Most regretted gun purchase?

[Jimster]

FWIW I just returned my Inland Mfg M1 carbine for the 3rd or 4th time. This thread inspired me to actually return it again. We will see if the jamming stops. I originally thought I would use this as a bedside gun but not if it doesn't shoot reliably. I like everything else about it.

 

[1911 guy]

I have two. First came the Daisy VL rifle. To my knowledge, the only firearm ever available to the public to fire caseless ammunition. Made by Daisy, the BB gun folks, the propellant was ignited by air pressure. The ATF ruled that it was a firearm and not an airgun. Production ceased, ammunition became scarce or impossible to find. When you find it now, it's old, unreliable and expensive.

The second was a Para Ordnance 1911. I bought on previous reputation, the then (about 8 years ago) and current quality is not even close. MSH and trigger were plastic. The pistol had hammer follow after just a few boxes of ammo and customer service turned out to be extremely uncooperative. The disconnector was out of spec, protruding into the mag well. Why it didn't malfunction from the beginning, I don't know. I offered to send them the out of spec part, then they send me an in-spec replacement. Nope. They wanted me to send the whole pistol back, on my dime. Have had nothing good to say about Barely Ordnance since. Quality is gone, customer support is unreasonable.

I've bought and sold a lot of guns over the years that didn't turn out the way I initially envisioned. But they weren't "bad". They just didn't fill a niche I thought they might. That's my error in judgement, not the gun's fault. The two above, though, were stinkers by nature of the firearm itself.

 

[jerryd]

Ruger min i 14 got one in 1979 and was the most inaccurate rifle I ever had! My shotgun would print tighter groups then that POS, sold it a got a colt AR like I carried in rvn

 

[exbrit49]

Berreta Neos Wife wanted to keep shooting my Ruger Target Mk . and I finally convinced her to buy a plinker 22 of her own. She liked the looks and feel of the Berreta Neos and went ahead and purchased it.
We took it to the range and she wasnt shooting that well with it and asked me to try it.
I did and was stunned at the creepy awfull trigger. The initial pull is about 1/8 of creep and then you feel the trigger actually engage. There is no way you can shoot this POS with any accuracy. We tried several more at the store and they all exhibited the same trigger problem.
Going to sell it as soon as I can find a buyer.
I can shoot ok with it but I have to take up that 1/8 inch of slop before I line up on the target. Not exactly a good way to shoot.
So yes this is the worst one.

 

[IKE]

Ruger Mini 14. Worst POS I ever shot.

I was told before I bought one that they shot patterns not groups but I didn't listen and bought one anyway......they were right, I was wrong, it's long gone.

 

[maxxhavoc]

Mine would be a Ruger SP101. I bought it on a combination of Ruger's reputation and the fact that it was one beautiful .357. I should have shot one first.

It just didn't fit my hands. I have large hands, and do not have issues shooting small guns, but the SP101 was different. On recoil with .357s, the upper part of the trigger would bite into my trigger finger. After 20 rounds of .357 it would be bleeding. I polished the sharp edges, and rounded off all the squared parts but it still was not comfortable for me to shoot. I traded it to a friend who had no issues with it.

I got a Taurus 66 .357 to replace it. No issues. There was nothing wrong with the Ruger, it was just a case of the gun not fitting my hands.

 

[mstreddy]

Hearing all the bad stories on the Walther P22, I must have one of the exceptions. Mine was a good gun out of the box. It ate pretty much all the bulk fodder I sent through it. I was my 22 suppressor host for about 3 or 4 years until I got one of the "Colt" M1911s in 22 (made by Walther). Now, I did have a massive failure with the P22, but it was after a substantial round count, my estimates are somewhere between 12K to 22K rounds. The slide cracked and the frame as well. Sent it in to S&W for the Walther warranty, they replaced it with a brand new one - free of charge. My buddy has one of the early ones and it had some issues, but it's working pretty well now. The safety would work itself loose and engage itself while shooting. He added an o-ring to it and it's OK.

