Walther PPQ M2 45 with Pitted Barrel - Walthers Response: It shouldn't cause issues

[rototerrier]

Started suffering from accuracy issues and increased fouling. Started noticing I couldn't get the inside of the barrel clean. Finally looked closely and was able to determine it was clean, but that there was pitting throughout the barrel.

Spoke with customer service on phone and was told to send the barrel in for replacement. I was very relieved and just assumed it would all be handled and I'd be back out shooting my new 45 in no time. Just to be safe, I made sure to include blown up photos of the inside of the barrel inside the box just to ensure they looked closely and could see what I was referring to.

About a week later was told their gunsmith didn't see an issue but wanted the rest of the firearm for inspection. I mailed the remainder of the firearm as instructed. They had it for 2 more weeks and Returned with no changes and an invoice indicating it needed no repair.

Sent an additional email asking them to clarify how pitting inside the barrel wouldn't be considered a flaw and was given this response:

The gunsmith would have visually inspected the gun and it looks like we provided a target from an accuracy test when it was shipped back.
After reviewing the case, this looks like it should be okay.

I objected. I used a fairly simple analogy. If I purchase a new car and the paint falls of, it might still drive fine, but the paint fell off. I would expect the manufacturer to make it right. They then requested I send photos showing the pitting. I sent the photos.

Final response from Walther:
I just double checked with the master gunsmith here. This should not cause issues with the functionality of your handgun.

That was the entirety of the their response, copied and pasted directly here.

There you have it.

This is my first and last Walther. Only firearm I own that doesn't have a perfectly smooth clean bore. I really would have expected them to have just replaced the barrel and I'd be done and moved on. Apparently that's not how their customer service works.

I'm very disappointed and will most definitely never purchase another Walther of any kind.

This is my experience, YMMV.

 

[Fishbed77]

This is a far cry from how good Walther customer service was when it was handled by S&W.

I suggest you post this over at Waltherforums.com. Walther Arms staff are sometime present over there and they may be able to help you out.

 

[stchman]

To the OP:

I assume this was a brand new PPQ M2 45?

If yes, you have every right to be upset. The one thing Walther does that a lot of other gun manufacturers do is that the serial number is also on the barrel as well. If they replaced the barrel, would they destroy your old barrel and replicate the S/N?

Walther should make it right, I own two Walthers (PPX M1 and PPQ M2) and I expect great CS.

 

[MIL-DOT]

Coincidentally, a PPQ chambered in .45 just popped up today on my favorite state-wide classified site, and I commented that this was the first PPQ i've seen in .45.
The OP has already posted it as being 'sold pending meet'.
Anyway, not that it helps you now, but cases like this are why I always have some reading glasses and a small flshlight with me when gun shopping, and will often fully field-strip even brand new weapons before buying.
Sales staff will sometiomes look at you like you're an idiot, but it's alot easier to NOT buy something, than it is to UN-buy it.
Are you sure your photos were of sufficient quality to capture the issue properly ? I've heard mostly good reports on Walther's CS. They could just be behaving like a car insurance company, and stiff-arming you in the hope that you'll take it. I would politely but firmly keep pressing the issue. It sounds to me like they're weaseling out here, big time.
As suggested above, log onto the Walther forum and start making waves (but keep it polite and factual, or the fan-boys will dogpile you,LOL!!)
Posting pics there will help your case, Walther surely doesn't want the publicity.

 

[RecoilRob]

Being that the barrel bears the SN, it might be more complicated than just throwing in another barrel and calling it good. If it requires reserialization or even the issuance of another complete pistol they might be very reluctant to do this for what is a cosmetic defect.

I don't believe the gunsmith who inspected and passed the barrel didn't see the pitting, it's just that his instructions for replacement are functional only so more than likely his hands were tied. But it sure sounds like it's going to a new home so that's one way to solve a problem!

Edit: just had a thought that the 'pitting' might be just how the metal looks and is in no way a defect. Some of the Keltec autos have a mottled looking barrel steel that is from the heat treating (I believe) and not a defect. Some camshafts have large dark spots on them which are part of the heat treatment that makes them so wear resistant. Could the 'pitting' maybe have been something like this and not caused by corrosion? And if it WAS corrosion damage the factory is going to look the other way and consider it owner neglect rather than a defect and their responsibility.

