FedEx lost my Colt

[Anopsis]

I have (had) an early Series 70 Combat Commander that my mother bought for my late father in 1972. Obviously it's one of my more prized handguns. I sent the frame out to be refinished, and I ship a half-dozen firearms a week from my gunshop without trouble. It figures that the one time a carrier would lose a package for me it would be something important like this. :(

[emiddio]

i hope u always ship insured -- but even if u did -- its not really replaceable

[Anopsis]

I insured it for $1k when I shipped it to Wilson Combat; I have yet to find out if they insured it when they shipped it back.

[mitchjoe]

1911Dude:

Man, that is for lack of a better word: craptacular :mad: ! I'll keep my fingers crossed they turn it up; or at the very least WC insured it appropriately.

mitchjoe

[Anopsis]

I spoke to FedEx again today; they have officially declared it "lost". They advised me to contact the shipper (WC) and have them file a claim.

Something tells me I'm about to wind up with a Wilson Combat pistol in place of my treasured Colt...

[John]

That sucks! Sorry to hear that Sir.

[Hunter]

Man I am truly sorry for your loss. I will keep my fingers crossed for you that the Colt frame showes up soon. The way I see it is it has to be somewhere and those....folks need to make finding it a priority. I have taken several gunsmithing classes in the Marines and civilian aspect not to be a professional gunsmith but so I would be able to repair my own firearms and not have to send them to someone else. I could not imagine my reaction if one of my Colts came up missing. I hope it all works out for you and by the way I would rather have my Colt than a new custom Wilson Combat 1911.

[Anopsis]

I hope it all works out for you and by the way I would rather have my Colt than a new custom Wilson Combat 1911.


Hunter, I agree completely - I just doubt that it will be an option for me. :mad:

[Hawkmoon]

I guess Mr. Murphy is alive and well.

[stans]

How does a company like FedEx, which tracks the movement of every item and knows where every item is at any given minute of the day, lose an item? What, did it fall of a conveyor belt and land in somebody's lunch box?

[Ric4509]

Chad,

Sorry about the loss of your Colt frame. When you sent it to WC you said you insured it for $1K. And usually us customers pay for the return shipping/insurance. The tracking number can tell you where your package was every minute as stated by Stans. I don't know which carrier to trust these days. Someone, somehow has your Colt frame. They or he/she could be waiting for a slide to show up.

[thomasinaz]

As an aside, please contact your local PD and have the frame entered into NCIC as Lost/Stolen, by the serial number. At least if it turns up somewhere, you can get it back. One of the guys I work with had his AR15 stolen and it was located about 6 months later in a drug addict's house. He was very happy to get it back. Just a shot in the dark, but worth the trouble.

[John]

And it wouldn't be a bad idea to post a "Stolen Report" in our special forum, that's the reason we put it there.

[Hawkmoon]

Local police can enter a report, but beyond that they have no jurisdiction. Since it is the frame that went missing, it is by BATFE definition a "firearm," and since it is (was) in interstate transit the Feds have jurisdiction. I would contact the BATFE and hope that they will go read the riot act to FedEx.

Don't remember if it was FedEx or UPS, but wasn't there a case a few months or maybe a year ago where a couple of shipper distribution center employees were snagging guns that went through the sorting depot? I believe the Feds caught on and set up a sting to nab them. You can be fairly sure the BATFE would be interested in a firearm that disappreared while in FedEx custody ... as well they should be.

[Joni Lynn]

There are no black holes for things to fall into. In so many ways the systems used by the various companies that ship are closed and what they are really saying is, one of our employees wanted it more than we wanted to deliver it and it's gone..........oh well. Great service huh?

[Anopsis]

I posted the info in the stolen section and I will contact the Federales tomorrow - my shop is closed on Mondays.

It DOES seem strange that a package could be scanned out (as in departing) Nashville with its next stop in Bowling Green (here) and dissappear enroute. The BG hub never recieved it. Something tells me that someone saw that fancy Wilson Combat logo on the box and decided they should have it instead of me.

Since I am the reciever and WC the shipper, they (WC) have been working with FedEx today. My account rep at Wilson has been keeping me in the loop, even though he calls just to say there's no news.

The FedEx rep I have been speaking to was too cheerful for my taste. She basically said "Oh well, these things happen. Call the shipper and have them file a claim". That would be fine if it had been ANY OTHER 1911 I have, but this one, as I mentioned before, was a Father's Day gift from my mother to my late father in 1972. No reparations made by filing a claim can replace that.

[Joni Lynn]

I really truly hope it will show up. It's such a shame to lose that.

[res1b3uq]

The really bad thing is there is no competition in firearm shipping. It may soon get to the point that we won't even be able to ship a firearm because noone will take it. It seems to me just by reading the Forums that FedEx has more problems loosing firearms than anyone.