Mini-14, well that's another one, but not so much regret, as I just can't warm up to them. Even though I have had five of them through my hands, I just don't like them. I "grew up" with M16s and AR15s so the Mini just doesn't cut it, from the sights, to the ergonomics, controls, etc. Add to that finicky aftermarket mags and I got rid of all of them.

 

[Sky Dog]

MAADI AK-47........

 

[rugerman]

No one can say the guys on THR are afraid to express their dissatisfactions. This thread could turn into a good reference source.

 

[Woodnik]

A 16 gauge Hunter's Special, it was kinda rare and I bought it at auction for a good price. I didn't realize it till I got it home but it was off face so I found a local Smith who told me he could repair it. He kept the gun for two years, dogging my calls until I finally threatened to turn him into the BBB then he called told me to pick up the gun(repaired) no charge. I brought it home tied it to a tire and fired both barrels, I sold it at a gun show to a dealer for what I had into it and told the buyer the back story.

Could you explain the tire technique?

 

[helitack32f1]

I was a very early adoper of the P22. Bought it on impulse, thought it was amazing. Worst gun i have ever owned.

Starting to wonder about my Kel-Tec CMR 30. Not so much that it is a bad gun, but I put it on layaway and by the time I finally paid it off, I found myself questioning what it's purpose in life was. Still not sure if I regret purchasing it. Didn't help that after 70 rounds it was ready to go back to it's cretor for some love.

 

[Dragon breath]

Issc m22 target pistol. Biggest piece of junk that I have ever owned. It was a jamomatic with everything except CCI minimags. And with minimags it would have 3-4 light strikes per 100 rounds. After maybe 350 rounds it started breaking parts. First the magazine safety broke while firing. Sent it back to the importer ( LSI )and four months later got it back, working but with no mag safety and several very deep scratches that where not there when I sent it in.
Shot less than another 100 rounds before the gun bound up while firing. Field stripped it a piece of metal fell out of it. I later figured out that this was the hammer release that dropped the hammer when the safety was turned on. I then tried to return the gun a second time, but was informed that LSI was no longer a importer of Issc firearms and that they didn't repair those guns anymore. And that I should contact the new importer for repairs. The new importer ( American tactical ) told me that they only repair the guns that they imported. Nor would they sell me the parts to fix it.
I ended up trading the gun in at the gun store it came from, with full disclosure of its problems.

 

[PCFlorida]

Kahr CM9. I just don't shoot it well. The gun is rock solid reliable but I have never gotten used to the l-o-n-g trigger pull. I just recently finally gave up and purchased a Remington R51. This gun is a dream. A little bigger than the Kahr but no problem. I have about 700 rounds through it now without a single issue.

 

[Elkins45]

Another good thread here. I agree it should stick around. Just to summarize; stay away from the P22, kel-tec and kahr were also repeat offenders.

Just as a point of reference: I own a P9, a CW9 and a CW45. All have been just as reliable as any of my other autos. I don't dispute the bad experiences others have had with Kahr, but I have had nothing but good luck with the brand.

 

[morcey2]

Could you explain the tire technique?

I've used it a few times on a few of my C&R guns. I take an old tire (off the rim), put the butt inside the tire on one side and resting on the sidewall on the other. I usually tie a long piece of baling twine to the back of the trigger guard and hold it around the trigger with a little piece of tape. I'll usually put a heavy blanket over the top of the gun, mostly to just keep it in place. I'll retreat to behind my truck and pull the twine to fire it.

Think of it as a redneck benchrest fixture.

Matt

 

[rugerman]

Could you explain the tire technique?

Mine is a Cobray 38 caliber derringer, trigger pull about 12 pounds, after 5 shots one of the barrels will no longer fire, does not shoot to the same place, ever. When I contacted Cobray about a new gun that one barrel stopped working after 5shots they said if I would send it in they would fix it for free, but I would have to pay shipping both ways-which was more than the piece of crap cost in the first place. I keep it as reminder not to buy crap guns or anything COBRAY.

