The Auto-Ordnance M1 Carbine by Kahr Arms received Part 1 andPart 2 coverage a short time ago. The carbine was purchased because it is very near military spec, which would allow us to fit M1 accessories and make modifications without damaging a historical firearm. Unfortunately, a high frequency of failure to feed problems brought project plans to a halt.
Both Kahr Auto-Ordnance and third party magazines made for the military version M1 were tried, all with the same results. A check of feed lips and magazine catch hooks suggested that the magazines were in good shape, although there was a good deal of side to side slop that allowed that pulled the feed lips down and away from the rifle’s bolt if side pressure was applied.
Typically, if a firearm doesn’t work when received, or if it breaks while in use, we fix it in the shop to avoid phone calls, communication, waiting, and/or the occasional debate with the manufacturer. However, with a shop full of in-process projects, we elected to avail ourselves of the Kahr Arms warranty services. Quality of service varies throughout the industry and we had no other experience with the company; best case, we would end up with a functioning rifle. Worst case, we would have yet another thing to grump about. The experience went something like this:
10/20/2014 – Using the online Return Authorization Request Form, I provided some basic information including a brief description of the feed problem and requested a Return Authorization.
10/21/2014 – The next day an email request acknowledgement was received, along with FedEx return shipping labels.
10/22/2014 – The rifle was shipped back to Kahr.
10/24/2014 – An email confirming receipt of firearm was received from Kahr Arms.
10/31/2014 – An M1 Carbine was received from Kahr with 2 magazines, the same count sent in for service, along with a form explaining the problem found and the corrective action taken.
11 calendar days from day of request for service until delivery of repaired unit, or 5 just days excluding time in transit.
The problem found was described as “Low frame rails causing bolt to not pick up round from magazine”. The corrective action was to replace the receiver (which meant a new serial number) and to ops check with 50 rounds of Hornady ammunition. There were no charges for the repair, ammo or for shipping.
Checking out the effectiveness of the corrective action, two ten round magazines worth of Remington .30 Caliber Carbine were fired at an elevated rate. The magazines were reloaded and rapid fired again. A 20 round and a 30 round aftermarket magazine intended for military M1 Carbine application were cycled in the same manner. Finally, mixed handloads, bullet weight and level of load were processed in the same manner. Not a single hiccup in feed or cycling was experienced. Big relief.
My initial concern was that the A-O M1 Carbine would be unreliable in the absence of lot of tinkering and tuning… which would have been disappointing as, even with problems, the carbines was fun to shoot. The quality of service and the performance of the returned firearm were reassuring. It demonstrated there was nothing inherently wrong with the firearm and that Kahr stands behind their products.
An unfortunate gun owner tendency…
Most manufacturers work diligently to support the products they sell and to keep customers happy. Some of the motivation to keep customers happy is altruistic, but most of it comes from good business sense. Making a repeat sale to a happy customer is much less expensive than selling to a new customer and positive word of mouth recommendations are much less costly than buying full page ads in national publications.
Buying a firearm and having it perform as advertised is a fair expectation. However, we live in an imperfect world and, sometimes, things go wrong. The manner in which a problem is resolved can result in a customer being reassured or result in the loss of a customer and a firearm’s reputation. In general, getting a product serviced under warranty should be easy, free and result in a product that works as intended. Getting a product serviced out of warranty should be easy, fair in cost and a product that works as intended.
I’ve learned that firearm forums and social media of all types are not a good indication of the success or failure of a company’s service process, from either the perspective of the manufacturer or the customer. Service conducted satisfactorily goes unmentioned, as there is little motivation for the customer to comment; we are living in the “What’s in for me?” times. Credible reports of poor service are often overshadowed by less than credible angry spews. As a result, potential customers of a brand are not effectively cautioned or, sometimes, unjustifiably driven away. Sometimes personal experience is the best teacher.
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