Taurus PT11-extractor flew off

[Apple a Day]

I bought a used PT111 (not Pro) at a gun show last month for a really good price. The trigger was ugly but I polished it and it's much improved. It's pretty accurate and comfortable for a small gun BUT...
... I cleaned it, took it to the range, fired 100 rounds, took it home, cleaned it again. Today I took it to the range and was shooting it. Man, I was just starting to like the thing when SPRONG! Apparently the dadgum extractor pin worked loose and the extractor went walkabout. I found it and the pin but the spring which gives it tension is forever gone.
It's the weekend so I can't contact Taurus. Do y'all think I will have to send it in to them or will they just send me the parts so I can fix it myself?

 

[Apple a Day]

Update

So much for Taurus repair policy.
They refused to send me the parts unless I either sent them the gun or the parts for replacement. Either option would have cost more than the parts in question. Of course I couldn't have sent them the extractor spring since it flew off and is gone. So, I just told them to mail me a new extractor, extractor pin, and extractor spring. If I'm going to replace one part on a used gun I might as well replace the entire assembly, right?
The parts came today... well most of them did. They didn't send me a new extractor pin like I asked. When I went to put the new extractor in place it didn't fit. Apparently the Millenium Pro models have some newer doohickey that serves as a loaded chamber indicator in conjunction with the extractor. The older model (MINE) doesn't. They sent me the wrong extractor type even through I specifically told them it wasn't a Pro model, gave them the serial number.
I will call Taurus tomorrow and give them a chance to make this right. I am not going to pay another $5 shipping on an $8 part, though.
I installed the new spring in with the old extractor and pin along with a dab of Guntite. It seems to be working fine. I will keep an eye on it and take it to the range this weekend.
I used to be a defender of Taurus because I've owned three of their revolvers and enjoyed them. I even own a PT-22 and it's a lot of fun with nary a problem. I'm really disappointed in this Millenium and the customer service.
Just had to vent.

 

[MikePGS]

Keep us updated please

 

[strat81]

Bummer, sorry to hear that.

 

[MPanova]

Something like that could have happend to any gun no matter the maker. Give them a chance to make it right. How many rounds did the previous owner say the gun had through it? Thats one of the reasons i don't like buying used because you don't know what the previous owner did to it.

 

[wally]

I'd definitely send it back. Many of the older non-PRO models had problems with pins walking out. I think Taurus learned how to fix them but came out with the PRO model to attempt to repair the damage to Millennium's reputation.

--wally.

 

[Apple a Day]

I got Taurus on the phone today. The lady at Taurus kept telling me that the extractors were the same. I insisted that I was staring at them and they weren't.

The old extractor (mine was made in 1998 according to the lady at Taurus) is made from a flat slab with a only a hole drilled through for the pin, a little rectangle machined out for the spring and a space shaped out so the end grabs the rim of the case (yeah, I know it's 'rimless' but you know what I mean). On the newer models the top is shaped to fit the 'loaded chamber indicator' and is thicker so it won't fit in my gun's slot.

The woman at Taurus was pleasant enough and I finally convinced her that I might be telling the truth. She told me she would pass the whole thing off to a manager and/or a gunsmith and they will be getting back to me.

Either way I will take the gun to the range this weekend and give it another try to see how well the pin holds with Guntite. I have no idea how many rounds went through the gun before I got it but the barrel was in exceedingly good shape. A little wear on the finish but internally nothing to notice. The trigger also improved a good bit with a little polishing which makes me doubt it was shot much at all. We'll see what happens.

 

[rcellis]

I'll add my vote to sending the gun back. They can look the whole thing over and identify any other problems that might be lurking. Taurus has been known to upgrade things on old guns the owner hadn't noticed was a problem (yet).

 

[MD_Willington]

! OH OH !

I'm buying a used one next week... I'll have to watch out for this..

 

[ZeSpectre]

In this particular case I'm also going to put a word in for sending the whole pistol back to Taurus. The origional Millenniums had a few issues and there may be something else that needs repair or preventative replacement that you aren't aware of yet. Better in this case to just let Taurus re-work the whole thing.

s'funny, as much as I like my Millennium PRO, I wouldn't touch an old Millennium with a cattle prod.

 

[Apple a Day]

I called back Taurus today. I was told last Tuesday that a manager and/or gunsmith would call me back but none ever did.

After a loooooong wait I spoke to one of the women I've spoken to before. Once again it took quite a while to convince them that they'd sent me the wrong extractor even after telling them the model and number of the gun. At last, after sitting on hold back and forth several times while she went to look things up she finally came back and admitted that she'd found a different part number on an old manual that woul fit my gun. Supposedly, they will now ship it to me. She also told me she'd ship the pin I asked for but at the moment it is back-ordered. No mention of payment so we'll see.

I still refuse to pay $35 to $55 dollars in shipping - yes, that's the quote I got from UPS when I asked - to send the entire gun when all I need is a couple of bucks worth of parts.

Cheers and good luck everybody.

 

[gudel]

you probably now realized that you really get what you paid for, more often than not, it's not worth it.

I'd just send the gun back.

