Wrong caliber gun

[whm1974]

Ok I picked an Eibar copy of a S&W model 10. I went to East Alton to the handgun range runned by Winchester. Went up to the firing line with .38 special ammo and it wouldn't FIT! One of the Range Officers examen the gun and it turned out to be in .32 S&W long.

Lucky me they have the right ammo there, so I shot 50 rounds to see how it handled. The gun is alright but I wanted a gun in .38 special NOT in a caliber I'll have a hard time finding.

While I was there I fond... oops I mean shot some of thier guns. They were:

Model 21 Glock(.45 ACP)
a .40 S&W DA auto(also S&W)
a .22 S&W DA revolver
a .22 S&W SA auto
And a Ruger 22/45

All togother I shot 200 rounds of ammo. The brass from the Glock was hitting me in the face, the first .40 kept jamming up on me. The revolver and Ruger 22/45 I liked and want to have.

The Eibar doesn't have the caliber stamped on the barrel and I'm thinking this is an honest mistake by the gun shop owner. I'm going back to the Gun Room in Edwardsville to try to get my money back or get a gun in the caliber I wanted. I liked the gun itself but it's in the wrong caliber.

One question, Where can I legally shoot in Madison County IL?

-Bill

 

[CrudeGT]

Honest mistake or not, that sale rep should be reprimanded and forced to learn about what he is selling. I would get a refund and never do business with them again. If i ask for a .38sp, that;s what I expect. Not someones best guess, which may or may not be accurate.

 

[whm1974]

Well next time I buy a gun I'll take a look and see if the caliber is stamped anywhere on the gun before buying. I may also stick to makes that I have heard of as well.

In case I don't get my money back anyone know where I can get .32 S&W/Long ammo at? Online?

-Bill

 

[GunGeek]

Honest mistake or not, that sale rep should be reprimanded and forced to learn about what he is selling. I would get a refund and never do business with them again. If i ask for a .38sp, that;s what I expect. Not someones best guess, which may or may not be accurate.

Jeeze, people sometimes make mistakes, it's if they will fix it that makes me go back to a company. Heck if they admited it was thier mistake and gave me a full refund I would be a customer for life! A properly labeled gun would fix one possible problem, a company willing to accept and fix thier mistakes would fix almost any problem.

 

[CrudeGT]

Granted if I was handed the wrong pack of smokes at 7eleven, that's one thing. This is a firearm. I expect the dealer of my firearms to know what they are selling.

When i walk onto a car lot and say I have a cash and want to buy that car, I want the car i am pointing at, not something different. And I don't want to be told something differnet is the same as what I am pointing that (does that make sense? or did I work that badly?).

Purchases for an item like a firearm I do not think should be taken lightly. You may be purcahsing this item for a home defense gun. What if the individual ( we all know this happens) buy the gun takes it home, and it never comes out until it's needed. home owner wakes up to an intruder, grabs the gun and finds out that the sales rep sold him the wrong caliber, now he has a useless gun, and a pissed off intruder, good-bye home owner. Granted the owner should have learned about the mishap before the SHTF, but it is still the sales rep's fault for selling the wrong item.

Sorry to cause ripples, but i don't see this as a 'oops, sorry about my mistake' situation.

 

[Snowdog]

Georgia Arms loads for the .32 long.
100gr JHP 50/$11


Just in case you end up keeping the revolver.

Georgia Arms

 

[Jim K]

.32 S&W Long is available at most gun shops and sporting goods stores; if they don't have it they can order it, BUT...

BUT, and it is a big BUT, I STRONGLY recommend you NOT shoot ANYTHING in that gun until someone knowledgeable checks it out, and tell the gun store the same thing. It is probably one of the cheap, pot metal copies of the S&W Military and Police (now the Model 10) that was sold in this country in the 1920's. Those guns are made from material little better than cast iron and have blown up by the thousands. They are dangerous and should be deactivated or destroyed. The gun store should refund your money and if they put the gun back out for sale they are really dumb and looking for a lawsuit.

.32 S&W Long is an odd caliber for those guns; most were in either .38 Special or .32-20, which I suspect is what that one actually is. In any caliber, they are dangerous, but a .32-20 rifle round or a .38 Special +P will really do a job on them. The last one I saw blown up was fired with a .38 Special blank! The cylinder wall blew out and the top strap departed the area, never to be found.

Jim

 

[GunGeek]

When i walk onto a car lot and say I have a cash and want to buy that car, I want the car i am pointing at, not something different. And I don't want to be told something differnet is the same as what I am pointing that (does that make sense? or did I work that badly?).

Actually this would be nothing like the situation, I doupt the salesman went in the back of the store and got a diffrent gun. The gun purchased IS the one he picked out. Now a closer example would be if the sticker on the car said it had a V6 when it actually had a 4cyl. The previous owner probably told the shop it was a .38, can you expect the shop to go out to the range and test every weapon they are sold?

