Janq

It took just inside of 90 days, as based on the OP's own time line from date of occurrence to date of check receipt.

In my book as related to catastrophic failure of any kind of product that is pretty much normal time frame, if not slightly on the shirt side of time.
Further S&W per the OPs statements found the firearm itself to not be at fault.
It's not reasonable to expect any mfr. to simply ship out a check or new gun to the user next day or next week or even next month for feeling bad because the owners product failed catastrophically as by result of a condition that is not a manufacturing defect.
With a firearm in specific toward an event like this it's pretty well known that the cause of such a result is almost always going to be either operator error such as not handling the firearm correctly or failure to maintain the firearm properly. Any manufacturer would check the internals for such a condition including the barrel as well for lead and other deposits build up.

Outside of user error, all fingers point to the source of combustion...The ammunition.

Be it centerfire, rimfire,or heck even blackpowder based inline or muzzleloaded firearms.
Same thing and this does and has occurred with literally all firearms from ever maker.

In a case like this the owner/operator is looking for help.
He just dropped a grand or more on a product that now is non-functional and quite possibly is in pieces and parts.
He can go to the gun mfr. and/or to the ammo mfr.
The ammo people of course are going to say go see the gun maker. The gun maker says send us your gun for analysis and they check basic stuff that any of us could do as well. Bore, magazine & well, bolt and carrier, bolt face, chamber/breech face, and what if anything is left of the receiver. Normal and no brainer stuff.

They will either find evidence of material malfunction, as in a defect.
Or they will find evidence of user/operator mishandling in the specific area of maintenance.
Or they will find nothing at all. With nothing at all they the mfr. tell the owner/operator sorry but we found nothing wrong. What ammo did you use and where did it come from?

That last item ammo is again quite common.
At that point how these things as I've seen them on the internet typically go is the owner/operator then expects or even demands that the mfr. go to war _for them_ as against the ammo maker OR that they take pity on their situation and hand them over a new gun and if they don't then they'll make a huge stink of it as on the internet. See that guy from a year ago with the FN FiveSeven (not either of these two cases here at DC.com)...He is a perfect example of as much, even as he had been using reloaded (!) ammunition.

Mfrs. state in the first page or two of EVERY owners manual I've ever seen that they expressly do not warrant against failures of any sort as related to ammunition, be it reloaded or commercial manufacture.
Quite simply by economics alone they cannot. do so anyway. If they did then guns would cost two or three times actual as at MAP to compensate for such possibility as an insurance, for them and owners.

So...How can we as owners better or best deal with this considering that by basic function of firearm use such an event can occur to literally anyone?
Simple. Contact your home or auto insurance agent and request specifically 'firearm insurance'. Review the policy by eye _reading_ it in full, don't just ask the agent and take his word for it (!), and be sure that it covers not only theft and loss by fire or flood but ALSO _accidental damage_ and/or destruction.
The NRA firearms policy does not offer such coverage so do not assume that by having their policy one is thus covered. You are not.

Do a little extra leg work, write a check for like $100/yr...And by that you are then well covered toward items such as this which again do occur.
Then that way you are not beholden to the selective kindness of a gun mfr. nor the timeliness of an ammo mfr. to reimburse you for your loss be it directly or as was in the other thread event indirectly...Which also took some 90 days or so to conclude.

- Janq

__________________
"Killers who are not deterred by laws against murder are not going to be deterred by laws against guns. " - Robert A. Levy
Monday, March 12, 2007 -- Op Ed -- The Washington Post

cuban11182

Janq,

How much is S&W paying you per word on this thread? Just kidding!!!

Janq

Cuban,

As I've said before, I don't get a penny from S&W.
Nothing. Further I'd say the same thing if had happened to have been a Colt or Bushmaster product. The position remains same regardless of who the top tier AR manufacturer might be.

BTW I type, rather than keyboard, so for me typing a few paragraphs is nothing and takes little time at all.
My last post above required maybe ten minutes of my time total including making edits.

- Janq

__________________
"Killers who are not deterred by laws against murder are not going to be deterred by laws against guns. " - Robert A. Levy
Monday, March 12, 2007 -- Op Ed -- The Washington Post

AutoFan

This thread has got me thinking that this sort of thing (a squib/obstruction causing a KB) must happen a lot in the military, what with expending the number of rounds through the thousands of full-auto and select fire weapons that they do every year. Does any of our ex/current military members on the board have any insight on this?

puncho

Why the delay from S&W if the ammo caused the failure?

cuban11182

We don't shoot as much as the other services, but the Colt's seem to hold up to the abuse pretty well. I have a buddy who is part of our TacLet (Law Enforcement Detachment) and once they hit a certain round count they have the barrel inspected and even though he the barrel was supposed to be replaced at his current round count it was within spec and good to go. I'm sure it's just the chrome lining.

stoprilshoot

there is no indication of a squib round here or a barrel obstruction causing the problem.

lee275

Hey guys,
Yes S&W said it was the ammo. Since they worked it out internally with Remingont I don't know the exact details since i never got a copy of the report. I was told the ammo charge was so high that the casing actually welded to the barrel.

I guess the guy who helped me (the director of marketing / customer service) has seen this thread since he referred to it when i was talking to him.

Anyway, I think i'm going to order the .22 version of the M&P 15 next week, but as of now I already ordered my Colt 6940 should be here sometime next week.

To be honest I'm kinda freaked out about the whole ammo situation after what happened. It's 10 months since i first had ordered the s&W... It's been a long ordeal. I just want to go to the Range, it's good therapy for my PTSD. (LOL other then the fact i react to contact when i hear the first shots when im driving up to the range)

Lee

AutoFan

So S&W is contending that Remington double charged the case (or more) or got some pistol powder in this one cartridge? Does Remington use a powder that allows a double charge in their .223 or 5.56 ammo? I'd more likely believe a squib than anything else ammo related.

lee275

Like I said, i didn't get a copy of the report. I was told it was bad ammo.