Sig Sauer Warranty - yeah, that went well...

[alx]

So a while ago I had the brilliant idea to teach my young kids some basic long gun skills. To do that with minimal risk I opted to purchase two Sig air rifles - one MCX and one MCX Virtus PCP. Bought some Texas star targets from Sig (great fun) and some other assorted metal targets and we started practicing. After about 300-400 pellets the MCX started leaking air from somewhere in the inside of the assembly. I have been running the specialized oil (a drop every time I replace the cylinder) so I knew the seals are not at fault as the rifle was also new.

I call Sig and after verification of purchase (I purchased it from an authorized vendor) a very nice lady tells me that she will send me a prepaid Fedex label so I ship the rifle to them for warranty work. Nice. A few weeks pass and I get the call from Sig. The same very nice lady states that they opened the rifle and it is missing some part. I ask them how did it shoot a few hundred pellets if the rifle is missing a part? No answer. She says they will look further into the rifle. Alrighty then. Fast forward to today- I get a call and the same nice lady informs me that they went through the rifle and the internals seemed to have been worked very hard and it is because of overtightening of the compressed air cylinder (????). I tell her that I am no stranger to pneumatic guns and I tighten the cylinder just enough so it doesnt leak air at the seal. She says - it is all well, but because of this they cannot do a warranty repair as it is beyond repair. She gives me two options- one is to ship the rifle as-is back to me or to purchase a new rifle at 20% discount. I check and their 20
% discound is what the rifle pretty much sells for everywhere. I tell her I can do one better and they keep the rifle and use it as a door stop or a fancy baseball bat.

Then I look online and find quite a few folks with exactly the same issue. One post even has photos of the split rifle that shows which seals leak and the design is such that they are very prone of leaking.

This is my experience. What I do know is for a lousy $200 air rifle Sig lost a customer. I have quite a few of their more expensive toys, but I believe that will be the extend of my Sig purchases.

Thank you. I will get off my soap box now.

 

[snax]

Sucks man. They probably see a flood of these coming in and don't want set the precedent of fixing/replacing them all.

 

[Bistro]

Yeah, because sig USA sucks.

I saw p365 BB gun at bass pro and was about to purchase one until I read the reviews. They had the same problem with c02 leakage. Sig USA stiffing the customers with the repair bill.

 

[Marty McFly]

That sucks. But good for you for trying. And spending some time with the kids. 200 bucks sucks but those memories won't fade.

 

[92G]

despite taking multiple sig armorer courses I will not purchase any new production sig products, period. I keep My eyes open for used or LE trade ins. most of what leaves their factory nowadays is trash. Their CS is just as bad.

 

[Zappa]

despite taking multiple sig armorer courses I will not purchase any new production sig products, period. I keep My eyes open for used or LE trade ins. most of what leaves their factory nowadays is trash. Their CS is just as bad.

Does that include their new production P210 ???

 

[92G]

Does that include their new production P210 ???

saw one with rough slide finish, canted sights and a target version with the rear sight not even close to centered in dovetail....so yes.

my P220 10mm is a POS. broken trigger bar spring within less than 200 rounds. Rear sight flew out of dovetail...apparently is secured with a single allen screw. Pretty shitty Work.

 

[OnTheRoad]

Sounds like the next stop is touching base with other folks who had the problem and contacting one of those online class action lawyers...

 

[AHM]

(It's a difficult habit to acquire, but)
I once got a free replacement for a $360-$400 ham mobile short-wave antenna
whose internal helical drive motor froze up from New England road salt intrusion
by making sure that the phrase "... well-known design defect ..."
was in the Very First Sentence out of my mouth when I called the complaint line.

A call I made more than a year after purchase -
this was not in-warranty service.

(You could tell it was a thing because they eventually re-engineered it
with more O-rings and a waterproof rubber hat on the top).

How did I know to throw shade about a "well-known design defect"?
Before I called, I searched the Intarwebs to see if it had happened to anyone else,
and what I learned was that it had happened to everyone else.

Forewarned is forearmed.


Look, I'm sorry for your loss. I get skunked on this'n'that - I'm no expert.
It's just that once I won; and I thought I'd share the technique.


You might call back and bitch that now that you know it's a,
all together now,
well-known design defect,
you want the gun fixed or replaced.

