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Back in May I went to the Reliant Gun Show and got me a Kel Tec PF9 for possible summer EDC when I'm not carrying my XD .40

The day I got it I took it to Bailys HOG and tried it on for size. The darn thing shot 8" left and after adjusting the read sight and bench firing it was better but still 4" left at about 10 yards. Well, I decided I'd carry it to see how it fit...
I carried it for 4 days before I realized the slide and area of exposed barrel was RUSTED!!!

Needless to say I was a little more than annoyed.

I called Ke Tec and at first I was getting the feeling they were gonna tell me to pound sand... The rep was, "Well, because the slide you have is blued...the pH of our sweat can cause yada yada yada..." to which I replied, "So, then you're saying that Springfield makes a superior product?" "Because, I have had my XD for 4 years now and have worn it daily in sweltering heat, downpour rain, while hiking through the mountains in the WA state in 3' of snow and it doesnt have a blemish...Not to mention I accidentally ran over the thing with my SUV and it still shoots straight as a pin not 8" left out of the box and all without a speck of rust!"

Their reply was, "Uh, hold on"... (gone for about a minute while Im on hold) then she came back on the phone and said, "well, sir send us back the slide and barrel and make it attention Mike, we will fix whatever (if any) defect there may be with our product and thank you for purchasing a Kel Tec product."

We'll see what happens...

UPDATE

Ok so I sent the slide and barrel along with a description of the issue back to Kel Tec as instructed by their customer service dept. Well, I also asked in the note to contact me with the cost of upgrading the slide to chrome and I will settle up with them. I called today because it had been a little over a week or so and they told me that the issue had been fixed, they upgraded my slide to chrome for free and the barrel and slide was mailed out yesterday... Now we just have to do some range time and see how straight it shoots... Big +10 to Kel Tec for the slide upgrade for my troubles!!!

I had a Kel Tec P-3AT that starting showing rust very soon after purchase. My sister had the .32 verson that did the same. Got rid of mine. Not very impressed at all.

jmra wrote:I had a Kel Tec P-3AT that starting showing rust very soon after purchase. My sister had the .32 verson that did the same. Got rid of mine. Not very impressed at all.

Thats what happens I guess when I try and go inexpensive...okay lets be honest... I went the cheap route and got what I paid for and now will have to buy something more expensive to replace this one to fit the role of a smaller summer EDC...LOL

What I REEEAAALLLYYY want is a Springfield Arms EMP in .40
Anyone wanna trade one for a barely used PF9

wasn't really trying to go cheap when I bought - just wasn't nearly as much to choose from at the time. Wife has a LCP and it is much better built than the kel tec. But I wish she would let me get rid of it and get her one of the small 9's in just about anything other than a ket tec. Maybe a LC9 or a PM9.

If yours is the blued finish and not the parkerized it definitely won't be as durable as the XD. I've seen several complaints online about the blued PF9 finish rusting,

The good news is I've only ever read good things about the Kel-Tec warranty support. On the other hand, there seems to be a high percentage of people who've had to use it, but they seem to do a good job at making it right.

Brian

By rust, do you mean surface rust? If so, that can be kind of normal with anything they have that is blued. My P-11 got surface rust on the slide and the top of the barrel a few days after I purhased it (a few years back). I don't live in a humid environment by any means, its just plan hot here, so I was a bit suprised and miffed over it. Ended up just cleaning it off with some CLP and it all came off with no issue. Interesting fact, was that I wasn't carrying it when it rusted. It was just sitting in a drawer when it happened.

Since then, I haven't had any rust appear on it, and I carry it IWB daily. I doubt the finish on mine is that different, but rather I think my body just has a different PH that isn't as prone to causing rust. The one time I called up Kel-Tec the were very very helpful (sent me the part I needed free of charge) and polite. I certainly hope they take care of you.

Hope everything works out to your liking! :)

This is exactly why I bought a Kel-Tec! I sweat in the summer time!

I wear mine as a beater gun. I wear it when I mow the yard, work on the motorcycle, dirty, sweaty jobs like that. If I am leaving the house and going to be in the AC, then I strap on my Lightweight Commander, and the Kel-Tec gets thrown in the center console of my pick-up (It's a beater).

