Acceptable turn-around times on repair/replacement of firearms/accessories?

[Howland937]

I had a Colt Defender sent in a couple years ago. Turn around was about 2 weeks, but it still wasn't fixed. LGS took it back in and I ended up with a different gun.

The front night sight was d.o.a. on my P238 right out of the box. Called Sig, was offered option of returning gun, returning only the slide, or take pics and email to show the dead sight. I took the last option and had a new sight 2 days later.

 

[DeepSouth]

If it’s warranty work or such I’d say a month would begin to stretch it, but that’s how long they should take, so I’ll add a week each way for shipping. So I say 6 weeks, but I know some people take longer so I really don’t get upset if it takes a few months. If it’s custom work, that’s a whole nother thing, as they say.

it’s all just stuff, just material possessions that I can quiet frankly live without if need be. Being with out it for a while just isn’t that big of a deal.
Don’t sweat the small stuff.

 

[Trey Veston]

Got the sight back today. They sent me a brand new one. Invoice just said they inspected and "confirmed irregular travel adjustments" and new unit sent.

No apologies, no swag, nothing to compensate for wasting $60 worth of ammo and not having it for a month, and now having to sight it in, again.

So yes, they honored the warranty and did the absolute bare minimum from a customer service perspective.

Shopping for a new scope for a project rifle and no longer considering a Vortex optic based on my first and exceptionally mediocre experience with Vortex products and service.

 

[Howland937]

I can understand some of the frustration. Warranty probably has some "exclusions" for incidental problems in the fine print though, kinda like car manufacturers. They don't wanna pay for your time or gas money for driving back to the dealer to get stuff fixed.

 

[George P]

I had a Colt Defender sent in a couple years ago. Turn around was about 2 weeks, but it still wasn't fixed. LGS took it back in and I ended up with a different gun.

The front night sight was d.o.a. on my P238 right out of the box. Called Sig, was offered option of returning gun, returning only the slide, or take pics and email to show the dead sight. I took the last option and had a new sight 2 days later.

This isn't "a couple of years ago"; this is Covid times with employees out, some states with severe restrictions, shortages in supply chains, etc.

 

[Howland937]

This isn't "a couple of years ago"; this is Covid times with employees out, some states with severe restrictions, shortages in supply chains, etc.

I understand that, and the OP described the instances in the last 15 years in which he'd dealt with C.S. I simply related my only 2 experiences with sending things back to the MFR, as did other posters. I didn't see a blame-Covid related option in the survey to vote for, so I voted based on my experiences.

 

[George P]

Before Covid, most of my returns have taken about 1 month; my point was that now, in these times, repairs/returns are taking a lot longer due to outstanding circumstances, many of which are beyond the control of the company

 

[AzShooter1]

I've been real lucky sending my guns back for repair. I got them all back within 2 weeks but I can understand a month. The only exception was a Smith & Wesson that needed a new cylinder. That took 5 weeks and a lot of phone calls. I learned that everyone has a boss so if not satisfied by the first Customer Service Rep I ask for the name of their supervisor and keep going up the ladder until my problem is fixed.

 

[Curious2]

Three weeks for a firing pin repair on a GP 100 with about 6k rounds. Bought another new GP 100 that shot about 1ft to the left out of the box @ 15 yds, not quite on target with full rt windage adjustment. Back to Ruger it went... It's been a little over 3 weeks now. Time will tell...

Took a total of 7 weeks for repair but that includes the the 2 weeks my FFL took before shipping it. Five weeks from Ruger in New Hampshire, not bad, replaced a barrel & crane replacement. Shoots great!!! Thank you Ruger!!!
They also buffed, re-blued and sent back a copy of the 6 round target they shot.

 

[Jim NE]

I had two of the Rossi .38 Special Braztech era revolvers that were replaced under the recall of a couple of years ago. They took from about 6 to 8 months to replace after sending them in, if I remember correctly. Maybe as long as 9 months for the second gun. The good news was that they replaced my used Rossi's with brand new guns (Taurus) with warranties, and the replacements were 6 shot guns instead of 5 shot like the originals. The less than good news was that I didn't feel the Taurus replacements - both model 856's - had quite the fit and finish of the Rossi originals. The 856 is more of a bread and butter utilitarian revolver as opposed to the polished Rossi guns.

The long wait time turned some Rossi customers off, but I had other carry guns, so I wasn't pressed for time. I was not expecting a quick turn around, given it was Taurus, so I had low expectations in terms of delivery time. It also helped that my very cool local LGS has a policy of NOT charging transfer fees for warranty replacement guns, so the whole process literally cost me nothing.

My best turn around for repair was something like 5 days for a rather drastic recoil spring malfunction on a brand new Desert Eagle 1911 Undercover in .45 acp. That was total time, from the time I called them about the issue until it was back in my hands. Magnum Research had me two day it to them at their expense and after a day for repair they sent it back with the same two day delivery. Gun has worked great after that. I was so impressed with their customer service that the malfunction left me with no poor impression of the company. Nice quality firearm, it seems.

 

[entropy]

You left out an important choice; It depends.
Having been on both sides of the equation, I will say work load, parts availability, ease/difficulty of making parts that aren't available, and whether a gunsmith or a warranty service center, has a lot to do with how long it takes. Fast, cheap, or quality work. Pick one. You're not getting all three. I don't mind waiting if the work is worth it. I'm actually in this quandry right now; I'm putting a recoil device on my 870 TB. I could do the work myself, saving labor, but it might not be done for a good while. (honeydoo lists and vehicle work often get in the way.) I know several different people who could do better work than I could, and faster, but it will cost me more than the gun did. I wouldn't consider anyone in between. Gunsmiths with good reputations charge accordingly, and there are reasons why they are still a good value.