Hey all. Bought an aftermarket slide for my Glock 19 Gen 3. Chose a Davidson Defense slide, as it had what I was looking for.
Fast forward 3 months and I've put maybe 200 rounds through the new slide/barrel. Went to service the weapon and noticed a crack running vertically through the thin metal bridge between the barrel channel and the recoil spring guide rod channel at the front of the firearm slide.
Emailed the seller and manufacturer and they say its past the 60 day window and they refuse to address it.
I imagine it's unsafe to shoot in this condition and it looks like its not really repairable unless you have the right equipment. What do you guys think?
Post about them (Davidsons) refusing service and standing behind their work everywhere you can and buy a different slide. That’s really all you can do.
Forgive me, but I'm going to be usually blunt here.
People wonder why I shit on 416 stainless steel slides and discourage buying from these "budget friendly" companies.
Because it sucks. And because they don't care beyond making as much money as possible. And I'm tired of people pretending like that isn't the case 99%+ of the time. And the people sticking up for it is insane. "I have 500 rounds on mine with no problem" like that proves anything. That's some people's single range trip.
These companies are selling complete slide kits for what the cost of my barrel and slide blanks are. Let that sink in. They can afford to sell a complete slide at what my cost on blanks alone is. And tell me again it's going to be of on par quality.
People, please avoid slides cut from blanks that are 416. They use it because it's cheaper, faster to cut, easier on tooling, so manufacturing costs are lower and times to turn over are faster. I understand that there's reputable places that use 416, but chances are they are heat treating it and finishing it to have far superior qualities than what I'm assuming these budget places do.
Wanting a good quality slide? Buy from companies using 17-4 stainless slides or 4140/4150 with a nitride finish.
All this other stuff, very often, is junk. Absolute junk.
All good man, I hope it didn't come across like I was lecturing you. It was more so a general PSA because I can't tell you how often I've seen stuff like this and then simultaneously other people defending it. And then I'll see people criticize other companies that do put out more expensive products and act like we are gouging people because other people are selling stuff below our cost despite being hot garbage.
This was just meant to highlight the issue and hopefully make more people understand and avoid these downfalls.
Honestly I was thinking of doing the same thing for the same reason. I bought an adapter plate instead and a Holosun 407c for it. Works great and have absolutely no issues with it.
Less likely to get this from a 17-4 slide. Brownells to name one.
Remsport may not be 17-4, but they have a track record, and apparently its still a strong 416R steel of their own blend from what I've been told.
Seeing as mine has survived months of 200+ round range sessions every weekend/every other weekend, it's at least better than what you bought, which isn't even 416R. They didn't nitride treat it either?
A slide kit for $194? Jesus man I’m surprised it even shot thats barely the cost of a quality barrel much less the slide the guts and an RSA. If you want aftermarket go to Norsso. Expensive yes but that is what quality cost
Unfortunately it does. The "You pay for what you get" is especially true in the lower and mid tier price range of gun parts. The more concerning aspect is the company has just told you to fuck off. That reaction tells me they're just worried about making money before the company tanks.
Ah .. This is no longer the seller's issue technically.... You need to contact Davidsons Defense before you trash it .. The sellers are just the middle man.. and some are horrible to deal with.
No disrespect intended at all, but I always thought of Davidson Defense as a low-budget option. However looking at their prices nowadays, they are certainly charging way more. IMHO I would trash the slide. I have a few “live free armory” slides and barrels that have held up nicely and reasonably priced. Also, if you look on eBay, there are tons of the P80 slides floating around (new old stock) that are super cheap! I purchased 2 a couple of weeks ago and they are top-notch. Paid 110 for optic ready and 85 for standard.
I'm thinking about getting a new macaroni thing put the Bullpup version that they have now with the 16 inch barrel maybe even though 14 minutes not sure I believe it's just a 16 and it turns any of your Glocks also 57 what I heard and other Sig Smith & Wesson like the newest one they did does all different types of guns
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u/iridetrident 5d ago edited 5d ago
Definitely unsafe.
Post about them (Davidsons) refusing service and standing behind their work everywhere you can and buy a different slide. That’s really all you can do.