Kahr Customer Service - Am I expecting too much

[DragonFire]

In November I purchased a new M1 Tommygun from Auto Ordinance, now owned by Kahr.

I immediately had two problems. First, when I openned the case, the form inside was torn in several places, and had several oily spots, and at least a couple of dark 'grease' stains. (I"m not sure it was actually grease, but sure looked like it). I wrote a letter of complaint, and was delighted when they sent me a brand-new case.

My second problem was a bigger issue. The gun would not fire two shots in a row without jamming. I talked to my dealer about it, who called his contact at AO. They both thought I just needed to give the gun some time to "break-in", and suggested I fired a few hundred rounds through it.

I proceeded to fire a little over 100 round through it, one shot at a time. A tommygun weighs around 14 pounds. Do you know how hard it is to hold up a 14 pound gun with one hand, while clearing a jam with the other? Now think of what it is like to do that 100 times! Somewhere into my second hundred rounds, a jam broke the firing pin and extractor.

Again I talked to my dealer, who talked to his contact who arranged to have it picked up and sent back to the factory. After two weeks sitting at my dealer's, he gave the boxed up rifle back to me because he was leaving on a extended vacation.It was picked up just after Christmas

At the end of January I called Kahr to ask the status of my rifle. It had been sitting "in a corner" because no one knew what to do with it because I sent it in without authorization, and no letter of explanation. Once I explained the problem, I was told the repairs would be expedited and it would probably ship the following week.

I sent an email last week, again asking about the status of the repairs and got no answer. I called two days ago, and after a long time on hold waiting for someone to pick up, I was told it had shipped. It came yesterday.

I haven't had a chance to try the rifle yet, but the inside of the case is a mess. It's ripped in several places, with big chucks of form torn out, and soaked in oil in a couple of places. This case was in absolutely perfect condition when I sent it in.

Wouldn't you think that if they had a gun for a month that they didn't know what to do with that they could have called me? There's no explanation of what they did except "replaced broken parts". No mention of what caused the excessive jamming that broke the parts. And I can't believe anyone would ship me back the case in the condition it is in.

Am I expecting too much from Customer Service?

 

[jeepmor]

Sending orders in without proper authorization gives them that "We'll wait until they call" attitude and seriously impedes progress.

As for the case, unacceptable.

 

[cassandrasdaddy]

print out

this page and write a letter explaining the problem and how all of us on this site aee waiting to see how they resolve the problem. cc it to customer service the head of customer service and as many folks in the upward chain of command as you can. lets see what happenes the cc to the company president is fun. and make sure you mention how many members there are here and the loose affiliations with other sites.

 

[Lupinus]

No, you aren't. You should have sent a letter with the rifle explaining what happened and for that you can't really fault them for waiting. But not picking up, torn case, etc you should address. I would also request an list of what was done to make it function properly.

 

[lance22]

very interested

I own a Kahr P40, and with the "scary looking gun" ban drawing near, I'm going to be picking up at least one more long gun. I've been looking at the Thompson because it was my dad's favorite in WWII. However, if the product is defective or they don't stand behind what they make, then I will be sorely dissapointed.

 

[DragonFire]

You should have sent a letter with the rifle explaining what happened and for that you can't

The gun was completely packaged by my dealer. The FedEx slapped a prepaid shipping label on it and it was gone. My dealer was going on vacation. He told me if it was shipped from me, it could be returned to me, otherwise I'd have to wait until he came back (in April) to get my gun.

I'm more upset with his contact. The distributor "arranged" to have it brought in for servicing, but all he ended up doing was calling FedEx for a pickup.

I had gotten the usual "we can't imagine why you gun is jamming since they are all tested before they leave the factory". I hoped it was going to be more than swapping parts until the gun works again.


The Thompson is very high in "cool" factor. Though in its semi-auto configuration, I'm not sure its high on my list of SD rifles. It's heavy, terribly heavy with a drum magazine, and reloading smoohtly takes some practice. It has little recoil from the .45 rounds, but it doesn't generate alot of velocity.

I think it was a great submachine gun, but lost alot of its punch as a semi-auto

 

[Yakko]

I have an M1SB, which I sent back to be rebuilt immediately on receipt. Here is my history of dealing with them:

M1SB ordered - took them three months to build the thing. (This is before the serial # was registered so that my dealer could do the transfer.)

Upon my dealer's receipt of the M1SB, I examined it and it had so much slop between the upper and lower assemblies that my uncle's 1911 service pistol has less play. Kahr said that it was loose so that the firearm wouldn't jam. Hmm, a brand new rifle is as loose as a 80 year old pistol that's been used and abused it's whole life??? (It took almost two weeks before they got back to us with an authorization saying they would fix it.)

It was shipped "next day" to Kahr. After six weeks, I called to check on the status and I was told that it was in th que to be worked on. Two weeks later they returned it with a new lower receiver. (The fit was just as bad.)

After dealing with them, I'm convinced that the only reason they are still in business is because they own the patents on that type firearm. (If Thompsons were available like ARs, they'd be history.)

Did you expect too much? From a normal company no, from someone who has no competition for their product... Unfortunately, yes.

But on the bright side, you got better service than I did.

 

[distra]

I sent my P45 back after getting an RMA from Kahr and enclosed a letter describing the issue (per Kahr's instructions). They fixed it and I had in back to me within 14 days in a NEW case with an extra mag for my troubles. I have had good experience Kahr customer service. My guess is you needed an RMA before sending it back and a letter describing the issue. Sorry you had issues. I'd call them and let them know you are completely satisfied.

 

[usp_fan]

My friend has the .40 standard sized all metal Kahr pistol that he ordered with an extended and ported barrel. The hood showed excessive wear after about a year of use, Kahr sent a brand new one out and didn't ask for the old one back.

I think the issue may be that Kahr bought the old Auto-Ordanance company that has a deep history of poor customer service and quality. Despite the magazine articles to the contrary, Justin Moon may not have been able to sort out the legacy culture there yet.

--usp_fan

 

[MIUper]

Kahr Service

After a few thousand rounds the slide stop broke on my Kahr E9. After I got through a long game of phone tag with the service rep, they sent me the part free of charge, I had it in three days.

I was happy with the service I received.