Screwed over by Classic Firearms: A Recent Purchase Review

[veprdude]

A buddy and I bought a pair of Beretta 76s .22LR from Classic Firearms back in October. We opted for Hand Select. $479.99 plus $30 Hand Select. $24 shipping for 2. Took them out to the range and his was fine but mine was shooting way high. the front sight had been filed down at some point and could not be adjusted enough to compensate for this.

I emailed them hoping they would just send another sight since the pistol shot well otherwise. I was advised to return it and they would send a different one out in similar condition as the one I returned. A few weeks go by and I inquire when I will be receiving my other pistol. They had refunded the pistol for $470.41.

So I paid 479.99+30+12 (24 shipping divided by 2)= $521.99 and was refunded $470.41.

Let's not forget about the $20 FFL transfer fee I'm out.

[FrankenMauser]

You bought a used pistol, sight unseen.
You opted for 'hand select' which was for overall cosmetic appearance.
It had a minor mechanical defect.
You got to test drive it, but didn't like it.
The seller accepted a return.
You were refunded everything but shipping and the FFL fee. - Which is exactly what their terms prescribe.

I don't see a reason to be complaining here.

Perhaps you do not understand that what you get with purchases like that is luck of the draw. But that is how it works. It is random. It is a roll of the dice.
Chalk it up to a learning experience and remember this next time.

Where you're at right now is something like:
"Hey, guys. I bought a car off the internet, drove it for a week, discovered the gas cap missing, demanded it be fixed, the seller gave me a full refund for the car, but they won't pay me for the lunch that I ate in it or the cost of delivery."

[Mal H]

Originally Posted by FrankenMauser

Where you're at right now is something like:
"Hey, guys. I bought a car off the internet, drove it for a week, discovered the gas cap missing, demanded it be fixed, the seller gave me a full refund for the car, but they won't pay me for the lunch that I ate in it or the cost of delivery."

FrankenMauser, that is a terrible analogy. In fact it isn't an analogy at all since they have to be somewhat similar to the original episode.

[veprdude]

Originally Posted by FrankenMauser

The seller accepted a return.
You were refunded everything but shipping and the FFL fee. - Which is exactly what their terms prescribe.

Wrong. I was refunded $40 less than what I paid for it, not including shipping and FFL transfer fee. And this is after they told me they would send a like-condition replacement. They still had stock when I was refunded.

[Scorch]

Did you call and ask why? Ask.

[FrankenMauser]

I agree. Call.
You made no mention of contacting them again.

FrankenMauser, that is a terrible analogy.

That was the point.
The original complaint is terrible.

Wrong. I was refunded $40 less than what I paid for it, not including shipping and FFL transfer fee.

They don't refund shipping and FFL transfer fees. You agreed to such terms when you made the purchase.
If you want that back, you're going to have to fight.

[Warhammer]

Did you use a credit card to make the purchase? AFTER you call them and attempt to work out an acceptable solution, you can always dispute the transaction through your CC company.

[ghbucky]

I don't understand why you think they are responsible for the transfer and shipping costs.

Seems like you replacing the sight yourself would have been an option, since you were happy with the pistol otherwise.

I certainly don't think you were 'screwed over' by any stretch of the imagination.

[tangolima]

I bought a p38 from them years ago, also paid the hand-pick fee. The pistol arrived with the front sight missing. I wasn't happy. They took the fee without picking anything with their hands. Called and asked for replacement sight or refund of the fee. They refused and offered to take back the gun. Realizing I would end up losing more money, I took it as is. Bought front sight and installed it myself.

I guess it is the risk associated with buying guns in the way. Most transactions have been uneventful. When doing enough number of times, statistics will catch up with you.

-TL

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

[veprdude]

I paid $509.99 for the gun ($479.99 plus $30 hand select), NOT including shipping or FFL fees. I was refunded $470.41, which is less than the 479.99 advertised price. And I paid $30 on top of that for hand select.

For those asking why I didn't just replace the front sight- I tried. Try finding one. Nobody has them and there are no equivalent replacement sights available. I checked ebay at the time and found one completed sale for $80 +/- from Sept 2020 or so.

