Anyone else enjoy a malfunctioning auto?

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loop

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I read a lot of posts about how folks send a malfunctioning gun back to the factory and are unhappy with the results of: dealing with the people, quality of repair, etc., etc.

I never expect an auto to be 100 percent when I buy it, whether it is new or used.

I enjoy the tinkering and experimentation that goes into making it 100 percent reliable.

Once the gun is reliable and accurate it may become a safe queen, a carry gun or even a competition gun. It really doesn't matter. The real joy to me is knowing I've found the way to make the pistol perform as well or better than it was supposed to out of the factory.

When it comes to a factory being of little value in terms of service, I really wouldn't know. I'd rather fix it myself.

I could name a dozen guns that malfunctioned when I first got them and now are reliable enough to use as carry guns. It just took time and in some cases, a little bit of money to make them 100 percent.

Am I alone in this? Don't other folks enjoy making their machine better on their own?

I enjoy it. It is very suspenseful working on a gun and waiting until I can shoot to see if the work was successful. To me, it just adds to the shooting experience.
 
I'm a tinkerer myself so I also have a tendency to try to fix something myself before complaining or sending it in. I don't necessarily look forward to something malfunctioning though, especially if it's something I bought new or paid top dollar for. But I do understand what you're saying. It's just more enjoyable for me if it is a piece that someone else gave up on, or one someone gave me to mess around with.
 
Am I alone in this? Don't other folks enjoy making their machine better on their own?

I enjoy it. It is very suspenseful working on a gun and waiting until I can shoot to see if the work was successful. To me, it just adds to the shooting experience.
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I personally don't like suspense when it comes to guns working vs getting one that's 100% out of the box (not too much suspense with GLOCK and Sig). But I can see the appeal of that side of the hobby you and many others here share. So no you're not alone!
 
The real joy to me is knowing I've found the way to make the pistol perform as well or better than it was supposed to out of the factory.
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While I can identify with your satisfaction over bringing a delinquent firearm into line...malfunctions are not the way they're 'supposed" to operate.

It was designed and intended to function. If it's designed and built correctly, it'll run. It's a machine. It doesn't have a choice.
 
Like others have said, I would rather have a gun that functions 100%, but I do like a good challenge, and always give it a shot trying to fix it myself before I send it back to the factory.
 
if i bought a used gun, then it would be different than buying a new one. if i bought an auto loader used, and it was several years old. then a little trouble shooting and tinkering would be acceptable. but when you buy a new pistol (or rifle, or shotgun) it should perform flawlessly, at least for a decent amount of time. when i have to send a new gun back to the factory, it does make me upset. why should i have to go without while they fix their goof up. why not just make the gun right in the first place. it is simply a matter of poor quality control. i know that anything mechanical can break down at any time. but with high quality control, those breakdowns will be few and far between. so why inconveinience the customer and tarnish your good name by having poor quality control. it would be cool f they could give you a loaner. i know they cant, but it would be cool. also, if you have to send a gun back, repairing it should be priority one at the factory, AND they should try to compensate the owner by doing something extra for the inconveince. a free extra clip, a free trigger job, a voucher for a couple of boxes of ammo, something like that. it is not the customers fault that the factory messed up. that is my opinion.
 
I do like to tinker, and will speculate on a broken gun if I think I can repair it.

I bought a well used and abused P08 Luger once that about ate my lunch, but one I figured it out has been one of my favorite shooters.

I got a well used Ballester Molina a couple years back, figuring it was cheap, and may not work. Well I was mistaken! The Ballester works better than a new Kimber! Needed nothing but ammo.

A FN Browning 1900 I bought cheap just needed a recoil spring and a mag, others too. Fun to tinker on.

Yes, I like crappy broken guns.
 
no way

I am a retired gun dealer of over 40 years and made a darn good living from it but REST ASSURED. Every buyer of a handgun, longgun EXPECTED it to be right out of the box. and Rightfully so. We don't buy cars and tinker with them to make them right, or basicaly any other product. Sure alot on this forum are fix-um type people. Most of u are unique for sure. For sure the majority of the public are not what this and other forum people are. Probably 95% of gun buyers don't even read the internet about guns etc , let alone how to tinker with them. I am sure there is a sense of satisfaction if making ur unreliable gun reliable all by yourself, but that is not "real world" today. I also feel that if I buy a gun and it works great with no issues, then that is what I paid for in the first place. This crap of sending guns back and back to get fixed is not only expensive but time consumming. these gun companies can make them right, if they expect the consumer to fix it himself, they best put a descritive manual with the gun telling them how to fix their defective gun. Sorry guys, been on both sides of the counter and if u want a fix um gun, that is fine 98% don't and won't..
 
