I have used alot of barrels and have had two barrels total that were what I would call defective from the manufacturers. It happens. Any time you deal in volume things happen.
Yes its a frustration when it does but its just life. No one is perfect and if you put a large number of barrels out there, the laws of percentages will result in the fact that eventually a bad one will get out the door.
If you look at the percentages again, this number is EXTREMELY low compared to say factory barrels.
I will not say which barrel makers sent me the defective barrels, they were from two different makers. THis is because it is not professional to do so.
I feel this way because when each of these barrel makers were shown the problem, both replaced the barrels with no questions asked. One without even wanting the barrel returned to them, just ordered up a new barrel and sent it when it was ready.
Sure it is a pain in the rear and a set back to me and my customers but the matters were resolved as fast and as professionally as they could have been.
This is why I will not give out the company information. Had they stuck me with the bad barrels that may have been a different story.
Simply put, every barrel maker that has been around any amount of time has had a barrel that presented some type of issues and to say that one maker puts out bad barrels and another maker never will is foolish. It happens to all of them.
If you want a top end barrel, order in a Krieger, Hart, Lilja, Rock, Broughton, ABS or any of the other top end, well established barrels. If in the very slight chance you get a defective barrel, it is very likely that the matter will be resolved very easily.
If you have given them a chance to make it right and they will not do so then you can name names. But being a results based professional, I would want the chance to correct things before getting smeared on the web for something that will eventually happen to all of us.
Just my opinion, order a top end barrel and you will be happy.
Kirby Allen(50)