel mini-14 and and a stainless steel 10-22. I couldn't believe how rough the exterior of the barrels were.

It looked like they turned the barrels to the final contour but didn't do any polishing for a final finish. I spent all my youth working in my dads machine shop and when we turned round stock we always polished the steel with a strip of emory cloth to remove the cutter marks.

I hope the interior of the barrels are better than the exterior. There have been threads in the past asking if WM was supplied with lesser quality guns and in the past I never thought so. But after what I saw today I may have to rethink this.

Has anyone else seen any Ruger guns at other stores or the gunshow with this type of final finish?
 
At one time Ruger bead blasted the SS versions and left them with a textured finish to prevent light reflection.

I've been buying Ruger Mini's and 10-22's since the 1970's. They have never had a truly polished finish on the exterior. If it is any different today it isn't by much.

They do offer a Deluxe version of the 10-22 with a walnut stock that is somewhat better finished. But still not like the higher end guns.
 
I have both a 10-22 and a mini-14 in SS and they are smooth and polished. Not bead blasted. These guns I saw at WM are so rough they have to be seen to be appreciated. This looks even worse than the gobbed up blueing they were doing on 10-22s for a while.

If it is any different today it isn't by much.
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And its a heck of lot different than what I have ever seen before. And I look at ruger guns all the time. I really like ruger products.
 
Unfortunately, that's just the way many guns are made today.

People demand CHEAPER! CHEAPER! CHEAPER!!! and to keep the ever increasing price of labor and materials down, corners have to be cut.

To get a gun that looks as good as say a 1950's vintage Winchester Model 12 shotgun, made today, you're going to have to pay out the ass for it. Most people don't much care, or even notice, the steady decline in quality in America's guns... at least the decline in fit and finish. Don't get me wrong, that Ruger might be very accurate and is probably very reliable, but with today's market... something's got to give somewhere.
 
I spent all my youth working in my dads machine shop and when we turned round stock we always polished the steel with a strip of emory cloth
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There you go with the answer.
Just treat it like it comes with a "Some Assembly Required" sticker.
 
Rugers always had good finishes; however, it is entirely possible that those were built for Walmart and the not so finished finish was part of the specs.
 
Nope. Walmart doesn't sell enough guns for Ruger to do something like that. It's just as been said, a corner cutter for the more for less crowd.
 
Reposted another article. I 100% dont believe Walmart sells lower quality guns. Can you imagine the liability and warranty nightmare involved in that?? I have seen the Marlin 336W 30-30s in regular gun shops. A lot of people even plenty on this very forum have said. The W stands for "Walmart" thats just absurd.
 
I heard one guy at the last gun show ranting about Ruger cranking out a million guns as fast as they could and letting quality control fall by the way side. personally I don't know much about it, only that there were some awesome deals on M77s this christmas at my local shops and I surely would have bought one if they every had one in a caliber I desired. I believe "brushed stainless" is the term that ruger uses, it's a non polished finish that doesn't reflect sunlight, which is much more sought after in a hunting rifle than mirror finish. my older brother has an older M77 MKII that has the polished stainless, it glints sunlight like a freaking solar collection tower. the brushed guns do not have that problem, at least not to the same degree and I've been seeing this on Rugers for several years now. apparently some people (both the ones who have only seen this finish, and the ones who have never seen it) have simply failed to notice until recently.
 
I own two stainless 10/22s bought from WalMart. One is around 20 years old, the other is three years old. The older one has a real nice, shiny and smooth finish on the barrel, and the receiver is almost as nice. The newer one is bead blasted, rough and dull grey. Same for the receiver. But it shoots just as nice as the older one. I would guess the lack of polishing is for savings.
 
Reposted another article. I 100% dont believe Walmart sells lower quality guns. Can you imagine the liability and warranty nightmare involved in that?? I have seen the Marlin 336W 30-30s in regular gun shops. A lot of people even plenty on this very forum have said. The W stands for "Walmart" thats just absurd.
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Walmart has, and still does sell lower quality guns.
It may not be every model. It may not even be every manufacturer.
And the lower quality may only be for fit, finish, and quality (or omission) of accouterments (stocks, sights, grips, sling swivels, scopes, etc.).
But they DO sell lower quality guns.

The W in 336W does, in fact, come from a special request that Walmart submitted to Marlin for a cheaper model in 1983. Walmart wanted to beat everyone else's pricing but keep the Marlin brand name, and Marlin's answer was lower quality fit and finish, birch (rather than walnut) stocks, omission of sling swivel studs, cheaper sights, and plastic butt plates -- among other changes that came or went over the years.
But, to make sure it was understood to be different than the 336, 336C, etc., they gave it the 'W' designation and did not install the Marlin 'bullseye' in the butt stocks.


