Well now to see how well Smith & Wesson handles this warranty case.

I just sent my two week old 642-1 Performance Center revolver in for work. The frame appears to either be powder coated or Cerakoted, regardless of the process it chipped above the grip on the left side.

What happened, carried it in a Bianchi IWB holster with a snap retention strap. The snap came undone, four hours of carrying it with the snap contacting the frame caused it to chip.

Called S&W,,they said send it in. So I did. Now the wait begins. I had retired my Model 36 Chief’s Special from 1959 in favor of this PC but it’s coming out of retirement for awhile.

I hope a refinish is performed.

I find the thumbreak snaps to be horribly risky. Some holsters have plastic caps over the metal snap, on the one that flips around the firearms.

When I draw from thumbreak, I intentionally use the dominant hand thumb to sling the inside leather wing with the snap away from the firearm. Not always easy to remember, especially under stress.

I prefer open top snug friction fitting holsters. I have one on the way from Kirkpatrick, I think it is the model 2020.

The holster was a gift from a friend but it’s going to be retired now.

I was tempted to have our Cerakote guy refinish it but the Performance Center logo was the limiter. It seemed to be pretty shallow and I was afraid that it would be obliterated by the process.

So a gun that you put in a holster and carried got a mark on it, and now Smith is going to refinish it under warranty? Wonder if they'll do that for mine? Lol.



Seriously, and gun that you have is going to show wear. It just is. And I've taken crap for my view on this before, but cerakote (and all other "gun paint") sucks. Everything is going to wear if you actually use it...but cerakote looks extra shitty when it does. Case in point, my 642uc above. But at the end of the day, it's a tool that I carry almost every day and it still works as designed, so it doesn't really bother me. I bought it to use it, not look at it.

I have an original 642 with the clear anodized finish. Carried it for 25 years in Texas. Pocket. Ankle. Inside my body armor. Waistband. It would be so drenched in sweat, I’d have to sling it off. Looks perfect. Even where it’s worn through, never corroded.

Bought a Kimber K6xs with the spray and bake finish. Within a month, it was showing corrosion spots. Just little black dots on the side against my body. Sent it in. They refinished it. A month later, same thing happening. They recomended I keep it oiled. That’s like oiling a teflon pan. It doesn’t stick. Suggested I wipe it down daily. I do.

Gave up. Every few months, I scrub off the flaking paint. Past the corrosion. Wipe it down with Boeshield. Particularly under the grips. There’s just patches of bare aluminum now.

Gave up caring. Mechanically, it works.

If it was just a small nick I’d probably ignore it but the way it looks it’ll continue to chip and peel. And being two weeks old concerns me. I know it’s not going to stay pristine when it’s carried, for that matter my P365 Tac Ops has scuffing on the slide from Kydex but it’s three and a half years old, I expect that. Some point I’ll probably have it Cerakoted just not now, it’s carried a lot more than this revolver will ever be.

I’d have sent it to our Cerakote guy but the Performance Center logo would probably be obliterated with it.

My inquiry to S&W was if they could spot repair or refinish it at my expense, completely expected to pay, they were the ones that said it had a one year warranty on the finish. So I sent it in. Maybe it’s a bad one, maybe that are having a running issue with it? But unless they hear of problems they aren’t going to know of them.

I hate Cerakote. Absolute garbage. I hope they fix it the way you expect. I've used S&W's repair shop (paid) and warranty services a few times and they typically take a couple tries before they get it right, or they say "within spec" even though a revolver shoots 12" to the right at 15 yards LOL

quote:

Originally posted by Sgt 127:
Bought a Kimber K6xs with the spray and bake finish. Within a month, it was showing corrosion spots. Just little black dots on the side against my body. Sent it in. They refinished it. A month later, same thing happening. They recomended I keep it oiled. That’s like oiling a teflon pan. It doesn’t stick. Suggested I wipe it down daily. I do.
Gave up. Every few months, I scrub off the flaking paint. Past the corrosion. Wipe it down with Boeshield. Particularly under the grips. There’s just patches of bare aluminum now.
Gave up caring. Mechanically, it works.

I wonder if a gun wax like - Renaissance would work better than lube.
Has anyone given this try? I haven’t. The last time I dealt with rust was as a kid living with a swamp cooler.

My G43 was in a OWB holster and IWB as well, and it rusted up from the sweat that dripped onto it, around the slide and barrel, Glock replaced the barrel. Sweat can do a lot to a gun... got to wipe them down occasionally, especially down here where it's humid and hot all the time.

I’ve read conflicting information, some say the finish is powder coated, some Cerakoted. Don’t know what it is but you’d assume that a Performance Center gun and it’s premium price that it would have a durable finish.

I sell a good amount of S&W products at work and have no doubt that they will make it right.