Defective parts in brand new handgun

[AZJeepGuy]

On Jan 16, 2025 I purchased a brand new Manurhin MR73 Gendarmerie. I took it to the range a month later and shot it for the first time. After about 40 rounds it would occasionally become extremely difficult to fire (sometimes I couldn’t even pull the trigger or cock it manually). After 66 rounds I stopped, went home, and contacted Beretta, who advised me to send it in so they could take a look at it.

In the meantime, I took a close look at the spent casings (I was shooting new LAX Ammo 158gr flat point .357 Mag). I noticed that on quite a few of them the back of the casing (primer end) was ever so slightly bowed. If you set it on a flat surface you could see that the spent casing was not sitting flat against the table. I put one of these in the cylinder and the problem reappeared. When I reloaded with snap caps it dry fired smooth as butter.

I figured it was the ammo but I still sent the gun back to Beretta (with a sample of the spent casings). If I have any issues with a brand new firearm I want a qualified gunsmith to look at it and assure me that it’s 100% OK. I was notified today that they found many altered parts, the firearm was unsafe, and the warranty was voided (see photos). Beretta accused me of modifying the parts. I have virtually nonexistent gunsmithing skills and the idea that I would tear into such a masterpiece of a revolver is crazy.

On a side note I also contacted Freedom Munitions where I purchased the LAX Ammo. They immediately sent me a shipping label so I could return all of the ammo.

I contacted Beretta again via voicemail assuring them that I didn’t alter this gun in any way and that I wanted answers as to how modified parts could find their way into a brand new premium revolver. I sent a similar email to Chapuis (the French manufacturer who builds the MR73). I also contacted an attorney.

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[TailGator]

I'd be interested in seeing a photo of those cases with the bowed heads. Did you look at any unfired cartridges to see if the cases started out with that defect? What you described could certainly cause resistance to the cylinder rotating. I can't think of how the cases could be deformed in the manner you describe by firing.

As for the modified parts, if you didn't modify them and Beretta didn't modify them, I would start asking questions of the seller.

There some sharp folks here to give you some ideas. I have more questions than answers right now.

[mehavey]

On Jan 16, 2025 I purchased a brand new Manurhin MR73 Gendarmerie....

From whom....?
(Inquiring minds want to know.)

[Aguila Blanca]

If they just notified you today that there are modified parts in the gun, where did those detailed photos come from? Did Beretta send them to you?

[4V50 Gary]

I'm also puzzled by how a "new" gun could have so many modified parts. It can't be a "new" gun and somebody tinkered with it.

[JohnKSa]

Where did you buy the firearm? That's the first question to answer. If the gun really does have modified parts, then it isn't new and someone sold you a used gun as new. They scammed you. Beretta will also definitely want to know about that.

Looking at those photos, there was a lot more modification done to those parts than the notations indicate. That cylinder lever looks more like an aftermarket replacement part that's not properly dimensioned than an altered factory part.

[bamaranger]

Could the mainspring be bent by powering through a trigger pull(s) , caused by the malformed caseheads?

Cylinder lever? Are we talking about the "hand"?

[44 AMP]

Small point of order here, about terminology.

The first time a gun gets sold at retail, it is "new". After that, it is never "new" again. Even if the gun is never fired, or never even has the mechanism operated, its not "new" ever again. It's now "pre-owned" aka "used". Condition may be properly described with terms such as "unfired", or "as new" or "as new in the box" but its once owned, its never "new" again and claiming such is fraud.

The pictures show parts altered from "new" parts. Best bet is that neither the factory nor the dealer put them in there, and a previous owner did, and then sold the gun under the false claim it was new.

IF you paid the price of a new gun, I'd say you got cheated.

[Sgt127]

Where you purchased it is kind of important…

[Ricklin]

Looks to me that you have contacted everyone EXCEPT the dealer you purchased the revolver from. Why is that?
Given the data provided by Beretta, get with your seller and get your money back. Beretta can ship the revolver back to their "dealer" If you have already contacted an Atty. a call or letter from them to the dealer is warranted. It would be that dealer that has your money, that's where the issue appears to lie.

