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I am currently involved in a quality issue where a part supplied by my company failed during installation in the field. The defective part was returned to me so that we could perform a failure and root cause analysis. There is no way I would send the defective part back to the customer. Any employee promising that the customer could keep the part would be given some serious retraining.

If you bought a new car, got it home, took some friends for a little drive around the neighborhood, installed a cool new sound system and then discovered it had only 40% of the braking power it should have had, how upset would you be?

Hey, as long as no one died, it’s all good. People make mistakes. No big deal.

When you call, the maker’s CS guy tells you it’s OK to leave your stereo in there. No one will touch it. They send a tow truck and take the car.

Next day, you get a call. They’re going to pull your stereo out and install a factory unit. They have a policy that they won’t release a car that’s under warranty with aftermarket parts. You’ll have to do the job all over again.

Great. No reason to object. They’re going to make it right, in a month or so. You should be happy they’re going to fix it for free. In the meantime, you can drive your old car.

Don’t worry. Be happy.

NOT!!

We just disagree. Pretty sure I'd catch "40% braking power" pretty quick, but whatever. It's not like you paid a guy to put the stereo in (otherwise you'd be right to ask for that money back), you did it yourself, clearly it's a pain in the butt. Also, the stereo is not integral to the function of the vehicle so your comparison kind of falls apart a little. If you had put custom grips on the pistol and S&W freaked I'd understand where you were coming from.

I'll be honest, I don't understand what it is you want. Low level guy told you wrong info, it happens all the time. I feel like you understand this and you're intentionally being obtuse because you want to be upset. I mean didn't S&W already promise to make you whole and then some with the non-fluted cylinder? They could have just sent out a brand new gun and then you'd have to re-do that work anyway, wouldn't you? And now, with your latest update that they're leaving your parts in place, you really have no reason to be upset about that.

I think that when we deal with these huge corporate entities that we forget that it's just a bunch of human beings trying to produce a product and in S&W's case they make some great ones. You caught an error and were not harmed by it. Hugs all around, it's Miller Time!

From reading the replies, I am gathering that:

Either you accept poor customer service or you don't.

Kabong30 wrote:I'll be honest, I don't understand what it is you want.

I think that when we deal with these huge corporate entities that we forget that it's just a bunch of human beings trying to produce a product and in S&W's case they make some great ones. You caught an error and were not harmed by it. Hugs all around, it's Miller Time!

i8godzilla wrote:From reading the replies, I am gathering that:

Either you accept poor customer service or you don't.

That or you might not be able to differentiate between the two. I'm not trying to get your dander up, but when someone is willing to "man up" and own the fact that they made a mistake, I'm willing to give that person some lee-way. He got an upgrade to his gun how is that poor customer service?

i8godzilla wrote:From reading the replies, I am gathering that:

Either you accept poor customer service or you don't.

IMO, good customer service is "doing the right thing" to "make it right".

"Customer service" can not erase the original problem, but providing the customer with a replacement product that meets their expectations in a timely matter, is all that can be expected. Maybe they can give you an apology, a S&W hat or T-shirt or gift card as a bonus, but it seems that the gun owner expects something else. What it is, I am not sure.

Either you accept poor customer service or you don't.

IMO, good customer service is "doing the right thing" to "make it right".

In this case, “poor customer service” was being told one thing (actually two things) that turned out not to be true. I’m not the kind of guy to roll over and accept that. If someone thinks that’s unreasonable, tough. This is between S&W and me. Other peoples’ opinions won’t have any effect on what I do.

I’m not looking for a big payoff here. I asked if they’d install an unfluted cylinder and they agreed. I asked them to leave my action job alone and they agreed. I told them I wanted to keep the original cylinder and they said I could.

Then they started backpedaling. That bothered me. When someone gives me their word, I expect them to make their word good. It’s just that simple.

Japle wrote:Then they started backpedaling. That bothered me. When someone gives me their word, I expect them to make their word good. It’s just that simple.

I agree that a promise should be kept. That is the mark of integrity.

UPDATE - 1/30/12:

Got a call today from Paul Pluff, Director of Marketing Services at S&W. We had a long conversation about S&W’s inspection, QC and testing. According to him, they fire 40,000 psi proof loads through their .357 Magnum revolvers. The fact that this cylinder, even with 40% of its wall thickness missing on one chamber, passed the proof test is pretty damned impressive.

We discussed the liability problems S&W faces if this cylinder is left in the hands of someone they can’t control. I told him I completely understand their position. I have the FedEx shipping label they emailed to me and I’ll ship the cylinder back tomorrow. I hate to part with it, but I have to respect S&W’s position.

Darn!!

We discussed several other issues which I don’t need to go into. The bottom line is, S&W is aware of the severity of their mistake. They intend to make it right, and then some.

Glad everything is getting resolved.

I'd tell them I want one of their unfluted cylinders. You don't see them very often but I think they look real slick.

texasmusic wrote:I'd tell them I want one of their unfluted cylinders. You don't see them very often but I think they look real slick.

Read the entire thread...

To the OP, what does make it right and then some mean exactly. This thread has been on fire here the last few weeks and I and I'm sure others would like to know what over and above what you have stated are they going to do for you? And then some implies they are going to hook you up, not just give you a hat or a range bag with their logo on it.

To the OP, what does make it right and then some mean exactly. This thread has been on fire here the last few weeks and I and I'm sure others would like to know what over and above what you have stated are they going to do for you? And then some implies they are going to hook you up, not just give you a hat or a range bag with their logo on it.

Real good question. I have my own hopes and dreams, but they may not match up with what S&W has in mind.

RECIT wrote:

texasmusic wrote:I'd tell them I want one of their unfluted cylinders. You don't see them very often but I think they look real slick.

Read the entire thread...

To the OP, what does make it right and then some mean exactly. This thread has been on fire here the last few weeks and I and I'm sure others would like to know what over and above what you have stated are they going to do for you? And then some implies they are going to hook you up, not just give you a hat or a range bag with their logo on it.

If I wanted to keep the cylinder I would. (I wouldn't expect them to service it if I did though.) Heck you payed for it keep it if you want.

On the other hand if I was S&W I'd probably have personally delivered a gold plated gun of your choosing and taken the old one back.

Somebody over at S&W seriously doesn't know how to play damage control. I'm interested to see what happens here.