Hell, tell 'em your AG is as anti-gun as they come,
and she'd love to gnaw on their bones.

 

[drgrant]

Well at least the air rifle didn't put a bullet in your thigh without commanding it to do so..... so you got that going for you. I kid, I kid... well, only a little bit. The P320 saga is legendary.

 

[drgrant]

my P220 10mm is a POS. broken trigger bar spring within less than 200 rounds. Rear sight flew out of dovetail...apparently is secured with a single allen screw. Pretty shitty Work.

Legion? Ouch.

 

[92G]

Legion? Ouch.

its the model before legion existed. p220 elite 10mm. Now that I’ve worked it over it seems fine, but a $1200 pistol shouldn’t need any work. I’m finished being fooled by Sig. if they were humble and less douchie it wouldn’t bother me so much. Strong-and-wrong ain’t cool.

 

[Toytowninc]

Send a well written email to a couple of customer support reps or higher up. Be sure to incorporate any of the following words: safety, accident, fire, injury, lawsuit, etc. Also include other documented failures. Larger companies like this employ safety departments with computer systems that constantly search for their name and associated text with these key words in an effort to stay ahead of potential lawsuits. By now with their history, Sig should be constructing a new building for “onsite lawsuit mitigation”

 

[MGnoob]

General chat is for Firearms discussion. Hey at least you didn’t shoot your eye out. Sig actually has a decent warranty service...But I’m not really sure why you have to send a brand new firearm in for service but it happens from time to time

 

[Bt74]

General chat is for Firearms discussion.

Your point?

 

[Gasgunner]

Your point?

Maybe snarky that it is an air rifle not a “firearm”?

 

[Spanz]

i am wondering at the original choice, you could not find a .22 bolt action to teach about long guns?

or were you trying to do this in your back yard?

 

[Mesatchornug]

Maybe snarky that it is an air rifle not a “firearm”?

considering the garbage that's been mucking up GD lately, this thread is nigh on fresh air. at least OP is talking about warranty service from a firearms company, and air rifles are still "shooting"

 

[slap shot]

When I shot the baffles out of my Sig suppressor they paid shipping both ways and it came back with all new internals in like a week or so. I was thoroughly satisfied.

note to self...no Sig BB guns ...

 

[mac1911]

So a while ago I had the brilliant idea to teach my young kids some basic long gun skills. To do that with minimal risk I opted to purchase two Sig air rifles - one MCX and one MCX Virtus PCP. Bought some Texas star targets from Sig (great fun) and some other assorted metal targets and we started practicing. After about 300-400 pellets the MCX started leaking air from somewhere in the inside of the assembly. I have been running the specialized oil (a drop every time I replace the cylinder) so I knew the seals are not at fault as the rifle was also new.

I call Sig and after verification of purchase (I purchased it from an authorized vendor) a very nice lady tells me that she will send me a prepaid Fedex label so I ship the rifle to them for warranty work. Nice. A few weeks pass and I get the call from Sig. The same very nice lady states that they opened the rifle and it is missing some part. I ask them how did it shoot a few hundred pellets if the rifle is missing a part? No answer. She says they will look further into the rifle. Alrighty then. Fast forward to today- I get a call and the same nice lady informs me that they went through the rifle and the internals seemed to have been worked very hard and it is because of overtightening of the compressed air cylinder (????). I tell her that I am no stranger to pneumatic guns and I tighten the cylinder just enough so it doesnt leak air at the seal. She says - it is all well, but because of this they cannot do a warranty repair as it is beyond repair. She gives me two options- one is to ship the rifle as-is back to me or to purchase a new rifle at 20% discount. I check and their 20
% discound is what the rifle pretty much sells for everywhere. I tell her I can do one better and they keep the rifle and use it as a door stop or a fancy baseball bat.

Then I look online and find quite a few folks with exactly the same issue. One post even has photos of the split rifle that shows which seals leak and the design is such that they are very prone of leaking.

This is my experience. What I do know is for a lousy $200 air rifle Sig lost a customer. I have quite a few of their more expensive toys, but I believe that will be the extend of my Sig purchases.

Thank you. I will get off my soap box now.

Should have taken rifle back for spare parts.
These POS are aweful for anything more than random plinking.
Did your son crank on the cylinders?
Getting warranty out of some companies just sucks sometimes.

