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Bear Creek Arsenal has a rating of 3.39 stars from 378 reviews, indicating that most customers are generally satisfied with their purchases. Reviewers satisfied with Bear Creek Arsenal most frequently mention right side, heavy barrel, and complete uppers. Bear Creek Arsenal ranks 1st among Hunting sites.
This company does not typically respond to reviews
Loving my new side charging complete AR-15 upper in 5.56mm. Shoots great. Feeds great. Looks great. Definitely going to be purchasing from BCA for a long time. Already referring friends.
Numerous calls and emails, No response. Other than the standard, generic automated email reply, I have yet to hear back from a live person. In April of 2023 I placed an order and I was shipped the wrong firearm. I called customer service several times before a reply, and was issued a credit on my account on "a future purchase". I've spent over $14k dollars with this company in the last 1 1/2 years, I assumed a $50 store credit would not be too big of a deal that I would need to make sure I received a paper certificate showing my verbal conversation regarding the credit. Fast forward, 2 orders later and they keep "missing" the credit to apply to my orders. 5 voice mails and 4 emails, tried using live chat but message comes back saying "Live Chat Unavailable" and once again no live person has replied. Oh well, I have several other firearm manufacturers I can recommend to my customers.
Numerous calls and emails, No response. Other than the standard, generic automated email reply, I have yet to hear back from a live person. In April of 2023 I placed an order and I was shipped the wrong firearm. I called customer service several times before a reply, and was issued a credit on my account on "a future purchase". I've spent over $14k dollars with this company in the last 1 1/2 years, I assumed a $50 store credit would not be too big of a deal that I would need to make sure I received a paper certificate showing my verbal conversation regarding the credit. Fast forward, 2 orders later and they keep "missing" the credit to apply to my orders. 5 voice mails and 4 emails, tried using live chat but message comes back saying "Live Chat Unavailable" and once again no live person has replied. Oh well, I have several other firearm manufacturers I can recommend to my customers.
Loving my new side charging complete AR-15 upper in 5.56mm. Shoots great. Feeds great. Looks great. Definitely going to be purchasing from BCA for a long time. Already referring friends.
Tip for consumers:
Great company
Products used:
Complete upper
Mounted on an Anderson multi-cal lower. I have only put about 110 rounds through it, but it functioned fairly well. I had one steel case failure to eject, none with brass cases. It has the BCA enhanced firing pin and there were no failures to fire the steel cases. I plan to run brass only in the future. I also plan to change out the universal carbine buffer to an H2 buffer in the lower receiver to reduce wear and tear on the BCG.
On 11/15/23 my FFL ordered me a rifle from BCA. After approximately two weeks without receiving the rifle, they made multiple attempts to telephonically contact their customer service. They will not answer their phones. It is now 12/19/23 still no rifle. If there was miss hap a completed phone call would have resolved the issue. Now I am forced to go to another company. BCA Please contact Stars and Stripes Tactical@ *******223
This upper is amazing i love the side charging handle and the fluted barrel. It shoots amazing and is very smooth. Will definitely buy from BCA again.
I bought the 16" 7.62x39 AR-15 upper back in 2020 and it's still going strong! I'd estimate it has at least 2000 rounds of all types through it. Brass, steel, doesn't matter, it eats it all. Runs great and is accurate enough. Is this a sub moa gun? Not with me shooting it but then again 7.62x39 isn't really a sub moa roundn( in most cases). Buy it, you won't regret it.
Customer service is lacking if you order something whether it's on the phone or on their website it takes 10 to 14 days to process your order which is way too slow when you try to call back and you're on hold for 10 minutes and finally leave a voicemail nobody calls you back done that with sales and with customer service send an e-mail for via their website and received the information that they may take up to 14 days to process your order again just seems like it's way too long to wait.
I have purchased a couple of complete uppers from this company. I shot it once and the shell is stuck in the barrel. I pulled the bolt back and now it is stuck and wont open. I have called every day for a week and a half leaving voicemails. No response emailed customer service, no response. I am at the end of my rope. I do not like leaving bad review's but this is ridiculous! All I need to know is what is happening and how they are going to fix the situation?
Products used:
AR-10
I got one of their.223 Wylde uppers and it's amazing I have had no jams or issues at all! You can't find a better product and especially for the price
I'm on number 15 Bear Creek weapon just bought a new complete upper 450 bushmaster hope when I get it will be the best and no other can compare of quality and precision just give it a shot you will be sold
I was first interested in this company for its side charging models. I don't think they asberate the benefits this offers. They produced at least one video illustrating some of the benefits like easier access when a scope is mounted. I believe they are the only manufacturer to offer this with a reciprocating charging handle giving the shooter control of the bolt. I know have purchased several uppers and three lowers; AR 9, AR10, and AR15. I have not experienced any problems and the fit and finish was excellent.
