Colt's response to my complaint about Brownell's 14.5 and 11.5 barrels...

[Old Coot]

You may recall I posted feed ramp pics of two, 14.5 and one, 11.5 Colt barrels I bought from Brownell's this Aug and Sep. The ramps had been poorly and unprofessionally dremelled by hand. They showed deep stone marks, non-symmetrical removal of material, and chambers full of medal dust. Below is my initial complaint to Colt, Colt's reply, and my reply back to Colt. As of this posting Colt hasn't responded to my last email.

Let's go Brandon!


From: ---------------
Sent: Thursday, September 30, 2021 5:50 PM
To: Customer Service
Subject: Is this how Colt REALLY does their feed ramps???

Hello Colt Customer Service;

This month (September) I bought the following 5.56x45 Colt barrels from Brownell's:
1 each, 11.5" Heavy Barrel.......received 9/8
1 each, 14.5" Govt Profile.........received 9/15
1 each, 14.5" Govt Profile.........received 9/30

Both feed ramps in all barrels were heavily Dremeled - by hand - after these barrels were parkerized. The Dremel cuts are crooked, uneven, and extremely rough. No inspection was done to note these defects and no rework was done to correct them. No Craytex was used to smooth and blend the rough stone marks.

All locking lugs/recesses, chambers, and throats are covered in metal dust and tiny chips. No effort was made to remove this FOD (Foreign Object Debris) by compressed air or fluid wash (parts washer, spray solvent, etc).

In addition to the rough, unprofessional Dremel job, every locking lug of the 14.5" barrel I received today (9/30) is badly chipped on the inner corners. That this barrel was sent to parkerizing indicates this barrel was never inspected or was poorly inspected.

Brownell's tells me these barrels came directly from Colt. I find it hard to believe Colt would let this kind of work out the door. So I have some questions.

1. Is this how Colt finishes feed ramps on their complete firearms?
2. On their military contract firearms?
3. Or were these amateur and unnecessary Dremel jobs done by someone else after the barrels left Colt?
4. Where can I get these same barrels, but with proper feed ramps?

As an Type 07/SOT II (1990-2014) I bought for resale numerous NIB select fire Colt M16A1's (rifles and carbines), SP1's, and the famous H-BAR's. I went over every one with a fine tooth comb. Not one had feed ramps like these Brownell's Colt barrels. Every Colt I bought, sold, or owned, ran like a top. Especially the select fire Colts. Never. A. Single. Problem. Ever. That's the Colt I remember and loved.

I'm returning all three barrels to Brownell's. I have no confidence in them. I can't risk function failure or catastrophic destruction and injury in full auto fire.

Thank you for your time. I look forward to your reply.
========================


Customer Service <cs@colt.com>
To: --------
Fri, Oct 1 at 11:07 AM


Hello -------,

Yes, our barrels are adjusted and modified by hand if they are found to be outside of the factory specifications and tolerances. This is normal for barrels used for all builds, commercial, L.E. and contract (i.e. military). Function and reliability is paramount with our rifles and manufacturing tends not to be concerned with cosmetics on internal parts.

Another retailer who stocks our barrels is Arms Unlimited. You can try with them to see if they have a batch of barrels that are more visually acceptable for you. Their information should be in the auto response email.

Customer Solutions Team
Colt's Manufacturing Company LLC
545 New Park Avenue
West Hartford, CT 06110
cs@colt.com
============================


From: -----
To: Customer Service <cs@colt.com>
Sent: Saturday, October 2, 2021, 09:12:28 AM EDT
Subject: Re: Is this how Colt REALLY does their feed ramps???

Customer Service;

Thank you for your fast reply. Your answers raised a couple of significant questions. Those questions are in red below. Would you please try your best to answer them?

Thank you again for your time and your forthcoming answers.

Sincerely,
Wayne


You said:
....our barrels are adjusted and modified by hand if they are found to be outside of the factory specifications and tolerances...


If it's outside spec and tolerance, it's a reject. That means the three Colt barrels I got from Brownell's were factory rejects. These rejects were roughly Dremeled by hand, leaving unsymmetrical gouges and deep stone marks in the feed ramps. Feed ramps are supposed to be smooth and uniform. Not unsymmetrical with deeply gouged, rough tool marks.

Many on the gun boards complain of hacked up feed ramps. With so many rejects why doesn't Colt address the problems causing the rejects?


You said:
Function and reliability is paramount with our rifles

Pictures show these barrels were never fired. How do you claim "function and reliability is paramount" when you clearly didn't test fire the barrels for function or reliability?


