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Losing faith in weatherby

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Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #15 on: February 10, 2019, 03:25:14 PM »
Yes lucky your Dad wasn't injured
Not being there, seeing the gun, or the extracted case, it is hard to tell just what happened
It does sound like some extremely excessive pressure. So it was a good thing he had a Mark V action which is the strongest action made

BB340

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Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #16 on: February 10, 2019, 04:10:06 PM »
The case head had a partial seperation and was easily removed. As for what caused it I'm not sure. It was an older reload, possibly overworked brass
 Like I said before my Dad is 83 and I was not present during the shot, thankfully he was not hurt.


I think you need to be a bit patient. I know it is hard for men like your dad that are set in their ways and has had things happen so much quicker in the past (my dad is the same). But that was back in Roy's day when the company was just starting and there was nowhere near the amount of customers compared to today.
Then as you know they are in the middle of a move that would be costing a fortune and taking up everyone's time. Plus as others have said Weatherby Inc has lost a lot of their employees that didn't want to or couldn't make the move. So who knows it could be all the repair guys that are not there anymore.
One last point is that you have stated "it was an older reload, possibly overworked brass." Well to me that sounds like it is your fault and no fault of the rifle or Weatherby. If you were shooting reloaded ammunition that you had no idea about then I put the blame on yourself as you were using unsafe and unknown ammunition.
Sorry if that comes across as harsh but in the cold light of day that is what it boils down to.   
Aussie gun nut.

Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #17 on: February 10, 2019, 04:33:24 PM »
I understand that "blame" wants to be put on what happened to the rifle. When in fact this has to do with weatherby service. It might be the ammo or the user's fault with what happened to the rifle. That is not the topic here, I am just stating a companies customer service is paramount to their customers. If it is to the point that a diagnosis on a rifle takes 6 months....it speaks for itself. I still love weatherby rifles, I just want to love their customer service as well.

Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #18 on: February 10, 2019, 04:55:22 PM »
Since it is 2019 I am sure you took pictures of all the damage. Would you please post them? Thanks
Roger
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Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #19 on: February 10, 2019, 05:38:51 PM »
First of all, if you're saying you've sent a rifle to Remington and received it back in a timely manner, you need to go play the lotto tonight.  Seriously.  Remington is notorious for long delays in dealing with customer rifles, poor customer communication, and terrible service.  I've experience all of the above, on more than one occasion (on parts as well as a whole shotgun being serviced).  Your experience with them is literally the first I've heard of which was anything but onerous and lengthy.  Mine were onerous and lengthy, for sure.

Second, if you're expecting Weatherby to be able to fully assess your rifle, you need to understand what really needs to be done to it to confirm it is safe to shoot.  Having helped confirm an action (a Rem700, if anyone wants to know) which had a grossly overpressure round detonated in it's chamber was alright, I'll walk you through the process we used.  We did a visual inspection.  Then on a lark (because we had access to a new X-Ray machine at a medical office) we did some X-Rays of it.  Then we did what really mattered - checked the lugs for setback (headspace checked, effectively), and sent it to a machine shop with a magnaflux particle testing setup so we could look for hairline cracks inside and out.  That was just a few guys doing it, but I'm a hobbyist gunsmith and we had two NASA engineers involved (I live near Marshall Space Flight Center), and we weren't in a hurry at all, but it took us several weeks.  Now, if we'd had custom guns to deliver, other service projects to assess and diagnose, while short of staff, while managing a move over 1000mi distance, with all the regular ongoing work of running a B-to-C business, I suspect it would have taken months to work through all the details.

