Expectations When Purchasing a New S&W Revolver

[SD]

Mega Outdoor Store is merging with another Giant Outdoor store to make a great Big-Box Outdoor Store. I decided to cash in my earned reward points before my Visa card turns into a Master card and selected a S&W 640 PC that needed to ordered. Store Associate figured approximately a 2 week time frame when I placed the order yesterday. 15:00hrs today they call "its in come pick it up". Arriving at the store the associate @ the gun counter brings the gun from a back area and puts it on the back counter and directs me to complete 4473 requirements, Im like how about we look at the revolver first. He puts the blue box on the customer side of the counter area now, safety checks the revolver and hands it to me. It is absolutely filthy, has grime built up on the frame around the cylinder slide release button. The cylinder slide release button is sticking forward when pushed and then released, there is a fine turn line on the cylinder itself, lockup on the cylinder is to loose for my liking. My initial thought is this 640 has been on display forever someplace. I ask the associate "so where did this revolver come from" he looks me straight in the eye and says Smith & Wesson". I dispute the firearms condition, he proceeds to tell me he is a 27 year Law Enforcement Officer and a 3 time National Pistol Match Champion and I do not know what I'm talking about. Im like that's great this revolver is BS and Im not excepting it! He now calls a manager & security on me. So before I say or do anything that could be considered hostile I simply tell the manager this revolver has issues your associate has a condescending attitude dealing with me, either order me a new firearm or refund my money. He assured me they would get another gun and i left. So what should I expect when purchasing a new Performance Center revolver? Is it wrong for a big box store to sell firearms from the display case as new once they have been pawed over by x=customers x days on display.

[Duelist]

A display model is new. It is a display model that has never been sold. I have gotten discounts for purchasing a display model in the past.

That said: When the gun delivered doesn’t meet your expectations, you have every right to refuse it.

[OlongJohnson]

Academy generally discounts the display when they finally get around to selling it, at least I've picked up a few nice deals that way.

I have yet to inspect any revolver that's left an S&W factory in the past few years and not find some issue with it. Including apparently a whole batch of 640 Pros that got sent back to S&W when they were all like the one I ended up returning. The question is, what can you live with and how much will it cost to fix the stuff you can't.

You've also encountered one of the arguments against buying local. Go to the store to place the order. Pay full retail. Wait for it to come in so you can go pick it up. Deal with ignorant and unhelpful staff and their BS. Versus find the best price you can find, have it sent to a shop that is happy to do transfers at a fair price, and go there once to pick it up.

[SD]

Before leaving the Rustbelt my LGS operated along that same premise for a display model purchase. This particular store currently dealing with is in a tourist area and they get a huge volume of customers. On Monday I plan on talking to someone from Headquarters in Missouri. I have zero confidence with the local help to get this problem corrected.

[RJ]

Versus find the best price you can find, have it sent to a shop that is happy to do transfers at a fair price, and go there once to pick it up.

I just purchased a gun online using exactly this method. It was my first purchase of this type. Transaction was flawless and the gun was factory fresh.

My LGSs wanted between $125 and $150 more than I paid to order the gun in ‘2-3 days’.

OP I hope you get a snubby in acceptable condition soon. That sucks.

[SD]

Thanks Rich, i to have had good luck purchasing online, one of my favorite online-GS is Impact Guns. Excellent service knowledge my local LGS can't even come close to matching their price most of the time.

[deputyG23]

I guess I was lucky when I ordered a 442 from a regional LE/MIL dealer in 2013. The gun was excellent out of the box and has served me well since.
I now mostly buy older Smith revolvers at a low enough price to justify spending a few more dollars on action work or minor repairs if needed. I might pick up another 442 minus the lock and use my current one as a training gun.
It is sad to see S&W going through a cycle of questionable QC again.

[Tom Duffy]

You've also encountered one of the arguments against buying local. Go to the store to place the order. Pay full retail. Wait for it to come in so you can go pick it up. Deal with ignorant and unhelpful staff and their BS. Versus find the best price you can find, have it sent to a shop that is happy to do transfers at a fair price, and go there once to pick it up.