 

[Walt Sherrill]

Are you sure the pitting affected function (accuracy)? And are you sure it's really pitting? I've had a couple of milsurp guns with badly-pitted barrels that were tack-drivers. (One, a Soviet-captured Luger, was one of the most accurate 9mms I've owned.)

Unless you are shooting corrosive ammo, it's hard to pit a barrel, nowadays -- as corrosive ammo is not readily available any more -- without also seeing pitting OTHER areas, too.

 

[stchman]

Are you sure the pitting affected function (accuracy)? And are you sure it's really pitting? I've had a couple of milsurp guns with badly-pitted barrels that were tack-drivers. (One, a Soviet-captured Luger, was one of the most accurate 9mms I've owned.)

Unless you are shooting corrosive ammo, it's hard to pit a barrel, nowadays -- as corrosive ammo is not readily available any more -- without also seeing pitting OTHER areas, too.

Pitting may or may not affect the accuracy of the gun, but since I gather it was brand new, it should be pristine. A few rust spots on a new car won't affect its driveability, but it would most certainly prompt needing to be fixed.

 

[mgmorden]

Pitting may or may not affect the accuracy of the gun, but since I gather it was brand new, it should be pristine. A few rust spots on a new car won't affect its driveability, but it would most certainly prompt needing to be fixed.

I don't know - the poster starts out with "Started suffering from accuracy issues".

To me that suggests that the gun was ok, and now is not.

If you bought the gun and it came to you with pitting then that's unacceptable IMHO. If you bought it and it later DEVELOPED pitting though, I don't think that's the manufacturer's responsibility. It's made of steel. Depending on maintenance habits steel may develop pitting. I don't agree with the current line of thinking that seems to be that if you ever manage to wear out a gun the manufacturer is supposed to fix it for you.

There's also question of the severity of the pitting. If the OP would have included the pictures he sent to Walther that would help a lot.

 

[wild cat mccane]

Time to open a dispute with your credit card company. Visa/Master has the final say, not Walther.

 

[dogmush]

Can we see the pictures?

 

[Fishbed77]

Can we see the pictures?

The OP has one post on this forum and hasn't replied to any comments. This is looking like a bit of a drive-by from someone with an axe to grind.

The more I think about it, the harder I find it to believe that a Tenifer/nitride treated barrel on a pistol that is relatively new (the .45ACP PPQ is relatively new to the market) is going to show any pitting that will degrade accuracy in the way the OP is describing.


.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

Anyone else wonder why the OPs first post here seems to be a hit piece on Walther with no pictures or follow-up on the thread.

 

[wild cat mccane]

Maybe not. Walther did nothing for my new/unfired PPQ that had a horrible finish. Just solid it and bought a new one without the bad finish

 

[giggitygiggity]

I would give them another phone call. That's an unacceptable response and atypical for Walther.

I had an issue with my PPQ M2 Navy in that it functioned perfectly when unsuppressed, but when I added a suppressor, the slide would not return fully to battery on about 33% of the shots and required a bump before it chambered a round and could be fired.

I called Walther. I don't think I had to wait on hold. I spoke with a person who spoke English and didn't have an accent. He asked for my email and told me he'd send a shipping label and that I just need to fill out an return form with a description of the issue, throw it in a box, slap the label on, and ship it out and they'd handle it from there.

They fixed the issues (some issue with them having to replace the guide rod spring and some other spring inside the pistol. They mailed the pistol directly back to me and I paid $0 out of pocket.

I am not making excuses for Walther, but from my interaction with Walther, their customer service was excellent.

If my experience was like your's I would be irate. If I buy a brand new Maserati and I notice that someone spilled paint on one of the seats, I'd be making the dealer fix it or give me a new one, even if the car as a whole still drives and performs well. Same thing here... even though the functionality of the pistol may or may not be affected by the barrel pitting, that barrel shouldn't be pitting. Yes, maybe in a 75 year old gun, but not a gun that came out a few years ago.