AEA HP SS .30 cal - pressure loss

[jsaras]

I got this sweet little carbine as a Christmas gift along with a hand pump. Thus far, I've only put 8 rounds through it to make sure it works. I had the gun pumped up to the top of the green (250 bar). It's been stored in the garage and a couple of week later it's now at about 120 bar. Is this in the "normal" range?


Thanks,
J

 

[M0ist0ne]

Nope. Unless it's below freezing in the garage. 

AEA failure point is commonly the gauges. The fun part with those is they use a non-standard threading. Could just be an oring or something as well. If you have some leak detector, you could pump the gun back up and spray some around the gauge area or where the tube connects to the action. Soap/water mixes can work too as a leak detector. Can see if it's a valve issue by putting a ballon over the muzzle and see if it starts to fill with air. Biggest thing is trying to locate where the leak is. 

I'd contact the vendor and see if they can assist. Being as new as it is, maybe they'll just swap you out. Pretty common practice when an AEA goes bad--I'd ask for a new one, aren't known for great QC. 

 

[Quad82]

If the .30 has the same probe fill port in the end of the air tube as the .45, it’s a poor set-up. Instead of using a one-way fill nipple like you would see on a Foster QD, it has a screw with a tensioned O-ring that is held in place by another locking screw. Mine leaked because the locking screw vibrated loose letting the O-ring screw loosen. This let air escape past the O-ring. A little blue Locktite takes care of that. But getting the right tension on the O-ring takes some trial and error. Too tight the tube won’t fill. Too loose the tube looses air. I got mine just a bit too tight. It fills fine when low on air. But if I want to just top it off, even with a full 4500 psi tank, it doesn’t have enough force to pass past the back pressured O-ring. 


My suggestion is to put a balloon (or finger from a rubber glove with a rubber band) over the air tube and one over the barrel. Let it sit for a couple days if it’s a real slow leak. 

 

[FelixS]

I had this problem, but I got a bottle adapter, and when I changed it to the bottle, the problem went away.

Then, I put the original tube back on and the problem did not return... soooo, it was most likely an o-ring on the adapter.

Other than that, check to ensure your gauge is tight.

 

[jsaras]

Thanks for the detailed responses everyone! You've been extremely helpful...I've pumped it up again and I have a glove finger over the fill end..

 

[db39]

AEA seem like they could be such a good value. I realize they are not AGT, Daystate or FX, but are a lot of people having these kinds of problems with them?

 

[FelixS]

AEA seem like they could be such a good value. I realize they are not AGT, Daystate or FX, but are a lot of people having these kinds of problems with them?

For the price, I am sure the manufacturer just pumps them out and sends them to distributors. Sig Shooter claims that he tests all his guns before shipment to customers; I think most people with problems got their guns elsewhere, so this says a lot.

 

[gunner001]

My AEA .25 had a very slow leak that was coming from the pressure gauge. I tightened the gauge 1/4 turn and no more leak, I’ve had it for over a year now with no issues. 

 

[jsaras]

My AEA .25 had a very slow leak that was coming from the pressure gauge. I tightened the gauge 1/4 turn and no more leak, I’ve had it for over a year now with no issues.

I'm going to try an 1/8 of a turn right now!