EAA Customer Service Sucks

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Kiln

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So I took out my EAA Windicator a few days back and put a few rounds through it again, no problem. The gun is comfortable and heavy, which is nice. I have the .357 so it is all steel minus the trugger guard and barrel shroud. The Windicator seems solid with many good reviews and I still think they are nice.

After a few hundred rounds I started getting failures to fire. A few more and it stopped firing altogether. The tip of the firing pin had apparently snapped off. I'm no stranger to firearms and know that these things sometimes happen with every manufacturer under the sun, so I wasn't really upset. This has happened to me with more expensive guns too.

So I sent an email to EAA about this asking if they'd ship me a firing pin under warranty. I even offered to take pics and prove that it had failed. Then they told me that it was a factory service only part and if they were covering it under warranty I'd have to ship it back to the factory. Then comes the kicker. They told me I could buy it online so they could sell me the part and I could change it myself.

Okay, so I understand when a factory says only they can service something, especially on revolvers which can require fitting but don't tell me a part that requires no fitting isn't covered under warranty unless it is serviced by the factory and then offer to sell me the part.

I was about to buy a Witness but it looks like the critics are right about EAA, their service is pretty lackluster. If they have a dramstic change of heart I'll update but I wouldn't count on it.
 
Seems par for the course.
EAA has terrible reviews for their CS.

General consensus seems to be "if you don't mind fixing it yourself, they're great"
 
I am normally fine with buying parts and fixing a gun myself. It is just the idea that I should have to pay to send it in for a replacement part that they will sell you on a gun that supposedly has a warranty.
 
Call them, and be polite. Ask them repeated questions about WHY they cannot ship you the part under warranty/for free. Also ask WHY they think it broke - you just want to understand the root cause so you know what to avoid in the future. Just keep acting confused, not angry. Don't demand anything, don't get loud, just hang in there. I've done this a few times with parts for my Tanfoglio/Witness guns, and have actually gotten good results from it.

Agreed that buying stuff imported via EAA only makes sense if you're willing to get your hands dirty and do a bit of your own work.
 
Not to defend them but if the give you the part and you get hurt you sew them. If you purchase the part they have some isolation.

I'm wondering why you won't send the gun back to them and let the repair it? They offered to fix your gun for free, what more can you want?
 
ArchAngelCD, I'd love to see the legal cite for the proposition that their liability is any greater for a part shipped for free than for a part purchased online.

As for "fixing for free," EAA doesn't issue free shipping labels. The OP would have to shell out to ship the gun. Probably costs more than just buying the hammer himself.
 
Not to defend them but if the give you the part and you get hurt you sew them. If you purchase the part they have some isolation.

I'm wondering why you won't send the gun back to them and let the repair it? They offered to fix your gun for free, what more can you want?
A firing pin is not something you can screw up and hurt yourself with this design. It either is installed correctly and works or the hammer hits it and does nothing. There is no potential for injury.

As far as shipping it back, it costs roughly $60 to ship it in and EAA is one of the few companies I know of that demands that you include $20 to ship it back to you!

So basically, the "free" fix is $80. The part is $7 + $10 flat rate shipping. It is the principle of it. They refuse to fix it under warranty because it is factory only but then say we'll sell it to you and magically it is no longer a factory only replacement.

Anyways I called them and got the same story. It is either pay $20 and get a magical pass on fixing it myself or pay $80 for a free repair.

That'll teach me. Should have saved the extra money and gotten a Smith. I'll guarantee they would have picked up the shipping on a six month old gun.

Anyways there's my experience, take it for what it is but if you have an issue be prepared to pay out of pocket and then still have to fix it yourself on a gun that supposedly has a warranty. I should have gotten a Hi Point because at least they would've sent me parts and not given me problems. Plus I'll bet a Hi Point would last 500 rounds without a broken part. Just saying.
 
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ArchAngelCD, I'd love to see the legal cite for the proposition that their liability is any greater for a part shipped for free than for a part purchased online.

As for "fixing for free," EAA doesn't issue free shipping labels. The OP would have to shell out to ship the gun. Probably costs more than just buying the hammer himself.

I'm not defending anyone like I said above. I was only asking the OP questions. Oh, and I'm not a lawyer so I'm not going to play a legal pissing contest with you, especially when I asked the OP about his thoughts.
 
I edited my last post. Anyways I'll know better next time. Definitely not getting a Witness now knowing what a PITA it will be to deal with them should I have any problems.
 
I edited my last post. Anyways I'll know better next time. Definitely not getting a Witness now knowing what a PITA it will be to deal with them should I have any problems.
I didn't know they wanted you to ship on your own dime, not right! That would make me angry too.

I wasn't saying this particular repair was dangerous, I was thinking that might be their policy with all parts, of course I could be wrong. Yes, I'm sure S&W would have handled it better.
 
Good to know. I was actually planning on getting a Windicator, because I can't justify $700 for the 686 "Range Toy" I really want. Now, I'll save my money or do without before I run into the same problem with CS.
 
Buying from EAA makes sense if they are the only source of a product that isn't easily matched by another, such as some of their competition-oriented Tanfoglio offerings. Otherwise, you're just kind of taking a cost/risk gamble, IMO. I've had pretty good luck wringing concessions out of them, but them I'm especially charming and people love to help me. :rolleyes:;)
 
I don't know what the price differential is between the EAA and an S&W, but there might lie the problem. Selling a big ticket item perhaps leaves more room for possible returns at the company's expense.

I would offer to return the broken part for an exchange rather than have to send the complete gun. Have you offered that, or asked to talk to a supervisor? Often supervisors can do things the lower level CS people won't even talk about.
 
I edited my last post. Anyways I'll know better next time. Definitely not getting a Witness now knowing what a PITA it will be to deal with them should I have any problems.
Well, you're not missing much. I have a pair of EAA/Tanfo 10 mms: one base model "Wonder Finish" and one Hunter. The WF is fine, but nothing special. At that price point, I can shoot at least as accurately with a Glock. A couple of years ago, the Match was probably something of a bargain (based on user reports; haven't shot one myself), but then they raised the price so much that I decided to spring for the Hunter. The Hunter is certainly more accurate than the WF, but I'll bet you could find other pistols for the money that are as good with a little research.
 
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