Another Ruger Customer Service story

[bigskyguy]

I have a New Model Blackhawk in .41 Mag. It is an older model with the soldered on ejector rod housing screw stud.

Well, the stud gave up the ghost, and all my feeble attempts at fixing it failed. I talked to a couple of local 'smiths, but they are all so busy they said it would be a 6-8 week turn around at best...SOOOO, I called up the good folks at Ruger to see if I could send it out to them and have them fix it the right way.

I got an RMA #, but they would not foot the bill for the ride back east. The lady I spoke to said that they only do that for firearms produced in the last 2 years, but she said she would get me a UPS label for their price which was $30. Fair enough. Off she went to NH.

About a week later I get a call on my cell from a NH number and a gentleman told me that they would have to replace my barrel as they do not fix the old soldered studs anymore. He said that would also require a re-blue and was I alright with that? Now my Blackhawk wasn't hammered, but I got it in a trade years ago, and lets just say that time hadn't been kind to the old girl! Heck YA that was okay with me! I asked the guy how much it was going to cost me and he said that the failed ERH stud was their fault, therefore the new barrel, and subsequent re-blue was on them! NICE!!!

Then he asks me if there is anything else I would like done while they had it. So, I went for broke and asked if it would be possible to replace the dinged up aluminum grip frame with a new steel one? "Heck ya" he says, "you want a steel ERH too?" How much for the upgrades I ask..."Not a thing" he replies!

So, a couple weeks after that phone call, I got my old New Model back looking like a million bucks! The warning label is on the bottom of the barrel, the grip frame and ERH are both steel, and it looks better than new!

I know that there has been a lot of Ruger bashing lately, and some of it is warranted. We have all seen some of the issues that have come out of them for the last several years. With that being said, I just wanted to relay this story to you all. I couldn't be happier, and it just reinforces why I love Ruger so much!!!

Todd

 

[hittman]

Yeah, Ruger is good like that. Sadly, many folks would have thrown a hissy fit about the shipping. They did the same for me a couple years ago on a LC9 with light primer strikes. Cost me $30 to send it in but it was a few years old and returned with all new internal parts and is now flawless.

 

[pisgah]

That's a good story to hear! You know, so often when I hear gun company customer service horror stories, I think of a guy I once knew. Every time I'd mention a restaurant I had been to, or the wife and I were planning to go to, he'd have a comment like, "Well, the food's OK but, man, the service stinks!", and proceed to tell some horrible waiter/waittress story. I'll admit, I skipped a couple of dining experiences based on his report -- until I went out to dinner with him one night at a place I had been patronizing for years. We were seated, my favorite waitress came over, and this guy opens with, "They let you come to work dressed like that?" He then proceeded to criticize the menu, complain that his water glass was dirty (it wasn't), and when she brought our salads said, "It's about d****d time!" At that point I told him to shut his mouth or I'd shut it for him, and he got smart and realized that I meant every word. I left a BIG tip, and went back and apologized for his boorish behavior the next day.

There are people in this world who, frankly, get the lousy service they deserve, be it from an eating establishment or a gun company.

 

[Fox Mike]

When I shipped my revolver back I had my FFL send it. Much less expensive than any other way.

 

[woodsy]

That's Ruger CS for you. Good stuff. I grew up in the Ruger neighborhood, Southport, CT, 'way back in the day. I now wish I had known back then how good a company they were to both their customers, and their community (knew about that), when I had the opportunity to get more of their stuff, but didn't know better.

 

[Mus408]

Great story! They do a fine job on the repair work!

 

[arfmel]

They have always treated me more than fair. Replaced the broken transfer bar on a Bearcat I bought secondhand, at no charge, for instance.

 

[Wheelgun]

.... There are people in this world who, frankly, get the lousy service they deserve....

Truer words have never been spoken. It's poetic justice at its finest. There are people who can't be satisfied. They're miserable human beings, and they want to make everyone else as miserable as they themselves are.

Mark

 

[Jimbo357mag]

They do seem to do a better job with the older guns/customers than they do with the new ones. Great story and that is why we like Ruger so much.

 

[powder smoke]

I have at least two similar occurrences their customer service is second to none.
I miss living in NH use to drive over and bring a gun in for service. The nice lady in
the reception area always had "Ruger" goodies to hand out Lapel pin something of
that nature. ps

 

[jringo8769]

well that is a great story...i have a totally opposite experience as my customer rep was very rude and not helpful at all......so glad to see Ruger will go out of their way to help us...thank u for sharing....God Bless,John

 

[Hondo44]

bigskyguy,

Bravo to you for taking the time to write a good story. It's a nice change!
And you deserve the great service you got, particularly deserve it because you appreciated it.

By the way, you'll notice the new barrel no longer uses the stud in the barrel and the screw size is enlarged to #8 instead of a #6.

 

[Hondo44]

That's a good story to hear! You know, so often when I hear gun company customer service horror stories, I think of a guy I once knew. Every time I'd mention a restaurant I had been to, or the wife and I were planning to go to, he'd have a comment like, "Well, the food's OK but, man, the service stinks!", and proceed to tell some horrible waiter/waittress story. I'll admit, I skipped a couple of dining experiences based on his report -- until I went out to dinner with him one night at a place I had been patronizing for years. We were seated, my favorite waitress came over, and this guy opens with, "They let you come to work dressed like that?" He then proceeded to criticize the menu, complain that his water glass was dirty (it wasn't), and when she brought our salads said, "It's about d****d time!" At that point I told him to shut his mouth or I'd shut it for him, and he got smart and realized that I meant every word. I left a BIG tip, and went back and apologized for his boorish behavior the next day.

There are people in this world who, frankly, get the lousy service they deserve, be it from an eating establishment or a gun company.

Good illustration that some people just can't be pleased and just can't be happy unless they have something to gripe about! They spread misery instead of good cheer!

 

[FergusonTO35]

Glad to hear it. I have a Rossi 461 which is a very good shooter but had an irritating .010 barrel to cylinder gap when I got it. I figured Rossi would say it was within spec but I should at least give them a try. Wrote up a nice letter explaining why I thought this was a problem and had the fun store send it off. They take their sweet time, the 461 came back almost two months later. When I opened the box I was delighted to find the revolver now has a new barrel and cylinder with a snug .003 gap.

 

[ditto1958]

OP, that is good to hear!

The best Ruger CS story I've ever heard was on another forum awhile back. The poster said he somehow dropped his 1980-something 10/22 from one story up, and it landed on concrete. The receiver cracked from the impact. The guy sent it to Ruger, and they said it was not repairable, and they sent him a brand new 10/22. For something that wasn't at all their fault.

 

[azleite]

I was in Noble firearms in FT.Worth about fifteen years ago and the owner (David) told me about a guy who had bought a Ruger SP101 from him. The guy snuck the gun into his house but his ol'lady found it and pounded the crap out of it with a hammer. It was a mangled mess. He asked David to send it in to Ruger. They called the guy and asked him what he wanted them to do with it? He explained what happened and said, destroy it I guess. They called him back the next day and said they would be sending a replacement to Noble's-no charge. Guess they felt sorry for him...

 

[Coyote Hunter]

The stainless Blackhawk .357 Mag I bought used turned out to have a bent basepin. Free fix and return shipping.

The 1989 M77 in .257 Roberts was very gently used when I bought it in 2004 or so. After 12 more years of gentle use it started having problems ejecting, Free fix and return shipping.

One of the reasons my safe has a pile of Ruger handguns and rifles is their service. Just bought another, a Security-9 9mm.