HK Customer Service

[GJM]

On the matter of HK customer service, yesterday I sent a like new P30 back to them that was sticky dropping magazines (and I had done nothing about for a few years) and my 15,000 round + P30 shooter for all springs to be changed and the pistol looked over since I had the other going back. The two pistols arrived mid-morning today, and by mid afternoon CO time, my mobile was ringing with Sam from HK on the line. They had taken care of everything and had the two pistols headed back my way. I have found the few times I needed support from HK in the last five years, that the service is unsurpassed in quality and speed.

[YVK]

Last I dealt with them was 2009, and it wasn't a great experience.

What did they find wrong with mag drop problem?

[Ed L]

I've had good luck with HK customer service also--going back to the late 1980s when I bought a new P-7 that was expereincing stovepipe problems.

[GJM]

YVK, HK has had continuity of their service folks for some years, and I am on a first name basis with Travis and Sam. When Bill Springfield hacked six of my pistols, HK put them back in factory new condition with new parts in 48 hours for just freight cost for return shipping. Today, Sam and I had a good joke at TLG's expense, and I think I convinced them to send me the bag of spare parts that used to go to Todd.

[Dagga Boy]

The last couple of years HK customer service has been a model of what customer service in the industry should be. Travis has been simply awesome.

[CCT125US]

I have only called one time, my call was answered in the first several rings by Travis. Not a recording, or voice prompt or number prompt, but by an actual person. That was good by itself, but Travis was straight forward with answers. None of the I will check and get back with you.... my computer is locked up excuse. And he spoke clear English to top it off.

[LSP972]

Yeah, that tired old "because you suck and we hate you" refrain is beginning to ring hollow... especially from the Glock crowd. The honeymoon is definitely over with that particular brand of combat tupperware. For sure, I've bought my last one.

I've been using HK pistols steadily since 2005; not that long, I know, but long enough. I had two staple guns go tango uniform on me (one heeler and one M8), and the turn-arond time was about a week in both cases, along with a full explanation of what happened and what the fix was.

When confronted with a pre-95 USP that a pal wanted me to put a LEM in, I realized there was a difference in this pistol over the several recent -production ones I had done. I called and got a patient explanation of what to do and, more importantly, what NOT to do.

One of my colleagues met Mr. Weber when he was here for a function. My colleague said the man seemed genuinely interested in what he, a mere civilian enthusiast, had to say about the product line.

When I see/hear "the haters hatin' ", I just smile....

.

[TCinVA]

Sam went above and beyond the call of duty to assist me as well.

People don't seem to understand that customer service at gun companies changes over time depending on the people employed and the people who are running the show. Things that were true even two or three years ago may not be true today, but once an opinion is formed in people's minds it turns into granite. Toyota is still selling cars based on a reputation they built decades ago that isn't as true as it used to be. Meanwhile there are people who will never buy a "foreign" car that is manufactured here in the USA but will instead buy an "American" car that's actually made in Canada or Mexico.

H&K has always been a foreign company that seems frankly bewildered by the American market and I don't think that will ever change...but some of the "you suck and we hate you!" stuff seems to be the result of some management decisions made some time ago and largely in relation to .gov customers. Something I've written previously on another board:



Say that you're an exec in a hypothetical gun company and you've just invented a new gun that is a lot cheaper to manufacture than your old PM5 product. It's a lot more profitable for you, so you're eager to get the new gun out there and generate some revenue. A snag arises when you find out that units X and Y who have the PM5 already aren't interested in spending a bunch of money to buy a new gun that essentially does the same thing their old guns do.

What to do? Well, if you grew up on a steady diet of lead paint chips and Tony Robbins self-help tapes, you might come to a truly brilliant conclusion: Make support for the PM5 as painful as possible! Once units X and Y figure out that they can no longer keep the PM5 up and running they will run swiftly into the arms of the new profit generating product. What's that you say? Instead of being thankful for your benevolent wisdom they may instead develop a seething hatred for you that will burn hotter than a thousand suns?

Nonsense! This is a brilliant plan and there is no possible way for it to backfire and make your customers curse the womb that bore you. They are dying to have you attempt to force a new gun on them that primarily benefits you. They are also eager to buy magazines with a spring that dies in no-time which you insist must be remedied by buying a whole new mag at $50.00 a pop. They will thank you for your wisdom and name their next child after you.

[NickA]

Toyota is still selling cars based on a reputation they built decades ago that isn't as true as it used to be. Meanwhile there are people who will never buy a "foreign" car that is manufactured here in the USA but will instead buy an "American" car that's actually made in Canada or Mexico.

Off topic: I read the other day that the most "American " car, based on where the parts and labor to build it come from, is the Toyota Camry.
On topic: did most of the HK hate come from actual poor service, or just lack of parts availability? Either way glad they've turned it around, goes to show what happens when you get good people in place and let them do their job.


Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2

[Dr. No]

Okay, I'll admit full disclosure here - I am a member of the HK shooting team. That being said, long before they sent me cool t-shirts to wear at matches, I would call and bug Travis or Sam on the phone. They were always prompt, patient, and worked with me on any issues I've had. Sam is a riot and a fountain of knowledge which he shares without a blink. I would regularly get 3-7 day turnarounds on guns. There are very few other manufactures I have ever heard someone have the same experience with.

I've even been able to get repairs on our department MP5's that I figured would long be out of scope.

On the flip side, I hear a lot of people cry about C/S and it amazes me. If you are sending a rifle back because the finish on the lower and upper "just don't look like they match" and call dozens of times demanding a new rifle .... I think YOU may be the problem, not HK's customer service!

[Sparks2112]

On the flip side, I hear a lot of people cry about C/S and it amazes me. If you are sending a rifle back because the finish on the lower and upper "just don't look like they match" and call dozens of times demanding a new rifle .... I think YOU may be the problem, not HK's customer service!

Heh, I had a customer try and do that with a FDE scar 17 once... That was a fun day. :D

[TCinVA]

On the flip side, I hear a lot of people cry about C/S and it amazes me. If you are sending a rifle back because the finish on the lower and upper "just don't look like they match" and call dozens of times demanding a new rifle .... I think YOU may be the problem, not HK's customer service!

Those sorts of people should be hit in the face with a rolled up newspaper like a bad puppy.

**THWAP** No! **THWAP** No! **THWAP** We do not complain that this multicam widget doesn't exactly match up with our head-to-toe multicam outfit! **TWHAP**

[Kyle Reese]

Those sorts of people should be hit in the face with a rolled up newspaper like a bad puppy.

**THWAP** No! **THWAP** No! **THWAP** We do not complain that this multicam widget doesn't exactly match up with our head-to-toe multicam outfit! **TWHAP**

Agree. Cosmetic fit and finish are the last things I care about on a service rifle / handgun.

[LOKNLOD]

Agree. Cosmetic fit and finish are the last things I care about on a service rifle / handgun.

I agree wholeheartedly, but how odd is it that we decouple quality and cosmetics for firearms but not other items? Pretty much everything else I can think of, higher fit and finish is a mark of higher quality.

ETA: I mean that more so as an observation than a question. I think it's a mark of logic to be able to separate the function of an item from our desire for "oh, shiny".

And on topic, my limited dealings with HK CS were good, the only trouble I had was getting someone to answer the phone, apparently I called during peak vacation time or something and kept getting hung in an automated forward loop.

[JHC]

Those sorts of people should be hit in the face with a rolled up newspaper like a bad puppy.

**THWAP** No! **THWAP** No! **THWAP** We do not complain that this multicam widget doesn't exactly match up with our head-to-toe multicam outfit! **TWHAP**

Then hand them a can of Krylon.

[Al T.]

Yup. Krylon works for me.....


Once units X and Y figure out that they can no longer keep the PM5 up and running they will run swiftly into the arms

Interesting. I was there when FORSCOM got briefed up on the issue around 1991 or so.

Good to hear that H&K is moving (moved) past Larry Correia's accurate at the time blogpost.

[JodyH]

I can understand complaining about obvious blemishes in the finish of a brand new firearm.
If I pulled a brand new H&K P30 out of the box and it had a mottled finish that looked like a Dalmation puppy I'd expect H&K to make that right.
It's the people who complain that their AR15 upper has a slightly different shade of anodizing than the lower when you look at it outside under fluorescent lighting from a 25 degree angle while wearing polarized shades that need to be beat with sticks.

[Sparks2112]

I can understand complaining about obvious blemishes in the finish of a brand new firearm.
If I pulled a brand new H&K P30 out of the box and it had a mottled finish that looked like a Dalmation puppy I'd expect H&K to make that right.
It's the people who complain that their AR15 upper has a slightly different shade of anodizing than the lower when you look at it outside under fluorescent lighting from a 25 degree angle while wearing polarized shades that need to be beat with sticks.

Don't ever work retail.

[Dr. No]

I can understand complaining about obvious blemishes in the finish of a brand new firearm.
If I pulled a brand new H&K P30 out of the box and it had a mottled finish that looked like a Dalmation puppy I'd expect H&K to make that right.
It's the people who complain that their AR15 upper has a slightly different shade of anodizing than the lower when you look at it outside under fluorescent lighting from a 25 degree angle while wearing polarized shades that need to be beat with sticks.

I completely agree, and the latter is what I spoke of. It was ... ridiculous. Some people treat guns like they are paintings that should be in museums. I like shooting.