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It’s fair to say that our man Eric hasn’t had the experience he’d hoped for with his shiny new Boberg XR9-S. As he detailed in his review, he’s documented the problems he found with the gun and has been in contact with the company’s head honcho, Arne Boberg. When I read Arne’s post to the bobergarms.com forum addressing the less-than-glowing review and letting customers know how it’s being handled, I asked him for permission to re-print it here. And he graciously agreed. Make the jump for the full text . . .

I just read Eric@TTAG’s artice on TheTruthAboutGuns.com

Man, that really stung!

Eric pulled no punches – and I respect that. He represents the end users in a way that “paid” magazine articles in the past never did.

As a small business owner, the only way for Boberg Arms to thrive is to produce the very best products that we can.

Eric did us a favor by helping us to concentrate even more on our Quality Control process in order to ensure that we’re giving our customers the guns they deserve.

As far as the manufacturing issues Eric experienced goes:

I will be personally addressing them when I receive his slide and magazine in the mail this week.

I’m confident that we will resolve Eric’s issues and quickly get his Shorty back to him in perfect working order.

Lastly, I just want to let everyone know that I don’t filter content on this site.

Doing business on the web can be a double-edged sword, and I knew that getting into it.

Eric has wondered whether Boberg Arms customers are giving glowing reviews because some of them want to scalp their extra guns and make a few bucks.

I don’t get the impression that you guys are telling your friends and online connections anything but your actual impressions and experiences.

Many of my customers have bought multiple guns for their loved ones, for range use, and to carry – and the comments I have personally gotten back from them have been overwhelmingly positive.

These are people shooting hundreds (even thousands) of rounds, and love the way their Shorties perform.

I look forward to Eric’s follow-up review and your comments!

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45 COMMENTS

  1. Stand up reply…if he gets the issues worked out and ends up selling in CA…I’d consider buying one.

    • He has sold in CA. There is a company that makes a single shot barrel to make it compliant for sale. The name escapes me, but it is on the Boberg Arms forum.

  2. I have to admit two things.
    One he is taking the review and follow up to remedy the situation in stride.
    Second he actually responded and that in and of itself is huge.
    While I am not in the market for a shorty, if I was I certainly wouldn’t not look at them as an option. having a company that is doing it’s best to fix what is wrong and make sure there customers are happy gets a two thumbs up in my book.

  3. Responses like that make me want the guy to succeed, even if I think his little gun is ugly as homemade sin. I suppose if I had the disposable income, I’d try it out, just because it’s different. That’s not currently the case, but perhaps in the future, and pending the outcome of Eric’s issues, we’ll see.

  4. One small step for the return of the good guys. (To be fair, running larger companies must be something worse than trying to herd cats).

  5. I think there’s something about paying $1000+ for a gun. Nobody wants to believe they’ve just wasted that much money. And with only 500 on the market so far, it also takes an investment in effort and time just to find and get one. Even if you’re wealthy enough that the cash is insignificant, nobody just stumbles across this gun in a shop. Anybody who has one has also been following its development closely over the last couple of months or even years, and went to the trouble to put themselves on a list. So there’s also an investment of emotion and time. What you end up with is a highly-selected sample of folks, who are all predisposed to like the gun and overlook its flaws.

    It’s not representative of the market as a whole. You’re not going to find too many demanding curmudgeons. Those folks (eg. me) aren’t going to bother to spend $1,000 and a bunch of time to get a gun with no track record. The lengthy screeds written by its fans sound like something I’d expect from cult members. From the way they talk, this thing makes the lame walk and the blind to see. Now, I don’t think Mr. Boberg set out to become the next Jim Jones, it’s just an unfortunate side effect of limited production & high price, and the new world of the internet where you can get people emotionally invested in a product and a fan community before it even ships.