The seals these manufactures use are shit. Thats why there is a big market for improved seals. Also will Add CO2 sucks.

$200 rifle is really a $59 walmart pos under that SIG skin.

want a good air rifle for teaching kids marksmanship and fundamentals
The CMP sells refurbished Daisy 853 for $120 shipped , decent sights , walther barrels, low velocity for basement use if needed.

 

[jeffC]

Ive had this EXACT same thing happen, with two of them. I bought the SBR version from cabelas, and within two weeks, and maybe 4 of the C02 tanks, it started pissing out air from the stock. I was lucky enough to have it exchanged at cabelas, and i opted for the “faux suppressor” version as replacement. after about 4-5 C02 tanks, same thing happened....only this time, months had passed and Cabelas wouldnt accept a return/exchange due to the time passed. I sold the thing for like $50 with the buyer understanding it was a POS.

 

[FPrice]

Is there an online forum for air pistols and rifles, similar to NES?

 

[mac1911]

When I shot the baffles out of my Sig suppressor they paid shipping both ways and it came back with all new internals in like a week or so. I was thoroughly satisfied.

note to self...no Sig BB guns ...

Note to everyone dont buy bb/pelletguns that are hidden under firearms trade marks and licensing , you only pay more

 

[mac1911]

Is there an online forum for air pistols and rifles, similar to NES?

Yes
Just google Air Gun Forums and start looking.

 

[zboys]

OP did you say you opened and made an adjustment prior to sending it in? You tightened the cylinder?
That is a fail for any warrantee for any item.

 

[mac1911]

General chat is for Firearms discussion. Hey at least you didn’t shoot your eye out. Sig actually has a decent warranty service...But I’m not really sure why you have to send a brand new firearm in for service but it happens from time to time

You should be a moderator and clean General Discussion up? Its pretty messy these days

 

[mac1911]

Ive had this EXACT same thing happen, with two of them. I bought the SBR version from cabelas, and within two weeks, and maybe 4 of the C02 tanks, it started pissing out air from the stock. I was lucky enough to have it exchanged at cabelas, and i opted for the “faux suppressor” version as replacement. after about 4-5 C02 tanks, same thing happened....only this time, months had passed and Cabelas wouldnt accept a return/exchange due to the time passed. I sold the thing for like $50 with the buyer understanding it was a POS.

Theres folks out there, like me. Who buy these problem child pos and update the seals and mod them to work.
I like the old pellet guns though like pre 1990

 

[mac1911]

i am wondering at the original choice, you could not find a .22 bolt action to teach about long guns?

or were you trying to do this in your back yard?

Pellet guns are good in to shooting.
I remeber my dad buying us a red ryder setting up the old wool army blanket and making us read and follow the shooting instructions in the manual.
Still have that Red Ryder but man what a pos !

 

[mac1911]

So a while ago I had the brilliant idea to teach my young kids some basic long gun skills. To do that with minimal risk I opted to purchase two Sig air rifles - one MCX and one MCX Virtus PCP. Bought some Texas star targets from Sig (great fun) and some other assorted metal targets and we started practicing. After about 300-400 pellets the MCX started leaking air from somewhere in the inside of the assembly. I have been running the specialized oil (a drop every time I replace the cylinder) so I knew the seals are not at fault as the rifle was also new.

I call Sig and after verification of purchase (I purchased it from an authorized vendor) a very nice lady tells me that she will send me a prepaid Fedex label so I ship the rifle to them for warranty work. Nice. A few weeks pass and I get the call from Sig. The same very nice lady states that they opened the rifle and it is missing some part. I ask them how did it shoot a few hundred pellets if the rifle is missing a part? No answer. She says they will look further into the rifle. Alrighty then. Fast forward to today- I get a call and the same nice lady informs me that they went through the rifle and the internals seemed to have been worked very hard and it is because of overtightening of the compressed air cylinder (????). I tell her that I am no stranger to pneumatic guns and I tighten the cylinder just enough so it doesnt leak air at the seal. She says - it is all well, but because of this they cannot do a warranty repair as it is beyond repair. She gives me two options- one is to ship the rifle as-is back to me or to purchase a new rifle at 20% discount. I check and their 20
% discound is what the rifle pretty much sells for everywhere. I tell her I can do one better and they keep the rifle and use it as a door stop or a fancy baseball bat.

