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Anybody seeing cases of poor heat treatment on the Caspian Golani receivers?
4/26/2010 9:50:31 PM
I picked up a Golani at a gun show in February. The ejector was misshapen due to poor heat treat, and it looked like it had been welded. I sent the rifle back, and the Century "gunsmith" did nothing except polish the chamber and deny that anything was wrong with the ejector. I called, and the lady I spoke to agreed to replace the rifle, but the replacement had the same issues. The third time is hopefully the charm. This evening, I received another rifle with the newer receiver that Caspian is rumored to produce. When I took it apart, the ejector has a lighter color. I can't tell if it's due to the bolt riding across it or if it might be from welding. Anybody have issues with the heat treat on the newer receivers?
On a side note, I spent about an hour and a half fixing five other issues on this rifle: 1)The mag latch had been altered, and the only magazine that fit was the one that came with the rifle. I had to file it down so my other magazines would fit; 2)The stock has a small weld as a spacer between the stock and the folding mechanism. It's so high that the stock would not lock properly in the open position. The weld had to be filed down to fit; 3)The top cover was bent inward at the sides and was scraping the top of the receiver when it was installed. It had to be bent outward for proper fit; 4)The receiver is too short for the top cover, and it had to be filed down for proper fit. The factory must have used a rubber mallet to originally install it. Mind boggling!; 5)The front sight looked canted at first, but the problem was actually with the top cover. The opening for the mainspring guide is cut too low, allowing the top cover to sit too high and to the right. I haven't fixed this problem yet. A couple of ideas to fix this come to mind. One would be to weld up the opening for the spring guide and file to fit, and the other would be to spot weld a piece of sheet metal with a proper sized opening on top of the existing cut-out. Anybody else have other ideas on how to fix this?
Sorry to sound like a big rant. I knew what I was getting into when I bought it, but I rolled the dice anyway. Just had to have a Galil on a budget.
On a side note, I spent about an hour and a half fixing five other issues on this rifle: 1)The mag latch had been altered, and the only magazine that fit was the one that came with the rifle. I had to file it down so my other magazines would fit; 2)The stock has a small weld as a spacer between the stock and the folding mechanism. It's so high that the stock would not lock properly in the open position. The weld had to be filed down to fit; 3)The top cover was bent inward at the sides and was scraping the top of the receiver when it was installed. It had to be bent outward for proper fit; 4)The receiver is too short for the top cover, and it had to be filed down for proper fit. The factory must have used a rubber mallet to originally install it. Mind boggling!; 5)The front sight looked canted at first, but the problem was actually with the top cover. The opening for the mainspring guide is cut too low, allowing the top cover to sit too high and to the right. I haven't fixed this problem yet. A couple of ideas to fix this come to mind. One would be to weld up the opening for the spring guide and file to fit, and the other would be to spot weld a piece of sheet metal with a proper sized opening on top of the existing cut-out. Anybody else have other ideas on how to fix this?
Sorry to sound like a big rant. I knew what I was getting into when I bought it, but I rolled the dice anyway. Just had to have a Galil on a budget.
4/26/2010 10:47:24 PM
Get a refund. Obviously they cant make it right
4/26/2010 11:54:00 PM
Originally Posted By gunut:
Get a refund. Obviously they cant make it right
Get a refund. Obviously they cant make it right
That's what a sane, reasonable person would do. I, on the other hand, have a silly desire to make this thing work, regardless. The boobs at Century have thrown down the gauntlet and I'm going to see this thing through to the end.
4/27/2010 9:11:56 AM
I am sure they are happy to hear you say that. It lets them off the hook for a rifle I'm sure you paid over $600 for. And at this point you're not even sure it will run or how long it will run before other problems start showing up.
If you bought a new car would you be satisified if several things were not right? I would guess not. My fear is now that you have worked on it the warranty may be void. I do wish you luck and hope you get to the point your happy with it.
To me, and 4th time around- they (Century) at the minimum should send you a carefully hand picked/inspected rifle, not some crap they pull off the top of the pile of prior returns (just a guess). AND, they need to pickup shipping expenses both ways. Be polite, but call them and ask to speak with as high up as you can go and explain everything you have been through. As you know- it's been enough!
If you do, please post back for I'm sure everyone would like to know the outcome. If they do nothing, then your post needs to be the poster child on why not to buy crap from Century.
If you bought a new car would you be satisified if several things were not right? I would guess not. My fear is now that you have worked on it the warranty may be void. I do wish you luck and hope you get to the point your happy with it.
