Over many years of gun ownership, I’ve experienced my fair share of blunders, from broken guns to missing parts. That often involves a call or email to the manufacturer to work out a fix. Sometimes this can be an ordeal; other times, I’ve walked away fairly impressed with the results. We often review guns and gear, but what about the customer service behind the companies?
Unforgettable Customer Service
SIG Sauer
There I was, a young buck who saved all his nickels to buy what was at the time a dream rifle: the SIG 556. Specifically, it was the SIG 556R. I have no idea why, but I love the SIG 550 series. The 550 has a charm to it, and maybe it’s because we could never get a real 550 that I desired so much.
The SIG 556 series was the closest thing we could find. I went with the 556R because this variant uses AK magazines and fires 7.62x39mm rounds. At the time, I had a pile of ammo and magazines I used with a WASR-10, so it made sense to me. I bought one well past the rifle’s heyday, and it was well-used.
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Sadly, right off the bat, it had a pile of problems. It wouldn’t run reliably with any mag or ammo I put through it. In desperation, I sent an email to SIG, and they promptly called me back. I spoke to a guy named Kyle, who told me the warranty only followed the initial owner, but if I paid for a shipping label, they could look at the gun and, if necessary, fix it at a cost.
I paid for the label, sent it in, and waited two weeks. All of a sudden, my SIG 556R was back with a short note stating the weapon was working. There were no charges and no need to pay for a return label; it was just my rifle. I took it out and, sure as shooting, it was working. To this day, I own and love this rifle, even with its oddities and weight. Kyle, if you’re still out there, thanks.
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Walther
There was a period where I was looking for the concealed carry gun I’d pack on my hip for the long term, a gun I was willing to train with, shoot, and carry daily. Prior to that, I carried a hodgepodge of cheap guns and wanted to step up my game. Even then, I enjoyed odd guns, so I originally wanted a Remington R51.
After seeing the debacle Remington created with the R51, I looked elsewhere, eventually landing on the single-stack Walther CCP. A gas-delayed blowback handgun seemed so cool compared to the normal crop of short-recoil guns out there. It was small, lightweight, easy to shoot, and while difficult to take apart, it was a solid gun.
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Until I broke it. I had a dedicated training schedule with this gun, and it was the first one I ever broke through training and practicing. Exactly what broke is beyond me, but I know it involved the trigger. The trigger went dead and would only engage if I held the gun sideways.
I called customer service, they sent me a label, and I shipped it off for repair. I shipped it on Friday, and by the next Friday, it was back. Not only did Walther send the gun back repaired, but they also sent two more mags, a hat, a cleaning rag, and a few stickers. The repair was quick, and the extra mags were a nice touch.
Mossberg
The second gun I broke was a Mossberg 590. Again, I was training a lot and putting a high round count through one gun. I didn’t so much break the gun as lose a part. My ejector screw came undone. At the time, I didn’t realize that anything that screws into a shotgun should be checked periodically. After a rough firing schedule, the ejector screw fell out, and I couldn’t find it at my outdoor range.
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For such a basic part, I hopped online and was coming up short. This was in the midst of COVID, and things were tight. When I found the part, the shipping cost was four times as much as the part itself. Gun companies rarely agree to just let you fix things and usually require you to send the gun in. I didn’t want to do that, but with limited options, I sent Mossberg an email.
They promptly replied, and after a few exchanges, I assured them I could replace the ejector screw myself. They agreed to send me the screw and a new ejector, just in case. They sent it via two-day mail, and I was back up and running before the weekend. I appreciated that they didn’t insist I send the whole gun in for such a simple repair.
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Magpul
In the past, the gun breaking was arguably not my fault. I hadn’t done anything crazy to cause them to fail. Sure, I should have checked that screw, but I didn’t shoot any “pissing hot” handloads. With that said, the two times I’ve interacted with Magpul customer service, the issues were entirely my fault.
The first time was years ago when I detached a Magpul front sight and laid it on my desk. Some gremlin must have come and removed the bolt from the middle of the sight. I emailed Magpul, they confirmed which sight I had, and they instantly shipped me another to replace it at no charge.
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Years later, what inspired me to write this article was that same damn gremlin coming into my house and taking the bolt that attaches my Magpul SGA 870 stock to my shotgun. It seemingly disappeared. Once again, I shot an email asking to buy the bolt or asking for the specs for a replacement. Once again, they shipped me one for free.
Good Customer Service
Good customer service seems to be fairly common in the firearms industry, at least in my experience. Rarely have I had a notable issue getting service. I’ve had some long waits, for sure, but on average, gun companies typically fix stuff pretty easily. These four interactions, however, truly stood out to me.
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