You said:
...our barrels are adjusted and modified by hand if they are found to be outside of the factory specifications and tolerances...This is normal for barrels used for...military.

When military men go into harm's way their weapons must be absolutely reliable in the harshest conditions. I find it hard if not impossible to believe DOD accepts reject barrels with deeply hacked, rough surfaced, feed ramps. No unit armorer would accept this. No depot level technician would accept this. And no warfighter would accept this; especially in the elite units.

Can you provide a copy of the DOD/military waiver to Colt on feed ramp specs and tolerances?


You said:
...manufacturing tends not to be concerned with cosmetics on internal parts.

This statement indicates a complete lack of firearms and gunsmithing knowledge. Fully zoom on the pics and you'll see the rough, wavy, and unsymmetrical Dremel work, with deep stone marks. That's not just "cosmetic". That's a failure waiting to happen. Rough feed surfaces can catch a bullet tip or case rim cause FTF (failure to feed). Unsymmetrical and too broad or deep Dremel gouges can divert the cartridge too far right, too far left, or too high up, and cause FTF or jam.


Would it help to get answers if I send a copy of this email with accompanying letter, via US certified mail to the CEO, Board of Directors, and Operations Manager of Colt Manufacturing; and to Colt Defense's Dennis Veilleux, James R. Battaglini, Aditya Rana, and others? They may be interested to learn that the military accepts Dremel hacked feed ramps and isn't concerned about "cosmetics".


Thank you again for your email. It contained a wealth of information


Sincerely,
------

[sidewaysil80]

Ehhhhhhh I understand your frustration but the last paragraph was unnecessarily cringey. I could see that ACTION (not threat of action) being justified if they ignore your second email or provide unacceptable answers, but to threaten such a dramatic action without even asking for a simple exchange or remedy was a little much.

[C-grunt]

Isnt that basically the same response that everyone in the initial thread told you?

[C-grunt]

I just checked my duty rifle (6920) from circa 2011ish. Has similar type marks. Also has over 10k rounds through it and I cant remember a single malfunction. We are getting new rifles soon and Im buying this one back from the retailer doing the contract/trade. We've been through a lot together and I trust it with my life, literally. Ill gladly pay over market value for it.

[C-grunt]

Also... Why when I purchase a bolt gun barrel that work done by hand after the barrel comes out of the machines is considered a good thing, but if Colt does it it's a reject barrel?

[AndyLate]

Also... Why when I purchase a bolt gun barrel that work done by hand after the barrel comes out of the machines is considered a good thing, but if Colt does it it's a reject barrel?

If that work was a crude dremel job with residue left inside it may not be considered a good thing.

OP's second email probably will not motivate them to resolve the issue, but then again Brownells allowed a return on the barrels so there is no issue. Potential Colt barrel buyers have another data point to consider, and it has been made clear in both threads that it is basically a cosmetic issue.

I've no dog in this fight, FWIW

Andy

[DG23]

Pictures show these barrels were never fired. How do you claim "function and reliability is paramount" when you clearly didn't test fire the barrels for function or reliability?

Colt has not test fired squat (for the commercial market at least) in many years. Pretty easy to tell if you look at the gas port on 'new' rifles from the inside with a good borescope.

They are doing the dremel monkey thing without any clue if it is 'needed' or not. And it is not needed...

[georgeib]

Also... Why when I purchase a bolt gun barrel that work done by hand after the barrel comes out of the machines is considered a good thing, but if Colt does it it's a reject barrel?

I'm not seeing this as a fair comparison. One is a precision handmade barrel with finishing touches added as a final step, whereas the other is a mass produced piece manufactured to "TDP" with out of spec issues being corrected in an obviously inconsistent and careless manner. I would bet the farm that half-assed Dremeling isn't mentioned in the TDP anywhere.

Furthermore, why do we not seem to see this with other AR barrel manufacturers? Put together a PSA for a buddy not too long ago, and the extension was aesthetically flawless. I don't know... but this just doesn't smell right. I feel like I'm being gaslighted by people saying this is normal.

ETA: Misread what you wrote C-grunt. Thought you were talking about handmade precision barrels, not standard barrels. Either way, I think you get my gist.

[AndyLate]

How could Colt verify function or reliability for a barrel sold as a component?

Andy

[Old Coot]

Isnt that basically the same response that everyone in the initial thread told you?

The difference between what "everyone" and Colt told me is this; Colt told me the barrels were rejects.

How could Colt verify function or reliability for a barrel sold as a component?

Andy

How could they claim a badly hand modified feed ramp functioned reliably without actually firing it to verify their claim?