My new M70 Jack O'Connor saga continues

[NavyChief]

After all the trouble I have had with my new Winchester Jack O'Connor Custom Tribute rifle I thought things were turning around yesterday with two items found in the mail on the doorstep. First in the mail bundle was an info card on my rifle and its progress at the service center. Unfortunately the service card lists my gun as a Springfield 30-06, that must make Jack roll over in his grave, and when logging on to check the status is appears that mid-April is the earliest I will see the gun stock again as it will be re-checkered, refinished, and the metal parts re-fit. I tried to call Browning (the actual name on the card) and they were all gone for the day so I'll have to clear up my card/account errors lest I get back a 30-06 of some variety(yuck). The second glimmer of hope rested in a box from Clewiston Idaho which I knew contained my complimentary rifle case from the Jack O'Connor Hunting Heritage & Education Center. Much to my surprise I opened the box and found the custom embroidery spelling Lewiston as "LEWISION". Who knows, maybe Mr. O'Connor moved from Lewiston at some point to a township known as Lewision but I doubt it. Anyway, the rifle matches the case perfectly right now. Designed well, well thought out, but executed very poorly in the production phase. I enclosed a picture of the spelling error on the case and I doubt I'll return it because it probably isn't worth all the hassle anyway. I had planned to use it as a travel case in the vehicle when I went to a hunt club or back home when the gun needed a "Grand Entrance", you know what I mean. Anytime I needed to high hat it just a bit and show off my Winchester. For now, I'll just set back and wonder if this ordeal will ever end and now I can't help but have serious concerns about the rifle function, accuracy, and performance when I get the stock back and get it together. I know manufacturing isn't always a process of perfection but I hate being the guy that apparently got "that gun" but at least I have the case to match! I'll enclose a picture of the case. Kind of funny huh, I guess no one checked the work at any point in the process of these cases and they are named for a writer that was a meticulous wordsmith and editor of the highest quality. I bet he would have caught the spelling error .......... but it is likely that no one would have handed him the rifle I received or the case that I received either. Well, the gun has a history and a story to go with it and it has never had a round chambered, not bad huh?

 

[AZShooter]

I read your first thread on the Jack O'Conner tribute but couldn't find what flaws caused you to return it to the manufacturer. You mentioned that some other tribute owners didn't want you to mention the issue. Can you share the issues with us?

As for the misspelled embroidery I wouldn't tolerate it. You should send it back!

As a sidenote my wife is a teacher. She just switched from middle school to elementary. She discovered that spelling is no longer taught in elementary school! Yes that is right. There are no spelling lists given to the students to learn. The rationale is computers have spell check. It left me speechless. Perhaps the person that misspelled the word Lewiston is a product of this "new" type of education.

 

[etisll40]

It's sad when the word "custom" means "seconds!"

How embarrassing, the President of their organization should get involved with this transaction. I wouldn't settle for anything less. Time to find that individual and write a personal letter to his home. Address to Mrs. President and you will get some action. Be kind, often when this type of error is brought to the attention of top brass, everything gets resolved and the organization improves.

 

[NavyChief]

I don't really want to go into all the extreme details and specifics that I posted on another forum about the JOC Custom Tribute flaws but I will do a quick highlight. The checkering was soft and undefined. Many places felt more like running your hand across velvet instead of sharp checkering. You could run a cotton ball up and down the checkering, all over the gun, and not a strand would leave the ball. The Metal buttplate was overhanging about 1/16" on each side halfway down the butt end of the stock. The end of the buttplate overhung even more. The ebony forend tip was about 1/16' larger than the forend it was mated to. You could run your hand up the smooth checkering right into the ebony tip and it would stop firmly because the ebony tip stood out that much. However, the ebony tip was sharp, as the checkering should have been. I could live with the other flaws and told Winchester so, one swivel mount was off centered by about 15%, the barrel channel was not floated and a crisp 1$ bill would only make it less than halfway up the channel underneath the barrel before it came to an abrupt halt. One side of the checkering was higher on one side of the forearm than the other, I used a micrometer to measure it but it is still very noticeable to the eye and the finish left many, many, many, unsealed pores and gaps in the woods surface. I can float and bed the barrel, I can rub some more linseed or Tongue or whatever whatever finish used on the stock and I guess I can live with the uneven checkering and the swivel stud just shows a little character I guess but the checkering, forearm tip, and a buttplate that snags everything will not do. The gun case misspelling, oh well, I don't care to lift another finger on the gun case. I would really love to have the right one but paying to send this one back, payng to get another one, blah blah blah, I just couldn't care less when I looked in the case and saw "MADE IN HENRICH CHINA FROM HENRICH CHINA MATERIALS". I'll look for a case made in the USA and if I can't find one then I'll have one made here at our local tailor from some Old seabags I have from my Navy career and let her quilt them and let her embroider my name and city correctly on the gun case. I am not really a vein man but I don't want to look like the village idiot either when I show up with a gun case that has misspelled the home town of the most famous gunwriter of my generation. And yes, my fellow hunting buddies would know because more than a couple are Keith fans and didn't care much for the brash O'Connor as I did, and do. Besides, he's Irish. what else could I do. I just wish he was still around. I could write him a thoughtful letter and he would send one back that he would want enclosed to the letter I sent to Winchester with my gun. I'm sure the gun would be back in 2 weeks, delivered to my door and the case would be waiting for it when it got here.

 

[AZShooter]

You sir, have more patience than me. How that rifle ever got past inspection is beyond me. I wish you the best I getting it back in proper shape.

 

[Istari]

I too experienced the same things with mine. I actually got a correctly spelled case sent to me. The rifle stock I am still working on. Filed and fitted the butt plate. Sanded and filled the stock. I still have to float and bed the barrel. It should be fine when I'm finished. I primarily wanted it because of the stock duplication of the Biesen stock.

 

[Istari]

The correctly spelled case followed the first misspelled case. I ask what could be done and another was sent. It was explained the incorrect case must of slipped through.

 

[Istari]

I'm going to recutt the checkering too.