Send it back to the factory?

[cornered rat]

While cleaning the S&W 49 after first range visit, I noticed that the bluing (is it bluing or some other finish?) has chipped off at the muzzle, right on the outside edge of the barrel. The chip is about 3-4mm long by 2mm wide or so, quite noticeable.

I did not hit it on anything or abuse it.
Adding to this the propensity to hit right of the point of aim, and I wonder if I ought to send it to Smith and Wesson for fixing. If so, could someone guide me through the process of doing that? I am not sure how to pack and mail the gun or what info I need from S&W ahead of time.

Thank you.

 

[Porter]

Well, Rat...

Unload your gun.
Pack your gun in it's original box.
Put that box in a shipping box with about 2" of packing material on all sides.
Enclose a note with a brief description of the problem and your return address and phone number.

Send your gun to:

Smith & Wesson Product Service Dept.
2100 Roosevelt Avenue
Springfield, MA 01102

Their number is 1-800-331-0852.

Ship it UPS only. I recommend insuring it for the retail replacement cost.

Note:I guess it is ok to send your gun through UPS for warranty work. They fixed my Sigma in 2 days.

 

[jimmy]

CR--I've sent quite a number of guns to S&W over the years and have found the process to be not quite painless but fairly straightforward.

The gun needs to be sturdily boxed with a letter describing the problem and shipped by UPS to: Product Service Department, 2100 Roosevelt Ave., Springfield, MA 01101. I also include a xerox of my purchase receipt, which seems to help with the warranty. For security reasons I personally don't put "Smith & Wesson" on the box--having had a gun stolen while in UPS's tender care I'm hoping that this will help avoid a repeat of the experience.

Anyway, as you probably know, UPS will ship a gun for a non-FFL as long as it's to the factory for repair. However, not everyone who accepts UPS shipments knows this or is willing to admit it, so I go directly to the nearest UPS Customer Counter. The personnel there may or may not ask to inspect the contents of the parcel prior to accepting it. On the UPS shipping form (available at the Customer Counter) be sure to include the replacement value of the gun--this adds to the cost of the insurance but is good policy and brings a little peace of mind. BTW, the UPS in my area, and I assume elsewhere, posts a "no handguns" sign against concealed carry licensees, but you can still ship a handgun there.

No prior authorization should be needed from S&W before you ship to them. Turnaround varies with the work required. Refinishing generally takes longer than other work, in my experience. S&W may or may not send you an acknowledgement when they receive your gun.

As to the quality of work to expect, IMO S&W has a pretty good service department. They usually take care of problems the first time and do so without charge. OTOH, I remember some guns I had to send back again and again--but this was exceptional.

I hope this helps. Best of luck.



[This message has been edited by jimmy (edited September 09, 1999).]