What to expect?

[skeaterbait]

Has anyone got experience with Lyman's customer service? I just recieved my new GPR today and to my disappointment can't even assemble it. The lock is improperly located in the stock so the snail will not fit down in it's cubby therefore the barrel barrel will not seat in the channel.

I also found it very disappointing that a company the size of Lyman only has office hours until 4:30 EST and M-F. I guess if you don't live on the east coast you don't matter as a customer.

Anyhow, just curious of the experience I might get prepared for. So far, it's not a "Great Plains" one.

 

[kelleyjk]

I think theyre pretty lackluster.

Even when buying stuff and sending them money they dont/wont communicate but a couple weeks later the parts show up so I guess I shouldnt complain.


ps> check for excess stock finish mine was all gunked up the lock was cemented into the stock and that cheap finish could be preventing your breech from inserting fully but I would not be surprised to hear that the inletting is actually off that far!

I squawked about mine and had to re-do the entire stock, everyone else says theyre perfect though :shocked2:

 

[skeaterbait]

I looked it over pretty good in the channel and it all looks pretty clear but the snail is definitely hitting the lock. It lacks at least 1/16" if not an 1/8" from sitting down in where it needs too.

Thanks for the info, I will get in the right mindset.

 

[Pete Gaimari]

It's obvious that Investarms doesn't assemble the gun before sending it out. That's pretty sad.

 

[ebiggs1]

Was this a kit or complete gun? Kits are pretty iffy anymore but a complete rifle should be or have been assembled. If it is a complete rifle check very carefully you haven't overlooked something.
Their customer service is not TC's!

 

[BrownBear]

I haven't had to call them often, but each time the response has been very good. It reminds me a lot of TC. I'm friendly and easy-going on the phone, and they always respond in kind.

 

[jbtusa]

I just bought a completed GPR about 2 years ago. It came with no problems and I couldn't ask for a nicer rifle. I ordered spare parts for it from Lyman direct and their customer service was A-1+. Great rifle; great company!

 

[kelleyjk]

As angry as I got over the fit and finish on my ready to shoot weapon, these are set up in jigs and cut out like biscuits it will most likely fit.

Try loosening the breech "tang" I suspect its like mine the tang was inletted too low in front or at a downward angle in other words, they grind this pieces flat with the barrel before finishing so they will look normal when assembled, even though the geometery is off.

This may allow the hooked breech to slide back far enough to let the bolster to slide back far enough to clear the lock. It doesnt take much.

What to expect next? Your barrel wedges wont fit without some modification, Theres probably some cheap oil finish in your lock mechanism, fly and tumbler area especially a pain to clean out. My coil spring was all gunked up. And your rear sight if its anything like mine will be crooked or only partially adjustable and then wont stay adjusted. The consensus here is remove sight with a drift from left to right. If youre a right handed thrower place in right hand and throw in nearest trash receptacle. Left handers should follow a similar discarding procedure.

I on the other hand being such an ace craftsmanlike person :v used a hammer, a pin punch, a center punch, a couple of small files, a stronger spring and salvaged my rear sight to where it now holds a zero, had to file an 8th or so off the front, bottom line $600 rifle inc tax and shipping, about 12-15 hours of labor at ($5.20 an hour or whatever youre worth I charge $6.00 when I hire out!) a can of Minwax stain and Minwax tung oil finish $20, sandpaper 100-320 grit $7 bottle of cold blue $4 ...

... and now its almost usable :thumbsup:

After the first 70 or so rounds its tightening up about 2" group @ 50yds w/100gr 2F, the bore is smoothing out been polishing it with JB bore stuff looks real similar to baby excreta and costs about $9 for a small jar. Oh be sure to clean the protective grease out of the bore before firing, it requires some pretty aggressive cleaning denatured alcohol, paint reducer, carburetor cleaner etc, followed by something to like smokeless bore solvent followed by a few dozen dry patches, I dont know what the Hell they used but I only swabbed mine out before firing it looked clean but the resulting residue is like melted plastic hard fouling.

As for the customer service department, 3 emails unanswered I did follow up with a phone call, got transfered to "the guy" that allegedly knows stuff, sat on hold, never got voicemail or a connection to the guy, gave up.

They did accept my order for parts online, tap my card and deliver the goods (took 2 weeks).

