doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com How many RBLs will...

I must admit I found the ads tempting but it did seem "too good to be true". I didn't order a gun because I NEVER pay in advance for anything. Almost every time I have done so I have regretted it, so I don't do it any more. Not home remodeling, not vacations, and certainly not guns that don't exist yet. Those fat deposits are baloney considering this is not a bespoke gun. More reasonable to ask for a progress payment once a gun was ready for it's final "custom" features (wood, finish, triggers).

I see they are still taking orders, through Dec 31st. Makes no sense to me to shut it down after that date unless they are losing money on them and have an inventory to burn off.

Nor does it make sense that they are still advertising for new customers when the ones they have are mad as snakes over delays. Maybe they need the deposit money. (And the rather large discount they offered for full payment in advance tells me they owe, they owe, they owe.)

Having said that, I must say I admire their bravery for taking on a project like this. A brand new sxs gun made in the USA for a lot less money than a similar AYA. These guys must really love making guns.

You guys with deposits, just PRAY the outfit doesn't go belly up (like Dakota and almost every other US gunmaker except Ruger and Remington)...in that case you won't have your gun or your money.

Getting back to Ruger, I recently read an article, I believe it was in SS about their dilemma. Which is understandable-NOW. Their only problem was they were advertising the gun about three years+ before it came out. Plus there was some smart a$$ girl who worked there who was telling customers over the phone that it wasn't coming out......... Getting back to Brad, the original poster- what about the ordeal with the Model 21s and you checking with the Cody Museum? Were the way that they were advertised different from the Cody letters and they were saying they were original? Could you elaberate or that? Thanks.

The folks at VISA told me if the company failed to produce a product in my hands that the purchase would be covered under their fraud protection and I would only be out $50.00. Obviously since my RBL has been delivered and I am very happy with mine this is not be an issue. If you are really worried about your cash, perhaps they would refund your $$$ and you could pay with your plastic to cya.

Hairy

Jimmy,

I will gladly PM you about the deceptions I have encountered with CSMC.

Brad

Hairy,
I'm not so worried that I won't get a gun as worried it's going to be of poor quality checkering and engraving and also that the wood species of their choice will be represented as 'Turkish exhibition' no matter my expectation or opinion. Basically, I've lost faith that CSM still has that high standard of quality I saw when I was there in May.

Chuck H,

I can understand the concerns of quality as a result of postings on this and other boards. Many times in life those that are disappointed in something may not have had realistic expectations of what was going to happen. Now, that having been said, I am not putting you in that group. But that situation, as well as those who have axes to grind and will do what they can to stir the pot, can be found just about anywhere. They would even complain if they were hung with a new rope! Just as a reference point, I do not know Tony Galazan. My only business dealings with his company has been my RBL and I do have other SXSs to compare the RBL to and the list includes: Winchester Model 21 two barrel set, Arietta 871 two barrel set, Parker Reproduction two barrel set, Ruger Gold Label, Thomas Turner and Son, Webley 728, Browning BSS, Remington 1894, Merkel Model 8, Bernadelli Gamecock DeLuxe, L.C. Smith Field, a couple of Huskies. I place these in no special order except those which I can remember without going to look. I can honestly say there are those here who have much more experience in doubles than I have, many with much deeper pockets than myself. However, my RBL is here, I am very pleased with what arrived, and before I would worry too much about it, I would wait and see what it looks like when it shows up. Then, do your usual evaluation and if it is not worth keeping either send it back and demand a refund or put it on GUN BROKER.COM.

Hang in there Kid!
Hairy

I had the chance to inspect an RBL in person, and my answer to your question is an unqualified "NO".

The overall fit and finish were nice, but there were 2 things I didn't like:

1. The engraving; the advertising pics showed guns that had been hand engraved by Richard Roy, and they are gorgeous. The engraving is deep, sharp and crisp, the shadowing made it even better. The shipped guns' engraving is MUCH less attractive, IMO. I felt it a HUGE drop-off from what was promised in the ads. The French Gray receiver also looked better in the ads than in person.

I can understand that they only had hand-engraved guns when the ad campain started, but if you look at current RBL ads, they're still showing the hand-engraved guns, not the machine-engraving that you'll really get. VERY dissappointing, if not downright misleading. Again IMO.

2. The stock finish. VERY shiny - it looked like it has about 1/2" of plastic on the stock. I guess that means the finish is deep; again, this may be more reflective of my taste than a critique of the gun.

Bottom line - Between CSMC's lack of communication with customers, quality control issues, and my disappointment with the finished product, I cancelled my order and spent it on another SxS that is hand-engraved, has nicer wood with a nicer finish, and best of all is in my hand for about $100 less than CSMC had been sitting on for over a year.

While I agree that the communication was poor I am happy with the weapon. I am still using the 471 as the benchmark since these were $2688 at Jaquas in Sept 2005 when I ordered. For me the gun still seems to be a better deal, the greyed receiver ended up looking similar to the ads and I am happy with the machined engraving.

Seems like the guys with guns are a lot happier than those who haven't gotten them. I ordered "late" on purpose as I wanted to see production guns before mine was made, paid with a credit card which limited my risk and got me another Gander Mountain rebate and was/am prepared to be patient.

I've had little communication with CSMC. I changed my order and asked for an approx. delivery date. I really have no opinion of their service as yet.

Other than some stock fit issues on two guns where the lever hit the wood and the initial engraving, which was incomplete and unattractive, I've seen few pics of problems. When people to get their guns I'd hope to see pics of any issues. So far what I've seen has looked pretty good. I didn't order Turkish but I agree with Chuck that what I've seen referred to as Turkish doesnt look it.

I do hope someone at CSMC reads these boards. It may not be fun at the moment but it would provide them with customer input and feedback that most concerns would have to pay for.

I received the following today:

First let me state we have deliverd 100's of guns at this point. Each week the actual amount of shipped guns goes up. We hope to have all guns delivered by the end of 2007,but our main goal is the quality of our product and if it takes longer so be it. Each gun requires a lot of hand work by our master gunsmiths to make sure they are up to our standards, there is no way around that. The comments must not be coming from actual owners of RBLs, the feedback that we get is extremely positive. If someone is not happy we would do whatever it takes to satisfy them, that has always been our policy.

The checkering is near perfect. It is done by a laser that is state of the art ans was built special for us to use on the RBL. As a matter of fact, it is so good we had the engineer program in inconsistancies so that it would replicate checkering by hand as it was too uniform. Wood is subjective, but I can tell you that a committe of 3 people review the wood after the wood is on the gun to make sure it is the grade and quality that the customer ordered. The review is done independantly so no person can influence the other. We have in some cases called the customer and told them that the wood was not the quality that it should be and we would either replace it for them or send it to them with a refund for the quality not being what it should be, so the gun would not be delayed. regarding the engraving, absolutely not true. The engraving that they are receiving is mechanical, as it was on the initial guns that were displayed. The actual quality of the engraving that people are receiving is extremely pleasing to me.

We did upgrade the ejector rods from a spring blade to solid that is installed in a different manner, 6 guns were affected by this problem. The initial guns had an oil/shellac engineered finish that is not as durable as the finish we are putting on now.

There is a lot of gossip and hearsay that we do not respond to, we believe that our customers are satisfied with the product. We strive to produce the best possible shotgun we can. I don't know the percentage, but a lot of people that have received RBLs have ordered a second gun. We do appreciate you coming to us and asking these questions to avoid all of the misinformation that is out there, we welcome these questions by anyone.And of course if you are not satisfied with the gun you are welcome to send it back for a complete refund.

Merry Christmas and God Bless,
Antony Galazan, President
Connecticut Shotgun