What in the world are you people doing with your guns?

S

Sammunition.44mag

New member
Ya know, I just have to say that Ive owned many handguns in my time, and I have never had to send any of them back to the factory for any reason. Theyve all functioned flawlessly, both autoloaders and revolvers. Granted, theyve all been name brand quality guns..even the Taurus .38 Ultralite always worked like the well-oiled machine it was. Now, maybe Ive just been lucky. I shoot my guns quite a bit, and I take good care of them. Yet Ive seen so many posts on this forum by different members that mention having to "send a gun back to the factory for repair". Makes me wonder if some of us are using our guns to drive tacks... WITH THE HANDLES :eek: . I can only conclude that these folks are all related to some guy named Murphy :D . Take the Taurus line of revolvers for example. Any QC problems Taurus had were resolved years ago. However, some gun enthusiasts might describe a Taurus revolver's action as somewhat less finely tuned than, say, a Smith. Seriously, I have to wonder how much of this is "brand snobbery", analogous to the sort of hairsplitting one might expect to encounter when having a discussion with an audiophile on the relative clarity of compact disks vs vinyl. Good guns are pricey items usually, and if you bought a new handgun of a respected make then you can rest assured that some kind of adequate QC oversight process was in place before the gun found its way into your hands. Unless you bought a complete POS ( I just cant believe that many lemons could make it past QC, even one should be an extremely rare occurence) your gun should not require any factory repairs with normal usage, provided you atleast make a half decent attempt to maintain it.
 
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There are instances where defective parts get out of the factory. As an example, I bought a brand-new Beretta 9000S. About a week later, before I even fired it, the safety mechinism broke in my hands while I was cycling it.
 
I'll agree with the rarity sentiment, but you also have to figure that these forums subscribe to the higher end of gun owners, so most of us (you?) have bought several pistols in your time. Bringing that into play, yes, many of you (us?) have probably had more experience with broken/defective parts than most other "average-joe" firearm owners. Now, can anyone explain to me what I just said? :confused:
 
The locking block on my Taurus pt-92 broke while firing. That jammed things up pretty bad and gouged the slide a ilttle. It's a very old one though, with a good many a round gone through it. It took me forever to find the part but when I found it, I realized this was a problem that a lot of people have had with this firearm in particular. It was cheap and all is well now with the replacement part.

Other than that, i've had little plastic parts on my marlin model 60 break, and they are still broken, but the rifle still works.

I'm relatively young but i'm a lot farther into this world than most people my age.
 
I've had one gun come out of the box that wasn't right, a S&W revolver. I sent it back and they fixed it.

EVERY company makes a bad _______ once in a while, it just happens. We hear about them from friends and relatives, while online forums like this have such a large audience it seems like every day someone is getting a bad gun. I suspect the ratio of bad guns leaving the factory is as low or lower than any other mechanical device but we just don't have the number of contacts in other areas to see the numbers with those devices.
 
The average gun buyer buys a gun and runs a couple of boxes of ammo through it, puts it in a drawer and taht's it. The average gun owner does not even expect 90% reliability, has no clue that some people want 100% reliability, and does not post on internet gun forums.

You will find a more discerning class of gun owner on these forums. I've never had to send a gun back. I have had them break though. I just fix them myself or have a 'smith do it.
 
I never anticipated ever sending one of my arms back to the factory for repairs. I was raised on rifles and shotguns, so handguns are pretty new to me (few years experience only). Just last week I sent my first gun back to the man for repairs. I'm not sure what to epect, but like any other owner, I hope 1) it comes straight back to me, and 2) it fires like I thought it would when I decided to purchase it.

I didn't beat this thing around. When I brought it home from the FFL, I looked it over, cleaned it, oiled it and just admired it. A day later, we went to the range. I even fired it second after my Beretta so I wouldn't jinx myself all eager and crazy over my new toy. Needles to say, it didn't work :( Some products just get out of the factory that aren't right. It's the same for any product. There are so many, chances are there are going to be a few duds.
 
That sux man

When I bought my kimber, I just about cried with I shot it the first time, jam-o-matic. But after I shot it and shot it (for me thats about 400 rounds) it became like buttah. never jams, and i shoot the best with it, so I know that sinking feeling that you get when you pull the trigger, it goes bang, then notice the slide hasnt fully seated another round. :o
 
Smith bad

Had a Smith 586 NIB that the hammer would strike the side of the frame-was way off and started wearing the finish off the side immediately. Seemed it also absorbed a bit of the hammer energy when it whacked the frame. Sent it back to the regional Smith repair shop and they fixed it, but hinted it was not out of tol. Sometimes makers let their specs stretch a bit to dismiss some duds or stuff that is not quite right. Had Ruger tell me same thing(different problem) and just dumped the new gun as they would not fix it.
 
Sometimes I think I must be lucky – in the past several years I have been able to shoot a fair number of new guns extensively and never had a problem with any, as long as they have been completely cleaned and lubricated first. However a friend at my range during the same time has had what seems to be about a 20 % rate of trouble where they need some work or a trip back to the factory. Now we don’t let him touch any new guns before we have a chance to shoot them!
 
Mr. Murphy moved in next door to me in September of 2003.

Since then i've bought:

9-18 -03=NIB Charles Daley .45 acp:Couldn't get through 1st mag full. Changed mags and recoil spring. Functioned flawlessly for 500 rounds.