I understand your dad is impatient, and you are impatient.  But in this instance, there are some very good things to know.  One, the work will be done thoroughly.  Two, it's not deer season right now, and won't be for a long while.  Three, there's at least a reasonably good chance the action is toast and your dad is going to need a new rifle.  Might not be a bad idea to consider if there's something you want, which he would shoot if need be, and go ahead and invest in it.  My suspicion is, if the stock is cracked in two places, and the mag box got blown out the bottom, the action is no longer aligned properly, at least, and may well have lug setback along with hairline cracks.  Good luck with it.
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PARA45

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Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #20 on: February 10, 2019, 06:05:26 PM »
Rifleman8, you need to have a bit of patience with Weatherby.  Like others have said and you know, they are in the middle of a huge move.  I know it's 2019, but sometimes a phone call is better than an e-mail.  You are not the only customer e-mailing Weatherby, and at this time, Weatherby probably doesn't have the personnel to answer every single e-mail. 

Did you contact Weatherby before sending the rifle?  Did Weatherby give you a timeline of how long it would take to look/fix your dad's rifle? 

My son sent his Weatherby Accumark to Weatherby, and the rifle was back in his hand 2 months later.  Granted, his issue was accuracy, and not something major, like what probably happened to your dad's rifle.  That is why it may take a bit longer to examine.  Be patient, and give them a call and ask them about your Weatherby. 
Senator John Kennedy  " If you support defunding the police, you've tested positive for stupid".

Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #21 on: February 10, 2019, 07:20:03 PM »
I have not only e mailed but talked to customer service on the phone. They have always answered me and my concerns.  Weatherby has mirrored what all you passionate weatherby nationers have said. They're in a big move and things are taking a very long time. I am not trying to put down the weatherby brand, as some feel i am. I am just stating the facts about repair turn around time currently. I enjoy their products and have pride in them as the rest of you do.

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Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #22 on: February 10, 2019, 07:52:37 PM »
Welcome to the nation! I am not understanding your frustration here for some reason. you stated the damage may have been caused by the reloads used. At that point it is not a manufacturing defect/warranty situation. The fact that Weatherby is looking at your firearm at this point with that information I think, says volumes for their customer service. So just set back and let things run their course. I fortunately have never had to use their repair services but many on here have and it seems all are more than satisfied with them. It seems Weatherby always goes above and beyond expectations to keep their customers happy. I personally would rather they take their time and examine everything. I hope all turns out well for you.

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Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #23 on: February 10, 2019, 08:08:47 PM »
I would be looking for another rifle.If fixable they aren't doing it for free because you were shooting handloads.At minimum a Deluxe stock for a 378 will be $800.00 at least.New floor plate assembly another $175.00 and it won't be metallike your original one.It will be alloy.Good luck to you though.
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Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #24 on: February 11, 2019, 09:08:08 AM »
I'v been out of the loop for a bit and just stumbled on this post. I have to say that while I fully understand sentimental value in a firearm and the desire to put it back in service, personally, I would not want to see it used again if me and my Dad (deceased) were in this situation. The safety and accuracy of future use seem questionable, based on the descriptions of the damage. Of course the stock is a goner, but there could be microscopic cracks in the steel invisible to the naked eye, not to mention that chamber tolerances may be crap after all that pressure. I would chalk it up to experience as an oops, retire this gun, get a new rifle and be careful with the reloads in the future.
Come and take it.

Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #25 on: February 11, 2019, 09:38:33 AM »
First, weatherby did not say 6 months for turn around. I would have considered that a ridiculous timeline for service. We have many brands of guns never have i heard of nor experienced such a statement of 6 months for service from any.  Second, a case rupture is a rifle problem because the stock split in two spots and the magazine blew out of the bottom. Third and finally, I e-mail because it is 2019, and I get quick responses that way. I personally have experienced timely firearm turn around from ruger, remington, and savage. These are all value priced brands I relize, but they seem to keep customer service a priority.  All I am saying is a premium priced rifle should come with premium and timely service. The rifle is in their hands now so....timely it will not be, but premium in terms of craftsmanship is left to be seen.