I still say if the shop makes it right then it is a good shop.

 

[CrudeGT]

I would hope that if a gun bought a used gun they would test it out to make sure that it was not altered to be a waste. the shop is responsible for the items they sell. If you buy a used gun from a store, and it explodes the first time you fire it, because the previous owner messed with the extractor, guide rod, or whatever, the shop would not be able to say "Well that's how we got it, so blame the person we bought it from." (that was a really long sentence). teh shop used to purcahse guns from had a range in the basement and I've seen the employees down there firing the used guns. They also have a gunsmith they send the guns too to have them checked out before they are purchased.

Also, I feel it is misleading, maybe not to the extent of my previous example. But this individual went into a store and asked for a specific caliber, they showed him a different caliber, telling him it was what he asked for, and sold it to him saying that it was exactly what he asked for. That is very misleading and not very good PR.

 

[only1asterisk]

GunGeek,

I expect the shop owner to be able to SEE the difference between a .32 and a .38! How does one examine a gun well enough to detemine it's value and miss something like this?

whm1974,

Were I you, I'd return the gun for what you paid and seek a better shop and a better revolver.


Dave

 

[BluesBear]

If you swing out the cylinder on a revolver, look at the chambers and can't tell the difference between a .32 and a .38 then you have no business selling guns.

If you have a gun in your shop that has no caliber markings and you haven't gotten up off your lazy butt and determined what the proper caliber is then you have no business running a gunshop.




What if this had been a .45 Colt revolver that the salesman sold as a .44 Magnum? You CAN chamber a .44 Magnum in a .45 Colt. You CAN even fire a .44 Magnum in a .45 Colt, but you'll only do it once.

 

[HiWayMan]

This is not meant to be a flame, but I think some of us are also overlooking the obvious responsibility of the buyer. When buying any gun you should also be sure of what you are getting before it leaves the shop. The owner of the shop bears most of the responsibility here, but the purchaser must also share in that responsibility. Do the research and know your sh*t before you set foot in the store with money in your hand.

 

[whm1974]

Well guys, I just came back. Good news is that he offered my money back or can trade.
He said the guy who brought it in said it was a .38, didn't even argue with me when I said wrong caliber. Man I'm glad I went to a gun range instead of out into the woods...

Well anyway I'm going to pick up a S&W Mod 10 with 5" barrel thursday in the right caliber.

-Bill

 

[Majic]

Actually you have to know if the original question to the shop owner was "do you have any .38 special revolvers", or "do you have any .38 revolvers". If he just asked for a .38 revolver then he got what he asked for. You have to be specific when asking if you require specific items.

 

[BryanP]

If he just asked for a .38 revolver then he got what he asked for.

No, he got a .32 S&W revolver. Note the 2.

 

[whm1974]

Actually you have to know if the original question to the shop owner was "do you have any .38 special revolvers", or "do you have any .38 revolvers". If he just asked for a .38 revolver then he got what he asked for. You have to be specific when asking if you require specific items.

I did ask for .38 Special to begin with. I do see your point however. A lot of people I run across don't know that there is more then one .38 or 9mm cartiage.

-Bill

 

[BluesBear]

No, what he got was a .32 S&W Long revolver. there IS a difference.

 

[SapperLeader]

My local sports authority actually carries 2 loads of .32 S&W Long and one of a .38 "something". Its not .38 special, its a different cartridge. As to the mix up, usually the barrel on most guns are marked with the appropriate caliber, if not, its probally a good idea to ensure its the right caliber for the gun, to make sure theres no kabooms. Glad everything worked out for you.

 

[whm1974]

My local sports authority actually carries 2 loads of .32 S&W Long and one of a .38 "something". Its not .38 special, its a different cartridge. As to the mix up, usually the barrel on most guns are marked with the appropriate caliber, if not, its probally a good idea to ensure its the right caliber for the gun, to make sure theres no kabooms. Glad everything worked out for you.

Well if it was a .38 special, for $143 it would have been a good deal for me. This gun didn't have any markings anywhere as far as caliber goes. Next time I'll check for markings when I'm at the shop.

-Bill

 

[Jim K]

Hi, whm1974 (and guys),

Did ANYONE read my post above? If that gun is what I think it is, it would not be worth $10, let alone $143, no matter what the caliber. The big tipoff should have been that the maker did not think enough of the gun to put his name on it.

Unless you can get a "good deal" on new fingers or eyes, try to gain a bit more experience before buying questionable guns. Just be glad it was not .38 Special and you didn't try a +P load in it.

As for the gun shop, they are fully responsible for the safety of what they sell; if they resell that gun, and it does hurt someone, they could be facing a lawsuit that will put them out of business and have the owner in hock for the rest of his life.

Jim