Saturday, February 12, 2011

Caveat Emptor: LaRue Tactical scope mount issues.



Received this from a Threeper I trust implicitly regarding LaRue Tactical quality control problems and service issues. He included a copy of a series of emails back and forth beginning in December of last year. Here's his latest to me:

Mike,

I'd like to warn people about buying scope mounts from LaRue Tactical since you may well not get the one you need, and then they won't do anything about it. When you spend $250.00 for a scope mount, it damn well be the one you needed, especially when you called and spoke to their rep before ordering.

If you could warn your readers, I think it would be a great service to them. Perhaps ask David to do the same. The story is in the below email stream.

The picture of my rife, scope mount and scope fitted and bore-sighted attached. As you can see, it has to go all the way up to the turret to get a decent eye relief. Also, I had to crank it all the way up to get it bore-sighted for 100 yards, leaving no more elevation for greater distances.

Before anyone buys a quick disconnect sight from LaRue Tactical, they better know exactly what they need to get because the reps at LaRue have no idea.

The shame is that I have previously purchased two other mounts for ACOGS for my other rifles from them. Still they have no interest in rectifying this situation.

Thanks,

WarriorClass
III


My son has been collecting the components to build himself a 7.62 NATO sniper platform on an Armalite receiver much like the one pictured. He was thinking, if memory serves me correctly, of getting a LaRue Tactical mount like the one pictured. I will discourage him from doing so.

Caveat emptor: Let the buyer beware.

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

IMO, GG&G make a far better mount. I also have a POF 308.....and I ended up getting an ADM mount (American Defense Mfg) to get a QD mount to match my IOR Valdada's 35mm scope body. I have a couple of LaRue QD mounts for some of my red dots....personally, they're okay, but I don't seen any reason to pick one over the GG&G mounts and a one main reason not to......the GG&G cam mount doesn't dig into the receiver like the LaRue does.

HTH,
Sean

Anonymous said...

From my experience with Larue Tactical there products are top notch, I wouldn't be so hasty to knock them. From my analysis of the setup it looks like he is using the wrong mount for said scope. I'm guessing he is using their extended eye relief mount, with a standard eye relief scope.

Anonymous said...

Larue Tactical has an excellent reputation.

A reputation earned by serious people.

Expect a letter from an attorney.

Skeezix Roscoe said...

So...where are the e-mails?

Anonymous said...

Ahh another reason to stay with old John Garand and use an M14!

Anonymous said...

I am surprised to here the report of poor service from the folks at LaRue.

When I scoped my AR with the Burris XTR 1-4x24 on one of their QDR tactical mounts, I had some questions about which mount was best suited - especially since I was looking to put Troy back-up sights on as well.

Not only did they answer every question I had about the scope - which is the first I have purchased without ever looking through - but they more than answered every question I had regarding mounting options.

When I ordered my Troy back-up sights I never considered that the front sight would be attached to the gas block, which is considerably lower than the rail on the upper reciever - in short the sights are mounted on two different planes. This created an issue when I tried to sight in the back-up sights.

In my case, it was my oversight - I ordered the sights not knowing exactly what I needed. When I E-mailed them and explained my dilema of not being able to sight in the back-up sights I received an E-mail back within 24 hours. Again I was asked what I put the sights on, and I was also asked how I was trying to sight them in. After I gave them this info, they politely suggested what they thought might be the problem (which in this case was my oversight) and offered some options to get me up and running.

I don't pretend to know all the details surrounding this gentleman's concerns/issues with LaRue; but my experience with them has always been positive.

In truth, being the amateur that I am, I have appreciated the patience they have show me in answering my questions.

In short, I am satisfied with both their products and their service.

Jolly Roger

Anonymous said...

I have a one piece mount from DedNutz (DNZ) products. It's machines from a single piece of aluminum, so no ring lapping is required. Mount and rings are all one piece.

Their stuff is great. Check them out.

WarriorClass said...

Anonymous @ 7:06 PM, That's what I thought which was why I called them to make sure I was getting the right mount for my scope. Their sales rep assured me it was the right one. After the sale, they were extremely slow to respond to my concerns and finally never offered to fix the problem or even respond to my emails. No attorney in the world can change the facts. It is what it is.

WarrorClass
III

B said...

Larue makes the finest mounts available. If you think the service is crappy, buy from one of their dealers, but you can't get a better mount.

B
III

Anonymous said...

Mark LaRue is one of the biggest assholes on the planet. Buy a Burris PEPR for $70 and be done with it. Then spend the extra $170 on something that actually matters like the trigger, barrel, or scope.

