Avoid Irvington Arms

[TRICKSTER]

I don't understand how anyone here can say for sure who is at fault for the missing bolt. None of us were there when the seller packed the item, when IA opened the item or when the OP picked up the item and took it home. For all we know, the bolt could have been stolen during shipping. I also don't understand how the OP could leave the store without making sure he got what he payed for. Besides the bolt issue, the rifle or scope could have been damaged. If that had been the case, would IA have also been flamed on this board without any proof. IA was just the transfer dealer, maybe they could have handled it better, but in the end, the buyer is responsible to make sure he received the merchandise that he was paying for.

[ivanimal]

Irvington arms has always been top notch to me. If you are having issues they always look for a solution. I dont think there is a better gun store out there.

But what do I know I have only bought 15 or so guns there over the years.

[guns_and_labs]

Especially with Valkyrie Arms opening up.

Good luck to them. So far, every store in the Bay Area gets trashed by someone with an entitlement disorder pretty quickly on this site. It will be interesting how long their honeymoon is.

I haven't seen a website for them. Are they offering free transfers 24 hours a day, and accepting old parking tickets as proof of residence? Seems like they should, if they want to earn our business the next time we want to avoid their inventory and order a gun from CDNN.

[Teddy]

That sucks...sorry for the problems. I do have to say that Martin is a good guy, I understand that you are not happy, and I get it, but from the shop owners point of view, sadly, on a shipped in transfer they are not going to have the same level of commitment to "parts" or "condition" as they will have if you are purchasing a firearm from them. In a "he-said she-said" situation like this when there is no actual retail transaction....rarely will a retailer step up and cover missing parts. They certainly did not pull the bolt out of the box and toss it in the garbage.....so from their perspective it was never there. It may have been....but perception is 9/10th of reality and the reality is they never saw it. Honestly, knowing nothing about shipping firearms, I'd assume that all removed parts should be individually wrapped, then adhered to the firearm in some fashion (like tape...hahaha) to keep everything together.

Again, sorry you had a bad experience. I know the folks at IA aren't going to bowl you over with gushy greetings and super social skills......but they are good people and do TRY to treat people fairly. Tough spot though, no doubt.

[Inkman]

Good luck to them. So far, every store in the Bay Area gets trashed by someone with an entitlement disorder pretty quickly on this site. It will be interesting how long their honeymoon is.

I haven't seen a website for them. Are they offering free transfers 24 hours a day, and accepting old parking tickets as proof of residence? Seems like they should, if they want to earn our business the next time we want to avoid their inventory and order a gun from CDNN.

LOLOLOL

Couldn't have summed it up better!!

Al

[Eljay]

Per the IA rep this has been resolved. See this other thread on the Irvington Arms forum.

http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=333208

There have been no further posts from seller and customer so it appears resolved between all parties.

You know, IA unilaterally asserting it's been resolved isn't exactly reassuring. It would be really nice if OP would come back and say if HE has been satisfied or not.

Personally I bought my last three or four guns at IA but that was a while back - it sounds from some of the posts like things have changed. I'm planning on picking up one more before the end of the year and this thread is definitely enough to make me check out the other bay area options first.

[rojocorsa]

I'm honestly wondering if there is a correlation between the ages of the satisfied and unsatisfied customers--know what I mean?

I had no trouble with IA on 2 PPT's but the the loss of the parts troubles me. I've even have done PPT's at OLD WEST GUN ROOM without incident. I'm and old gray haired retired LEO. I think some of the FFL's profile people based on their appearance and provide desperate treatment based on that.

This gentleman's post (who has the awesome bear avatar) makes me wonder...

Also, as a younger guy myself, I'm wary of COG (crusty old guys, usually grumpy) behind gun counters and tables at shows. I say this from what I've personally experienced.

Obviously, I want to do business with the guy who won't act like an ******* or like it's a chore to speak with customers---or that "know it all" attitude.

It's sad to say this, but in my experience, "customer service" and "gun stores" do not belong in the same sentence. I hope this will all change when I visit Valkyrie in Milpitas.