In your first post you did not say anything about the collateral damage to the rifle or the fact that you were using reloads. Now that I know this information I fully agree with Tex and I also understand that your dad loves this rifle. You basically sent Weatherby a pile of junk that became that way by no fault of the rifle or Weatherby. Now you want them to turn it back into an "as new" rifle and you want them to trust that you will not use those reloads in the rifle again. I am only an armature gunsmith but if I was in it for the money and that rifle came into my shop I would refuse to do the work just simply from a liability aspect. I could never guarantee that the rifle would be able to shoot your reloads and I am not the kind of person who blindly trusts that you will never try to use them again.


The way I see it, you are very lucky that Weatherby even gave you an RMA allowing you to send it in for repair. In fact, with the changes going on at Weatherby, that could very well have been a mistake made by an inexperienced consumer service person. I would not be at all surprised if after a thorough evaluation by the Gunsmiths at Weatherby, you get a call or email stating that the rifle is beyond repair with a recommendation for replacement.


I do agree that consumer services is not up to par right now but they were in the past and I have complete faith that this will return. You didn't realize that they were in the middle of a huge transition and they should have told you that and given you some sort of time line even if it was simply that their Gunsmiths will not be able to look at it until some given date. That would have been something reasonable to expect. Lack of communications is not acceptable either since their admin functions have been in Wyoming for some time now and because there are so many ways to communicate today. This is a personnel/policy problem that they must get under control or, you are correct, they will loose customers both new and old.
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Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #26 on: February 11, 2019, 10:20:44 AM »
Sorry, I am not belong to your country and I dont have the authority to talk about your things, companies, warranties, post sales services, companies, etc, etc, etc. But seing all this posts and damages on that gun, me than you, willl be considering seriously in buying another rifle. I would conserve trigger, screws, nuts, pin may be, springs, slings, scopemounts, and another guns parts  from that gun for backup.
That gun is deadly hurt and Weatherby as anothers Companies cannot do miracles.
Be lucky.
Juan, from Argentina
Why make things easy if you can make it difficult?

224KING

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Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #27 on: February 11, 2019, 01:00:30 PM »
I'v been out of the loop for a bit and just stumbled on this post. I have to say that while I fully understand sentimental value in a firearm and the desire to put it back in service, personally, I would not want to see it used again if me and my Dad (deceased) were in this situation. The safety and accuracy of future use seem questionable, based on the descriptions of the damage. Of course the stock is a goner, but there could be microscopic cracks in the steel invisible to the naked eye, not to mention that chamber tolerances may be crap after all that pressure. I would chalk it up to experience as an oops, retire this gun, get a new rifle and be careful with the reloads in the future.



X2
Retirement; The art of doing very little,very slowly

Expert; Someone who knows so much about so little

If you live in the swirl of the drain,inevitably you'll wind up in the cesspool.

Remember 10534

Sorry... Yesterday was the last and final day for any and all complaints whatsoever.

Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #28 on: February 11, 2019, 04:01:35 PM »
From the damage you described I agree that it's a very safe bet the rifle is destroyed.  Yeah it's sad that a rifle with such sentamental value is ruined beyond repair but the good part is no one was hurt.  I don't know if you were aware Weatherby is in the middle of moving their entire company to an entirely different state so as much as we don't like the fact that certain operations such as repairs and customer service aren't up to the normal Weatherby standard it's some what expected and I'm sure it will return the the high level we've all received in the past and come to expect.  As for emailing them yeah it's more convenient however I wouldn't address an issue such as this through email at least initially.  Maybe a phone call takes more time but it's a lot easier to talk with an actual person rather than sending emails back and forth when a new question comes up.
Nothing is better than a Weatherby, big bore magnum, or a Colt.

Re: Losing faith in weatherby
« Reply #29 on: February 11, 2019, 04:37:04 PM »
I was contacted by weatherby today and they said the rifle is not fixable. They offered for us to buy one at dealer cost, unfortunately their dealer cost is more than is available through on line gun shops. I guess we will be thankful in the fact there were no injuries, and replace the rifle through a dealer. Thanks for all the replies, have a nice day.