Then I look online and find quite a few folks with exactly the same issue. One post even has photos of the split rifle that shows which seals leak and the design is such that they are very prone of leaking.

This is my experience. What I do know is for a lousy $200 air rifle Sig lost a customer. I have quite a few of their more expensive toys, but I believe that will be the extend of my Sig purchases.

Thank you. I will get off my soap box now.

I will also add that SIG probably never even opened the rifle up.
They Probably dont have any to replace it with and most likely dont have parts. That happens with these branded POS air rifles.
Do you happen to remember where it actually shipped to?

 

[alx]

Sucks man. They probably see a flood of these coming in and don't want set the precedent of fixing/replacing them all.

From what I can gather online, yes- it seems that those things leaking is very common. Looking at the picture of the split rifle, the piping from the co2 tank all the way to the valve is done very poorly with lots of elbows with short leads that puts a lot of stress on the seals as the whole thing moves around at each shot. Here is what I found online showing the potential leak points:

Sig Sauer MPX .177 Air Rifle leaking

Hi has anyone had issues with the Sig Sauer co2 air rifle Mine leaks from within. Only used two co2 cylinders from new, but not used for 2 years Any ideas what the fault is. Atb Steve

www.airgunbbs.com

That sucks. But good for you for trying. And spending some time with the kids. 200 bucks sucks but those memories won't fade.

To be honest in a hind sight I have spent more money for less fun with the kids on other occasions. Those were 300-400 pellets that allowed me to actually teach them safety, rifle handling, posture, shot mentality, sight picture, etc. A fair trade I would say for $200.

Sounds like the next stop is touching base with other folks who had the problem and contacting one of those online class action lawyers...

I am not that kind of guy. I would share my experiences with my co-thinkers here on the board, but that is the extent I will pursue this. Life is too short to sue one of the few gun vendors in the region over an air rifle. Besides, said vendors are an endangered species as is- I do not like the idea of making their litigation landscape even more crowded.

Send a well written email to a couple of customer support reps or higher up. Be sure to incorporate any of the following words: safety, accident, fire, injury, lawsuit, etc. Also include other documented failures. Larger companies like this employ safety departments with computer systems that constantly search for their name and associated text with these key words in an effort to stay ahead of potential lawsuits. By now with their history, Sig should be constructing a new building for “onsite lawsuit mitigation”

Oh, I know the drill- I am very well versed in this language, proceedings and the whole exercise. The issue is that the malfunction is not a safety issue. That would be the only scenario under which I would take this further. All I am doing here is venting and warding off my fellow NESers.

i am wondering at the original choice, you could not find a .22 bolt action to teach about long guns?

or were you trying to do this in your back yard?

Back yard plinking. I am getting them ready for the actual range and to get the upper hand on mitigating some of the inherent risks there when you mix kids and guns

Should have taken rifle back for spare parts.
These POS are aweful for anything more than random plinking.
Did your son crank on the cylinders?
Getting warranty out of some companies just sucks sometimes.

The seals these manufactures use are shit. Thats why there is a big market for improved seals. Also will Add CO2 sucks.

$200 rifle is really a $59 walmart pos under that SIG skin.

want a good air rifle for teaching kids marksmanship and fundamentals
The CMP sells refurbished Daisy 853 for $120 shipped , decent sights , walther barrels, low velocity for basement use if needed.

I am the one that was replacing the cylinders and as I said- no- I was not cranking them as I know a thing or two..

ON the Daisies- Thank you. I will check those out. The kids wanted the "cool" rifles, so that is why I got the Sigs initially.

OP did you say you opened and made an adjustment prior to sending it in? You tightened the cylinder?
That is a fail for any warrantee for any item.

I did not open the rifle as there was no need to- that is what warranty is for and that is why I bought it from a "real" vendor instead of getting it off say Ebay. Maybe the confusion comes from the fact that I use the term "cylinder" when I should use the term "co2 tank"... but you get the idea...

I will also add that SIG probably never even opened the rifle up.
They Probably dont have any to replace it with and most likely dont have parts. That happens with these branded POS air rifles.
Do you happen to remember where it actually shipped to?

Just looked at the RMA label - it went to their shop in Exeter, NH.