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What's happening with the S&W lifetime warranty?

5140 Views 7 Replies 4 Participants Last post by  5Wire
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I just bought a brand-new 442-2 with no internal lock that was Mf'd on 11/03/2008. The Smith & Wesson Owner's Manual "Revolvers - Modern Style" that was included read like this on P. 32:

Notice the lack of the provision for the "Extended Service Policy" at he location designated by an "X" (in red) that appears in the other manuals I will show below (And, yes, I checked the rest of the manual thoroughly for the "Extended Service Policy" and it is NOT there):

(This manual was dated on the back cover as Sept. 11, 2008)

-*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*-

This manual was just pulled off the S&W web site and is the most current revision of The Smith & Wesson Owner's Manual "Revolvers - Modern Style" . Notice the "Extended Service Policy" text where the "X" is located in the manual I got with my new 442:

(This manual was dated on the back cover as Jan. 13, 2009)

-*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*-

This manual is from my 642-2 that I bought new in 2003 - It was Mf'd on Jun 16, 2003. Note that on P.29 there is a bold faced titled "Extended Service Policy":

(This manual was dated on the back cover as May 22, 2003)

-*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*--*-

I have e-mailed Smith & Wesson customer service to get a clarification on exactly whether I get the "Extended Service Policy" or not on my new 442-2. And if so, I have requested that a new manual be sent to me to keep with my gun in case I ever need to use the "Extended Service Policy".

If NOT, then does it mean that S&W is no longer going to offer a "Lifetime Warranty"??

RonJon
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Your guess is as good as mine! :roll: But, in these hard economic times, it is reasonable to assume that companies, like S&W, are going to cut the bottom line. This is an expense to them, and they won't be able to back their products like before. Bob
S&W Warranty and S&W Extended Service Policy are two different things. The Extended Service Policy has not changed since it was implemented in 1989(?). Your own post answers your question.
5Wire said:
S&W Warranty and S&W Extended Service Policy are two different things. The Extended Service Policy has not changed since it was implemented in 1989(?). Your own post answers your question.
I don't follow your logic - The first scan in my post is from the owner's manual that was packed with my new S&W revolver. It has the S&W Extended Service Policy deleted.
Interesting question you have. I also have a 442-2 that I purchased new around November 2008. I'm going to have to check the manual when I get off work today to see if mine reads the same as yours.
RonJon said:
5Wire said:
S&W Warranty and S&W Extended Service Policy are two different things. The Extended Service Policy has not changed since it was implemented in 1989(?). Your own post answers your question.
I don't follow your logic - The first scan in my post is from the owner's manual that was packed with my new S&W revolver. It has the S&W Extended Service Policy deleted.
The extended Service Policy appears in your second scan and answers your question. Same answer that you'd get on the S&W website. Same answer as on this same thread you started on the blue forum.

Your early scan refers to a revision date for the manual as of 5/2/2003, the manual could have been printed anytime after that and, perhaps erroneously, distributed right alongside of guns shipped with newer revisions. The text of interest may not have made it in to the printed copies in the first place due to some error during preparation, it was not necessarily deleted. I found it in an earlier version. The facts that the POLICY (not warranty, a legal distinction) statements are current answers your question. S&W revised the revision of the manual you got.

(BTW I find my similar post on this thread at the blue forum has been removed. Too much bandwidth, I suppose.)
I hope you are right.

The thing is - It took conscious effort on someone's part to delete the S&W Extended Service Policy from the revision that came packed with my gun. They did have it in before, and they apparently have it back in on the one that is currently on the S&W web site.

BTW - I looked at the warranty that came with my (Mfg: 2/2008 and bought new by me on 8/3/2008) S&W Mod. 638-3 .38 special Revolver - and that warranty also is missing the S&W Extended Service Policy!

The warranty that comes on every revision that I've seen states: "With respect to such handguns, this warranty supersedes any and all other warranties."

So the question I have e-mailed to S&W is: Does the one on the web site apply to MY two guns, or the one that I got WITH my guns?

5WIRE,
Just to be clear - I think that you probably are correct on the POLICY thing - I just wanted to do the Reagan thing - "Trust, but verify!"

Ron
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The thing is - It took conscious effort on someone's part to delete the S&W Extended Service Policy from the revision that came packed with my gun. They did have it in before, and they apparently have it back in on the one that is currently on the S&W web site.
After having been involved in publishing for over thirty years I can tell you all it takes for something to be omitted from a publication is lack of attention (unconsciousness, if you please), poor proofing procedures, a mixup up in the image assembly, or any combination of those things. "Deleted" is presumptuous, I would say, unnerving but presumptuous. :ugeek:
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