Products used:
Rifles
I purchased a upper in December of 2022, couldn't get it to eject without double feeding, or stovepiping. Smashing the next cartridge to load. Sent it back, received a ditto of the first POS I had purchased. I'm on my third one sent back been two weeks. I have heard nothing. Don't buy anything from this business. Very poor product, not reliable.I personally would like a refund. Too purchase better quality product somewhere else.This is only two, can show more!
Bought parkerized 6.5 creedmoor. Nothing good to say at this point. Bad head space creates popped primers, bad cycling, jamming issues. I'm not a happy customer. Waiting for replacement! Customer service is absolutely horrible. Tried 20 plus times to call, several emails only one reply!
Products used:
Nothing yet.
I ordered a gun part from bear creek arsenal and Fed Ex told me that it wouldn't be delivered because the part was missing from the box. I can't get any customer service. They don't answer and won't call back. I will not order anything from BCA again!0
Tip for consumers:
There are many other sites where you can find similar products at similar prices just like BCA, in which you can trust their shipping methods and customer service and many offer free shipping.
With my 67 year old eyes I was averaging 1.5" at 100 yds. For an inexpensive AR that's very good. That was with 77grain OTM and 62 black tips. Didn't matter which and, very little poa shift.
Took out my BCA.223 wylde. It's topped with a Monstum 3×9 scope. For eyes as old as mine between 1 & 2 inches at 100 yds is pretty damn good.
Place sucks give ur money to a real USA company. Very disappointed in this company. They stop delivering to many states! The country is going down the toilet and now this company is jumping on the wagon. Sure u will out of business soon!
Tip for consumers:
Was a great company but now they suck
Bought an upper and magazines to go with it. Magazines are cheaply made out of tin that is so thin it move allowing rounds to pop out. Upper was not loading rounds properly and pin short striking not even contacting primer. Tried to contact company with no success. They won't answer their phone and send a generic response back to any emails. In all, absolutely no customer service at all. Returning purchase and never doing business with this company again. I would rather pay more for a company that has customer service.
Products used:
None
This upper is what happens when an ar has a baby with and ak... you get the ar 7.62. I absolutely love it. I'd buy more if I could.
I made my order nearly a month ago still showing processing. I have been trying to get in touch with them for 3 days now no reply via email or phone guess I'm at their mercy will not order again
As an update to my prior review and experience, I still have not received any info or update about how and when my order will be fulfilled. We're past a month from the original order now.
The package came back to them nearly a month ago to reship to corrected FFL. I've had two exchanges with a customer service person since it arrived back with them neither of which told me anything other than that they can't tell me when it will ship out. I followed up again 4 days ago and then today get an automated message from their RETURNS email address. In all the MANY attempts to get an answer about how to get my order, I never asked for a return / refund, I've only ever asked for help getting the order in the first place.
It's literally crazy how they will ignore you. They absolutely don't care. I'll tell you, the indifference and just unprecedented level of blatant shrugging off legitimate customer inquiries, non-responsiveness and not answering the phone takes this so past bad customer service that I'm planning this week to file a complaint with NC Attorney General's office for consumer complaints.
From BCA's perspective, they see me as someone complaining about not receiving an order for a cheap AR15 but that's not the case. This is so beyond my own personal order issue. At this point I'm mostly interested in making others aware and second, informing others that they should help send complaints to the AG's office. The AG's office needs to have a good number of people tell them about BCA's non-responsiveness - ignoring customers and letting orders just go indefinitely unfulfilled or lost without communication. Once they notice BCA coming up as a pattern of bad business practice the way it clearly does from other reviewers, they'll take notice and start enforcing consumer protection measures on them. Do your part and alert the AG's office if you've had an experience like mine with indefinitely open ended order problems, non-responsiveness, or some of the other issues I see on here such as failures to refund returns within purchase terms. Be sure to retain all records of purchases and communications including dates and responses (in the rare case they respond).
Everyone's been talking about "quiet quitting" and its impact on employers and work environments in the post-covid workplace. But how does this culture of indifference affect minimum standards that you or I should expect as consumers from retailers?
This review of Bear Creek Arsenal and an alarming number of others as well as posted questions on this platform show that we should expect very little. Perhaps nothing at all in terms of customer service standards.
Bear Creek (BCA for short) is a decent sized business with a couple hundred employees and a sprawling warehouse and manufacturing facility. A veteran owned, family grown, North Carolina direct to consumer manufacturer of fire arms. The type of place where you would expect a 'Yes'r' or 'Yes mam' from a down home local.
So this review is more than a review, but an example of how even companies who would seem to have very strong customer oriented cultures have lost their way. Where have all the good businesses gone?
By the way, the second star is because the initial order was sent out in a timely manner. Otherwise this would be a 1 star review. But because they don't coordinate with support tickets or customers, I have had an indefinitely open ended poor experience.
My experience combined with numerous other reviews is that there is a huge management problem and serious customer support problems. Like many other reviewers I've had the same experience re: no one answers the phone, sometimes the voicemail doesn't work, if it does you will not likely get a call back.
