Cabela's sent me mismatched, dirty ammo

[stumpers]

This is the first and only time I've had a problem with ammo I've purchased online. I purchased 500 rounds of Winchester 9mm NATO from Cabela's, but when it arrived I noticed some mismatched brass marked "WMA" instead of "WCC" - every round I've seen prior was marked WCC. The WMA-marked cases didn't have the visible red seal, and were also dirty. This was 1-2 rounds per box.

The grime on the case in the photo is thick and "gunky" enough to potentially cause a problem. Sure my G19 will eat it, but that gunk will end up somewhere...in my mag, chamber, etc.

Cabela's said that Winchester said it's how some Winchester brass is marked and the seal may not be visible, but is there.

They had no comment on the dirtiness, but when pressed about it, Cabela's said if I was concerned about function, perhaps I should clean the rounds before using them - as if I want to pay for something that should be good and usable out of the box, then spend time and effort fixing it myself.

Buyer beware, I guess. I won't buy Winchester 9mm NATO again without being able to look inside the box. I also won't buy ammo from Cabela's again, as they refuse to acknowledge that the dirty ammo is a problem.

 

[bannockburn]

Well that's certainly some dirty looking ammo, way below what I would consider acceptable for new factory ammo.

I'm also a little surprised at Cabelas response to your inquiry as telling the customer to fix a problem themselves with a shipped item hardly qualifies as being much help in the way of customer service.

 

[wally]

That all appears to be current headstamp, With the production lines running flat out, I guess QA/QC is going to suffer.

What was the price? I wouldn't buy this ammo unless the price was really good as the crimped primers wreak havoc with reloading. But I'd be happy to shoot it up for you if you are really worried about it

 

[musicman10_1]

Go to Winchester's web site and find the link to contact them with an issue related to ammunition. I had to do this recently and found them to be helpful and very fair with their solution to the issue I had. It was a few days after I sent the fillable form from their web site before I heard from the technician but they did a good job of communicating.

Keep your receipt from wherever you purchased the ammo because that will be important in the process.

 

[AethelstanAegen]

Winchester White Box always seems to be a dice roll for me. I've had bullets improperly seated (one so bad it had actually crushed the edge of the brass and was at a very noticeable angle), dirty ammo, etc in the past. I just don't bother with it anymore.

 

[.455_Hunter]

Nothing in those pics seems unusual for WWB. I have seen dirty brass like that in relatively recent (2011) purchase WWB 9mm 147 gr JHP. I even called Winchester a few years ago when I bought 115 gr FMJ WWB and the brass was stamped "+P". They said not to worry as the ammo was loaded to nominal specs, but used the higher level brass.

 

[buckstrucks]

Looks just like the bullet sealant used on military ammo. I wouldnt worry about it one bit.


EDIT, I didnt look at all the pictures, it appears that that brass has seen some moisture for a period of time. Similar to what you find out in the dirt in the woods. I would still shoot it but your email to Winchester was a good move.

 

[Deltaboy1984]

Just wipe it down and Shoot it.

 

[Longhorn 76]

We have quality ammunition, and we have cheap ammunition.

Buy what you want.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

 

[larryh1108]

With the kooks out in the world and retailers having a no refund/exchange policy on ammo, I can see why Cabela's answer didn't satisfy you. Your beef is with Winchester, not Cabelas. If it was a holster or clothing I'm sure Cabelas would have bent over backwards for you but you won't get satisfaction with a bad ammo purchase from them. They are just the middleman there and won't get involved.

 

[Queen_of_Thunder]

Checked on my Winchester 9mm NATO in 124 gr and it looked like new production. The brass looked like it was fresh off the line.

 

[ljnowell]

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1482030_Wma_headstamp.html&page=1&anc=bottom#bottom

You arent the only one

 

[NavyLCDR]

If you have a tumbler, you can drop it in and tumble it for a couple hours to clean it in bulk.

 

[Potatohead]

Those look pretty horrible. I didn't read all posts so someone may have mentioned: If you email Winchester they will fix it, and probably throw in an extra box or 3. They did for me once when my sr9 wouldnt fire WWB.

 

[feedthehogs]

Cabelas does represent reloaded ammo also. Sometimes on their ads its not so clear.

While I haven't bought any recently what I have bought always looked bright, new and the sealer was intact uniformly.

Those look like they have been rolling around in the bed of a pickup for a while.

 

[MattShlock]

I think it's fine.

 

[Deer_Freak]

I have bought Winchester ammo with the red dye on the primer. All of the Winchester Nato loads I have purchased have been Rangers. I have seen the white box Nato loads but I never purchased any of them.

I chronographed Winchester Ranger Nato ammo and Aguila 124 gr FMJ ammo. The Nato loads were less than 100 FPS faster than the Aguila ammo. If you go to ballistics 101 you will see the same thing at their site. I couldn't justify shooting high pressure ammo for a tiny gain in performance.

When the Cabelas rep asked me to clean the ammo I would have asked to speak to a manager. If the manager also said clean the ammo I would have reported both of them to Cabelas corporate offices. The only way to fix things like this issue is to complain to corporate. You might have got a gift card for your troubles.

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

Reboxed "seconds".

 

[J-Bar]

If you have a tumbler, you can drop it in and tumble it for a couple hours to clean it in bulk.

I have been told that tumbling cartridges may break up the powder grains, changing the burn characteristics of the powder. Is that true or another urban myth?

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

It's probably fine, but I would still contact Winchester and give them the lot number just to be sure. Winchester and other ammo makers want to know if there are any problems with their ammo.

 

[JM Browning]

Manager's Special. Hope they were cost appropriate

 

[stumpers]

These rounds were surely not sold as "seconds" or anything other than "the same thing our troops have" ... If I would've opened a can of 9mm like this when I was deployed, I would've given it back to the supply guy and told him to give me something that wasn't junk.

To add insult to the injury of getting this ammo, Cabela's will not let me post a negative review of this ammo, because it's a "After going over your review closely, it appears it may have not been posted because the company felt it was more a customer service issue than a product issue. That is why we have a request in for you about this product and the quality of it."

But then they say it's Winchester's fault...

 

[CountryUgly]

I have been told that tumbling cartridges may break up the powder grains, changing the burn characteristics of the powder. Is that true or another urban myth?

Won't hurt a thing to tumble them for a little while. Some may argue otherwise based on some manuf. recommendations but it's just a CYA move on their part. Half hour or so will get them rounds nice and shiny.

 

[lobo9er]

I had a jammed up 22 mag winchester super x HP a couple weeks ago. Was bent. And another couple were kinda funky. Maybe not related but interesting.

 

[NavyLCDR]

I have been told that tumbling cartridges may break up the powder grains, changing the burn characteristics of the powder. Is that true or another urban myth?

Urban myth. Put some fully loaded rounds in the tumbler and watch how little the rounds themselves are vibrated. It's the media that gets vibrated and circulated around the rounds, much more than the rounds themselves. The ammo is subject to a heck of a lot more vibrations during transit when it doesn't have all the cleaning media surrounding it.