Cracked R-9S Slide

[R9SCarry]

[size=13]have the reports of failure to feed increased greatly since the factory move.[/size]

Dave - no, I think probably the FTF deal is probably just that way more guns have gone out and so there are also more folks owning and shooting R9's.  So we here about it.

In theory at least - since the move, the QC aspect has gone way up as that is very much Eric's baby.  Plus the machines are if anything bigger and better.

Of course no gun that goes out AFAIK gets a torture test so this could be something surfacing thru use that does need addressed.  I shall be keen to get feedback.

[SAWBONES]

I returned my R-9S with the cracked slide to Rohrbaugh Monday Oct 3 by UPS overnight.

Not sure what took so long, but after calling Rohrbaugh several times to check on the pistola without getting any information (Maria was friendly, but couldn't tell me much about the gun's status), I finally got a call back today from Karl Rohrbaugh to say that the gun was in fact defective, and that they had relaced "the whole top end", test-fired it without problems and were sending it back to me.

I asked about getting a couple spare magazines for the gun as recompense for the shipping cost, and Karl said they'd send me a check for the amount instead of sending magazines.

Sounds like a stand-up approach to customer service and good company policy to me!

I'll post again when I receive the gun and have a chance to shoot it.

[Michigunner]

SAWBONES,

I'm glad to hear they took care of the problem.  Sounds like their customer service is working fine.

Bill

[theirishguard]

The Rohrbaugh outfit knows how to take care of customers. Glad the pup is coming home.
Tom

[R9SCarry]

SAW - seems like customer care is alive and well - I expect thru the volume of stuff they are now making, there well could be the very occasional defect - maybe in the material piece, unseen.  Without ultrasonic crack test processes I daresay a faulty slide could slip thru - with nothing at that stage showing a problem.

I do know that Eric is merciless with his QC these days and would not expect something to easily be released without it being shown as A OK.

Hope all will be well once the pup is back with you.

[Aglifter]

Yeah, those magazines are hard to get -- I ordered some spares a couple months ago...but, you get used to waiting w. a Rohrbaugh

[bigyimmy]

I ordered two mags a few months ago and called yesterday to check on order.  I was told the rumor there is a lot of mags should be received by Rohrbaugh soon and if it is true they will ship out shortly.

[SAWBONES]

Got the R-9s back today with a note and a check for $70 to cover my shipping costs from Karl Rohrbaugh.

The slide is clearly new, and they told me they replaced "the whole top end", meaning probably that the barrel and recoil spring guide rod assembly are new too.

The gun now hand cycles rounds from both magazines reliably, so hopefully it will cycle reliably in standard operating mode.

I expect to test it for function, accuracy and precision this Saturday, and will post about those results then, FWIW.

So far, so good, anyway!
I'm pleased to have gotten fairly quick satisfaction of this sort from a new firearms manufacturer, and it looks like the Rohrbaughs are standing behind their products well.

[R9SCarry]

Glad to hear that sawbones - and pretty much what I would have expected from the Bros Rorhbaugh.  Class act.

Hopefully your revitalized pup will behave and please you.

[jarcher]

Let us know how well it shoots!

[SAWBONES]

I just came back from shooting the refurbished R-9S.
Well, the accuracy and precision are excellent for a pistol of this type.
POI = POA, and the first 124gr JHP Gold Dot from a clean cold barrel went right in the middle of the 2" bullseye of a standard NRA slowfire pistol target at 5 yards.

I still had FTFs (failures to feed), in spite of polishing the feedramp with Simichrome and my Dremel, AND heating the Mili-Tech treated feedramp with my wife's hairdryer afterward, but function was much better on the whole. Basically, I had occasional FTFs for the first 15 rounds, then perfect function for many rounds, then occasional FTFs again at the end of 113 total rounds, of which 38 were Gold Dots, 25 were 115gr Federal 9BP JHP, and 50 were Federal American Eagle 115gr FMJ.

FTFs were of three types; either the cartridge would be lying straight and still mostly contained within the magazine, and bullet nose would be lodged against the front of the shiny polished feedramp, or the cartridge would be pointed up at an acute angle and the bullet nose lodged against the top-inside of the chamber, or a round would be lodged full-length at the top of the ejection port, with the lower base of the cartridge against the upper breechface and the bullet nose against the upper edge of the chamber, with another round pushing up from beneath!
All three types of FTF were instantly reduced by partial retraction and release of the slide, with each type, even the third, permitting the errant round to rise or dropthen enter the chamber.
No failures to fire, even though primer hits are slightly off center.

I have a new problem, though; the slide now fails to retract readily with hand pressure from the closed (in-battery) position, though firing isn't apparently affected. Since this seems to be a separate issue, I've started a new thread about it.
Thanks for looking.

[EdMan]

My new R9 (bought Aug 2005) also has a crack in the slide, in the same location. Left side rear. Also after a couple hundred rounds I am getting light primer strike/failures to fire. I'm also  having failures to eject and the magazine catch releasing while firing. Same story with me. I'm cleaning and lubricating correctly. I've been shooting and cleaning guns for over 40 years, so I know what I'm doing. None of my 4 Kahrs (2 PM9s), 4 Glocks, 3 KelTecs, 2 S&Ws and Colt .45 Combat Commander has had this kind of trouble. I've talked to Rohrbaugh and they said to send it back for repair, at my expense. So I'll have to pay the $30+ dollars to send my $1150 gun back for repair, after shooting only 350 rounds.
Hopfuly they can fix it. It's really a very nice concealment gun, and I loved it for the first 100 rounds, before things started going wrong.

[SAWBONES]

I don't think the problems you describe are permissible on a $1K gun, either.

Don't be afraid to ask for your shipping costs to be reimbursed. I did, and was recompensed. They won't do it "up front" for each customer interested in returning an R-9 to the factory, since they say that the bulk of guns sent back turn out to have shooter-induced problems like improper reassembly, but with a cracked slide, there's really no question about it being other than defective, and I suspect they'll reimburse you for your shipping cost if you request it.

I haven't had failures to fire (even though some primer strikes look a bit "light" and all are slightly off center) or to extract.
In any case, I wouldn't shoot the little dingus further with a crack in the slide!

I found Karl Rohrbaugh to be businesslike and accomodating on the phone, and I believe he's trying to put out a good product. I've spoken to him twice, and I haven't had the courtesy of a personal call from a company founder-owner at other gun companies with whose products I've had problems (Kahr). Some defects unavoidably will slip through with any manufactured item, but it's the customer service on addressing those problems that really indicates the quality of the company and its personnel.

[R9SCarry]

Ed - welcome to the board

Sorry to hear you have had that problem also - any chance of a pic if it'd show the crack?

[Brenden]

Ed,
Welcome..

Sorry to hear of another crack-A pic would be great to be able to see the problem..

I do know that of my 2 pups that I have shot,no problems to speak of that were not to blame of the shooter..(ME)..

I am sure things will get worked out to your satisfaction..

Brenden