Savage: the Only Jerks in the Gun Parts Business?

[Buck Wilde]

I thought I would thread the muzzle of my Savage A22 and just order a new barrel if I ruined it. Today I called Savage, and I learned:

1. They will not sell you a barrel or nut.
2. They will not send your FFL or smith a barrel or nut.
3. They will rebarrel your gun if you send it in and pay.
4. They will force you to use the exact type of barrel the gun came with, so forget threading.

Are there any other gun companies that are complete jerks about parts?

Guess I'm going to be a 10/22 guy soon.

 

[Mordamer]

How'd you screw it up? Just take it to a gunsmith and have them fix it for $100+ dollars.

 

[ramslammer]

Welcome to the world of lawyers there are many other companies that do the same and it is to protect themselves from Fudds who think they know what they are doing then Fuck it up. Also this parts problem is made worse by people who get free parts then sell them on line. Look at barrel suppliers you will find one who makes a barrel to fit. Er Shaw, green mountain etc.

 

[roostercogburn98]

So you ordered a 1/2-28 die from amazon and tried threading it in your basement?

Call me stupid, but if your comfortable enough to thread a muzzle and not worry about concentricity issues for a suppressor (assuming that’s what you wanted), the shouldn’t you be able to figure out the tenon specs?

Shouldn’t you be at least halfway capable of making a new barrel from a contoured blank? Even if you have to rent a chamber reamer?

Maybe there are some tasks I shouldn’t do at home if I’m not equipped or proficient?

 

[Buck Wilde]

I am a lawyer. This is ridiculous. Other gun companies have been sued by bottom-feeding tort lawyers, but they still sell parts. I don't think advising a client to eliminate a profitable part of its business and drive off customers is good lawyering. Plenty of companies make money selling only parts.

It would be nice if another company made A22 barrels. If one exists, I can't find it. Such barrels would probably cost several times what an OEM barrel would. A $120 A22 barrel is acceptable, but $300 is a bit much for a 100-foot coon and possum gun.

A lawyer issue can't explain why Savage won't rebarrel with its own threaded barrel.

I'll either take my chances machining the barrel or dump the gun. Ruger has one I like.

 

[cas6969]

A lawyer issue can't explain why Savage won't rebarrel with its own threaded barrel.

If a lawyer can't, an accountant can.


Lots of companies have "gunsmith only parts" or have certain parts they just won't sell at all.

As far as à la carte requests, they will tell you "we don't have a custom shop" , meaning they won't change your existing gun to some other configuration than what it came in. They're busy building new guns, don't have time or don't see enough upside to be bothered with the logistics and headaches changing yours. As well they often don't have the means to do it. Their repair and warranty work is done my a third party elsewhere, and the factory's not going to stop in the middle of a production run of model XXX rifles and retool so they can swap out a barrel on Steve's model AAA. Sure not worth the $150.

 

[Buck Wilde]

Savage has a Special Order Shop. One wonders what purpose it serves.

They must have smiths at their factory, because my buddy took two of his rifles there for work. He lived nearby.

 

[KYAggie]

I thought I would thread the muzzle of my Savage A22 and just order a new barrel if I ruined it. Today I called Savage, and I learned:

1. They will not sell you a barrel or nut.
2. They will not send your FFL or smith a barrel or nut.
3. They will rebarrel your gun if you send it in and pay.
4. They will force you to use the exact type of barrel the gun came with, so forget threading.

Are there any other gun companies that are complete jerks about parts?

Guess I'm going to be a 10/22 guy soon.

Well, at least you can actually get answers to your questions in a timely manner, even if they are not the answers you want. Try communicating with Aero, you would never get your questions answered, ever. At least Savage is somewhat interested in customer service.

 

[264win]

Ruger has been know for removing any non factory parts from guns that come in for repair.
Kind of ironic since they have some of the most commonly modified guns in the US.

 

[Buck Wilde]

That's incredible. The RPR is magnificent, but only with a new bolt shroud and trigger. I assume they return the aftermarket parts with the guns.

Well, I guess they don't. Not always. I just read about it on their site. But at least they warn people before they send guns in.

 

[Big Phish]

Well if I had a choice to choose it wouldn’t have been an A22. I can find a lot better platforms that have threaded barrels already. Heck the 64’s have threaded barrels for your purpose.

 

[Buck Wilde]

Savage makes a short, threaded A22, and I ordered one before I found out the only ways to change a barrel were to find a smith who would cut the old one or do it myself.

This makes the first A22 a throwaway gun for home gunsmithing experiments. That's not all bad.

 

[SupressYourself]

They also won't sell barrel extensions and recoil lugs for their Impulse line. If they did, it would be a lot more interesting platform, allowing for switch barrel capabilities.

 

[10ring1]

I am a lawyer. This is ridiculous. Other gun companies have been sued by bottom-feeding tort lawyers, but they still sell parts. I don't think advising a client to eliminate a profitable part of its business and drive off customers is good lawyering. Plenty of companies make money selling only parts.

It would be nice if another company made A22 barrels. If one exists, I can't find it. Such barrels would probably cost several times what an OEM barrel would. A $120 A22 barrel is acceptable, but $300 is a bit much for a 100-foot coon and possum gun.

A lawyer issue can't explain why Savage won't rebarrel with its own threaded barrel.

I'll either take my chances machining the barrel or dump the gun. Ruger has one I like.

Ruger 10/22 every time. More aftermarket parts than you could ever want.