I want the flash hider off my brand new 15-22 pistol and couldn’t get it off easily so I took it to my local gunsmith who assured me he could get it right off… He took the gun and I started to browse when he called for me to “show me something”. He had the receiver in a vise and was showing me the barrel spinning while
He had wrench on the flash hider. I told him the barrel needed to
He viced and that’s why I brought it in… I could have just reamed on it and done that but specially didn’t want to spin the barrel. He cut the end cap and removed it and was able to loosen the Barrel nut but couldn’t get the barrel out so he told me he would have to cut the flash hider off which I promptly said No. He put it back together and told me to send it in for warranty since the barrel shouldn’t spin like that and it’s now a safety issue. The barrel seems tight and isn’t free spinning so did he ruin the upper
Or how would you tell? I want to put my supressor on this and now even if I could get the flash hider off Im worried about the barrel coming loose and leading to a damaged can. I had tried lightly removing the flash hider myself using heat but didn’t want to spin the barrel and now after driving 2 hours to the gunsmith and back I’m in worse shape with my brand new gun. The flash hider is still on and he probably broke my gun…. Wonderful.

Any help or suggestions?

He screwed it up, he should make it right......

This is a copy and paste from a previous post of mine.
You might want to show your "gunsmith" how to do it so as not to mess up the next one he sees. :

Well, I emailed S&W customer service about the problem of removing the flash hider and got absolutely no where. After 5 exchanges with me asking to be more specific, they finally quit answering.
But, after reading ThruNthru's post, a light bulb came on(dimly, but it did come on)
I found a piece of oak trim we had that fit just what I had in mind. The trim wood is just over 1/4" thick at .270. width is .6", length is .760"
I checked to make sure it fit into the slots on the side of the hand guard and it did, perfectly. Then I cut the pieces so just about 1/8" stuck out of the guard when pressed against barrel. Put the 1522 upper in the vice with the oak "barrel vice" in the slots. Tightened the vice against the oak pieces and put the wrench to the flash hider. No problem; came loose with no twisting on the polymer parts of the upper.

Thanks, I came across that after I had left there and could definitely try that but how would I tell if he damaged the upper receiver? The barrel seems snug and isn’t spinning even with moderate force w/ a wrench on the flash hider and the ejector doesn’t appear bent… I loaded a mag and just cycled through and it ejected them consistently. I’m nervous now to put my supressor on it even if I can get the flash off. I don’t know if I should put a few mags through it first, wait to talk to smith and Wesson Warranty/customer service or to make the gunsmith rectify it but he is clearly incompetent and tried passing it off as a warranty issue that I’d have to deal with myself. It’s beyond aggravating.

It's fubared. Doubt S&W will do anything warranty related because it has been modified by a bubba mouthbreather.
Bring the pretendo gunsmith company to small claims court. It wont be worth their time fighting it.
Fwiw, you'll have the same result clamping on the rail & torquing the muzzle device off.

I have no idea what S&W will do for you, but my thought is that they are not obligated to do anything as someone outside the factory damaged it. That said, you really have no choice but to send it to S&W for repair or possibly even replacement of the upper or other parts.

Your wrench turner "spun" the barrel in the upper and the upper needs to be replaced to avoid potential future problems. They are fairly inexpensive but finding one is the key.

Currently out of stock but only source I know of outside of S&W;

Upper Receiver, New Factory Original (Sport) | Gun Parts Corp.

Upper Insert Assembly, New Factory Original (Sport) | Gun Parts Corp.

they are the same except for the "Performance Center" marking. You can use the "notify me" function that actually works.

This is common thing when you see Gunsmith on Staff at these little shops that are based on Milsurps and plastic pistols. Some Gomer with $7 dollars worth of Dollar Store tools is perfectly willing to tackle anything. I don’t take a space scientist to figure barrel has to be clamped to remove flash suppressor. You should have took it to a plumber, they would have done it right.

This is absolutely the best advice. The cost of the pistol will be under Small Claims max dollar amounts. Add in your travel and mileage for the 3 round trips, pistol purchase reciept, repair invoice. Go super prepared, 8x10 pictures, convo transcripts, etc. everything. You'll win and then just buy yourself a new pistol.



I've done Small Claims a lot with tenants. Never lost becauise I was prepared. And it's an easy process. Good luck.

I'm curious what you mean when you say "local gunsmith . . . "

__________________
Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

Take it to someone with the following instructions:
Mount the receiver on a an insert that pins to the upper and clamps into the vice. Then, reach down inside the rail and remove the barrel nut using an appropriate tool.
THEN, clamp the barrel in the vice using appropriate procedures and remove the flash hider.

While apart, inspect the barrel CHAMBER end for damage to the extractor slot, and inspect the extractor for damage. If none, gtg.

If the parts are in good condition, reclamp the receiver as before, mount the rail, then barrel and nut - tighten to no more than about 25 psi of torque - basically a good "snug up" and THAT'S IT!

The barrel is steel as is the flash hider.
The upper receiver is PLASTIC.
Which do you think will have the greatest torque applied?

The gun-goob tried to snatch off the flash hider by mounting the RAIL most likely in a vice, and failed to consider the barrel itself was torqued to far lower spec and so "spun" the barrel under the barrel nut.