[TailGator]

The OP doesn't appear to have come back since he posted.

[44 AMP]

The OP doesn't appear to have come back since he posted.

Its only been 4 days.

Ja, sure, maybe he's a troll who just starts things to stir people up and leaves, or maybe something in the real world has kept him from getting on TFL for a few days.

Time will tell.

[AZJeepGuy]

The photo is not the best but if you look closely you can see that the circled area does not sit flush. It’s not much but apparently it’s enough to cause problems. If this particular casing is inserted into the cylinder the problem occurs. When only snap caps are used: no problems.

[JohnKSa]

Based on the picture, it looks like the primer in that round isn't seated properly. It should be a little below flush with the case head. Try another brand of ammunition. I'll bet it works perfectly.

What happened with the other issue? If someone sold you a used gun and said it was new, I think everyone would like to know who did it so they can avoid the same problem.

[AZJeepGuy]

I’ve spent the past 2+ weeks tracking down answers to your (and my) questions. As some of you may know, MR73’s go through about 12 hours of fine tuning and fitting of parts during the manufacturing process to ensure everything is as close to perfect as they can get it. I sent the pictures (which I originally received from Beretta) to Chapuis Armes in France (the folks who actually built the gun) and they verified that the photos show modifications that THEY made when they were building it. Kudos to Tyler at Scopelist (where I purchased it) for being the first to suggest that this might be the case.

I just found this out a few days ago (Chapuis was slow to respond). While I was doing my own investigation as to whether these mods were done by Chapuis or someone else I repeatedly asked Beretta to contact Chapuis themselves in an effort to obtain an answer. However, they failed to do this and their next communication with me was that the gun was fixed and was on its way back to me. When pressed for more info they told me that they replaced all the modified parts. I was furious. They told me not to worry because they would use the same TLC in the repair as the factory did when they assembled it in the first place. (Yeah, right. Beretta’s MR73 “expert” who couldn’t even recognize the custom fitting performed by the factory is now going to replicate it and make my gun good as new).

I just got it back a few hours ago. The trigger reset is horrible. You can feel it catching at two distinct points during the reset process. One time it was so bad that the trigger stayed depressed to the rear even when I completely removed my finger from it. After a couple of seconds it snapped back to the full forward position. This gun “was” such a work of art when I got it and Beretta completely ruined the essence of what an MR73 is supposed to be. It feels more like a $200 Saturday night special.

It’s Saturday today so there’s not a lot I can do. One thing I did was sent a certified letter to Beretta’s VP of Operations explaining pretty much what I stated here. I was polite but I told him that I had absolutely no faith in Beretta’s ability to work on MR73’s and I wanted it sent back to France to be made right. It will be interesting to see what his response will be.

[AZJeepGuy]

Originally Posted by mehavey

From whom....?
(Inquiring minds want to know.)

I bought it from Scopelist.com. They were very helpful. The guy I spoke with (Tyler) was the first to suggest that Chapuis made those modifications during the assembly process. He also looked up the serial number and gave me the date they received the gun from Beretta and the day they shipped it to my FFL. Good customer service from them (much better than Beretta).

[AZJeepGuy]

Originally Posted by Aguila Blanca

If they just notified you today that there are modified parts in the gun, where did those detailed photos come from? Did Beretta send them to you?

Yes, Beretta sent them to me. The thing that really concerned me after Chapuis told me that these were legit factory modifications was how in the world the MR73 “expert” at Beretta could not have immediately recognized this. It was the guy at Scopelist (who I purchased it from) who first suggested that this might be the case. Beretta didn’t even confirm before tossing the old parts and replacing them.

[AZJeepGuy]

Originally Posted by Ricklin

Looks to me that you have contacted everyone EXCEPT the dealer you purchased the revolver from. Why is that?
Given the data provided by Beretta, get with your seller and get your money back. Beretta can ship the revolver back to their "dealer" If you have already contacted an Atty. a call or letter from them to the dealer is warranted. It would be that dealer that has your money, that's where the issue appears to lie.

I did contact Scopelist (where I bought it). They were very helpful. Come to find out it almost certainly was an ammo issue and I’m almost 100% sure (after my communications with Chapuis) that there never was anything wrong with the gun … until Beretta “fixed” it.

