Disgusted.
- Thread starter Brian22
- Start date
Maybe the ARMCO smith could have watched a video on refinishing first.. Like AGI or youtube
I am no smith, but I have seen it done. And every slab sided pistol I have seen refinished had the sides worked on with a large file, or a file wrapped in abrasive paper. Perhaps for stainless a specific paper and technique even, but with a solid flat backing to maintain sharp lines. Anything else seems to be a 'home job' even to amateur handy person like myself. I think you putting the blame on the owner is not appropriate.
Waynetheman
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Vancouver.
Maybe the ARMCO smith could have watched a video on refinishing first.. Like AGI or youtube
I am no smith, but I have seen it done. And every slab sided pistol I have seen refinished had the sides worked on with a large file, or a file wrapped in abrasive paper. Perhaps for stainless a specific paper and technique even, but with a solid flat backing to maintain sharp lines. Anything else seems to be a 'home job' even to amateur handy person like myself. I think you putting the blame on the owner is not appropriate.
The blame is 50/50 as far as I am concerned... it isn't all the fault of one or the other...
Quite possibly the shop doesn't even realize the finished product isn't very good... The owner should not assume every 'smith' or every 'shop' can do the high level of work he wanted done... it was a job requiring a few hours of skilled polishing by hand... to me is very much looks like it was a hurried job not done by hand...and the charge seems excessive... but it is too late to do anything now and all the #####in on forums will not change that...
Have any closeups of the test on the side of the slide ? can help smiths here say if they product was done by hand or on a buffing wheel.
With rounded corners that were sharp, my guess is that they likely ran it back and forth on a fluffy buffing wheel.
if the lettering looks smeared on one or both sides of the letters it likely was done on a buffing wheel which could explain the waving lines.
Depending on how much was taken off there might be some saving it depending on how much would need to be taken off with fine sandpaper and a granite flatstone.
without a flat edge to go over the sides of the slide it would be hard to see how much was taken off, or would need to be taken off to clean up some of it.
I am for sure not saying it can be fixed, but a good gunsmith who does a lot of bluing and polishing of firearms (and does a good job... just because you do a lot does not make you good) may be able to tell you if there is any saving anything of the slide.
With rounded corners that were sharp, my guess is that they likely ran it back and forth on a fluffy buffing wheel.
if the lettering looks smeared on one or both sides of the letters it likely was done on a buffing wheel which could explain the waving lines.
Depending on how much was taken off there might be some saving it depending on how much would need to be taken off with fine sandpaper and a granite flatstone.
without a flat edge to go over the sides of the slide it would be hard to see how much was taken off, or would need to be taken off to clean up some of it.
I am for sure not saying it can be fixed, but a good gunsmith who does a lot of bluing and polishing of firearms (and does a good job... just because you do a lot does not make you good) may be able to tell you if there is any saving anything of the slide.
Why are you stuck?
You have an open claim (for lack of better words ) with the BBB and part of that is confidentiality iirc.
No amount of group hugging is going to resolve your anger at the shoddy work ( inferred shoddy work ) and the psychology advice
is just to funny...professional advice tendered in the form of sympathy, yup well played... Not.
Yo paid by CC, file a claim with them and this post should be a warning to others to choose wisely or blindly.
Btw, what does this complaint have to do with gun smithing anyways?
It seems more customer dispute resolution over some sort of technical question.
Rob
When I bring my jeep to the garage for an oil change, I don't need to remind them to use a copper washer around the drain plug or to remember to tighten the new filter. So if I drive down the road and oil spills everywhere is that my fault?
With this attitude, I would be leery to send you work. Just saying.
I think that the work shown above is very poorly done and he was also over-charged, no matter what level of emotion he's put into the outcome. His emotional health is besides the point. If I bought that gun at a swap meet last month and it came back like that after a $350 outlay, I'd be LIVID.
But then, I would not have sent that job out. Not everyone has a machine shop though...
My opinion having done this job a few times.
1) I can't see how a buffing wheel would have been used. It would have been really hard to get the wheel to the end of the flat without rounding the serrations in the slide.
2) There are really only 2 right ways to do this job, only one of which will work if the serration tips are up level with the flats, those are:
a) With emery paper backed by a hard flat tool
b) with a surface grinder (only workable if the serrations are recessed a little).
Most shops don't have the required magnetic chuck and surface grinder to do it that way, and frankly, the setup would be a lot of work. draw-sanding the slide would be faster and probably more profitable if the gunsmith has skill.
You get rounded edges like that when the sanding was done with a soft backer, like a foam sanding block, or if the paper was not tightly wrapped around the backer. With the degree of rounding on the corners, I'd bet on a foam sanding block being used - which is totally amateur hour. The only really valid use of foam blocks are when doing compound curves, like when you finish sand a wood stock at very fine grit.
That's my $.02 worth.
OK, some practical advice:
I can't definitively say how much it can be improved without seeing the slide in-hand. But I will say that hands-down the best finish man around is Jason Spencer at Gunco in Ottawa. Seeing Jason at work is truly humbling for most people who call themselves gun plumbers in Canada.
I have no idea if he can salvage it completely, but you could mail him the slide, pay the costs, and it will come back as good as it can still be.
He can only be reached by phone. 613-224-6266
Make sure you explain the issues and how far you are willing to go to make it right. For enough money, they can machine it totally flat and re-engrave the roll-mark by hand to make it look like it was rolling-die struck. Be warned, if you go full ret@rd, it will get expensive in a hurry.
I can't definitively say how much it can be improved without seeing the slide in-hand. But I will say that hands-down the best finish man around is Jason Spencer at Gunco in Ottawa. Seeing Jason at work is truly humbling for most people who call themselves gun plumbers in Canada.
I have no idea if he can salvage it completely, but you could mail him the slide, pay the costs, and it will come back as good as it can still be.
He can only be reached by phone. 613-224-6266
Make sure you explain the issues and how far you are willing to go to make it right. For enough money, they can machine it totally flat and re-engrave the roll-mark by hand to make it look like it was rolling-die struck. Be warned, if you go full ret@rd, it will get expensive in a hurry.
That is true, but you would not get rounded edges right up against the serrations without the serrations being rounded too.
you would get rounded edges at the top and bottom if using a foam block or lose paper. if he used a buffing wheel and buffed it top to bottom it would explain the crooked transition lines, and the rounded edges only on the top portion of the slide.
Without mentioning the rounded edges, $350 to bead blast the slide and polish the two flats is rape.
To the op: at this point I wouldnt spend more on this handgun. No matter what now, it will annoy you when you look at it. I would sell it "as is", buy a fresh one, and try to forget this whole ordeal (hard to do, I know). I too get wound up and take things too personally, much better to decide to let it go and not bother you anymore. At least that's what I am learning.
To the op: at this point I wouldnt spend more on this handgun. No matter what now, it will annoy you when you look at it. I would sell it "as is", buy a fresh one, and try to forget this whole ordeal (hard to do, I know). I too get wound up and take things too personally, much better to decide to let it go and not bother you anymore. At least that's what I am learning.
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I can't tell from the pic if the top and bottom are rounded or not. They might be. Again, hard to speak in absolutes without holding the slide in-hand to observe it. Whatever they did, it does not look like it was done right.
- Location
- Fort St John BC
I think the majority of those problems can be fixed or at very least improved. If i were you id start looking on you tube and take your time and do it yourself.
- Location
- Prince Albert, Sk
How does it shoot?
KG Gunkote???
KG Gunkote???
