Wal-Mart Ammo Problem

[Narsil]

It's mighty hard to beat Winchester's White Box ammo for value and nigh-on impossible to beat Wal-Mart's price on it. I've purchased a thousand rounds or more from various WM's in the past few years since I began shooting centerfire.

My wife bought her first firearm yesterday after receiving her CCP, a nice two-tone Taurus PT709 Slim and we went to Wal-Mart to pick up some range ammo for her. We got her two boxes of the 100 pack WWB 115gr. 9mm FMJ. Both boxes opened up in the bag on the way home; I was not a happy camper. Imagine, then, my disgust when I began putting the ammo back in the boxes and discovered that a distressingly large percentage of the brass had brown, rusty, corrosion of some sort on them. Both boxes contained numerous rounds I wasn't comfortable putting in any firearm I own. Quite a few were so corroded that when I looked at the base of the round, I wasn't quite sure what the headstamp read.

I took both boxes back to WM today but I was a bit apprehensive since "ALL FIREARM AND AMMUNITION SALES ARE FINAL. NO REFUNDS." We also know how understanding and firearms competent the ladies working the returns desk are. I started off by stating that I was aware that ammunition sales were final and not subject to returns or exchanges but then explained that the ammo I'd purchased the day before was damaged and unsafe to fire and all I wanted was to exchange it for ammo of acceptable quality. She called a manager and I explained it again, showing her several of the corroded rounds in both boxes. She authorized the returns and agreed it was easier to simply give me a gift card since I couldn't just waltz back to the SG department and bring two boxes back with me. She smiled and suggested I open the boxes back at the other counter and make sure those were good.

Instead, I took my gift card to another Wal-Mart where I'd seen JHP's as well as FMJ's. Of course, that WM was now out of both WWB value packs and the Remington JHP's I'd seen a few days earlier. They did, however, have Federal 115gr. FMJ that were substantially cheaper than even the WWB. 100 rounds of the WWB was $23.95 and the Federal was 50 for $9.95.


Anyway, I've never seen ammo that looked like those two boxes did (including 55 year old military surplus), especially not something that should have been only weeks at most from the factory. I should have taken photos but it didn't occur to me until I was standing in line at WM customer service. Check your ammo before pay for it, regardless of where you buy it. I was lucky that the manager allowed the return. They didn't have to do that, even if the ammo was defective. They had no way of knowing I hadn't swapped out the two new boxes for two boxes I had hoarded for the last two years and had been damaged by humidity or somesuch.

[dash]

+1 on checking BEFORE you buy it whether from WM, gunshow or your fave local gun shop. I've been gobbling up that Federal since the reasonably priced Blazer disappeared. I see the same stuff at the shows for 2 1/2x more....gets me laughing pretty good.

[xthexheadx]

Glad to see walmart stepping up like that.... a couple months ago i stopped in a local walmart to get a box of federal 9mm, i pointed out what i wanted from the locked case and said very plainly 9mm ( and some 17 hmr, .22lr and whatever else i was buying....) and the foreign cashier unlocked the case, but wouldnt allow me to pick up the products... he got them for me..... i had some other things from various other departments and decided to ring it all up @ the sporting goods counter...

i thought price was off, and questioned the young man, he tried to explain that he had made a mistake, but that he had corrected it... i was in a hurry and failed to pay as much attention as i should have, my time was worth more than the couple bucks difference.

imagine my disappointment when i realized that he had given me federal .40 s&W. i dont even own a .40cal ! so i went back and argued and argued with the returns counter where they told me the same thing... all sales final. i took it all the way up to the general manager of the store and told him, that i asked for one product, and the guy gave me another, had i been allowed to touch the product before paying this wouldnt have happened.

he finally agreed to give me my money back, and i got back to the counter just in time to see the last box of 9mm being purchased by another customer. grrrrrrrrrrrr.

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let me know how the wife likes that slim, my wifes car was broken into the other night and now she wants a handgun of her own..... i've got a $300 bonus coming in the mail soon and think i might use it to get her one....