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Old December 23, 2012, 11:34 PM   #1
Zamudio09
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Warranty?

How important is warranty on a firearm? I'm picking up my first handgun tomorrow, a 92fs inox, and there is an optional lifetime warranty for 30 dollars. How important do you think warranty is? Is it something I should get, or should I just decline?
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Old December 23, 2012, 11:46 PM   #2
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If the warranty was actually from Beretta I might consider it, but I would not buy something from a third party. Just out of curiosity what type of warranty comes standard?
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Old December 24, 2012, 12:02 AM   #3
mj246
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It depends on several factors, but I would tentatively say get it. The factors are:

1) what kind of warranty already exists. Many serious problems will be discovered fairly quickly by shooting anywhere from 1 to 100 rounds through a new gun in my albeit limited experience. if it already has a warranty that will cover these problems than it might be worth skipping. Best idea would be to look up common problems with the defective ones (all companies make a few lemons) and see if they're out-of-the box type issues or down the road type issues.

2) Do you have to pay for shipping under the extended warranty? The reason $30 seems so appealing to me for a lifetime factory warranty is that most of my local gunsmiths either charge a fee around $25-$50 just to look at a gun before adding the cost to actually fix it, or a minimum of 1 hour's billing no matter how little time it takes to actually fix, which generally runs $50+ per hour depending on the smith. HOWEVER, if you have to pay $20-$25 shipping each way to get your gun fixed under warranty, then instead of $30 compared to $50-$100 for minor repairs, you'd be looking at $60-$80 for warranty work vs local work (which will generally be much faster).

I'm a fairly cautious guy, so the lifetime warranty appeals to me, but if you would have to pay shipping both ways, possibly multiple times and wait for longer to receive your (hopefully) fixed pistol, you might be better off just leaving it be and if the need arises find a local smith that can service you for the same price.

Hope this helps the decision making process and isn't just a garbled mess of confusion.
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Old December 24, 2012, 06:12 AM   #4
Zamudio09
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I did some research and if I register it online with beretta ill have 3 years total warranty. The optional warranty covers shipping and parts and labor. Seems like a good deal to me, but how often will I actually use it.
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Old December 24, 2012, 06:52 AM   #5
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You can't beat Springfield Armory!! Lifetime! Often honored even if not the original buyer!!
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Old December 24, 2012, 07:18 AM   #6
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Quote:
How important is warranty on a firearm?
A warranty is only worth as much as the paper it is printed on. Springfield, S&W and Ruger have some of the best customer service in the industry. Ruger by the way does not provide a "warranty" for their firearms at all yet has a stellar reputation for standing behind their products.

By contrast, Taurus offers a lifetime warranty no matter if you are the original owner or not and on paper it looks great. In real world use, their customer service and repair work is often times very spotty.

Buy a well made gun from a company that stands behind their product and you will be okay.
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Old December 24, 2012, 07:25 AM   #7
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I really, really love Beretta, and with their quality you're very unlikely to have problems, but I have to say that when I had to call for something I had a frustrating experience.
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Old December 24, 2012, 12:21 PM   #8
hdbiker
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Warranty

Both Springfield and Ruger have been more than fair with me on a couple issues I had.hdbiker
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Old December 24, 2012, 04:41 PM   #9
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Quote:
Ruger by the way does not provide a "warranty" for their firearms at all yet has a stellar reputation for standing behind their products.
True-and I can certainly attest to Ruger's well-deserved reputation for providing excellent customer service, warranty or not.
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Old December 24, 2012, 04:44 PM   #10
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Rock Island has a lifetime warranty no matter who originally bought it and their customer service is second to none.
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Old December 24, 2012, 04:57 PM   #11
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Think about the amount of money you are about to spend on the gun, and then look at the cost of that lifetime warranty. $30 is not much with those things considered.
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Old December 24, 2012, 05:07 PM   #12
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Warranty? Most of my stuff is old. Like really old. 50-100+ or so. The only real problem I have had with a new firearm, was oddly, my CZ-75BD. But I fixed it my self. So no real warranty stuff.

But BarryLee, has nailed it. If it is from the seller, no.
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Old December 24, 2012, 08:30 PM   #13
Zamudio09
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It was from my LGS. I went ahead and purchased it. Fired 100 rounds through it. Cleaned it. Overall a great Christmas Eve. If something should go wrong they cover the parts the labor and the shipping if needed through this warranty. I'm not gun savy enough should the need arise to attempt myself. Hopefully one day I will be.
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Old December 24, 2012, 08:49 PM   #14
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Good to hear! And welcome to the forum! The 92's are good guns. And the Inox's look good too! Have fun! And be safe! And Marry Christmas!!
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Old December 24, 2012, 09:18 PM   #15
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Better than a warranty for anyone who posts on or hangs around TFL FORUMS is to ask the population around here. Most of the major manufacturers have particular reputations that are well established and quite often repeatable.

Ruger and Taurus are just two examples worth looking at.

On one hand, Taurus makes a lot of their lifetime warranty, but almost everyone you ask who's had to use that warranty will tell you a few things that sting. Usually, Taurus requires that you ship the firearm to them. Even the most well connected of us (FFL's or those who have them as close friends) are spending $15 at minimum and some folks are over fifty bucks to make that one-way shipment happen. Further, Taurus has a long and easily proven reputation of a staggeringly long turn-around time. Some have reported better and we've heard some scattered reports that Taurus is attempting to improve in this area, but it's common that a handgun shipped to Taurus and back for warranty repair is a many month long process.

Ruger on the other hand, quite specifically does NOT offer a warranty and they even explain this in plain English in every owner's manual they print. They simply don't offer a written warranty or even imply one. Yet, it's nearly everyone's experience that this outfit goes above and beyond to take care of the guns with their name on them regardless of who happens to own it, how they got it, when they got it, and in many cases...what has happened to the gun.

Each company has likely had their screw-ups and some companies have done things that nobody would likely have even asked them or expected them to do. But these reputations are built over time and while it might appear or come off like "interwebs chatter" or "some guy online said...", in practice, there's a lot of substance.

EAA is a big importer of Tanfoglio handguns. I own one and I think it's one helluva great gun, especially at it's price point. But I bought it knowing full well that EAA reputation for attentive service and repair work is substandard in this industry. I wanna like them, and I have no hands-on experience to dislike them, but I can tell you with 100% confidence that I'd rather have one of my Smith & Wessons give me some kind of a small problem requiring warranty assistance than I would my Tanfoglio. Because I'm a lot more optimistic of how S&W will handle my request over what EAA will do on the other end of the phone.
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Old December 24, 2012, 11:10 PM   #16
ClydeFrog
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Taurus; model 82 revolver, customer service....

A few years ago, my good friend had problems with his model 82 revolver(.38spl). Taurus couldn't fix it or satisfy my friend so, to make up for the substandard revolver they sent gave him a NIB, unfired model 66 4" .357magnum.

I've heard a lot of +/- about Taurus quality but they do man up a few times.

In general, I buy firearms with service policies, but keep in mind any custom features or modifications may void it out.

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