Opinions wanted - was I unreasonable re: an online purchase?

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Scott Farkus

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I placed an online order for an SKS a week ago (Tuesday, Feb 7) using my C&R license. I sent the order late at night, so call it Wednesday, Feb 8. I received a confirmation e-mail within a couple of minutes of placing the order.

I had heard nothing by Friday, so I called to find out the status. I told the nice guy on the phone that I was going shooting the following weekend and really wanted to take the SKS. He said they were running 4-5 days behind but it would likely go out on Monday, and shipping to Texas generally takes 3 days, so I should be fine. If I didn't get a tracking e-mail by Tuesday (which was today, Feb 14), call.

So around noon today (Tuesday) I hadn't heard anything and I start to get antsy. I did a little mental math and realized that unless the gun had already shipped, in all likelihood I would not receive it in time to even have it, much less clean it, by the weekend, and even then only if UPS was perfect and didn't make a delivery attempt at 2:00 p.m. and have it get stuck on the truck somewhere late Friday because nobody is home at 2:00 p.m. on weekdays to sign for it (that's a rant for another day!).

Anyway, I call and was told that it had been packed up today (Tuesday) but didn't make the truck, so it wouldn't go out until tomorrow (Wednesday). He also mentioned again that they were running 4-5 days behind on shipping but also mentioned something about having to file the serial numbers - I assume with ATF but I didn't pursue it. I just knew that there was no way I would get the gun in time to take it shooting this weekend, so I told him to cancel the order. He was very understanding and did so without any argument.

So that's that. Was I unreasonable to expect a gun to be delivered within 10 days of ordering? Also, what's this serial number business he mentioned and why did that delay things?
 
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Since you asked... unless the only use in your life you will ever have for the rifle was this weekend's shoot, then yes I think you were unreasonable. 10 days is not all that long to wait for something. Sounds like you were told pretty early that they were behind. If delivery was the primary feature you were looking for, why not have them ship it UPS RED Next Day Air and have it in time?
 
I think you were unreasonable and had too high of expectations on the shipping of the SKS. You couldn't have used the rifle in two weeks or a month? Plus, why wouldn't you just have purchased one locally if the schedule was so important to you?

My last firearm that was shipped took a good 30-days when it was all said and done. I was a little bugged, but I wanted the gun and I wasn't going to shoot it anyway.
 
Sounds like they were very up-front about things and did you no harm.

If this weekend's shoot was the only reason you wanted that rifle, then of course getting it after that makes no sense.

I tend to keep and use firearms for years -- decades actually -- so one shooting excursion would be of very minor importance. I'd have looked at the time I already had lost in getting it shipped, realized that I sure wasn't getting anything else sooner, and decided I'd take it shooting the next time. 10 days sure isn't much, considering there's nearly 30 of them in every single month.

But, you've got to have priorities, you know.
 
I recently made my second C&R purchases from what appears to be a much smaller operation than aimsurplus.com (my first C&R was bought from AIM and took about a week). It's been 12 days since I ordered, it's still says processing on their site, and they only even processed the payment & shipping about 4 days ago. I'm not bothered yet and haven't even emailed them. It was a good price, especially with the accessories they're including, so I don't mind waiting a bit.
 
I agree with Malachi, you are being unreasonable. The gun stores aren't sitting around waiting for orders, they are getting slammed right now as people are buying like crazy. If you needed it that quick and it was a deal breaker for you you should have ordered further in advance or paid for Next Day shipping.
 
Fair points. After I hung up the phone I kinda wished I would have at least asked about the cost of expedited shipping.

No, this weekend won't be the last opportunity of my life to shoot, but it probably will be the last chance I get for the next 4-5 months. So yes, it was pretty important that I have it for this weekend and if not, the urgency is passed and I can look around more at my leisure. Also, my wife and daughter happen to be out of town this week and it would have been infinitely easier to clean the cosmoline without... well... I won't go there but I assume you guys know that women and cosmoline aren't the best of combinations.

I will bicker a bit about them being up front with me. As I mentioned, he originally said it would probably ship yesterday, and I told him of the urgency. It wouldn't have shipped until tomorrow.

I dunno, I ordered a Mosin-Nagant last month and it took about 7 days to get to me, and I thought that was pushing it. I guess I'm just used to ordering stuff off Amazon where it gets here in 3-4 days max.

Thanks for the responses.
 
It doesn't sound like any harm came from it...but I don't understand the decision making.

Seems a bit impulsive to order a gun then cancel it because it wouldn't be there by the next chance you had to go shooting.

You don't say that you would be able to get a different SKS by that date, so now you're even further behind if you really want one.

:confused:
 
Scott Farkus
Opinions wanted - was I unreasonable re: an online purchase?

Whenever I make a purchase or win an auction that involves a firearm, I give it at least 2 full weeks (14 days) to have it in my hands. There's a reason why prices online are so much less than the LGS or big box.
 