 

[Blacksmoke]

Kahr Model 1927 (Thompson) was my biggest disappointment. Could not fire three rounds without jamming. Did not matter how many rounds were in the stick magazine, same result. I only used good quality ball ammo, of course. I bought it from a retired LEO and I suspect he had the same problem. Sold it to a gun shop with a good smithing reputation and I hope they were able to figure out what the problem was.

 

[22-rimfire]

My Vector Uzi.

I was also pretty disappointed with my Uzi carbine (9mm). I even had the short "machine gun" barrel... of course I never put it on. It is one of the few guns I made real money on when I sold it. Bought it right when Bush banned the importation of the Uzi's. A lot of people liked to make bolt guns out of these (legally of course).

 

[HoosierQ]

That still looks incredibly awesome.

My thoughts exactly. I really like wood and metal combined like that. I'd love an AR with a wooden stock like that. It would have to be a "20 A2. The rest can be plastic but I'd like the butt stock to be wood. Something to shoot for.

 

[gsbuickman]

Without a doubt, the Jennings-J22 & the Norinco SKS-M Sporter. The J22 is a Jennings pos, just like anything else that Jennings makes its bottom-of-the-barrel garbage.

I'm an SKS junkie and I've had my fair share of them over the last several years (8 or 9 or 10 of them) and they've been dead nutz reliable, as expected, except one. The Norinco SKS-M Sporter.

After hearing about the elusive SKS - M for quite a while I finally had the chance to pick one up, so I let a beautiful 67' Norinco SKS go to finance it. It ended up being the biggest pos I've ever seen. It was nothing more than a cheap knockoff production carbine Knocked Up to use AK magazines as a sales gimmick to sell them. They were never issued to any military branch and they are not milsurp rifles. it wouldn't feed from the factory box magazine and it wouldn't feed reliably from Tapco magazines either. When it did feed from a 20 rd mag, it wouldn't pick up the last three rounds in the magazine and it was a ham-o-matic thru the other 17. in the end after full disclosure of my problems with it, I sold it and I was glad to see that POS go.

 

[jhb]

many, but my worst headaches were a caracal f for obvious reasons and an arex zero. i wont elaborate as i have to figure out how to ship it back to the maker on my dime even though its brand new never been fired and defective. just frustrated its gonna cost me so much for being a budget pistol. ill never buy another firearm where the maker/importer doesnt support warranty costs on the shipping on a doa.

 

[strambo]

My first carry gun which was "perfect" on paper. Para-Ordnance P-13 in 1995. Heading into the new AWB, it was an alloy frame, Commander sized 13 round fist full of .45 ACP fury with a coupon for 2 more hi-cap 13rd mags at only $50 ea! How could I pass it up? Ugh, never could get it to run reliably. My next carry gun was a Kahr K9 (still have it) and it runs great. No regretted purchases other than the P-13.

 

[CopperFouling]

Kahr Model 1927 (Thompson) was my biggest disappointment. Could not fire three rounds without jamming. Did not matter how many rounds were in the stick magazine, same result. I only used good quality ball ammo, of course. I bought it from a retired LEO and I suspect he had the same problem. Sold it to a gun shop with a good smithing reputation and I hope they were able to figure out what the problem was.

A gentleman next to me at the range had the same problem with his. It was a new firearm, too, but it kept jamming. That's a shame; they look really cool.

 

[Blacksmoke]

A gentleman next to me at the range had the same problem with his. It was a new firearm, too, but it kept jamming. That's a shame; they look really cool.

Well, for the same price I could have bought a nice Python. Live and learn!

 

[scaper]

Ruger Mark III 22/45. Equal opportunity jammer. Jams with every type of ammo I've ever tried in it.