Grips - Rubber!

[Reinz]

Richard - any Free gun is worth showing!

If I remember right, you dug that little gem out one day to show us.

It wasn't a bad looking little gun either.

[birdman]

    Well, the defender is off to finishing school. It's at UPS right now, shipping will take seven days, Bearcoat said it would take them "no more than ten days, probably less, to refinish". I'm having it done in matte black Bearcoat. I'm  really interested in seeing how it looks. Hopefully, the new Esmeralda grips won't be ashamed to be seen with it. Ah, the things we do for love. I'll keep everyone posted as this soap opera plays out.     Gene

[tracker]

Thanks, Gene; that sounds like a fast turnaround.

[kjtrains]

Gene.  Sounds like a winner!  I'm sure the Defender will look great on it's return from finishing school.  Don't you just love it when a plan comes together.  Excellent.

[birdman]

     Well, I lied like a dog in my last post. A few minutes after I posted it, I had a call from UPS saying that since it was a pistol that I was shipping, it had to go by air overnight. So I had to go back across town and give them more money. At least it will speed things up. I'm always up for that! The saga continues....          Gene

[tracker]

Thanks for clarifying that; I thought things had changed.

[Richard S]

Look at the bright side, Gene. Overnight delivery is more expensive, but your pistol won't be hanging around UPS ground terminals for seven days.  

[kjtrains]

    Well, I lied like a dog in my last post. A few minutes after I posted it, I had a call from UPS saying that since it was a pistol that I was shipping, it had to go by air overnight. So I had to go back across town and give them more money. At least it will speed things up. I'm always up for that! The saga continues....          Gene

Great, Gene.  Like you say, it will speed things up.  I always despise waiting; as I'm doing now.    

[birdman]

    Richard, you're right about the gun being better off not hanging around UPS terminals any more than it has to. In fact, by the time I arrived home the first time, I was already regretting not sending it overnight. I guess that what really gripes me most about the whole thing is the lack of professionalism shown throughout by UPS. To put the icing on the cake, when I got home after the second visit to UPS, I found an email from FEDEX wanting me to use their overnight service. I had never had any communication with FEDEX before, so obviously someone from UPS had provided FEDEX with my information. I don't like that idea too much either. Aw what the hell, anything to make the new grips happy.   Gene

[Richard S]

Gene:

My experience has been that the service offered by UPS and FedEx varies from location to location, depending I suppose on the attitude of the facility managers and the staff's knowledge of applicable federal regulations and company policies. Here in my county, I have had better experiences with FedEx than with UPS when it comes to the efficient handling of firearm shipments.

[kjtrains]

Just a comment on FedEx; I like the overnite shipment and delivery time they provide.  Ship one day, arrives next day, 10:00 AM.  I really like their service.  Seems like they're just a little more quick to deliver.

[Reinz]

I agree with KJ's take.
also

since the pistol/overnite debacable started years ago, I've dealt with gunsmiths all over the country and every one of them hands down prefer FedEx.

[birdman]

   Since I don't trust UPS as far as I can throw them, I called Bearcoat a few minutes ago to see if the gun had arrived. They said it had shown up "earlier this morning," been taken apart, and was being treated as we spoke. The guy said that if it gets done soon enough that it should ship back this way tomorrow. Damn, those guys are FAST!!. If they're as good as people say, and as quick as this everytime, then I believe that they will get a lot of well-deserved business. Act III coming up in a couple days, stay tuned.     Gene

[Reinz]

What a relief that it made it.  I empathize.

That is amazing, such service at Bearcoat!

Very impressive.

Looks like Tracker steered you good.

[tracker]

Fantasmagorical! I don't know how holiday shipping works but it may be worth checking and maybe waiting until Tuesday so it doesn't sit in a terminal cage over a long weekend.