Dirt and brass marks on a "new" gun?

[avalys]

I bought a Springfield Range Officer from a shop on Gunbroker a few weeks ago, supposedly "NIB". Finally got around to looking closely at it before going shooting.

For a "new" gun, it sure is dirty. There is a visible brass ring on the breech face, a little bit of copper in the barrel, and the slide/frame rails had a bunch of gunk in them.

I don't really care one way or another - I guess - but I'm just curious - is it possible it was fired enough times at the factory to leave these marks, or is it likely that the seller put a few rounds through it?

The seller was highly rated, and had a few other range officers for sale as well, so it doesn't seem likely to me that he is selling used guns as new - but it was certainly more dirty than I expected.

Is it conceivable that the factory fired a few rounds, had a malfunction or something, and ran a bunch more through it for testing?

 

[Kiln]

Sometimes new guns just look dirty from factory test firing. I've gotten new guns that looked unfired and some that looked like they'd had a full magazine put through it. In your case I don't know because I can't see how bad it is. So long as the finish looks good and it is actually factory new then I wouldn't worry about it.

As long as you're the first owner (besides the gun shop owner) then the Springfield lifetime warranty will cover your gun.

Clean it and enjoy it.

 

[Sauer Grapes]

My RO looked like it had more than a test fire also. Maybe not to the extent your describing but still evident of more than one round.
I got over it, and it's been one of my best purchases.

 

[gazpacho]

I know of a few LGS owners who consider a firearm that has never been sold as being NIB. That doesn't mean they haven't been fired. I called one store about a Kahr T9, and they said they had one NIB. I got there, and after looking it over for about a minute, I turned it down. It had significant wear and small bits of damage. When I pointed this out, he described it as "shop wear".

I really should have expected it, as this dealer doesn't have that great of a reputation.

 

[jamesbeat]

I wouldn't worry about it. It has a life of many thousands of rounds, so what difference does it make?
When you buy a new car, it doesn't have 0 miles on the clock does it?
Enjoy it in good health, and get it nice and dirty from firing it yourself

 

[Miked7762]

Keep in mind that proof rounds will leave a much different pattern of fouling than normal ammunition. Being overpressure, proof rounds can cause leading and copper fouling in the barrel, metal fouling of the breech face and extractor, and they tend to blow carbon all over the place.

Use a copper solvent and a Q-Tip to remove the ring from the breech face. How does the finish look under where the fouling was removed? Bare steel would indicate a lot of rounds. Crushed or marred finish would indicate few rounds were fired.

 

[Prophet]

My BNIB from the warehouse DE 1911G. though well-lubed had visible fouling. It didn't matter much to me because I've made it a habit not to fire personal weapons that I haven't proven to myself I can disassemble, clean and reassemble first.

Enjoy it in good health, and get it nice and dirty from firing it yourself

Yup! Clean, fire, clean, carry, fire, repeat. Congrats on your new purchase!

 

[Fremmer]

My new sig was pretty dirty, might be dirty test ammo and more than one test round. Look on the rails for wear showing a used gun.

 

[ZeSpectre]

I've had two different guns that I KNOW were brand new from the factory but arrived looking like they'd been through an IDPA match. One was a S&W 686 I purchased back in the early 90's. I'm sure it only had 6 rounds (test) through it but my God they must have used the dirtiest ammo in the world.

The other was a Taurus PT1911 that came to me looking like it had been out on a battlefield. I did a complete dis-assembly and dunk/scrub clean and by the time I was done the cleaning solution in my bucket was an opaque BLACK!

 

[avalys]

Oh, I'm not bothered that it came dirty from the factory (which seems to be the case). This was my first time buying something sight unseen on GunBroker and I was just a little concerned that I had paid new price for a not-quite-new gun.

 

[Fremmer]

You would notice wear on the frame rails, exterior of barrel, etc

 

[Drail]

All guns are fired by the factory for a very good reason. None of them clean the gun after testing. I personally would not want to buy a "new" gun that had not been test fired and proofed.

 

[BYJO4]

I don't think you have anything to worry about. Many new guns are dirty out of box. If the seller had a number of transactions on GB and was well rated, there is no reason to assume the gun is not new. Just give it a good cleaning and enjoy shooting it.

 

[foghornl]

I remember the KP-90 Ruger I bought new back in 2001. It looked like the test ammo powder was made from sawdust, floor sweepings, used kitty litter and Blackstrap Molasses...perhaps even some roofing tar.

A few minutes with solvent/brush/patches and it was bright & spiffy.

 

[Bovice]

I've never had a new gun be clean. They coat the thing in oil and test it, and then box it up. If it was cleaner, I'd suspect someone else had it first.

 

[Norrick]

most guns get test fired, but i don't doubt that lots of people rationalize that the rounds they put through their gun dont justify it being used since it was fired from the factory to begin with it...