I think he's encountered the best reason FOR buying local. I would never buy a S&W or Ruger revolver without being able to inspect it first. The QC from either manufacturer is just too hit or miss. Buy a gun from an online store and take transfer from your FFL and the gun is your problem. Smith has lots of unsatisfied customers who tried to get a new gun with obvious flaws fixed. Additionally, with the Smith warranty not being what it used to be, you might end up paying for a repair that they used to cover. My local dealer will also send back a gun for repair on his dime for as long as you own the gun. Well worth any premium he might charge.

[41magfan]

S&W has turned mediocre into an art form ...... and they often have an attitude about it, to boot.

I've been long since done with new S&W revolvers since the late 90's I guess, but I succumbed to a good deal on a used but unfired Mod 29 Classic recently. Well, I didn't check it too good when I bought it and when I got it home in good light, I noticed the barrel/frame fitment was excessive with a clearance that measured .013.

Now, I realize that has absolutely nothing to do with function but a pistol with an msrp of $1,000 ought to look better than that. Anyhow, the CS guy told me that was normal these days and was within their QC standards. He actually told me they did that on purpose so they wouldn't scratch the frame when they screwed on the barrel. I spontaneously horse laughed just a little bit and asked why .001 (or less) clearance wouldn't accomplish the very same thing. Well, he didn't like being asked that question and when I commented that Taurus fitted guns better, things went south pretty quick.

I took it to a local gunsmith to have the barrel set-back and he couldn't get the barrel off without fear of cracking the frame. My gunsmith related that back in the good old days S&W would make it right if that happened because it wasn't a terribly uncommon occurrence. He said those days are over - cracked frame means buying a new gun. It's worth noting that this guy has been building PPC guns since the 70's, so he knows a thing or two about fitting revolver barrels. Anyhow, I sold the gun without firing it and chalked that one up as a another reminder to stay away from their junk.

The latest episode that I'm personally familiar with just happens to involve another Mod 29 Classic. The buyer picked through four guns they had in-stock and supposedly got the best one. When he got it home and wiped it down, the blue job looked like something done in a basement - in bad light - using a bottle of Birchwood Casey cold blue. The barrel fitment was sloppy as well at .008 but to make things worse, the barrel wasn't aligned properly.

Sent the gun back, got the gun back in a matter of days, but the blue job was no better than it was to start with and to add insult to injury we now have tool marks/scratches on the gun (still unfired at this point) that were NOT on the gun initially. The CS guy had some excuse for the poor service and predictably gets an attitude when the owner suggest they consult Ford's Custom Gun Refinishing for some pointers in how to properly blue guns without doing damage to them.

They've had the gun for over a month on this return trip ..... perhaps they did send it to Ford's for bluing?

[OlongJohnson]

I also have sent a revolver back to S&W to fix a severe defect (this one fuctional) that wasn't apparent upon pre-transfer inspection. They did fix that issue, but then totally fubared another part that I hadn't asked them to touch. Fortunately, when I called them about it, they sent out a replacement for the damaged part without hesitation.

That, at least, has been reasonably consistent. I've needed them to send out small parts that were jacked up from the factory on a couple occasions, and they have always sent them fast and free. It seems to be actually fixing guns that they have problems with.

Thanks Rich, i to have had good luck purchasing online, one of my favorite online-GS is Impact Guns. Excellent service knowledge my local LGS can't even come close to matching their price most of the time.

I had an experience with Impact Guns a couple years ago that showed them to be extremely unethical. I called ahead before placing an order and spoke to a human to verify that the item was actually in stock and ready to ship, and was told that it was. That turned out not to be true, and they were unable to deliver in the time by which the item was required. Then, still without even having received the item into their inventory so that they could ship it, they refused to refund my money. I was gearing up to fight them through the CC company when they without warning suddenly refunded the amount. I can only speculate that they finally got the item in from the distributor and found someone else to sell it to. Even though they do come up as the best price on an item from time to time, my current expectation is to never do business with them again.

My personal fave online shop is Whittaker Guns. They aren't always the best price, but they are everything you'd want a shop to be. Awesome personalized service, active in the community, invest in doing special things that no other dealer will do. They also have a brick and mortar shop in KY that I've heard is a near-Valhalla if you like Fuddly stuff.