I purchased a new Kimber Camp Guard 10 from a local store, and took it to the range along with a new Kimber Eclipse Target 38 Super. The 38 Super was flawless and accurate as advertised. However, the 10mm would not even chamber a round. After trying several types of ammo with no luck, I took it back to the store. They shipped it back to Kimber, and about 5 weeks later the gun came back, and even has a new matching pair of grips. I took it out this last weekend, and it worked just fine with HP, ROUND BALL, and Flat nose ammo. My o ly complaint is Kimber could have thrown in an extra mag for the inconvenience. But I am looking forward to several more outings to enjoy shooting my new Kimbers.
Kimber Warranty Work
- Thread starter Rfactor
- Start date
Badgerstate
New member
Ive heard good things about Kimber's customer service. It seems like it you have issues, you send it back and Kimber is good about making it right.
It feels like we've been seeing a lot of these "customer service praise" threads lately, when in fact they should be "terrible QA/QC" threads.
The fact that this pistol would not even chamber a round indicates that practically no quality control whatsoever was performed on this pistol. Which likely means no proof load or even a basic test firing.
The US firearms market is down (or at least back to normal after the sales bubble caused by the previous administration), and it seems like may many manufacturers are cutting costs where they absolutely shouldn't be.
The fact that this pistol would not even chamber a round indicates that practically no quality control whatsoever was performed on this pistol. Which likely means no proof load or even a basic test firing.
The US firearms market is down (or at least back to normal after the sales bubble caused by the previous administration), and it seems like may many manufacturers are cutting costs where they absolutely shouldn't be.
I honestly don't think what we're seeing this year is significantly worse than last year in terms of QC threads. I would certainly agree that QC seems to be taking a hit, but I think that's been a trend of recent years and not just this year. Another factor might be that with ammo availability and prices stabilizing we're seeing people shoot more and expose these problems sooner. I just haven't seen what I would call proof one way or another.
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Fair enough. We've both been here a long time and in my experience the reports of these problems seem to wax and wane. There are some companies that seem to have this tendency more than others.
While I do get your point about QC on the whole, I am glad that the owners are actually making the companies fix the problems in the end. I know a number of people that have issues with pistols and just treat it like that's the way it is instead of trying to get the company to fix it.
I contacted Kimber cs once regarding my Kimber Micro 380. Kimber revised the recoil spring and guide rod and offered a free replacement. My call to them was answered quickly and handled professionally. The revised new parts arrived quickly. If I recall correctly they were FedEx'd overnight. My one limited experience with Kimber was very positive.
I own 7 different Kimbers. Have not had any major problems but did have to deal with customer service for those problems. I found customer service to be knowledgeable and no BS stuff. Emailed me a shipping label and turn around on the two times I had to use them was less than two weeks. I have no complaints with any of my Kimbers or their Customer Service.
I think your talking two different issues. Sure, the gun should never have left the factory in the condition it was in. However, I realize every manufacturer will have a product that will not function as it should from time to time. No escaping that. I had three new Kimbers at the range that day. One malfunctioned. Not really great odds I guess, but the factory did make it right. A company that stands behind their product, and honors their warranty deserves recognition. Why else issue a warranty, if not for the possibility of a malfunction?
Rfactor, We all hate to have to send a gun back. I've sent guns back to manufacturers for mechanical/functional/accuracy issues myself. I've owned a few Kimbers, and am happy to say that is one manufacturer I've never needed to send a gun back to. I did have a Kimber magazine crack several years ago. Don't know how old it was, or if it would be covered by warranty or not. Kimber Customer Service didn't ask me anything, except where to send a new magazine. Not a high-dollar issue, but I appreciated their courteous, no hassle, response. Like yours, my 38 Super Eclipse Target, has been flawless. Glad to hear Kimber took care of the issue with the 10MM. That they corrected the issue is the important part, free magazine for your trouble or not