I have had to clean surface rust off of mine a couple of times, but I dont think that is a big deal. After I clean it it gets a good layer of oil on it to stop it from rusting.

What do you expect from a $250 gun?

ddstuder wrote:This is exactly why I bought a Kel-Tec! I sweat in the summer time!

I wear mine as a beater gun. I wear it when I mow the yard, work on the motorcycle, dirty, sweaty jobs like that. If I am leaving the house and going to be in the AC, then I strap on my Lightweight Commander, and the Kel-Tec gets thrown in the center console of my pick-up (It's a beater).

I have had to clean surface rust off of mine a couple of times, but I dont think that is a big deal. After I clean it it gets a good layer of oil on it to stop it from rusting.

What do you expect from a $250 gun?

Well, given their reputation for making a decent weapon I, at a minimum, expected it to shoot where I pointed the barrel and the rust... Well, my buddy Juan owns an ugly old hi point and for LESS than 200.00 I've never known it to rust from sweat.

Medic624 wrote:Well, given their reputation for making a decent weapon I, at a minimum, expected it to shoot where I pointed the barrel and the rust... Well, my buddy Juan owns an ugly old hi point and for LESS than 200.00 I've never known it to rust from sweat.

I hear you!

I was never happy with the sights on mine, but this is not a target pistol. In fact, I don't even enjoy shooting it with that terrible trigger, but I can hit a human sized target from 10 yards without using the sights. It has never jammed or failed in any way, and I would trust my rusty Kel-Tec with my life before I would a Hi-Point.

I am sure that Kel-Tec will make it right for you. I have heard nothing but positive reports about their customer service. If not, I'm sure you could find someone to trade a Hi-Point for your KT.

Just a thought, you could easily break down the slide, and put a better finish on it for very little $$.

Me, I will just continue to put oil on mine.

Happy shooting!

My PF9 never had any issues with rust. I can't remember if it was blued or parkerized. I had it for several years and parted ways with it earlier this year. My XD9SC does rust if not babied. The older XD's (back prior to '06 or '07 I believe), did not have the melonite coating on them and were very prone to light surface rust. No big deal as it wipes right off. I don't get rid of my shovels when they rust, so don't see any need to worry about the gun, either!

STAINLESS!

Especially in low end (cheap) guns!

My Kimber Ultra Carry rusted when I carried it so I guess by the standards you mentioned your buddies Hi Point is a better weapon.

If your gun doesnt have a corrosion resistant finish, it will rust. Maybe you should ask if they will upgrade you to a parkerized or hard chrome slide.

I had a P3AT that I put almost 1200 rounds through without a single failure. The main spring finally broke and I called them up. Gave me an RMA # and a shipping tag no questions asked. They ended up replacing the whole gun and included a fluff and buff treatment as well for no charge.

ha ha ha... The rust isn't as much a huge issue as much as I was surprised and annoyed it was there after only wearing it for 4 days. As I said, my XD has never had a speck and I've beat the crap out of that weapon. Actually, come to think of it...none of my guns has rust except that one...maybe I will call em and ask how much to upgrade to a stainless slide. It would probably look better anyway.

Medic624 wrote: ha ha ha... The rust isn't as much a huge issue as much as I was surprised and annoyed it was there after only wearing it for 4 days. As I said, my XD has never had a speck and I've beat the crap out of that weapon. Actually, come to think of it...none of my guns has rust except that one...maybe I will call em and ask how much to upgrade to a stainless slide. It would probably look better anyway.

Your XD has a Melonite finish on it so it won't rust.

They don't offer stainless. Hard chrome is your bet best for corrosion resistance and should not be a costly upgrade.

Medic624 wrote: ha ha ha... The rust isn't as much a huge issue as much as I was surprised and annoyed it was there after only wearing it for 4 days. As I said, my XD has never had a speck and I've beat the crap out of that weapon. Actually, come to think of it...none of my guns has rust except that one...maybe I will call em and ask how much to upgrade to a stainless slide. It would probably look better anyway.

One thing that works for me, it a tube of Remington RemOil Wipes. Grap some of these, and no matter what weapon you carry, when you take it off, WIPE IT DOWN! For me, Its no different than taking my socks off before I go to bed. I would never go 4 days without wiping down my EDC!