[Hawkmoon]

The Wilson logo on the box was undoubtedly the key. IIRC the case to which I referred was traced to people in the consolidation/distribution depot nearest to some firearm manufacturer. ALL their guns went out through that depot, and two or three guys learned to spot them. Again if recollection serves, I believe they were small handguns, and these upstanding citizens were appropriating them to sell on the street corner after hours.

Both FedEx and UPS (and the USPS) scan each item at each waypoint, so if it was scanned in one place and didn't show up at the next, it's pretty basic -- either it was scanned and then set aside rather being put on the truck (unlikely) or it was put on the truck and the driver made an unscheduled stop.

I again encourage you to involve the BATFE. Gives 'em something to do besides harrass buyers at gun shows in Virginia, and after all it IS their jurisdiction. The sooner they get involved, the better the chances of finding the frame. As it is, once the miscreant opened the package and found half a gun he (/she) may have immediately dumped it. I doubt he/she is interested in playing amateur gunsmith and building his/her own Wilson 1911, so they probably dumped the evidence. The trick will be trying to find them before wherever they dumped it is buried under some Mount Trashmore somewhere.

[horse 91-A1]

Sorry to hear this, I would hope FedEx security is on top of the situation and has worked this down to a few employees. Once you have your federal law enforcement agency case number; ask to speak with FedEx security regarding your Colt frame - their coporate security should be very helpful and cooperative with you.

All corporations have employee theft problems and I would expect that FedEx has some top notch former LEOs investigating this case already. :)

Adios,
Bob

[Doran]

...IIRC the case to which I referred was traced to people in the consolidation/distribution depot nearest to some firearm manufacturer. ALL their guns went out through that depot, and two or three guys learned to spot them. Again if recollection serves, I believe they were small handguns, and these upstanding citizens were appropriating them to sell on the street corner after hours.

May not be the same case but some employees were caught putting new shipping labels on firearms destined for a Hollywood gun shop, rerouting them to a New Jersey address I believe.

When I shipped my late father's S&W M60 to an out of state gunsmith the 800 number said it was going to a town in another county. The gunsmith called the local sheriff there who said that address was an abandoned building. The sheriff managed to intercept the shipment at the UPS office and get it sent to the right place. The sheriff thought my case may have been another inside job instead if a mistake. The gunsmith said he normally got several firearms a week and lately hadn't gotten getting any.

[Hersh]

1911Dude,

Your frame loss bothers me on a couple of different levels. Like all of us here, I'm an avid 1911 shooter. The fact that this particular frame had an extra special meaning for you makes its loss that much worse.

On another note, as a nine year employee of FedEx, it's unsettling to know my employer is thought of so poorly. For the most part we do what we do pretty well. Unfortunately when we screw up, as in this case, it's usually huge. Do we have problems with theft ? Yes ! Is FedEx run by a den of theives ? I don't think so. Do we scan packages at every transfer point ? Yes. Do we still have packages that fall through the cracks ? Yep, that happens too. Packages can and do accidentally wind up in all kinds of nooks, crannies and crevices. "Black holes" do exist. We make every effort to do checks in buildings, trucks, ramp areas, cargo bins, aircraft bellies and anywhere else to ensure packages don't wind up in limbo, but no system is perfect. Anyone who's had the experience of having their own home "swallow" a set of keys can probably identify.

Does this justify the loss of your package ? Definitely not ! I only throw out these thoughts to let you know that there are some hard working, honest, diligent, conscientious people that work for FedEx. I know, I work with a bunch and we actually do care that people get their packages in one piece on time. Unfortunately, we have our share of scumbag thieves that make the rest of us look bad.

On a final note, theft is taken very seriously at FedEx. If someone is lifting packages shipped from WC on even a semi regular basis, my bet is they will get tagged. Believe me, I've seen it happen.

Again I'm very sorry about the loss and thanks for indulging me my very long winded 2 cents.

Hersh

Btw: If it's any help to you I'd be happy to go to my senior manager with your tracking number if you'd like to PM it to me. It couldn't hurt to have an insider's look.

[Anopsis]

Hersh,
I can definately appreciate what you're saying; anyone who has worked for a large company knows all too well how a few screwball workers can muck things up for all concerned.

I'll send you a PM.

[Hersh]

Hersh,
I can definately appreciate what you're saying; anyone who has worked for a large company knows all too well how a few screwball workers can muck things up for all concerned.

I'll send you a PM.

Chad,

Got your PM and sent you a reply !

Hersh

[191145]

Hopefully Wilson doesn't really send guns in a box with their name all over it. That's the first rule in shipping a gun - nothing on the box or in the address to give it away.

[Anopsis]

Good point. Stuff I get from Para Ordnance just says "PO INC" on the label...

[Hersh]

Good point. Stuff I get from Para Ordnance just says "PO INC" on the label...

Most shipments I've seen consigned to jewelry stores are handled similarly. For example a shipment to "Dudes Jewelry Company" would usually just say "DJCo." or something along those lines.

Hersh