[jlh95811]

You know, IA unilaterally asserting it's been resolved isn't exactly reassuring. It would be really nice if OP would come back and say if HE has been satisfied or not.

Personally I bought my last three or four guns at IA but that was a while back - it sounds from some of the posts like things have changed. I'm planning on picking up one more before the end of the year and this thread is definitely enough to make me check out the other bay area options first.

I've spoken to the OP via PM a few times.
IA said they will order a new bolt for him. He is under the impression that they will pay the total cost as they ordered it without telling him it would cost him anything.
I am assuming he is waiting until he has the bolt in hand before he updates the status of the discrepency. You never know what can happen if you count your chickens before they hatch.

So at least we know that IA is finally working with the OP in some way to resolve the issue instead of telling him to pound sand.

[Eljay]

So at least we know that IA is finally working with the OP in some way to resolve the issue instead of telling him to pound sand.

Well, I hope you're right, but given the uncertainty I thought I might as well check out the other places at about the same distance and ended up buying from J&R in Livermore. Nice folks.

[simple schoolboy]

in regards to IA, ive had nothing but good experiances there, the older guy used to have an attitude but after some complaints i noticed he is much more polite and helpful.

As of 2/11 he still has a terrible attitude, but maybe he just didn't like me. He was fine until I put money down and then he was terribly rude. Its as if he's trying to get one of his customers into a murderous rage so they put him out of his misery.

Based on the number of positive reviews, I can only gather that he is not like this all of the time. It may be race and age specific so if you are also a knowledgeable (but defer to his greatness) middle aged white man, you might have an acceptable experience with him.

The younger guy and the woman there were both helpful and friendly. Its a shame I wasn't able to deal more with them.

[API]

I'd probably get worse reviews than IA and Turners combined..

That'll be the day. Turners has already lapped the field several times. You could never catch them.

[ninjawho?]

I'm sorry, but all I've ever gotten from Irvington Arms is a bunch of shady looks and a BAD attitude. For a Firearms Industry that always needs help, you would think stores would GET something as BASIC as customer service. I felt NO respect during my entire experience there.

Frank does have a 'holy-er than thou' attitude. Hes just a bald blind old fat guy who sits behidn the desk and looks down upon his customers and when talked to he acts as if he's being bothered. I dislike him aswell, everyone else is alright though.

Went in there twice just to see if the first time was a fluke.....first time made no attempt at helping me find the gun I wanted......second time walked in with $1200 bucks in my pocket to buy a gun that day...they were so rude I lasted like 5 minutes and walked out.....was the only one in the store with 3 employees....i was very courteous,polite,and clean cut.....same result...ended up going to reeds had a very pleasant experience contrary to what people say of that place.....will never go back to IA or have work done on my pistols no matter how "good" their work is....will go to reeds though....
T

[coyotebait]

I understand that the shop has to open it up to get the serial number. If it had been me opening it, I would have stuffed all the packing crap back in the box.....but then again, I don't work at a gun shop.

[Steyr_223]

Strange, I goto IA at least once a week. Never seen rudeness by the staff..They have a diverse group of customers from highly paid professionals, retirees, armed services personal, young, old, poor, rich, unemployed, gun experts and gun novices, blacks, white, Asian, Hispanic, Arabic/middle eastern, Indian, men, women, Liberals, Democrats, Conservative, TEA party, Republicans, gay, lesbian and transgender etc...


Everyone can have a bad day and I have seen some rude, ignorant and abrasive customers there but the staff handled them professionally IMHO. Some of the more abrasive customers I would have asked to leave..

If you have issues with staff talk to Martin or Frank, the two owners..Annie in the IA forum is Martin's wife..If there are legit issues, I am sure it can be worked out..

martin@irvingtonarms.com
frank@irvingtonarms.com

http://www.irvingtonarms.com/html/about_us.html

[guns_and_labs]

Frank does have a 'holy-er than thou' attitude. Hes just a bald blind old fat guy who sits behidn the desk and looks down upon his customers and when talked to he acts as if he's being bothered. I dislike him aswell, everyone else is alright though.

Has it been mentioned yet that Frank is not blind, old, or fat? If he was, I could probably beat him occasionally at the USPSA matches.