Even in 1983, the practice had been going on for 80+ years.
Stevens marketed cheaper .22s under the Springfield brand name as early as 1913. They were mechanically identical to the Stevens rifles and made on the same machinery; but fit and finish were lower quality and the stocks were simply and notably cheaper wood.
Marlin sold MANY thousands (tens of thousands?) of rifles under the Glennfield, JC Higgins, K-Mart, Foremost, Western Field, and many other brand names for many years. What were they? Sometimes just re-branded copies of the original; but primarily cheapened copies of a Marlin product (and made on the same assembly lines).
And nearly every other major manufacture did the same thing through at least the 1980s.


There is no liability nightmare in deleting extra parts, using cheaper sights, not polishing the metal as well, and slapping on some ill-fitting cheaper wood.

But don't take my word for it. ...Before you continue to argue that the concept is "absurd", do some more research that includes reliable sources - not internet discussion forums.



Edit:
I just wanted to add: As far as I know, Ruger has not ever offered a lower quality version of anything for any specific vendor. They offer higher quality special editions to distributors that fork over the cash for a production run; but I don't know of any retailer-specific corner-cutting models that have ever been offered.
 
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As a sidenote: model 700 in synthetic, matte finish, cheap scope and rings,.270 win, 24"1:10 barrel. 379.00 at Walmart here.
I've seen, lately, people somewhat scrambling for 700 actions, and used ones bringing premium, (400.00) sought after for custom builds.
A fella could save some cash goin this route I suppose, and I wonder what real mechanical differences in a rifle bought from a GS, and one from Walmart..
 
One corner I always hate to see cut is the proliferation of flat top rifles. I get it but I still hate it. It ain't a gun without a sight.
 
Last week I bought a new Blued 10-22 Carbine from Cabela's. The blueing and metal finish on the barrel is not bad but not quiet like finish on my 25yr old 77-22. I wouldn't expect an older 10-22 to have the same finish as a similar vintage 10-77 either though. It is far from the "matte" finish they advertise on their website. One thing I don't care for is the application of black paint on the receiver. I was cleaning the scope base holes with a little bit of brake cleaner and it removed some of the surrounding paint. At least the base easily covers this but I was still surprised.
 
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A fella could save some cash goin this route I suppose, and I wonder what real mechanical differences in a rifle bought from a GS, and one from Walmart..
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Been discussed here many times.
WalMart 700's are often used for "donor" actions, selling off the barrel and other parts. Makes little sense to spend around $450 for a receiver when a completed rifle can be had for less-and then even some of that cost recouped in addition.

No difference in the 700's sold at Wally World. Just volume buying power.
 
"I 100% dont believe Walmart sells lower quality guns."

From a safety standpoint, they're perfectly serviceable.

But Walmart grade guns are generally not fit or finished to the same specifications as the same guns sold through through other retailers.

Walmart is well known for demanding that the companies with which it does business cut unit cost as far as possible, and that frequently involves lower standards of finish, swapping out more expensive parts made of metal with plastic, lower quality wood, etc.

It is, as a friend of mine called it, the Soviet-standard of firearms manufacturing in the United States.

Some years ago Walmart approached, IIRC, Troybilt wanting to carry their lawn mowers because it is a respected name.

Only WalMart demanded that Troy cut unit production cost by some insane number (seem to remember 65%) through the use of lightweight and less robust materials, etc.

Troy's CEO told them to get bent.

And that's why you can now buy the finest Murray lawn mowers at WalMart... cheap.

Only, NEVER buy a Murray product from anyone, especially from WalMart.

They are CRAP, with a capital everything .
 
The W in 336W does, in fact, come from a special request that Walmart submitted to Marlin for a cheaper model in 1983. Walmart wanted to beat everyone else's pricing but keep the Marlin brand name, and Marlin's answer was lower quality fit and finish, birch (rather than walnut) stocks, omission of sling swivel studs, cheaper sights, and plastic butt plates -- among other changes that came or went over the years.
But, to make sure it was understood to be different than the 336, 336C, etc., they gave it the 'W' designation and did not install the Marlin 'bullseye' in the butt stocks.
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I have a 336W. Which is JM stamped. And yes the Stock is some sort of blond color wood with what I think is brown paint? When it gets scuffed the wood underneath is fresh, so the finish on the stock is not very deep which makes me think its just paint, not like a stain that is soaked into the wood. And yes it has a plastic butt plate with just "Marlin" written in the script. The bluing on the barrel is not stellar reminds me of a barrel you would see on a Cheap bolt 22 like the Walmart Sold Savage MkII without the accutrigger. The bluing on the receiver and lever is pretty and shiny. The rear sight is a flimsy piece of stamped steel with the separate notched wedge for elevation. The same rear sight you would see on a model 60. That didn't bother me either because she sports Nikon Glass. Now the "FIT" of the stock is fine it lines up great. And yes it did not come with sling swivels I had to install them. I am quite ok with the rifle....AKA "MEAT". She has put a many of venison on the table and shoots just as good as my Glenfield 30A, But I had to run about 200 rounds through it before the groups tightened up. I have had the 336W up against another 336 and the differences are as plain as day.
 
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