All reviews of Leo Mihai
Review about: Witt Machine
Clamp-on Muzzle Brake adapter for 300 WinMag -SCRAP, TERRIBLE CR!
I am as selective as anyone else regarding the companies I decide to do business with, and although I have read the bad reviews, after reading a bit about the Witt Machine history, I developed enough respect and confidence to make my decision and hoped that it won't happen to me.
Anyways, I received the parts I ordered in about 2 weeks. The muzzle brake looked fine but the muzzle clamp adapter came in with a surprising concentricity error between the threads and the hole of about 11.5 mils. Considering the questionable barrel alignment added by the clamp section and the resulting muzzle break tilt, the total error is very likely to lead to a bullet hit before leaving the assembly.
After attempting to install the muzzle clamp adapter on the rifle so I can measure the assy compounding concentricity error, to my surprise it did not fit onto the rifle barrel either. Even after reversing the clamping screws as instructed to open the clamp as much as possible and forced it in with a plastic mallet, the barrel stopped about half inch from bottoming out into the clamp adapter. The screw heads also rub into their seats stripping away the ceramic coating.
Before returning the product and add to the bad reviews I found on the exact same issue, I decided to further analyze these 2 issues and give Witt Machine a fair chance to fix them. I found that the barrel fit issue was a result of a fundamentally wrong way to measure the rifle barrel end section as instructed, which is not only insufficient to describe the true muzzle shape/geometry, but actually detrimental. Although not obvious to the naked eye, the end of the barrel on my Remington 700, and I suppose other rifles owned by so many of the people that report with similar complaints on being unable to fit these clamp-on adapters, is not exactly conical to only require 2 measurements (at muzzle end and 1.625" deep), but it is actually rounded off towards the end, creating a curved outline. That would require at least 3-4 measurements along the 1.625” barrel end section in order to properly describe the true muzzle shape.
So I decided to put in a few hours and made a detailed 3D CAD drawing to help us all solve this issue which I suspect is fairly common in barrel manufacturing, and hopefully improve their website measurement instructions to avoid encountering future issues for the benefit of their customers, but their company as well.
I emailed the drawing with my comments for review and asked for feedback and their input on solving this issue, but no reply. I pinged them again asking how they want to solve this issue after another week, but again -no answer. After 2 additional weeks -still no reply, so I decided to call the company and talked with a CR lady who didn't seem to be neither sympathetic towards the issue, nor interested in allowing me to have a constructive discussion with a technical person to whom I could present my analysis concluding that the WittMachine measurement method and instructions on their website lacks the necessary detail and leads to inaccurate characterization of certain kinds of barrel muzzle geometries. BTW, she said that they read and respond to all their emails. Right…
In spite of my insistent but polite efforts to make her understand that the improvements I am suggesting to their measurement method would correct the issues complained by so many customers in the bad reviews I have seen (which BTW I was cut off by her saying that it isn't true, but it's ok, I believe the countless online reviews and comments), minimize product returns and ultimately -not only significantly benefit us as customers, but the WittMachine company as well, the CR expressed no interest whatsoever. More than that, as she seemed to run out of patience, she told me to ship the part back (at my expense) for a refund, after which the call was cut short with a quick thank you then she hung up before I could even respond with a customary greeting.
Obviously, I can't tell if this level of rare disinterest for constructive dialog with a customer who is willing and even inviting to do just that is a general company lack of regard, or if it comes from this employee's single ended decision or lack of interest in personal involvement -fact about which the company might not even be aware of, the bottom line is that I am very disappointed with the experience and I will never order from this company again, nor I advise anyone to do that.
Given the experience, I am not even going to send the part in for refund because at this point I am not sure how this could end. I own a lathe and decided to take a stab at fixing this myself rather than pay return shipping and continue to deal with this company any further.