Ruger Red Label rant, the final chapter...

greg c · March 27, 2002, 05:10 PM

Ok folks, for those of you who weren't following the saga here's the short version:

-bought red label for duck and quail hunting season
-worked fine with 2 3/4 shells but safety inadvertenly kept kicking ON secondary to recoil with 3" shells
- sent back to factory and got safety fixed but came back with cosmetic scratches to bluing, had very loose forearm, scratches to ejector faces, this after a five or six WEEK wait.
-sent back to factory again following conversation(s) with customer service promising that it would be looked at and hopefully done within two weeks.
-Today, FIVE WEEKS later and after a few phone calls my red label is back, with a tight forearm, reasonably well buffed out ejector faces, a strong safety detente, and a solid coat of bluing all around.

And duck and quail season is well over.

It took three months and a lot of hounding to get my red label the way I think it should have come from the factory, and now that it is back IT BETTER NOT EVER NEED TO GO BACK AGAIN, but I have to say that every time I look at it I am in love. Thanks to all who chipped in good wishes throughout this mini-saga.

Will shoot this weekend.

Kingcreek · March 27, 2002, 08:33 PM

I had Ruger perform warranty rework on a bolt rifle (M77 cal.270) with similar frustrations. It also came home wearing a new deep scar.
Based on my ONE experience I refuse to buy another sturm ruger anything.
Glad you are happy now.
I have used warranty by Browning (good), Remington (bad X2), Winchester(1 good,1 bad), Ruger(poor), Berretta (excellent)...
I'll be the first to admit these influence my purchase decisions.

"Beware the man with only one gun" (He might be cranky 'cause he had to sit out a hunting season)

C.R.Sam · March 27, 2002, 08:57 PM

Greg, thanks for the report. I am glad that it still likes you.

Maby ought to pick up a grocery gun for those occaisions when there is a hunt and the nice one is unwell.

Sam

mikey357 · March 27, 2002, 09:05 PM

Sam, I had to re-read your suggestion about the "backup" gun...thought at first that you said "Grocery STORE Gun"!!! Oh, well...it's been a LONG day!!!....mikey357

Dave McC · March 28, 2002, 05:58 AM

Sorry you missed the season, but considering the plethora of nice cheap grocery guns, there WERE alternatives.

RE Ruger warranties, we had a bunch of early Mini 14s at my old agency that Ruger replaced. Some of that series had developed cracks in the receiver. Ruger trucked 20 new ones down and we had them in 48 hours. BTW, we had two of those crack. Again a replacement almost overnight.

Most of the early Minis wouldn't keep their shots in the same Zip Code after warming up with a fast mag full or two. Ruger issued new stocks that seemed to fix the prob.

IOW, they got it right, but it took a while.

PJR · March 28, 2002, 09:30 AM

There are so many good reasons not to buy Ruger but one of the defenses put forward by those who like them is their warranty service. What should be concerning is the increasing length of time it is taking to get guns back. This means more guns are going into the warranty station. Not a good sign.

The other troubling indication is the damage inflicted on guns while being repaired. This suggests Ruger recruits ham handed and uncaring workers to repair your guns. Having to send a gun back a second time because they damaged it is outrageous and unacceptable.

I've owned 4 Ruger firearms over the years and each of them was a disappointment as it came from the factory. You can put enough aftermarket parts into some them to bring them up to an acceptable standard but having to spend more money to make something right isn't a sign of great workmanship.

greg c · March 28, 2002, 10:05 AM

Hey guys, I did have a backup- remember?

http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...red+label+rant

I just, really, really, really, wanted to shoot the Red Label!

PJ, that is some interesting analysis of the repair/wait time situation. I for sure agree about the ham handed repair guys. When you have to remind someone to take pride in their work it really detracts from your image of the company.:

C.R.Sam · March 28, 2002, 10:42 AM

A resonant loop for some manufacturers. The more they sell, the more warrenty work they get, the more load on the personnel, the more mistakes go out etc etc.

Sorry Greg, I forgot you had a backup.

Sam

FUSILADE · March 28, 2002, 06:23 PM

I bought a new Ruger varmint rifle in .22-250 a couple years ago. It sat in the cabinet over a year before I got around to working up a load. When I swabbed out the bore and inspected it before shooting it there were some deep flawes in the rifleing. Looked like abnormalitie in the steel [stainless]. I called Ruger. They said send it back. I had it beck in 2 weeks with a brand new barrel. Itlooked as good as it did when I sent it to them but its pretty tough to ge sub M.O.A. groups.

DLF · March 30, 2002, 10:26 AM

I am glad you finally got things sorted out with your Ruger. I am one of those folks who has had only good experiences with Ruger. I own a 12ga Red Label and can find no reasons to replace or not buy another as one poster said. I shoot the gun well, it fits me well and I believe it to be durable as well. I have shot skeet with it for seven years.

As for repair and warranty work, I bent the rib on my gun right in the middle of the barrel. It looked like I had taken a hatchet or something to it. I called Ruger, sent it to them, and in two weeks had it back with a new rib, barrels reblued, and no charge. I have had bad problems with Browning about warranties.
I guess it depends on who you like and have had good luck with.