10-2-03= Used 2" S&W 36 .38 spcl: What can i say? It's a S&W. 200 rounds through 1st range session. Not one hiccup.

11-11-03=NIB Charter 200 Undercover .38 spcl: First cylinder full was 2 bangs and 3 clicks. Firing pin replaced under warranty. It will now eat anything i put in it.

12-13-03=NIB S&W 642 .38 spcl: Nothing to complain about.

12-25-03=used 6" S&W 28-2 .357:I've know and fired this gun over the years. Always runs like a champ.

1-15-04=NIB RIA Commander .45 acp:Same problems as Charles Daly. Same cure.

1-02-04=Used 4" S&W 18 .22 lr:Bought nib 9-19-77, traded in early '80's,
bought back for $300.00. This gun has never malfunctioned.

4-2-04=NIB Charter 200 Offduty .38 spcl:Same problem as Charter Undercover. Same cure.

5-17-04=NIB EEA Bounty Hunter .357:First cylinder was 3 bangs and 3 clicks. Fixed under warranty. Also had an action job done at time of repair. It's now one sweet shootin' .357.

6-22-04=NIB Taurua 605 .357:250 rounds first range session. Not 1 problem.

8-29-04=Used 4" blued Ruger Security Six:Runs like a fine Swiss watch.

10-21-04=NIB Charter 200 Bulldog .44 spcl:First range session was 250 rounds without any problems.

11-16-04=Factory rebuilt Glock 17 9mm=Performed flawlessly.
 
Sam,

You have been lucky. I may have been, also. I have probably owned 100 to 125 guns, not all at the same time. I have had two or three revolvers with problems, and a number of autos that didn't work every time, usually because of a magazine.

I believe every problem I read about on the internet, unless there is some hint that I shouldn't. Very few of them sound like mistreatment.

I don't understand why you think someone has to mistreat a gun in order for it to malfunction, unless it is simply your lack of experience in diagnosing malfunctions (which is understandable, if you haven't had any malfunctions).

??

520
 
Gun Probs

I have seen many problems expressed on the internet, and do not discount a one of them. I do acknowledge that people probably express dislike more then they express a firearm that performs as advertized but isnt their fav. However, when one takes all of the complaints into perspective, you can get a pretty decent cross-section of what gun is a performer, and what isn't. When a whole bunch of people are saying one thing about a peticular brand, it is hard to ignore, no matter how many say good things about it. NO human made item is going to work 100% of the time, but some are better than others, and usually you get what you pay for, usually. There are those cheap wonders of the firearm world, but not often. Have I had a problem with a Taurus, no. Have I had a problem with a S&W, no. None of the firearms I have shot/owned have displayed problems that were not addressed by the manufacturer (My kimber needed to be broken in). But thats my experience. The vast numbers of guns out there give us a better idea of what brand is most problem prone, and to me it seems that more of us have had problems with Taurus and other lower priced revolvers than the higher quality brand(s). This may not be a true representation, yet it does need to be taken into concideration. I carry a taurus for work, and the fit and finish is lacking, I havent shot it yet, but I need to, because it makes me wonder if it will work if i need it to. Dont mean to start the brand war, just passing on my observations. If you want a gun that goes bang, for cheap, a taurus might just be the ticket, but if you want a finely crafted, beautiful, and timeless piece, in my humble opinion there is only 1 option.
 
Coupla things...

1. There are over 22,000 members of TFL. That's a lot of members, and, one would presume a LOT of guns. Plus, you have to figure that a lot of people find a gun forum BECAUSE they have a problem and want to get a solution.

2. People post about problems. People tend not to post about all their guns that DON'T have problems.

3. People here tend to shoot more than most. I know a lot of gun-owners that fall into the "buy a gun and a box of ammo and you're set for life" classification. I suspect that there aren't many here like that.

4. I suspect that "lemons" get passed around. Many people believe that the way to get rid of a problem gun is to sell it.
 
I've had one gun come out of the box that wasn't right, a S&W revolver. I sent it back and they fixed it.
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Same thing happened to me...I bought a brand new Model 29 Classic back in about 1993, and when I took it out of the box, the hammer wouldn't drop in DA mode. It would operate OK in single action. I sent it back to S&W, and they fixed it and even refinished the gun, saying that they had found "a flaw". About the same time, I'd also bought a new Ruger P89. After a couple of range sessions, I noticed my groups starting to open up. After some inspection, I found that the front sight was wobbling from side to side...the sight blade retaining pin holes had been drilled too close to the edge of the blade, and had worn through. I sent the gun back to Ruger, and they had to replace the whole slide.

I don't consider that too bad for having bought about 40 handguns over the past 15 years. Since 1973, I've made my living in the electronics business...I've taken a fair amount of brand new equipment straight out of the box that wouldn't power up or work right, and others that I just let the smoke out of. It happens with everything. :(
 
Taken all together, it does make sense. Everybody made some good points, and JohnKSa especially put it rather succinctly. This forum sort of gives the illusion of a much smaller community, atleast, thats how it seemed to me. Ofcourse, thats not the case. This thread was more or less a kneejerk reaction, and I hadnt really stopped to think about just how many people make up the forum :o . It still amazes me that something like a handgun, a precision instrument to be sure, could make it out of a factory in anything less than a flawlessly functioning condition, but as abelew pointed out, anything made by man is bound to be less that perfect.
 
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