Whenever I make a purchase or win an auction that involves a firearm, I give it at least 2 full weeks (14 days) to have it in my hands. There's a reason why prices online are so much less than the LGS or big box.
Sounds like a good policy. Alot of online places keep prices down by not have a building full of people to pay and run a full tilt to get stuff out. You can always go shooting next the next weekend....
 
Yes, I think you were unreasonable. I know you think you are the most important person in the whole world, but it might surprise you to know that they have other customers too, including some who ordered before you did.

Jim
 
Mail order and schedules don't mix. If you need something *RIGHT NOW*, then I'd suggest buying somewhere local. Even for places that usually do ship faster, shipping delays can and do happen.

With that in mind, it does seem that you were a bit unreasonable.
 
I've never put myself into a corner with a self-imposed rush.

Two years ago in early December I sent a guy a cashier's check for approx. 300 rds. of surplus .303.
About ten days after the check was mailed, I sent an e-mail to see whether there was any progress. He said that he had slipped on some ice.

Luckily I was very patient (extremely?), partly because he had an excellent, long record of nice transactions, and I never sent another e-mail, except to thank him for the good price after it arrived.
It arrived over three weeks after the check was mailed.

When we really Need things to happen as quickly as possible, "Murphy's Law" usually messes up our plans.
 
If you were told it would ship one day and they waited to ship it two days after the date given; then you have a right to be a lil ticked. Personally I wouldn't have canceled the purchase because you would eventually get a chance to use it. I can not say I would not be irritated if something was supposed to arrive and didn't and I had to postpone a shooting trip. Then again if I was crunched for time, I would have waited to call and ask how long it would take to ship then figure if I wanted to over night it or not.
 
The reason that the serial numbers on Eastern bloc firearms give the the BATF headaches is that they include Cyrillic writing which doesn't enter into our English computer systems easily.

My friend had the same problem up here north of the border.

When ordering an SKS you should also order a front sight adjustment tool at the same time. It costs less than $10.00 but it will make elevation adjustments a piece of cake. Windage adjustments only require a brass punch and a hammer.
 
I look at this problem (ordering guns on line) this way. Once you order it, you are out of the loop, there isn't anything you can do to get it there faster. What you can do next time to affect the outcome, is to order it sooner. You are in charge of yourself, not the guys in the shipping room.

It all comes down to personal responsibility. If you want things to happen differently in your life, then you need to figure out what you can do differently.
 
I dunno, I ordered a Mosin-Nagant last month and it took about 7 days to get to me, and I thought that was pushing it. I guess I'm just used to ordering stuff off Amazon where it gets here in 3-4 days.


That's the real problem. Amazon is so freakin amazing(especially with Prime) that all other etailers can't compare. I just don't ever see weapons or ammo being able to ship as quickly as everything else in the world.
 
Unless it was guaranteed to be in your hands by a certain time on a certain day, then yes, I believe you overreacted, especially since you didnt even so much as inquire about faster shipping methods. If they broke a promise or made a guarantee they are now refusing to uphold, you'd have every reason to be upset. near as i can tell, though, that didnt happen. Some places ship faster than others, and not everything is done on an "amazon.com" schedule elsewhere
 
7 days is pretty quick for a gun to show up. Most of them I have orderd seem to run a couple of weeks.

WB
 
Yes, I think you were unreasonable. I know you think you are the most important person in the whole world, but it might surprise you to know that they have other customers too, including some who ordered before you did.

Jim
Ok..... not sure where I ever gave off that impression, but whatever.

Many thanks to the rest of you for your feedback. In retrospect, I guess I was a bit unreasonable and I wish I'd first consulted THR about how long I might expect an online transaction to take. I honestly thought 10 days would be more than sufficient, but obviously not. Lesson learned.
 
Unreasonable? Literally unreasonable?... Nope. Unrealistically optimistic? Quite possibly.
Just be sure to not let the disappointment taint your perspective when your first unpack it and shoot it.
 
"Was I unreasonable to expect a gun to be delivered within 10 days of ordering?"
You've already heard the answer a dozen or more times, so I won't repeat it. However, you didn't say, and I'm curious as to which company you ordered it from. Frankly, it sounds like a good one to keep in mind when ordering.
 
The reality is we are accelerating our lives at breakneck speed and the shipping of items was not able to follow the electronic age. I am still amazed at the speed of bullets from Missouri Bullets. However the shipping of items is cost versus speed. If you want to save a few bucks there you will need to be patient.:) Pay some extra(sometimes a lot) and you get your stuff faster. I will be patient for sure as I am cheap.:D Look at it this way, there might be a better deal now you have the time to shop further. Happy hunting.:D
 
I guess I'm just used to ordering stuff off Amazon where it gets here in 3-4 days.
Amazon spoils some folks. Usually, the "estimated delivery date" is pretty wide window, and a day or two late. I ordered something Saturday and the ETA was between 2-16 and 2-22. I got it today.

I don't do C&R, but 10 days seems reasonable judging by the other posts. I have ordered from smaller companies, and somewhere on the page they give a long lead time, two weeks seems to be the norm. 95% of the time, I get it in that timeframe.
 
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