Should I bother sending it back?

[jsxtreme]

Never had a problem with mine, and this is my first gun. I had to learn my way through which products work best. The XD is a very high quality gun. The slide finish is the only thing im unhappy about, and thats only because of the way it looks. Send it back in, springflield will take care of you.

[vafish]

Originally Posted by thomasanelson

After sending SA an email with pictures, they said and I did, send it back. We will see what happens.

vafish:

You are right. I do need "to learn how to lube it properly". It's just that this is the first time I have purchased such an inferior product. You see I am used to buying quality products like H&K, Sig, Glock, S&W, CZ, Ruger, Taurus, etc. This is my first experience with such low quality merchandise.

The high quality finishes on many other modern semi auto handguns have really made us forget how to take care of a blued handgun.

I grew up shooting guns before stainless steel and synthetics were very commmon. I learned to come home from the range or field then field strip, clean and lubricate my firearms before putting them away.

I had heard all of the rust complaints before I got my XD40. So I don't treat my XD like I would my Glock or Stainless Ruger Super Redhawk. Those guns I don't worry about rusting quickly. The XD gets treated like those old blued guns I grew up with.

It's a shame that Springfield can't get the Melonite finish on the rest of the XD line. I think that would solve the rust problem.

[thomasanelson]

Vafish:

Ahmen to that! The only other gun I have any issue with (including blued ones) is my old "Blued" Beretta 70s. It has only the very slightest "pitting" in certain areas, but that gun is 20yrs old and was not well taken care of in its early years. What I don't understand is why Springfield would continue to sell the XD knowing there are rust issues and having a lifetime warrenty. It seems to me they should consider K-kote or some other finish done here after they arrive from Croatia to avoid any future issues. That being said, is the XD finish really a "Blued" finish?

[Ian Wendt]

I personally think that not getting melonite on the other guns in their line up is piss poor customer service.
Hell, they should offer it as a fix for those where the Bruniral isn't cutting it. The whole excuse about not being able to put it on the guns after they've left the factory is bogus. I will pretty much guarantee you that if they contacted a place like Burlington Engineering, they could get a kick ass volume discount.

[Chayak]

Rust = Neglect

Take care of your weapon and it will take care of you.

[Ian Wendt]

Bollocks! My XD40 has never seen a holster, I've used it only on the range and for dryfire. I've had it about 7 months. The finish in the areas where I grasp it to rack the slide is already worn off to the point where I can see bare metal! Same on my trigger and on the mag releases. That's ridiculously poor! That's why it managed to acquire a film of fine rust overnight sitting on my nightstand. There's simply no finish left in those areas.
Neglect my left foot! I have several carbonsteel knives with no coating whatsoever that haven't rusted in years and I've handled them quite frequently. This Bruniral finish is a joke.

[mcb]

I am always torn on the rust issue. On one hand I agree that if you neglect an XD it will rust and IMHO 90% of the rust problems are due to neglect. That said the finish does very little to inhibit rust and that's not good either.

Both of my XD have had minor rusting issues. I did not send them back. I like the look of the worn finish, but again that is JMHO.

mcb

[Ian Wendt]

I don't personally mind the look of the worn finish at all. It adds character. But the speed with which it wears... That's concerning. Something as relatively simple like Black T would hold up for a longer period of time. Atleast based on my experience with knives and how it holds up to friction. And let's face it. Most knives will see far more wear on the finish than most guns will. Not sure about something like Gun-Kote/Duracoat/Armory-Kote and how well they hold up to wear.

[thomasanelson]

Well I finally got it back and it looks very nice. SA did a good job. It almost looks like a Glock coating. They even did the barrel.

http://public.fotki.com/realityprodu.../img_1562.html

[speedracer211]

How long did it take and did they cover shipping... I have to send mine back as soon as i find the return authorization number they gave me the other day. did they only do the slide or did they do other areas as well that were rusted.