Alan W. Mullenax said...

Wow! Are there two companies named LaRue? The one I've been dealing with has provided me with nothing but top notch products. However, I can't say I've spent a great deal of time with their personnel since I most always know what I want and what I'm buying.

My last purchase was indeed a mount for a Leupold scope to set atop an Armalite AR-10 platform. Zero problems. Absolute perfect fit, finish and performance.

If I had to say anything negative, it would be pricey. But then again, you get what you pay for.

May I suggest that you ask to speak to LaRue himself. I bet that you can get your problem corrected talking to him. It might be something as simple as a communication problem. Good luck!

Anonymous said...

[I]t looks like he is using the wrong mount for said scope. I'm guessing he is using their extended eye relief mount, with a standard eye relief scope.--Anon @ 6:40

O.K., but you seem to have missed the point. Why would the sales rep recommend an EER mount for a standard eye relief scope?! ;^(

MALTHUS

Anonymous said...

On the planet?

Damn!


o.O


III

Anonymous said...

Expect a letter from an attorney.--Anon @7:06 PM

Lawyers are kinda expensive. Wouldn't it be cheaper to just fix the problem?

When the country was founded, Virginia outlawed lawyers. It made sense then, it makes even more sense now. :^)

Question: what do you call one-thousand lawyers on the bottom of the ocean?

Answer: a good start.

MALTHUS

Anonymous said...

Try turning it around (back to front) and mounting as far forward on the receiver as you can. Then you get eye relief fixed and your scope dialed all the eway down (rather than up)

Anonymous said...

Maybe it's mounted backwards.

Anonymous said...

Mark Larue might be one of the biggest assholes on the planet, but he can keep being an asshole so long as their gear keeps being as good as I've seen. Y

Honestly, our experience with LT is a complete 180 from mine. After having a crappy ARMs lever mount break on me, I ended up replacing it with a Larue mount and have never looked back. Since then, I've replaced every other mount I own with a Larue except for the integral one on my Eotech 553, which I wish I could replace. Heck, last year I ended up buying an OBR from LT complete with a Nightforce set of glass and couldn't be happier.

I honestly don't know what people are talking about when it comes to rail gouging, as I've yet to see my Larue mounts leave marks; then again I'm pretty sure most of my rails are actually to spec.

Anonymous said...

I have two LEUPOLD CQ/Ts with LaRue mounts. No issues with Lathe or their mounts.

DAN
III

Anonymous said...

I was a bit nervous spending top dollar on my first Larue order, but once I got the mounts (offset Aimpoint M1's) I was impressed and have ordered from them several times.

I did also order the wrong mount height for an Aimpoint M3, and they exchanged it for the correct height as I hadn't even taken the wrong one out of the bag. If I had installed it and scratched it, I wouldn't have expected them to swap as its no longer 'new'.

In this situation it seems that there were issues on both sides and before you string up Larue, perhaps you might want to humble yourself on your part of the equation.

Anonymous said...

CALL THEM UP!

If you're not getting the service you need via email, call them at 512-259-1585.

Reference the email thread (I'm sure that they might like to know who's dropped the ball on their end), and get the mount exchanged for one that is correct for your setup.

Also, use their industry forum on AR15.com. Mark posts their personally, and he might like to know if one of his employee's is jerking a customer around...

WarriorClass said...

The real issue was their failure to deal with the problem - the rep recommended the wrong mount - and then wouldn't resolve the situation for two months now.

LaRue mounts are great; I have purchased two prior to this one and am very happy with them. Since this post, Mark LaRue has emailed me and said he'd take care of it. And that's all I wanted them to do.

They still make the best mounts out there and I will continue to use them.

WarriorClass
III

Samurai said...

I haven't had any problems with LaRue mounts, and their service has been great. In fact, I just ordered another mount from them about an hour ago.

Anonymous said...

The folks @ Larue are condescending dicks, they've some good merch, but think their shit don't stink...I asked them if they'd considered a special commission or asked if they thought was possible on a very unique mounting feat and they assured me it couldn't be done...Funny thing is I've seen it done, just needed it a different diameter and the components used are not available for my glass setup.

BTW I had the same issue with a QD not fitting my POF rails. Didn't bother trying to return it or even deal with em, just sold it to someone who could use it. GG&G has some stellar products for sure.

Anonymous said...

Tard should have just boxed it back up and returned it. Then he could have ordered a LT158 (10 MOA built in) or LT104.
or
Take off the BUIS and move the mount back a few slots