Guns are just tools and they are mechanical and they are made on machinery made by humans and humans are not error free, therefore it should be the norm to expect the unexpected. With tools and machinery the unexpected is that it works perfectly the first time.
 
Jocko...+1

With tools and machinery the unexpected is that it works perfectly the first time.
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And that mindset has likely what's led us into accepting the substandard crap that's being turned out these days.

I remember a time that you could go and buy a gun...any gun...revolver or semi-auto...rifle, etc...and you fully expected it to work...and they did, with boring regularity.

The occasional one that didn't was immediately repaired or replaced without undue fanfare, and it was returned to the customer having been fully tested for function and accuracy...accompanied by a handwritten letter of apology for the inconvenience.

That was another world, though...and I miss it.
 
1911 tuner

25 yearsa go, that was indeed true. We never had issues with the good gun companies. Our lemon gun back in those days was the Jennings line, We dropped them to, not worth the effort. Just pissed to many good customers off. I don't buy the fix-um stuff. I think this has slowly been indoctirnated into new owners via through the gun comapnies forums or just general fix um guys who want to fluff their chests out to say "see I can make a defective gun work" but whatever , it is not right. I certainly acknowledge issues can happen, that is just life but id does not mean a buyer has to be happy about it. A gun is a perosnal thing to most. They hope they never have to use it ina defensive situation but they do expect it to work without tinkering.. FWIW.
 
guns are tool???

not sure about that logic, but all of my tools have been perfect out of the box, and tim the tool man has nothing over me either. Owned a tire shop along with our gun business and we had more tools that needed but they worked right out of the box and or crate.
 
Guns are just tools and they are mechanical and they are made on machinery made by humans and humans are not error free, therefore it should be the norm to expect the unexpected.
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You are correct sir.

Which is why QUALITY CONTROL and inspectors exist at the factories that produce such machines. It is THEIR job to make sure that the product they create and intend on selling for profit WORKS as advertised.

I enjoy MODIFYING an already functioning product to more closely suit my desires, however, I do NOT like having to work on a brand new product to get it to function the way it was intended.

Will I? Absolutely. I shouldn't HAVE to though.
 
Not trying to change the subject, but this is kinda related. How much "test firing" is done today with new pistols at the factory? I don't buy a lot of "new" pistols. I try to buy LNIB and save one or two bills per gun. S&W's have a (1) fired casing in the box...all my Walthers have a paper target where they fired multiple rounds to test firing, feeding, and accuracy. I don't even know if Walther still does that with new models anymore. The last Beretta I bought had none of the above.
 
I like to tinker with things.....but not if tinkering is required to get them to operate reliably out of the box. If it's me tinkering with it to function reliably after I've done things to it, then yeah, that's fun--but to have to tinker to get it to work NIB, then no, I don't like it.
 
I guess since the OPs question is whether or not we ENJOY a malfunctioning autopistol...I'll have to say that, while I don't actually enjoy such things...I do get a charge out of takin' a delinquent pistol and makin' it behave. My favorites are the ones that have been back to the factory for correction, and returned with no joy to be had. Win-Win...not to mention amusing...if it happens to be somethin' so dead simple that even a caveman coulda fixed it.
 
Both of my XDs have been 100% perfects from round one, as has my Kahr P9 Covert and my wife's S&W M&P 9 Compact. My CZ failed to feed twice during break-in and have been perfect ever since.

I like to stick with guns that I know are going to work right out of the box.
 
I have no patience with such a firearm. If a new gun, don't get me wrong, I will give the manufacturer a chance to make it right. If a used one with no warranty, I might try troubleshooting and simple repairs, but if it does not respond to that it is gone.
 
I agree with the OP I highly enjoy fixing malfunctions.

I have an early Walther P22 I studied the failer to eject for a while (hour)
fixed it in 10 min with a dremel.

Repaired my own ruger when( I )broke it,

In the process of a trigger job on my M&P.
and all of this took less time than sending it of to the manufacture

Alot of time if you know the problem and call the Manufacture they will send you the part, Like the transfer
bar on my ruger, NO CHARGE I even told them I broke it!
 
I've never had any of my firearms malfunction, not one. I know it is supposed to happen, it is even supposed to be common, just hasn't happened to me (knock on Corian).

I had a sticky mag once, then I cleaned it.

As to the OP: I own a '79 FL Harley, while not a firearm, I have built and re-built this bike a bunch of times. Enjoyed every second. If any of my guns start acting up, it is a great excuse to get some new tools.
 
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No. I do NOT. :eek:

But I do know what you mean. I scratch that itch by restoring cheap mil-surp rifles and building out parts kits.
 
I never expect an auto to be 100 percent when I buy it, whether it is new or used.
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I do. If it's not, I send it back to the maker and get it fixed at their expense or I get rid of it. I don't own any guns that are not 100% reliable and never will.
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