Hah, Smith & Wesson can't even be bothered to enforce meaningful QC on their REPAIRS!
Back in June, I sent them a nice 4" Model 29-2 .44 Magnum to have the forcing cone recut and the barrel set back to fix a spitting problem that it had from the factory.
When I got the gun back, it had a couple of DEEP cuts in the side of the barrel, where they had misused a tool or fixture when working on the barrel. There was NO mention of the damage to the gun, either before it was returned to me, or accompanying the gun.
When I notified them of the problem, they denied responsibility. After I refused to buy their nonsensical denials, they wanted to REFINISH the barrel. They didn't mar the finish, they CUT the STRUCTURE of the barrel, so deeply that your fingernail would catch in the void!
I demanded that they replace the barrel. They kept insisting that I let them grind the crap out of the barrel to remove the cuts. Nobody at S&W could explain to me how they could remove such a deep cut without causing dips, flats, assymetry or an overall reduction in the diameter of the barrel. When I couldn't be bullied into that further damaging of the barrel, they suggested BIRCHWOOD-CASEY cold blue!!! I stated both verbally and in writing that I would NEVER authorize an attempt to refinish the existing barrel. I returned the gun to them.
They finally agreed to replace the barrel. They then sent me a terse email, stating that they had no barrels and that they intended to refinish the whole gun, including the damaged barrel, contrary to my expressed wishes. Note that they didn't ASK me again, they TOLD me what they were going to do. I could not reach the person with whom I'd been dealing on the phone, so I was forced to stop work and fax them a letter stating that if they disobeyed my instructions and attempted to refinish the existing barrel that I would sue them. I was finally able to contact the person with whom I was dealing and ensure that they had not done anything further to the gun.
They still insisted on refinishing the mutilated barrel, which I told them I would NEVER authorize. I told them that I had started looking for a replacement barrel, and that THEY had caused me to stop that search when they told me they'd replace the barrel. I offered to put them in contact with a potential seller, but they said they wouldn't buy parts from third parties (which I have since learned was not truthful). I told them they needed to rethink this policy.
S&W then agreed to purchase a barrel from ME. I located and purchased TWO barrels just in case. While waiting for the barrels to arrive, I received ANOTHER call from one of their technicians, insisting that I have them refinish the gun as-is, since their "master polisher" was leaving. If I didn't have them do what I didn't want done right away, I might not be able to have done what I didn't want them to do. I again refused. At this point, their insistence on grinding the crap out of the existing barrel was taking on the air of taunting.
I sent S&W the first barrel... which they rejected. I sent them the second. We had already discussed the need to refinish the replacement barrel(s), since there are NO new pinned and recessed factory contour barrels, and I could find NO used 4" Model 29 barrels without SOME finish wear or defect. They installed the second barrel (finish wear and all) and refused to refinish it or the gun.
The second they wrecked the original barrel, they trashed the value of the gun. They have as yet neither reimbursed me for either barrel, nor returned the gun to its original appearance prior to their damaging it through their negligence. It is probably IMPOSSIBLE for them to restore the gun's value. This has gone on since JUNE.
S&W has:
1. Attempted to slide by me without comment, damage caused by their negligence.
2. LIED to me about their culpability for the damage.
3. Failed to explain to me how a deep CUT in the barrel could be repaired without leaving flats, dips, assymetry, or overall reduction in the barrel's diameter.
4. Suggested COLD BLUE as a fix to a CUT in a barrel.
5. LIED to me about replacing the barrel.
6. Attempted to DICTATE to me a further unauthorized modification of the gun as a "repair" to their original unauthorized modification.
7. Continually badgered me to authorize a ludicrous "repair" that constituted further damage to the gun.
8. Failed to either return the gun to its original appearance or to reimburse me for the barrel which THEIR negligence forced me to purchase.
I will NEVER send another firearm to S&W for repair because I simply cannot trust either their competence or more importantly, their INTEGRITY.