EricW Posted May 5, 2004 Share Posted May 5, 2004 Dateline: Aujourd'hui. 2:00 pm EST. Well....it turns out, that during the last trip to the range, my Mom lost the slide stop out of the Mustang .380 that I had loaned her. Not a huge deal. Hopefully Colt will have one in stock.................that is..............if the sonsofbitches would even answer the telephone!!! It LITERALLY took 45 minutes of calling during normal business hours to get through. It was call, no answer, call again, no answer, call another number for Colt, no answer, no answer, no operator, no nothing. No voice mail to be found. No signs of life whatsoever.... Finally, by some act of God, the janitor must have heard the phone and answered. "You're still in business?!" "Yeah, I guess." "Got a slide stop for a Mustang?" "Nope. We sold them all to some schmucks in Pennsylvania." So, I called the gunstore in PA that Colt sold ALL of their inventory to. "Yeah, we got some slide stops. We ordered blued. The packing list said blued. They sent us stainless ones, of course." "I'll take two." "But they're stainless, and your gun is blued...." "I don't give a shit if they're yellow with purple stripes, it sounds like I'll never have another chance to buy one again." Which is how it took me an hour and a half to buy a f-ing slide stop. May Colt burn in Hell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TDean Posted May 5, 2004 Share Posted May 5, 2004 Colt may be out of business. The employees of UAW Local 376 are on strike. I've heard this from reputable sources, but can only findTHIS so far. Lockout at Connecticut gun manufacturer’s plant "Colt’s Manufacturing locked out 350 workers at its West Hartford, Connecticut, plant April 1 after workers unanimously rejected the company’s final contract offer. The old agreement between Colt and United Autoworkers Local 376 expired the previous night. Carlton Chen, vice president and general council for Colt, defended the lockout, declaring, “The demands that they are making are impossible to meet.” Local 376 has not commented on the lockout" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted May 5, 2004 Author Share Posted May 5, 2004 Colt may be out of business. The employees of UAW Local 376 are on strike. I've heard this from reputable sources, but can only findTHIS so far. Lockout at Connecticut gun manufacturer’s plant "Colt’s Manufacturing locked out 350 workers at its West Hartford, Connecticut, plant April 1 after workers unanimously rejected the company’s final contract offer. The old agreement between Colt and United Autoworkers Local 376 expired the previous night. Carlton Chen, vice president and general council for Colt, defended the lockout, declaring, “The demands that they are making are impossible to meet.” Local 376 has not commented on the lockout" Damn. I am just totally out of touch. I cannot understand for the life of me, why Colt and Smith don't pack up and head west and set up in ID or MT or anyhwhere with right to work laws. Their labor and overhead would drop in half and the quality would skyrocket. I guess I'd better buy every part for that gun I think I'll ever need now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErikW Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 They have long since abandoned us in order to cater exclusively to military and law enforcement. F 'em. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Thomas Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 Actually, that's not true. I say that having talked to the buyer at a local gun shop. Turns out that, despite the much ballyhooed "Colt no longer sells to civilians" thing, every distributor, ever since, has always had new production Colts in stock. And I'm not talking stuff that's been sitting there for years, I'm talking fresh from the factory, ready to be sold on the open market firearms. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted May 6, 2004 Author Share Posted May 6, 2004 Which begs the question, why on God's Green Earth would *anyone* buy a gun from a company which: a) Does not answer their telephone b ) Does not stock parts for the guns they manufacture c) Lies about their business practices ("We don't sell to civillians, except when we sell to civillians.") d) Quality is Job # 3,794 I don't know of ANYBODY (much less anyone whose opinion I really respect) who's bought a new Colt lately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Thomas Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 Difficult questions, to be sure. d) Quality is Job # 3,794 Have to admit, that got a laugh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErikW Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 I didn't say they sold only to non-LE/Military; I said they cater to them. I should have said they concentrate their sales and marketing efforts on that market, neglecting the sporting market. However, I think distribution suffered to non-LE/M sales. I think it's pretty evident that they show somes disdain for potential customers outside LE/M. To wit, their sear block, their goofy pin sizes, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasag93 Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 I have only owned one Colt ever and don't have it any more. I was really wanting to buy a Colt AR in the future but just can't bring myself to give them my money when I hear things like this. Is the "Pony" really worth the extra cash? I would hate to see them fall by the way side. Can't someone buy Colt and return them back into a respectable company again? TXAG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Run n Gun Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 Apparently Colt’s labor difficulties have passed (1911 Forum thread link) now as to their QC, well… Ed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted May 6, 2004 Author Share Posted May 6, 2004 RnG, Thanks for the thread link, I think. I guess as long as IQ's follow a Gaussian distribution, Colt will always have customers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lynn jones Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 ericw, sounds like you'd be better off going to the range and looking for the lost slide stop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck D Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 I don't know ANYONE who can AFFORD a new Colt. Before I spend the long dollar on a Colt, I'd by a Springfield Armory piece. Their twice the gun for the money. It's sad. I remember the day when a Series 70 Government model was THE gun to own for IPSC shooting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LPatterson Posted May 6, 2004 Share Posted May 6, 2004 In Great Falls, Montana the Scheels Sporting Goods store has dropped all Colts from their sales line because of so many complaints about quality. Kimber is giving them a better selection of options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Run n Gun Posted May 7, 2004 Share Posted May 7, 2004 In Great Falls, Montana the Scheels Sporting Goods store Wow, I bought a 4” S&W Model 57 (41 Mag) from Scheels about 15 years ago, I think I paid $250. Back on track; I spent a couple of months of intense research into WHICH 3” 1911 to buy and I bought a Colt. It’s been everything I hoped it would be. Ed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bulm5 Posted May 7, 2004 Share Posted May 7, 2004 Poor Sammy, he may turning in his grave right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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