 

[skeaterbait]

I am a little calmer this morning and decided to take a look at things again. Since there were a couple of people that mentioned the breech I started there. Remove the two tang screws and hooked the barrel in. Giving a little pressure to the back of the rifle did indeed yield a little space. Now I can play with my new toy. Thanks all for the input and suggestions.

I am still not 100% satified with the fit of everything but I guess $500 don't buy what it used to. I will just have to make sure I improve the fit when I make a maple stock for it.

 

[bub524]

I just bought a completed GPR about 2 years ago. It came with no problems and I couldn't ask for a nicer rifle. I ordered spare parts for it from Lyman direct and their customer service was A-1+. Great rifle; great company!

My experience is the same with Lyman A++. I own and have owned perhaps 20+ Lymans over the last 35 years and can't say I had a major fault with any of them or the company. As for T/C they are now S&W, I wouldn't hold my breath dealing with them.

 

[Pete Gaimari]

I just bought a completed GPR about 2 years ago. It came with no problems and I couldn't ask for a nicer rifle. I ordered spare parts for it from Lyman direct and their customer service was A-1+. Great rifle; great company!

My experience is the same with Lyman A++. I own and have owned perhaps 20+ Lymans over the last 35 years and can't say I had a major fault with any of them or the company. As for T/C they are now S&W, I wouldn't hold my breath dealing with them.

Why do you say that?

S&W has owned TC for the last two years. Have you seen something change?

 

[shootrj2003]

I have heard of things changing with them,several different posts in diierent sites but I very rarely deal with companies,If I buy something and it don,t fit ,I usually don't think about it I just figure it out and fix it, It ends up cheaper and quicker that way,unless something is bent that I can't straighten[barrel?] or broke too bad to fix[totally smashed]but I really have never had anything like that happen,lucky I gueess!

 

[Bill Hall]

Skeaterbait, you're going to hate yourself and that rifle if you don't call them and demand they fix it. $500 is ALOT of money, and you should get a good rifle in return. If you found out you got stuck with a rifle that somebody else returned, which you probably did, I'd bet you'd return it in a heartbeat. It's your money, and now they have it and you have less to show for it. Think about it. Bill

 

[Kentuckywindage]

my GPR barrel wont mount either if the tang screws are tightened down all the way.

I fixed it by putting a shim under the tang and after that, i was able to tighten things down and the barrel drops into the stock perfectly.

 

[kelleyjk]

my GPR barrel wont mount either if the tang screws are tightened down all the way.

thats been one of my chief concerns about this tang inletting situation, repeated pounding with heavy loads will at worst cause stock failure or even at best, its going to wallow out the mortised area

my long term solution (when I get motivated) is going to involve a Dremel tool and some epoxy or Accraglass to deal with this issue (my tang sits about 1/4" higher than the wood) and the area between the lock and the barrel channel is paper thin stay out of that area

of course this will lead to other dimensions being thrown off not the least of which is the top of the barrel to the top of the tang surface which as stated was ground flat while the tang and breech were not fully mated ie flush

again Im glad eveyone that has a good one thinks theyre great, (these pics make me jealous how'd y'all get such nice looking wood)

...however, I still believe you shouldnt have to re-engineer the entire fit and assembly when buying a "ready to shoot" finished rifle, a kit would be a different matter

 

[ebiggs1]

My experience is the same with Lyman A++. I own and have owned perhaps 20+ Lymans over the last 35 years and can't say I had a major fault with any of them or the company.

There is no comparison between Lyman's warranty and customer service to Thompson Center. TC is leaps and bounds better than Lyman even dreams of.

As for T/C they are now S&W, I wouldn't hold my breath dealing with them.

I see no change except that side locks may be an endangered species. Unless you know otherwise.

 

[ebiggs1]

It would be nice if you could see the rifle "before" you purchase it. But in my area, for instance, there is no such place, so you internet it and take your chances!

 

[bub524]

Admittedly T/C customer service has been absolute tops in the business. However, since S&W has taken over their main focus is no longer on the muzzleloader community. Whatever, my point was that I never had a complaint with Lyman.

 

[bub524]

It would be nice if you could see the rifle "before" you purchase it. But in my area, for instance, there is no such place, so you internet it and take your chances!

The same here. There are no muzzleloader shops in the state that I know of. Its the net for me.

 

[hoochiepapa]

Sorry you're having trouble with it, but that's a handsome rifle!! :thumbsup: