Remington has just informed purchasers of the original R51 pistol that the second model – which aims to fix the issues of the initial production version – is now ready to be shipped. Remington has taken the extra step for initial buyers of the R51 of not releasing the new improved model to the wider market until all original R51 customers get their chance to receive a new pistol first. The letter below was sent out to Remington R51 customers earlier today (thanks to Russell Duty for posting it to FB):

Dear Valued Remington Customer,

We sincerely thank you for your patience as we finalized the development and testing of the Remington R51 pistol. The steps taken within our quality and manufacturing processes have given us the confidence to reintroduce the R51 to the market. We have prioritized our launch to give you the opportunity to receive your replacement firearm prior to a full commercial reintroduction. As a token of our appreciation, we are including a custom Pelican hard pistol case and two extra magazines with your new R51 subcompact pistol. We will also reimburse you for the transfer fee charged by your FFL dealer. Your new Remington R51 subcompact pistol is ready for delivery and can be shipped to a licensed firearms dealer of your choice.

In order for you to receive your new R51, please call us at 800-243-9700 (M-F 9m-5pm EST) with your dealer’s name and phone number. If you prefer, you may send us your name, contact information, dealer name, and dealer contact information via fax (336-548-7801), email (info@remington.com) or mail (P.O Box 700, Madison NC 27025). In addition, we have assigned a consumer service representative to follow up with you throughout this process. All replacement firearms need to be sent to a licensed dealer with a valid FFL (Federal Firearms License) on file with us. To assist in speeding up the turnaround time, if you have your dealer’s FFL available, please include it, if not, we will contact your dealer to obtain a copy of the FFL on your behalf.

We have gone to great lengths to return the R51 to the marketplace, and we deeply appreciate your patience and support as we reintroduce this iconic firearm.

Sincerely,
Remington Arms Company, LLC

The Remington R51 is a 9mm re-imagining of the original Remington Model 51, a .380/.32 ACP single stack pocket carry gun designed in the late Nineteen Teens by John D. Pedersen. The modern incarnation was introduced just prior to the 2014 SHOT Show to much fanfare, but once the guns shipped, serious problems including out of battery firings began to appear. Remington recalled the pistols and pledged to replace the guns. Once the guns were returned, the company’s engineers identified a tolerance stacking issue with the production pistols, especially with the very dimension-sensitive trademark hesitation locking block. Remington removed the R51 from its website, ended production at the Charlotte, NC plant, and moved the tooling to Huntsville, AL, where they began to correct the issue in the new production pistols. Although Remington was very open about this change at the 2015 SHOT Show, by the next year at SHOT 2016, the R51 was nowhere to be found at the company’s booth, and the only thing company representatives would say about it was “it’ll be done when it’s done”. It seems that time has come!

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