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Brand new Impact MK2 leaking out of box, dealer/factory response

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JY

JY

Member
Feb 27, 2020
13
0
CA, United States
Yes I've heard it, people warned me about the leaks in FX. But I jumped in anyway and bought the MKII, hoping FX has worked out their leaks and QCs. Got it at end of March, I was happy.
Tested some pellets over several days, I noticed it used more air than I thought, initially it didn't register in my mind that it probably had a slow leak. Then one night I noted the air left at 140bars dropped to 100bar second day just by sitting in the case. I contacted my dealer report the problem and hope to find a solution. Thankfully he emailed back said is willing to help, although very busy running the shop by himself, short-handed due to Covid19 shelter-in-place. I emailed back with more detail of symptoms and inquired about next steps. That was on April 8th, second week ownership of the new gun.

It has been almost two weeks since last communication, still no replies. I followed up with another inquiry, still no response, I am not so happy about the purchase now. OK, I chalked it to virus shelter-in-place, maybe he is not checking emails, or maybe a small business is forced to closure by the virus...

In the mean time, the leaking gets worse, overnight it would leak to zero. I watched hours and hours of Earnest' videos, tried to use soap water to detect bubbles by the fittings, gauges, holes, could not see any bubbles. If push comes to shove, I don't mind change some O'rings myself, have some experience with other PCPs but not in FX. More importantly I do not want to open the Impact fear I would void the factory warranty.

At this point I am wondering if I should contact FX directly. Will they repair it? or replace it? what's your experience working with factory and dealers? How long would it take to turn around? Thanks for the insight.






 
Personally, I think that two weeks is a long time to sit around with a brand new $2K rifle and nothing. There is that chance that he did have to shut down cause of C19. Maybe he, himself, is sick as well.

I think since the "wheels have fallen off the cart" in these uncertain times that no one should get butt hurt cause you are looking for answers. I would call FX USA. I would think John would want to to have help, he is actually a pretty nice guy, and for sure he would want his brand new rifle to work. They might even know what happened to your dealer or be able to locate him. To me it is worth the call.

Eamon 


 
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Perhaps I should leave the dealers name out of the public forum to give him the benefit of doubt, at least for now.

Thank you all for the input. Yes two week is long time but business is not running fast in this Covid19 time. Hope he is not sick...And hope FX can provide a quick exchange because I can hear the ground squirrels laughing at me (and my gun) in back yard.
 
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When you hear about FX's especially the Impact, you knew that this is one of the most complex toys exist anywhere, right? And if you not really a technically inclined and DIY person you shall not buy it, right? But for sure you love it no matter what.

I have a slow leak as well noticed just recently but I have a gun in my basement for about a month (still winter conditions at my place). I asked a question here and ppl came back to me try this and that.

Just one hour ago I made a bubble bath with dishwasher soap, spray the gun, I could not see any major leak. Then ppl sad use a condom and wrap it on the barrel muzzle end. Well me 60 yo I don't have spare condoms laying around these days ;) but I cut one finger of a latex gloves and using it as a balloon if that would inflate for a morning.

Next thing is, if I don't find that leak I am going to dump the gun in a bath tub for overnite, this one guy did not long ago...I don't know did he or just teasing me but looks like a hint...

So I am trying things...and you can try as well, locate where is a leak help yourself. I cannot imagine sending my gun back to the dealer no matter what....

Just my 2c


 
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JY, I don't think FX USA will handle an exchange directly, and will probably refer you to the dealer. He should have either exchanged it immediately, or obtained authorization from FX for you to return it for exchange. If I were in your place, I would also offer that feedback to FX by speaking to the sales manager directly. There appears to be a lot of folks handling FX rifles, which makes me question how closely they monitor dealer activity and customer service. If a car dealership were to ignore a customer in this manner, someone would be reminding them of their franchise obligations. Their ability to sell is a granted (and revocable) privilege, not a right. 
 
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Thanks for the suggestions, I may try that. Yes I was aware of the complexity and ready to deal with it.

So how long have you had the gun before the leak start to appear, is it still under warranty?

Click to expand...

I got the Impact about 40 days ago after some 4 months of waiting inline. I had replaced some orings to stiffer material and the gauges are upgrades as well, tune it in my basement and still no weather for outdoors. I noticed a leak only last week, how long its been there I don't know, maybe the orings just settling down and need to re-tighten things.

Anything I did and doing on this Impact is a learning curve for me as well, lot of info and support here at the forum , nothing is broken or blown to make me going back to a dealer.

https://www.airgunnation.com/topic/new-fx-impact-mk2-pp-leaks-air-but-too-slow-to-hear/#post-686771


 
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Yes I've heard it, people warned me about the leaks in FX. But I jumped in anyway and bought the MKII, hoping FX has worked out their leaks and QCs. Got it at end of March, I was happy.
Tested some pellets over several days, I noticed it used more air than I thought, initially it didn't register in my mind that it probably had a slow leak. Then one night I noted the air left at 140bars dropped to 100bar second day just by sitting in the case. I contacted my dealer report the problem and hope to find a solution. Thankfully he emailed back said is willing to help, although very busy running the shop by himself, short-handed due to Covid19 shelter-in-place. I emailed back with more detail of symptoms and inquired about next steps. That was on April 8th, second week ownership of the new gun.

It has been almost two weeks since last communication, still no replies. I followed up with another inquiry, still no response, I am not so happy about the purchase now. OK, I chalked it to virus shelter-in-place, maybe he is not checking emails, or maybe a small business is forced to closure by the virus...

