Just a note on Glock's customer service. This is a bit long, but might be of interest.
I bought a used G-19 about eight years ago. It was a second generation (no finger grooves) and was originally manufactured in 1994. I decided to use it for my IDPA "play" pistol - installed a 3.5 lb. connector, added an extended slide stop lever and night sights, and stuck some grip tape on the frame.
About two weeks ago while cleaning the pistol I noticed some unusual, very pronounced wear on the left side of the slide (near the rear of the slide, right below the "cocking grooves"). The worn area was about 1/2" long (front to rear) and extended up into the cocking grooves. I don't know exactly when the wear occurred, since I only clean this weapon every 1000 rounds or so, but it was recent. Upon inspection, it appeared that the right rear rail was tilted out of its normal alignment, causing the left rear rail to rub against the bottom of the slide.
I removed all the internal parts (for spares to use in my other G-19's) and shipped the slide and frame to Glock with a letter explaining that this was a high volume pistol with sudden wear. Worst case, I expected them to assume that I had been negligent in using the gun and brush me off. Best case, I hoped they would offer to sell me a refurbished Glock at some discounted price.
Three days after I shipped the weapon to Glock, a factory armorer called me to ask if I had all the missing parts (barrel, trigger, guide rod, etc). He asked if I would send him the parts, and I said I would if he really needed them. His answer was, "Well, if you'll send them to me, we can send you a new pistol to replace this one."
I quickly agreed. He even said he would fit the new pistol with night sights like the ones that were on the worn out pistol. And by the way - that was the diagnosis. I had worn out the pistol. The right rear rail had indeed shifted out of position, causing the slide to drag on the opposite rail.
Three weeks later I received a new third generation (finger grooves, tactical rail,) G-19, with night sights, an extended slide stop lever, a 3.5 lb. connector and two high cap mags (I never sent any of my old mags to Glock). The pistol looks like it just came off the production line. If there had not been a sticker saying "rebuilt," I would have sworn it was brand new.
Now here's why I'm posting this. A few years ago I grumbled about the way Glock handled the famous "non-recall" of their "E" series pistols (the ones with the defective rails). They replaced the affected pistols but were not, in my opinion, proactive enough in doing so. So I was surprised and thrilled to see the "old" Glock customer service back in action. Think about it - how many of you have ever bought a used GM or Ford vehicle, worn it out, and then had the factory give you a new one as a replacement?
This gun wasn't defective. It didn't "break." In fact it was still shooting perfectly the day I noticed the abnormal wear. It just finally "wore out." And the manufacturer simply shipped me a new one.
The other surprise to me was how many rounds I had fired through the pistol. I had estimated 50,000 - 60,000 rounds as a SWAG. I have never kept a log of rounds fired. So out of curiosity, I called Natchez Shooters Supply and asked them to review my account to see how many rounds of Blazer, WWB and UMC 9mm ammo I had bought from them during the time I shot this pistol. Their records only went back to 2001, but during this time I had purchased slightly over 120,000 rounds of 9mm ammo. So this total doesn't include ammo I bought from NSS prior to 2001. Nor does it include the ammo I bought at Wal-Mart or Academy (easily another 10,000 to 20,000 rounds). Nor does it include rounds fired by the original owner(s).
Based on reports I've read over the years on various gun forums 130,000+ isn't a high round count for a 9mm Glock. Maybe the original owner(s) shot a bunch of ammo through it. But it still held up quite well during the time I shot it, especially considering how rarely I cleaned it.
Over the past few years, when I have received outstanding customer service from a manufacturer, I would compliment them by comparing them to Glock's original customer service (Example: "Comp-Tac's customer service is a good as Glock's used to be.") So, as a "new convert" to Glock's service program, I felt I would post this on a couple of forums to give credit where credit is (over)due.
I bought a used G-19 about eight years ago. It was a second generation (no finger grooves) and was originally manufactured in 1994. I decided to use it for my IDPA "play" pistol - installed a 3.5 lb. connector, added an extended slide stop lever and night sights, and stuck some grip tape on the frame.
About two weeks ago while cleaning the pistol I noticed some unusual, very pronounced wear on the left side of the slide (near the rear of the slide, right below the "cocking grooves"). The worn area was about 1/2" long (front to rear) and extended up into the cocking grooves. I don't know exactly when the wear occurred, since I only clean this weapon every 1000 rounds or so, but it was recent. Upon inspection, it appeared that the right rear rail was tilted out of its normal alignment, causing the left rear rail to rub against the bottom of the slide.
I removed all the internal parts (for spares to use in my other G-19's) and shipped the slide and frame to Glock with a letter explaining that this was a high volume pistol with sudden wear. Worst case, I expected them to assume that I had been negligent in using the gun and brush me off. Best case, I hoped they would offer to sell me a refurbished Glock at some discounted price.
Three days after I shipped the weapon to Glock, a factory armorer called me to ask if I had all the missing parts (barrel, trigger, guide rod, etc). He asked if I would send him the parts, and I said I would if he really needed them. His answer was, "Well, if you'll send them to me, we can send you a new pistol to replace this one."
I quickly agreed. He even said he would fit the new pistol with night sights like the ones that were on the worn out pistol. And by the way - that was the diagnosis. I had worn out the pistol. The right rear rail had indeed shifted out of position, causing the slide to drag on the opposite rail.
Three weeks later I received a new third generation (finger grooves, tactical rail,) G-19, with night sights, an extended slide stop lever, a 3.5 lb. connector and two high cap mags (I never sent any of my old mags to Glock). The pistol looks like it just came off the production line. If there had not been a sticker saying "rebuilt," I would have sworn it was brand new.
Now here's why I'm posting this. A few years ago I grumbled about the way Glock handled the famous "non-recall" of their "E" series pistols (the ones with the defective rails). They replaced the affected pistols but were not, in my opinion, proactive enough in doing so. So I was surprised and thrilled to see the "old" Glock customer service back in action. Think about it - how many of you have ever bought a used GM or Ford vehicle, worn it out, and then had the factory give you a new one as a replacement?
This gun wasn't defective. It didn't "break." In fact it was still shooting perfectly the day I noticed the abnormal wear. It just finally "wore out." And the manufacturer simply shipped me a new one.
The other surprise to me was how many rounds I had fired through the pistol. I had estimated 50,000 - 60,000 rounds as a SWAG. I have never kept a log of rounds fired. So out of curiosity, I called Natchez Shooters Supply and asked them to review my account to see how many rounds of Blazer, WWB and UMC 9mm ammo I had bought from them during the time I shot this pistol. Their records only went back to 2001, but during this time I had purchased slightly over 120,000 rounds of 9mm ammo. So this total doesn't include ammo I bought from NSS prior to 2001. Nor does it include the ammo I bought at Wal-Mart or Academy (easily another 10,000 to 20,000 rounds). Nor does it include rounds fired by the original owner(s).
Based on reports I've read over the years on various gun forums 130,000+ isn't a high round count for a 9mm Glock. Maybe the original owner(s) shot a bunch of ammo through it. But it still held up quite well during the time I shot it, especially considering how rarely I cleaned it.
Over the past few years, when I have received outstanding customer service from a manufacturer, I would compliment them by comparing them to Glock's original customer service (Example: "Comp-Tac's customer service is a good as Glock's used to be.") So, as a "new convert" to Glock's service program, I felt I would post this on a couple of forums to give credit where credit is (over)due.