 

[Apple a Day]

Update

The new extractor came in the mail Thursday along with another spring. The pin is still on back order, I'm told. I'm not taking the old one I reinstalled back out. I paid for the new one so I'll toss it in the spare parts drawer and hope I never need it.

 

[weregunner]

This is most interesting. Had an older PT111 and never had the problem or know of anyone, anywhere , even on the net who had. Have the newer PT111 Mil/pro and have had no trouble. Have had contact withTaurus service department and never have run into the that kind of person, though they might exist. There have been minor issues by others with CS before. Have seen this type of thread word for word or content before at the old Taurus forum, here, and at TFL . Same exact wording on the CS complaint as well. This all comes about 4 to 6 months apart also for say the last year or so. A rational person would talk to CS and tell them the problem in a well thought out detailed manner. Then get repair details and stay in contact regularly with Taurus. Even by mail if need be. If a snotty CS person is there than a manager should be asked for. That part is missing here and I'll bet the answer was "they were not available" or the poster will say they would not be given access to a manager by the CS employee. If this all sounds familar please raise you hand. Glock Talk and the SIG forum have ancient history on this exactly worded or close copy of this type of post. Being a pesistant pest and curmudgon, I would not sleep or rest until I had somehow made my case up the chain of command as to what was going on and get some form, maybe only a little, satisfaction. The gun would have gone back and either been fixed or replaced somewhere along the line. Taurus has had to do that for a few members of the www.taurusarmed.net forum, which has replaced the www.unitedforums.com , Taurusforum.com. For those of you just coming in on this, the old Taurusforum.com was wiped and shut down by the owner of the Taurus site. The sister site connected to Taurus is moving and had the domain name and the old Taurus site did not. Back on track. This could be a legit post and problem, but the exact wording looks all too familar. If the problem is legit, then I am truly sorryand hope for the best.

 

[Apple a Day]

weregunner,
I don't know anything about a Taurus forum. Just for the doubting Thomases out there and for educational purposes I'll post some pics of the two extractors side by side tomorrow or the next day when I get time.

 

[Apple a Day]

Well, they messed it up again. I dug up a micrometer and did some measurements.
The original extractor on my gun is three and a half millimeters thick(actually 3.65mm by my micrometer). Both of the new ones they sent me are four millimeters thick (4.15mm to be more exact on my micrometer), which is why neither will fit in my gun. The latest one they sent me is the same as the other one they sent me, they just didn't machine the recesses in it to install a loaded chamber indicator. It's still too bloody big by half a millimeter. Monday I am sending both of the 'replacement' extractors back to Taurus along with a letter explaining everything and pictures. I will ask that they refund the money they made me pay for the new parts. I will also call and ask to talk to a manager to explain the situation and alert them to the fact that I'm returning the useless parts.
I am tired of fooling with these people and the extractors. I have already reinstalled the old one along with a new spring and a dab of Guntite.
I hope that the gun continues to hold together and that other people have better luck that I did.

Here is a picture of the two extractors they sent me side by side


Here are a couple of pics of the original extractor reinstalled and the first 'replacement' they sent me. Sorry about the cruddy pictures but you should be able to see the fact that the replacement is thicker... too thick to fit in the slot.

 

[MD_Willington]

Well we took my PT111 to the range last night and it ran like a top, for something that is used, I'd say it has not been used that many times.

I ran 5 mags through it and no problems at all. I carried it all around town today.

A huge difference between that little pistol and my usual carry piece, my S&W 5906 is a "Brick" compared to this thing. So far so good!

 

[wally]

! OH OH !
I'm buying a used one next week... I'll have to watch out for this..

Use the search, serial number ranges of affected guns have been posted.

--wally.

 

[TimboKhan]

No offense dude, but your the one that didn't want to send the gun in, and now your complaining that they sent you the wrong part? Call me silly, but had you sent the thing in, you likely would have had nothing more than a wait to deal with, and I would think that the few extra dollars in shipping would have been preferable to all this frustration.

Now, you can argue that they should be able to send you the right parts, but the fact is that when you send it into service, you have a qualified person looking at it. When you talk to a customer rep on the phone, your dealing with someone who more than likely has no idea what your talking about. Wanna know why a manager didn't call you back? Because they lady most likely thought of you as a PITA, figured that any old extractor would work because her computer didn't clarify what you needed, and just wanted to get you off the phone. It's bad service to be sure, but could have been avoided by just sending the darn thing in.

Incidentally, I am not saying you are or are not a PITA. I don't know you, and for all I know you might be the nicest guy to ever walk the face of the earth. I used to do customer service for a large company when I was younger (and I can almost guarantee that Taurus is like everyone else and outsources their customer service to a third party vendor), and when you have 50 calls in que the last thing in the world you want to do is get into an argument with someone who is asking for something off the script. I actually quit that job after getting written up for telling a guy how to make his printer work, solely because it wasn't on the script.

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

Unless there is some recall or upgrade to the frame or parts within the frame, I see no reason to send the whole gun for an extractor problem. Can you Priority or Express Mail them just the slide? This is perfectly legal. Perhaps they can machine out the slot to put the newer extractor in.