To me, and 4th time around- they (Century) at the minimum should send you a carefully hand picked/inspected rifle, not some crap they pull off the top of the pile of prior returns (just a guess). AND, they need to pickup shipping expenses both ways. Be polite, but call them and ask to speak with as high up as you can go and explain everything you have been through. As you know- it's been enough!
If you do, please post back for I'm sure everyone would like to know the outcome. If they do nothing, then your post needs to be the poster child on why not to buy crap from Century.
4/27/2010 7:49:59 PM
Actually, I haven't altered anything that should void the warranty. The mag release lever has already been welded on top and filed. A couple more minor file strokes here and there, along with some cold blue, is not worse than what has already been done to it. Anyway, thank you for your concern.
Why I didn't do it in the first place, I don't know, but I looked at the bottom of the ejector, and it has definitely been welded up. It's not a problem if it was welded properly, and if it was necessary due to the ejector being too short. It's going back to Century if it's due to bad heat treatment. The only way to find out the true reason is to shoot it, which I'll do this weekend.
Why I didn't do it in the first place, I don't know, but I looked at the bottom of the ejector, and it has definitely been welded up. It's not a problem if it was welded properly, and if it was necessary due to the ejector being too short. It's going back to Century if it's due to bad heat treatment. The only way to find out the true reason is to shoot it, which I'll do this weekend.
4/29/2010 7:18:18 PM
No doubt you rifle has some problems, as have a few others who have reported on this site. My rifle, an early one came nearly perfect right from the box, and has performed flawlessly for nearly 3 years and 3000 rounds. Every steel magazine I have, IMI or South African required a few swipes of emery cloth to get them to fit right. The top cover is supposed to fit very tight , as the rear site sits on the cvr...my IMI Galil AR is exactly the same. You almost need a mallet to get them off, but firm but gentle pressure on the rear site base sideways usually does the trick to get it off, and a slight "whack" with the palm on top should be all you need to get it back on. A tiny bit of grease on the back edge of the cover helps. I wish you luck because once working properly these things are really great shooters!
4/29/2010 10:45:28 PM
On the other rifles that I had prior to this one, the top covers fit tight, but they could be seated with hand pressure only. The rifle that I received the other day was impossible to seat without a mallet. I'm not Hulk Hogan, but I'm no petunia, either, and I should not have had a problem getting this part to fit by hand. If I was a soldier in the IDF, I'd have potentially been in a world of hurt if I couldn't easily reassemble my rifle in the field.
I agree, though, that they're great shooters. While I was waiting for my ORF gun to be replaced, I found a Caspian rifle at the local gunshow. Everything about it looked to be in order, so I picked it up, and it's performed very well. No ejector issues, no sticky chamber, the magazines fit, no feeding problems, reasonably accurate, you name it. The only "negative" is that it shot too high and my AK sight tool was too short to adjust the elevation. I've since fixed that problem. I just hope I can get a backup rifle to perform like this one.
I agree, though, that they're great shooters. While I was waiting for my ORF gun to be replaced, I found a Caspian rifle at the local gunshow. Everything about it looked to be in order, so I picked it up, and it's performed very well. No ejector issues, no sticky chamber, the magazines fit, no feeding problems, reasonably accurate, you name it. The only "negative" is that it shot too high and my AK sight tool was too short to adjust the elevation. I've since fixed that problem. I just hope I can get a backup rifle to perform like this one.
4/30/2010 3:55:03 PM
I feel terrible that the Golani got such a bad rap...well deserved in some cases. Because mine has been every bit as good as my IMI gun...but the IMI AR is "in the collectors realm" $$$$ moneywise now and I hesitate to take it out rooting around in my pickup in the back country, or haul it around in winter on my snow shoes. I've had it since '86 and it still looks like new. The Golani is SO much like my IMI AR, that it is scary. It "feels" the same when shooting or carrying, is identical in accuracy and reliability, even dents the spent casing in the exact same place and shoots the empties out the same direction. I like the design because of how perfectly it works in horrible frozen arctic blizzard weather. I live in a cold place. I even put the Golani to the "ice test" leaving it locked out in my shed overnight in -5 degree weather with a full magazine in it...frosty and cold the whole mag rattled off without a hitch the next morning. My AR 15's might or might not do that. With a 12 round mag slung over the back, stock folded, it is no problem at all to carry for long distances, even with a pack. I only use cheap Wolf 55 grain black box in mine and it functions perfectly and is very accurate. it is #1 lighter than my Colt HBAR. Over time I kept expecting the Golani to fail, but it never did, and must have been heat treated right by ORF because after LOTS of rounds it shows no appreciable wear. So I am begining to feel confident now about how long it will last. For the cost of a good parts kits I got a functioning rifle, that I can use for spares if I need to.