In the mean time, the leaking gets worse, overnight it would leak to zero. I watched hours and hours of Earnest' videos, tried to use soap water to detect bubbles by the fittings, gauges, holes, could not see any bubbles. If push comes to shove, I don't mind change some O'rings myself, have some experience with other PCPs but not in FX. More importantly I do not want to open the Impact fear I would void the factory warranty.

At this point I am wondering if I should contact FX directly. Will they repair it? or replace it? what's your experience working with factory and dealers? How long would it take to turn around? Thanks for the insight.





Click to expand...

Hi JY,

If you could send us a direct message with your name, email and phone number and we will have a technician reach out to you to ensure everything is working properly and help diagnose the problem and find the best solution for you. 

FX Airguns Customer Service Support
 
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Thanks for the advice, I am reaching out to FX hope the process is painless.

In a normal circumstance I would think dealer should stand behind their sales. Due to the C19 some areas are enforcing "non essential business shut down", so I am giving dealer the benefit of doubt. He seems to be a small business with family to feed, maybe even experiencing hardships.

I am happy FX service chimed in to help, that says a lot about their customer service paying attention to user experience.


 
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JY, sorry to hear your having an issue but I bet you'll get it squared away. Bleeding down to zero would indicate a noticable leak. Where all did you check for leaks? You might remove the shroud and smear a little soapy water over the muzzle. That would tell you that the valve/seat is probably not making a good seal. Also check around the gauge for possibly an easy fix. 

Jimmy
 
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JY:

FX-USA USA has some of the best customer service in the industry, these people are amazingly efficient and helpful...You are in good hands!

Now, if I may, let me give you a couple of tips...FX Impact is a somewhat sophisticated gun that seems to be complicated and difficult to repair/give maintenance but it is NOT!...You need to understand the main sub-systems which are very simple: Air Storage (your air cylinder) and quick connector valve for filling, Regulator, Power Plenum, Valve, transfer port, & Barrel ...Then you have two gauges....That is all!

Leaks on Impacts are very simple to find and fix, and I would start by checking both air gauges because these are hand tight and even with the X ring underneath, these gauges slowly leak if not tight enough...Try hand tightening them 1/8 to 1/4 of a turn then fill your air cylinder and check next day...

I use CRC Aerosol Leak Detector which doesn't leave residue of any kind, but you can use soap and then wash it with water and spray the area with a silicon spray lubricant that will not hurt o-rings and plastics...Leaks around the Air Storage are not common so I wouldn't start there, checking the quick connector is easy and you may start here by filling the inlet hole with leak detector...Put some leak detector at the tip of the barrel for checking the valve seat (that is made out of Delrin type material)...I've never had a valve seat issue even after around 10-15,000 shots with my .30, but it is prone to failing.

Then check the most frequent 2 leaks after the air gauges that I've found for Power Plenums: Valve head (you can see where the valve seals in the back of the block) and then the leak coming out of the main rod by the power plenum (Below I explain which o-rings are these)....So to verify the main rod leak use leak detector around the power wheel (fill the slot around the power wheel)...

I have 2 impacts MKII Power Plenum: A .22 and a .30...One developed a slow leak around the valve and the other had another slow leak coming from the main rod, this one is caused by one or both o-rings that are inside the frontal section of the power plenum that is attached (clamped) to the action by 1 screw...The power plenum tube threads into this frontal section that as mentioned, has those 2 orings that cause the main rod leak...The frontal o-ring is a 2.84 x 2.62 PUR90 and the rear o-ring seats touching this forward one and it is a 5.5 x 1.5 NBR70...

The forward o-ring (in my gun) had a mold seam and this was the issue preventing it from fully sealing...I could've fix it by removing/polishing the seam, but since I have a few replacements I opted for replacing this o-ring...The other gun had the little 2.2 x 1 NBR70 o-ring from the valve not giving it a tight seal and I also replaced it and this fixed the problem...

When the regulator leaks, the leak will come out of either of both of these 2 areas: From where you adjust the reg pressure (fill that large area with leak detector) or it will come from a tiny little hole located exactly of the opposite side of the Power Wheel next to the safety...When I find leaks on my regulators I don't mess around, I replace ALL of the o-rings...Actually when 1 o-ring fails in any of my guns, I overhaul and give maintenance to the entire gun...To me an o-ring failure is like a "Hey, I need maintenance" message, o-rings are very cheap...

Don't be frustrated because your Impact or any gun (new or used) for that matter has an o-ring problem, o-ring failures are VERY COMMON in all airguns regarding price and are very common in industrial machines that cost tens and hundreds of thousand dollars...

The Impact is very easy to disassemble, there are innumerable videos on the Internet and it will take you 20 minutes to replace all of the o-rings...So if you are mechanically inclined, don't hesitate to fix your own guns...You will not be dependent on factories or repair centers (warranty or not) for you to enjoy your gun.

So tighten those gauges, check the quick connector, valve seal at the rear of the block, regulator at the bottom where you increase the pressure and around the tiny little hole opposite to the power adjusting wheel and lastly check the main rod rings by filling the slot around the power wheel...I am 95% sure that you will find the exact problem...

If the leaks are not there, then check the air cylinder (very easy to check), where the main cylinder attaches to the gun, and lastly check the two brass plugs (one around where you attach the air cylinder) and the other in the back of the action on the left bottom side...These plugs are there for precisely plugging in the holes that are necessary to drill for machining the internals of the action, these plugs have no function in the gun but have a tiny little o-ring similar to the one on the head of the valve (2.2 x 1 NBR70)...I've never heard of these o-rings in the plugs failing, but it is not impossible.

Lastly, if you are not up to the task, send your gun back to the dealer or ask FX-USA for warranty instructions, their service is excellent.

Best regards,

AZ






 
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