    I’m an atheist, but really, those of you with a religious impulse, who need a community and a cause to belong to? Stop putting your faith in guns. They’re just machines. They do a job, or they don’t. Go to church. Tithe your money. It doesn’t matter if God even exists. You’ll do a lot more good for yourself and your fellow man giving $1,000 to the Salvation Army to run a soup kitchen than buying a gun. And you might even meet a nice girl who doesn’t have diseases and have a wonderful life making lots of little Christian babies.

    Is a gun club going to do that for you?

      • Ditto on that. From what I can understand, he and honestly, myself included, won’t buy a $1000 gun that doesn’t have a history and reputation of being a gun that deserves that price tag. While I understand that this is a new gun, I probably won’t buy it any time soon, but then again I don’t have any interest on anything (let it be cars to computers) until I can get some solid information on it which usually takes a few weeks to a few months. Not really getting the religion portion though…

        • Thanks, but tonight I’m dipping into the 18-year-old Talisker. It’s amazing what you can afford to drink when you’re not wasting a grand on guns that don’t work.

      • FLAME DELETED

        People with no lives spend money on expensive guns to make themselves feel special. When the gun turns out to be a piece of doo-doo, they feel sad instead. They don’t want to feel sad, so they make-believe the gun is great. These people should go to church, where a nice man will tell them equally make-believe stories about how special they are. But at least in church, they might meet a nice lady who will make them feel really special, in a way you’ll understand when you’re older. Then they won’t be sad, and they won’t have to make-believe.

        Unless, y’know, she’s into that.

        • You know, if something’s not for you, be it expensive guns or random religions, you can keep it to yourself, or you can politely disagree without abusing other people. Either or both of those can be accomplished without you needing to be an obnoxious prick.

          This is a pretty good community, where people generally don’t resort to disparaging each other when they disagree, even vehemently. Please take your obnoxious shit elsewhere.

        • Matt, expensive handguns are for me. Correction: expensive handguns that work are for me. Just last week I bought a handgun that costs twice what the Boberg does. But it came with magazines that have followers. And if you don’t like that particular make and model, I won’t care. It’s just a gun, not my religion.

          I haven’t disparaged anyone by name. I have, will, and do disparage a particular mindset, of people who make an idol out of a brand of gun.

          If that describes you, maybe you should re-examine your priorities in life. If it doesn’t, then it doesn’t apply to you, and you have no reason to be offended.

        • Actually, LLARMS, I’m not a badass. If I was a badass, I wouldn’t care if my handguns worked. I’d just pistol whip ’em with the useless hunk of metal. But if that was my self defense plan, I could save myself a lot of money and just buy a Hi-Point.

        • Dude, I too wouldn’t buy this gun and am a non-believer and an overthinker, but remember that as easily as you can be a follower of cult or religion you can just as easily be a follower of the cult of your own thoughts and opinions, and most of all, the cult of your personal pet peeves that no one else knows about or understands. It is very possible to evangelize for your own views in a way that is identical and just as annoying as doing so for a different religion, and that is really the problem.

          It’s not particular beliefs that are the problem, it’s when people use them to feel superior to others because they are feeling a unjustifiable certainty with themselves. When non-believers do the same thing it is just as bad and causes the same exact annoyance in society.

          People can have their beliefs and feelings of certainty whatever they are and for whatever reasons they want so long as they aren’t being militant about it or using their beliefs or certainty to put down others. If they are humble, then those are good people and I’ll stand with them whether they believe in magic or nihilism, or god or gods.

          -D

        • What part of “guns have got to work” do you not understand? Moreover, they’ve got to work by design, and not by accident, or only when the stars are aligned and the ammo is exactly the right brand. I was not aware that this was a strange or unique demand, and that brand loyalty was a better measure of a firearm’s worth.

          Learn something new every day, I guess.

  6. I don’t know if it makes any sense, but reading his honest response makes me want to get one of his pocket pistols. He said, yup that gun isn’t working… and I’ll fix it.

    Nice to see a gun maker acting like an honest person after dealing with the the crap coming out of the Marlin factory these days.