Good Shooting,

March 27, 2002, 05:10 PM	#1
greg c Senior Member Join Date: May 23, 2000 Location: Phoenix Az Posts: 113	Ruger Red Label rant, the final chapter... Ok folks, for those of you who weren't following the saga here's the short version: -bought red label for duck and quail hunting season -worked fine with 2 3/4 shells but safety inadvertenly kept kicking ON secondary to recoil with 3" shells - sent back to factory and got safety fixed but came back with cosmetic scratches to bluing, had very loose forearm, scratches to ejector faces, this after a five or six WEEK wait. -sent back to factory again following conversation(s) with customer service promising that it would be looked at and hopefully done within two weeks. -Today, FIVE WEEKS later and after a few phone calls my red label is back, with a tight forearm, reasonably well buffed out ejector faces, a strong safety detente, and a solid coat of bluing all around. And duck and quail season is well over. It took three months and a lot of hounding to get my red label the way I think it should have come from the factory, and now that it is back IT BETTER NOT EVER NEED TO GO BACK AGAIN, but I have to say that every time I look at it I am in love. Thanks to all who chipped in good wishes throughout this mini-saga. Will shoot this weekend.

March 27, 2002, 09:05 PM	#4
mikey357 Senior Member Join Date: November 24, 2000 Location: Griffin, GA, USA Posts: 743	Sam, I had to re-read your suggestion about the "backup" gun...thought at first that you said "Grocery STORE Gun"!!! Oh, well...it's been a LONG day!!!....mikey357 __________________ mikey357, TFL Member # 7556

March 28, 2002, 06:23 PM	#9
FUSILADE Junior Member Join Date: March 28, 2002 Location: The hoosier state. Posts: 9	RUGER RANT I bought a new Ruger varmint rifle in .22-250 a couple years ago. It sat in the cabinet over a year before I got around to working up a load. When I swabbed out the bore and inspected it before shooting it there were some deep flawes in the rifleing. Looked like abnormalitie in the steel [stainless]. I called Ruger. They said send it back. I had it beck in 2 weeks with a brand new barrel. Itlooked as good as it did when I sent it to them but its pretty tough to ge sub M.O.A. groups. __________________ Ride shoot straight and speek the truth.

March 30, 2002, 10:26 AM	#10
DLF Member Join Date: October 10, 1999 Location: Alpine, Al. USA Posts: 28	I am glad you finally got things sorted out with your Ruger. I am one of those folks who has had only good experiences with Ruger. I own a 12ga Red Label and can find no reasons to replace or not buy another as one poster said. I shoot the gun well, it fits me well and I believe it to be durable as well. I have shot skeet with it for seven years. As for repair and warranty work, I bent the rib on my gun right in the middle of the barrel. It looked like I had taken a hatchet or something to it. I called Ruger, sent it to them, and in two weeks had it back with a new rib, barrels reblued, and no charge. I have had bad problems with Browning about warranties. I guess it depends on who you like and have had good luck with. Good Shooting, __________________ DLF

March 27, 2002, 08:33 PM	#2
Kingcreek Senior Member Join Date: October 29, 1999 Location: rural Illinois Posts: 590	I had Ruger perform warranty rework on a bolt rifle (M77 cal.270) with similar frustrations. It also came home wearing a new deep scar. Based on my ONE experience I refuse to buy another sturm ruger anything. Glad you are happy now. I have used warranty by Browning (good), Remington (bad X2), Winchester(1 good,1 bad), Ruger(poor), Berretta (excellent)... I'll be the first to admit these influence my purchase decisions. "Beware the man with only one gun" (He might be cranky 'cause he had to sit out a hunting season)

March 27, 2002, 08:57 PM	#3
C.R.Sam Senior Member Join Date: October 29, 1999 Location: Dewey, AZ Posts: 12,858	Greg, thanks for the report. I am glad that it still likes you. Maby ought to pick up a grocery gun for those occaisions when there is a hunt and the nice one is unwell. Sam

March 28, 2002, 05:58 AM	#5
Dave McC Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 13, 1999 Location: Columbia, Md, USA Posts: 8,811	Sorry you missed the season, but considering the plethora of nice cheap grocery guns, there WERE alternatives. RE Ruger warranties, we had a bunch of early Mini 14s at my old agency that Ruger replaced. Some of that series had developed cracks in the receiver. Ruger trucked 20 new ones down and we had them in 48 hours. BTW, we had two of those crack. Again a replacement almost overnight. Most of the early Minis wouldn't keep their shots in the same Zip Code after warming up with a fast mag full or two. Ruger issued new stocks that seemed to fix the prob. IOW, they got it right, but it took a while.

March 28, 2002, 09:30 AM	#6
PJR Senior Member Join Date: May 31, 2000 Posts: 1,127	There are so many good reasons not to buy Ruger but one of the defenses put forward by those who like them is their warranty service. What should be concerning is the increasing length of time it is taking to get guns back. This means more guns are going into the warranty station. Not a good sign. The other troubling indication is the damage inflicted on guns while being repaired. This suggests Ruger recruits ham handed and uncaring workers to repair your guns. Having to send a gun back a second time because they damaged it is outrageous and unacceptable. I've owned 4 Ruger firearms over the years and each of them was a disappointment as it came from the factory. You can put enough aftermarket parts into some them to bring them up to an acceptable standard but having to spend more money to make something right isn't a sign of great workmanship.

March 28, 2002, 10:05 AM	#7
greg c Senior Member Join Date: May 23, 2000 Location: Phoenix Az Posts: 113	Hey guys, I did have a backup- remember? http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...red+label+rant I just, really, really, really, wanted to shoot the Red Label! PJ, that is some interesting analysis of the repair/wait time situation. I for sure agree about the ham handed repair guys. When you have to remind someone to take pride in their work it really detracts from your image of the company.:

March 28, 2002, 10:42 AM	#8
C.R.Sam Senior Member Join Date: October 29, 1999 Location: Dewey, AZ Posts: 12,858	A resonant loop for some manufacturers. The more they sell, the more warrenty work they get, the more load on the personnel, the more mistakes go out etc etc. Sorry Greg, I forgot you had a backup. Sam