On a "real" AR there's an index pin in the barrel extension that aligns to a frame slot, but perhaps not on a 15-22, or if there is was it omitted...which means it could still be S&W's fault, but you can't know until the barrel is dismounted from the receiver.

It cost me around $120 to make a small claims claim.

A new upper is less than $30.

It’s fairly simple to get a judgment. The hard part is collecting . . .

__________________
Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

I'd want a new pistol. The "gunsmith" did the damage, and maybe other hidden damage. No way I would want to keep a possibly damaged weapon.



If the "gunsmith" is any type of real business, he'll most likely just pay the $500 pistol cost rather then have to spend time going to small claims.

Not really. Depends on the circumstances.

If the "gunsmith" is any type of real business, he'll most likely just pay the $500 pistol cost rather then have to spend time going to small claims.

Agreed. Sometimes it can be very difficult to get a judgment and even more difficult to collect . . .

__________________
Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

In the boating world, when someone has not paid the contractors in a timely manner, the boat may be arrested/seized, lifted out of the water and put on the hard if possible.
Once when this occurred, boat was chocked up, and the Officer said to stand up and leave immediately.
I started packing up my tools and 3K "O" scope and he said to drop those and leave.
I smiled and he said, "take yours".
Others were not polite and left empty handed.
My pistol was in my tool bag as well.

__________________
Have Fun/Stay Safe

Not sure what your suggesting? Do nothing? He should fix it himself and hope for the best?


The gun is damaged, small claims is the perfect place to obtain a remedy. His would be an easy win. I've done it hundreds of times over the years.

Duly noted. I’ve never met a private citizen who has been involved in “hundreds” of attorney less small claim torts. I don’t even know how to respond . . .

__________________
Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

I’ve been to small claims dozens of times on Tenants. For non payment of rent, open shut cases- they loose and you win. Guess what they don’t pay and courts are hesitant to make them pay through court. If you get it through court if payment isnt made a warrant is issued and Deputy sent, resulting in arrests.
Nay-nay not wanting that. Small claims court is a joke in most jurisdictions.
Cost you more than gain in your case.

I don't know about where you're from, but you can't get arrested in Missouri for not paying your rent . . .

Edit: Seems like one of the reasons we broke from merry old England . . .

__________________
Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

I think charge is breech of contract and you will get hauled in and have to go to court again. Not jailed.

It's not a charge. And no warrant. You can ignore it if you want, and if there's not valid service, you can't get a judgment.

And despite your original post, there's no chance you're getting arrested . . .

__________________
Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

Hey! My Dremel cost a little more than 7 bucks, so...

We all agree that the smith didn’t do his job properly. On a rifle, the barrel can be clamped properly but not on a pistol. Taticool makes a reaction bar that backs up the barrel without putting any stress on the upper receiver. It is a very good investment for all 15-22 owners and especially smiths.
Since the damage has been done, there are several repair methods available; 1)a new upper receiver which is a $15.00 part when in stock, 2)get things lined up and retighten the nut (works surprisingly well in my experience), or 3)rebuild the damaged area of the receiver with epoxy.

I appreciate all the responses and the banter.
Here’s an update:
I tried calling the shop to ask to speak with the owner to no avail. I was given his email and sent the explanation of what happened and gave several forms of contact so we could come up with a resolution. Never received an email, call or text… nothing. The gunsmith that broke it suggested I “Sell it online to someone unsuspecting and then come buy something from them”. - Can’t make this **** up. Unreal.
I called S&W and explained what happened and I guess they felt bad for me because they offered to send me an express shipping label and said they would take care of it. They didn’t clarify wether I would have to pay for it or it would be “warrantied” but I’m hoping for the latter since they didn’t make me pay to ship it back which is their policy to credit the cost after it has been deemed a warranty service. He agreed the gunsmith was in the wrong and improperly torqued on the barrel without it being in a vice. I shipped it out this past Wednesday and put a note in the box thanking them for fixing it and asked them to leave the flash hider off/loose. So we’ll see what happens next and I’ll keep ya’ll in the loop.

On a side note as I was boxing up the gun I went to double check the chamber was empty and upon releasing the charging handle I noticed the bolt wouldn’t close all the way. I’m assuming the gunsmith had something to do with this as well.

I’m grateful S&W is taking care of it and looking forward to getting it back.

Your ‘smith’ [and I use that term lightly] is a real piece of work. Glad S&W is going to work with you.

Does this so called gunsmith have a brick and mortar place or work out of his house/ garage? Social media can be your friend and sure All your gun buddies will know what happened.

It’s a legit store but also is located in the basement of the house. So all brick and no mortar? Or all mortar and no brick?

I had gone through them in the past for silencer shop transfers and they seemed knowledgeable in conversation and their “gunsmith” bench is in plain sight and they were always tinkering with something back there. They wouldn’t be my first choice to have anything serious done but I figured they’d get the fh off without breaking the gun but man was I wrong.

I don’t use social media (other than a few firearm forums) but my inner circle of friends & firearm/nfa enthusiasts are well aware to steer clear.

Know what you mean, this and a few other gun/ militaria forums are my only “ social media”. “ Places” like this shop leave a “bad taste” in lots of guys mouths..

Did you get your pistol back from S&W and did thye say what was broken?

So not only incompetent, but dishonest as well.

Inquiring minds need to know !