I did not call. They claim they're short staffed, etc. so I go through their email returns process. They promised me a replacement and instead refunded me for less than what the base price was.

[veprdude]

Originally Posted by Warhammer

Did you use a credit card to make the purchase? AFTER you call them and attempt to work out an acceptable solution, you can always dispute the transaction through your CC company.

Yes, a chargeback is being considered.

[5whiskey]

Classic firearms is on my avoid list. If they had something in stock that I just had to have, I may would roll the dice but I would do so with eyes wide open.

The OP is out $510 for the price he paid to classic firearms. Then probably $560 with shipping and ffl transfer. OPs gripe isn’t that they aren’t refunding shipping and ffl fee, but classic firearms did not issue a full refund of what he paid them for the pistol. OP read the fine print there may be some kind of restocking fee. I would call and ask. Then read the fine print.

I have bought sight unseen a good number of times from Gunbroker, JGsales, and Buds. I have been fortunate and have pretty decent firearms, but still I go in with eyes wide open. I would not send one back for minor issues like sights being off, basically for issues like the OP posts. Of all the surplus firearms places, classic is the one where I keep hearing horror stories from. I’ve heard one or two from AIM surplus too, but they don’t have much surplus anymore.

[veprdude]

Originally Posted by 5whiskey

OPs gripe isn’t that they aren’t refunding shipping and ffl fee, but classic firearms did not issue a full refund of what he paid them for the pistol.

Thank you for reading my post. This is exactly what is happening. There shouldn't be a restocking fee since I was promised a replacement.

I do not like going through Classic Firearms unless I have to. But sometimes, the only option to get what you're looking for is through them.

Also, during this time I bought a large number of magazines (200) from them. They shipped a 50lb package in the thinnest box with minimal tape. Of course the box broke open in transit and UPS retaped. I was lucky nothing was missing.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not ragging on Classic because they sent me a lemon. It's how they're dealing with it. I've probably spent close to $10-15k with them over the last 10 years. They're the slowest to ship and seem to have the most issues over trivial stuff.

[BCR1]

You're talking about classic in NC. World famous for pulling fast one's on people to steal their money. From lying fat bennie in the u tube ad's on humped up rifles to the subject discussed here in.

The sad part is, not enough people know about their shady history or current dealings to help put them out of business. PT Barnum was right.

Bill

[thegatman]

Please stay away from them. Overpriced and not reputable.

[eastbank]

to fix that problem it would have been easy and would not have cost classic very much, but by not taking care of this minor problem they will lose more money and good will. i know i will never be a classic customer.

[Carl the Floor Walker]

I have no dog in this fight, but just interested in the total process. I see many positive reviews, have known many people that have been delighted with the guns they bought. Buying a used gun seems risky for any buyer. Hand select is, if I am not mistaken the best of the products they have for cosmetic appearance. So was your gun the best of the group of guns? I am not sure what you really mean. Were you sent a product that was NOT the best of the group? How would you know this?
I read the terms in detail. And do not see where they did wrong. Maybe you can show us, exactly what your are referring to in their agreement.
I am NOT saying you are wrong, but at this point do not fully understand why your are right with such a small number of guns to choose from.

A example would be 10 used cars come into a dealer, all the same year, model etc.. You want a hand select one out of the 10. You get it picked for you, but it has flaws. Not perfect, but the best. Seems like a huge gamble before you even get into the buying process.

Hand Select Options

For certain items, we offer a hand select option. Hand select typically means we will pick you the best 1 out of 10 when looking at exterior cosmetics. Please know that hand select does not mean your item will be perfect and hand select has nothing to do with the bore, since we will be looking at exterior cosmetics only. To be clear, hand select does not guarantee any specific condition, nor does it mean it will look like your friend's hand selected gun nor does it mean it will look like the hand selected one someone posted a photo or video of on our site or in a forum. However, hand select does mean your item will be the cosmetically best exterior of the 10 looked at for your particular order.



Also the exchange and refusal terms seem to be clear. Where am I missing your point?

So the Beretta 76 is at least 40 years old. Saw this on gun values.

https://truegunvalue.com/pistol/bere...ical-value-190