  7. Good for him. As a fellow inventor who hopes to take even the smallest piece of the market pie I applaud him on his ability to roll with the punches and not take it personal.

    – Damien

  8. After reading that response I think Mr. Boberg brings a sorely needed outlook to any industry and he has my utmost admiration for the way he handles business.

    As for the pistol, I couldn’t even dream to afford one but if I would I could. I love designs that challenge convention. There was a time when semi-automatic pistols of any stripe were a new and finicky design but look at us now. I remember when Glocks first hit the market and were widely panned as a tupperware piece of crap that wouldn’t last. Mr. Stoner’s wonderful AR had a ton of convention and entrenched thought to overcome but right now you can hardly get the parts you want let alone complete rifles from many manufacturers. Every new design has teething problems and it seems Mr. Boberg’s design may be no different but an innovator that stands behind his design, takes care of those that have issues and turns criticism into positive actions embodies everything good ‘ol American innovation stands for.

  9. I love traditional (steel and walnut) guns no end, but I’m also fascinated by unconventional designs. I like them even more when they work properly and reliably.

    I loved the upside-down Rhino, except for the trigger, which seems to have been fixed but I’ll probably never know for myself. I’d probably buy one myself now, but for their very high price, and I hope they succeed.

    I love the Caracal and its funky Quick Sights, and after my extremely positive testing experience I plan to buy one someday.

    I’m fascinated by the Boberg, because it does so many things backwards in a clever attempt to move the state of the art forward a few steps. The grip is in the middle of the gun, which we haven’t seen since the pre-Luger Borschardt pistol from 1893. The magazine feeds backwards, similar to the PKM machine gun. I think it looks (in Iain Harrison’s phrase) cooler than penguin bollocks, and I hope it gets its issues sorted out so the design catches on.

    Call me nuts, but a backward-feeding magazine is a no-brainer to handle rimmed cartridges, which might also offer more positive extraction from the magazine and into the chamber. How about a 6+1 shot .38 Special CCW pistol? Good on Boberg for thinking outside the box, and for responding directly to criticism and taking care of his customers.

  10. I will also add that Arne Boberg was just as straightforward and genuine in every private email interaction we had regarding my pistol.

    His attitude is a breath of fresh air in the industry and a large part why I am interested in sticking with this pistol.

    I can’t wait to get it back.

  11. Well,
    As both a Christian, and an admirer of Arne Boberg and his Boberg XR9-S, I’m guessing old Jason won’t be inviting me to have lunch with him any time soon..

    And if he thinks a person meeting a “nice girl who doesn’t have diseases” and having a wonderful life making lots of little “Christian babies” is a bad thing I’d say his negative opinion of the new Boberg XR9-S is just the tip of the iceberg of things he and I would have differing opinions on..

    But each person is entitled to his/her own opinion and actually I enjoy reading his. Apparently he likes putting a verbal Evinrude in the conversational “septic tank” as well as I do.

    I should be getting MY XR9-S in a few weeks.. LOL

    Jesse

    • No, read his comment again.

      He thinks going to church is more worthy than worshiping a funky gun with a weird backwards feeding mag, and that meeting a disease-free girl and having babies would be a one of the greater benefits you’d get over owning that weird gun.

      On a totally random note, I like the new AJAXy commenting system. It’s pretty slick. Things will be really sweet when we get comment editing back. Nice work Stephen and the rest of the TTAG crew.

  12. A gun with a magazine that has no follower and feeds backwards? And it jams? Really….who woulda thunk it.

  13. Nice dude, I appreciate his attention and honesty, I’m still going to reserve judgement until this thing is all sorted out, it is after all a pretty radical new platform.

  14. I’ve had zero issues with my used XR9, not a thousand yet getting there with recommend crimped ammo mostly Federal HST I’m not embarrassed for my purchase but, then again I’m talking at the end of my knowledge and tomorrows another day. I’m glad I was reintroduced to “The Truth About Guns” I love the honesty and also I understand subjective opinions.