I had an issue with my order going to the wrong FFL (found out they were out of business) and immediately contacted BCA in less than 24 hours after order placed. The order was placed on a holiday so I figured it would not be assembled or shipped out for at least a couple of days (I was correct). I also had my replacement FFL dealer email them at their FFL address to update their records and that email referenced my order number. After that weekend I followed up on the phone during regular business hours. I tried multiple times and not only did no one answer, but voicemail didn't work. Finally I was able to get to a customer support voicemail box after trying several times. I left a message. No response that day, nor the following 4.
Finally, FIVE days later, I get an email acknowledging the FFL issue stating that they didn't have the FFL info. My FFL is the largest gun seller in our area and is highly professional / commercial so I know they sent the email when they said they did. Then I got a call saying that the order had gone out. I explained that I had been trying multiple times to get in touch with them to ship it to the correct FFL before it went out but that no one was responsive. I also had the new FFL re-send their license info with my order number again.
So clearly, the shipping and customer support staff aren't working together (assuming customer support is even working at all).
On December 1st, they ordered a FedEx package recall before it could get to the wrong FFL. This is now the tail end of December 10th and I have emailed asking for an update 3 times and have been ignored each time. I reminded them in the last email that the order needed to be updated with the new FFL. The order has still not been updated to reflect the correct shipping address. The original tracking shows that it arrived back at the warehouse 3 days ago. In the very least, a customer should be able expect a response during a 10 day span after multiple attempts to get an answer and have their order updated so as to know that they will eventually get it.
As of now, I have no idea what to expect. Will they some day contact me? When they do will it be someone who doesn't investigate the situation and says, 'oh your order was returned and has been sitting in the warehouse for weeks, what do you want us to do?' Or worse, maybe they just will let it get absorbed into inventory and sold to someone else. How should I know since they won't communicate? And this order was going to be an anniversary present.
You can't run an ecom business like this. Or then again, maybe in this industry you can because the demand for guns is so high that you can afford to just ignore customers. This dynamic does not jive with the culture that BCA tries to portray in their about us content on the site at all. Thus my conclusion that there are serious management issues. In the past, this company would have had to either stop the retail side of the business to only focus on manufacturing to wholesale distribution, or eventually close up shop as experiences like mine continue to pile up and drown their reputation. These days? Maybe not. Sad commentary on business values.
If you haven't purchased from BCA yet, based on my experience, I would have no choice but to recommend spending a little bit more and ordering from someone else. Maybe not everyone is becoming like this in this industry. Maybe Palmetto State answers their phone. Maybe they'll even answer with a courteous, "Yes'r".
Tip for consumers:
Read my review
Products used:
AR-15
Own a BCA 350 LEGEND stainless upper. Flawless! Matched my lower with no issues. Accurate with multiple types of ammunition. Taken whitetails with minimal to no tracking required! Affordable to shoot and small shooter friendly.
In September 2022 I bought a 300 black out upper, came in 2 days. However the great hands at FedEx damaged the product. All was good, BCA sent a return label so I sent it back to them for replacement. They received my upper on 10-5-22 according to the tracking number. So tell me how I can get a new upper in 2 days from ordering but I can not get a replacement item from them and as of today it is 11-2-22. Worst customer service I've ever dealt with in my life. When contacting you kinda get a reply through their web site messaging looks automated, however try and call them. There will be no answer and they sure the heck don't call you back after leaving messages. Bear Creek Arsenal you have failed miserably, your customer service is sub par at best! I'm going to tell everyone I know starting here! I really hope your product is actually good when I one day get to lay hands on it. Bear Creek Arsenal please send me my product! I've paid for it! Read the other reviews people, I didn't believe them because there were so many good ones, man I wish I would have known and taken my money elsewhere!
Sincerely, very unhappy customer
Nathan C.
Order# ************
Tip for consumers:
To believe the stories about there being no CS after sale.
Products used:
Still waiting on the non damaged product.
I first bought a 308 complete rifle with side charging, first time using that type. Ran over 100 rounds, cheap tula ammo, never had a failure. Was able to get 1.5 inch groups at 100yds, that's good for me. The magazine, 10 round, that I bought separate did have a problem to cycle if fully loaded. Called customer service and was shipped a new one that worked perfectly. I liked the company and product that I bought both my boys there own, 7.62x39 and 223 wylde. Have only shot the 7.62x39 and worked perfect. I would recommend Bear Creek.
Products used:
308 side charging
7.62x39 side charging
223 wylde
308 side charge upper was as promised. Functioned flawless. Great quality fit and function. I recommend bca products to anyone looking for budget quality products
Products used:
Upper
The BCG has been on back order for 3 months...no restock that they know of
No help from BC sales reps. Beware do not buy their 22lr upper side charge...$30
No refund, exchange...Sales is final...RIP OFF!
Tip for consumers:
I will not buy from BCA ever again
Products used:
It went in the trash can
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