[AZJeepGuy]

Originally Posted by JohnKSa

Based on the picture, it looks like the primer in that round isn't seated properly. It should be a little below flush with the case head. Try another brand of ammunition. I'll bet it works perfectly.

What happened with the other issue? If someone sold you a used gun and said it was new, I think everyone would like to know who did it so they can avoid the same problem.

I bet it would have worked perfectly, too … until Beretta attempted to fix it (see my other posts for details of what they did)

And, just to clarify, all those modifications were done at the factory (Chapuis Armes) during the manufacturing process. They really put a lot of craftsmanship into these guns during assembly (12 hours of small modifications to make them perfect) and these were what we were seeing in the photos. Chapuis was kind of slow to reply to my inquiries and by the time I found out what the story was Beretta already discarded the old parts and replaced them with new ones (and totally wrecked the fine tuning of the gun in the process).

[AZJeepGuy]

Originally Posted by bamaranger

Could the mainspring be bent by powering through a trigger pull(s) , caused by the malformed caseheads?

Cylinder lever? Are we talking about the "hand"?

I really don’t think so. When the gun was reloaded with Snap Caps it worked fine. The only reason I even sent it in to Beretta was because when having issues with a brand new firearm - even though I was quite sure it was an ammo issue - I thought it would be a good idea to have them look it over. This is a $4100 gun and I wanted to be 100% sure everything was ok. Unfortunately, I had no idea that an unqualified gunsmith would wreck the finely tuned workings of it.

[mehavey]

Originally Posted by OP

If this particular casing is inserted into the cylinder the problem occurs.

Do I read that correctly as a fired case? (as so stated in post #1)

If so, the primer has very naturally backed out upon firing -- but usually reseats itself against the back of the recoil shield as the case moves moves back under full pressure.
In your case it did not -- and was left dragging against the shield upon cylinder rotation.
(That can actually lock the gun up -- as it apparently did yours)

I would offer that's an ammunition problem (low pressure), possibly exacerbated by a rough cylinder that wouldn't allow the case to slide back. But that'd water under the bridge at this point.

I'll be very interested in the Beretta VP's response to his people apparently doing actual damage to the revolver.

[AZJeepGuy]

I didn’t realize exactly what the issue was. Thanks for pointing that out. It does beg the question as to why a “qualified” gunsmith at Beretta didn’t realize that as well (I sent the worst of the spent casings to Beretta along with my gun). BTW, Freedom Munitions, where I purchased the LAX ammo I was using was very cooperative. I explained what happened and within a couple of days they sent me a return label for the unused ammo and will be issuing a refund.

I’m hoping the VP of Operations at Beretta is willing to do the right thing. I checked Beretta’s BBB rating. D-. I’ll keep everyone posted on how this turns out.

[Jim Watson]

It disturbs me that Chapuis/Manurhin had to visibly distort parts in “tuning” the revolver to function well. I am not much surprised that the Beretta warranty clerk thought he could fix it by putting in standard parts.

[AZJeepGuy]

Originally Posted by Jim Watson

It disturbs me that Chapuis/Manurhin had to visibly distort parts in “tuning” the revolver to function well. I am not much surprised that the Beretta warranty clerk thought he could fix it by putting in standard parts.

They do this with all their MR73’s.
https://youtu.be/0v3oUU7uD14?si=zyRcc_8m5wYHwd02
This video is a good explanation of the manufacturing process. You can fast forward to 9:30 where they talk about the fine tuning process of your don’t want to watch the whole thing.

[Aguila Blanca]

Originally Posted by Jim Watson

It disturbs me that Chapuis/Manurhin had to visibly distort parts in “tuning” the revolver to function well. I am not much surprised that the Beretta warranty clerk thought he could fix it by putting in standard parts.

I'm not surprised, either. When I took the SIG 1911 armorer's certification class, the instructor stressed that we DO NOT modify parts -- ever, for any reason. We were taught to replace anything questionable with a new, factory part. If that doesn't fix the problem, the gun goes back to the factory.