    Jason’s expose’ of himself would be funny if it weren’t so shallow. Sam Harris or Christopher Hitchens must have told him he was an atheist but, they were wrong too.
    A real atheist understands life is meaningless without God and since Jason cannot exist this way, he exposes himself with gobs of meaning and more so acts as a useful pawn in Gods hands. Jason is fully acting his defined position as “be(ing) like God” Gen 3:5. Only God can tell another man what to do as Jason declares right vs wrong he does the same with such command! The question will never be “if” but, “which” god.

    • “A real atheist understands life is meaningless without God”

      Nothing personal but that’s one of the stupidest things I’ve ever read.

      • The objective authority for the subjective (so called) atheist is materialism. And the universe doesn’t care if you live or die so how can another talking rock have meaning…other than subjective significance. As the counter top says to the floor I love you.

        • First off, I don’t identify with atheism. I could probably be categorized as one one but that hoodoo just doesn’t rate high enough in my priorities to bother with. Also, you speak of the universe as if it is a finality. If that’s true why bother with religion?

          Second, I’ve read many, many truly eloquent and fairly convincing rebuttals to atheism but yours falls way short. If you are as adamant about your faith and convictions as you seem to be it would behoove you to put your heart, soul, time and effort into something better than a flat condemnation and a counter top/floor metaphor.

          And to maintain a shred of relevance I’m still enamored with the Boberg and its approach to what an auto pistol can be.

  15. You know, it’s entirely possible that someone is capable of finding meaning beyond “materialism” without resorting to “I’m just a card in a massive game of solitaire, and if I’m not the one the player wants or needs, I get burned for eternity.”

  16. I have an XR9-S and it’s been great! The only problem I ever had with it was my fault when I failed to fully rack the slide back (first time out) and the round got stuck as you’d expect. Oops. When racked properly…no more problems. The very low recoil is really nice, and it’s an accurate shooter, although I’m not fond of any double action only triggers on the range. However, its intended purpose is to conceal carry, and it fills that role perfectly. Lots of power and very safe. And what about crap rounds separating? Would you siphon old gas out of your lawnmower to use in your Corvette?

  17. I came to this site to read the reviews on this new firearm and wasn’t disapointed.
    I found some truth. Something I haven’t seen in any of the major ‘gun’ magazines that I have read, when it comes to firearm reviews.

    I am going to give the XR9-S a try, because I like innovation and Mr. Arne Boberg’s attitude. I also came across a rather obnoxious soul in the comments section in the process.
    As for this ‘soul’, he is the type of person who holds others in contempt if they don’t think exactly like he does. He will berate and attempt to belittle them. This is how he feels superior. Someone like that suffers from an extreme poverty of intellect and you can never hold a constructive disagreement with them.
    This same person who has never owned said pistol in the review, nor used it, feels he is suitably qualified to give an account of its attributes or lack of. 1 of what, about 500? pistols and he is an expert, just by reading the review.

    It is better to let people like him bray and whine about everything – showing the rest of us as an example what it’s like to be so unhappy in life and with themselves.

    Thank God most of us don’t go around disparaging everything and live so negatively.

    I almost forgot, great review!

    • I just ordered my Boberg from GB. Red grips and a 4.2 in barrel from Boberg too. Only $1000 for an innovative firearm. I have onter pocket 9MM’s but this one is so neat and can take +p ammo. Same price as the Rohrbaugh R9.

  18. Fast forward to April, 2014 and Boberg is still in business. It is interesting to note that other sub compact pocket pistols in the $1000 range are offering guns with +P capability and are, like Boberg steering customers away from less than optimal ammo to maintain reliability. At the same time, Boberg is introducing a .45acp version with even more recoil reducing capabilities so that it works with .45acp, .45+P and even 45 SUPER ammo!!!

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