It has a slow leak, every night it leaks from 300bar to about 260 bar....240bar the next night...
Sigh, it was fun to shoot!
Sigh, it was fun to shoot!
Sidewinder is going back
- Thread starter wimpanzee
- Start date
Why not just fix it? It's probably something simple. If you own an airgun it's something you are going to have to deal with eventually.
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I don't blame you for sending it back. I've read more than a few threads on here with people having Sidewinder leaks. Sounds very similar to Rattler threads from last year with people having leaks on delivery.
I wouldn't be happy with a new gun leaking. Although we all should be prepared to fix a leak here or there after a period of ownership, accepting that on a brand new airgun will only make the sellers and the manufacturers complacent in their QA. New guns should be working on delivery with no issues - especially for something costing $2K. Would you accept the same from a brand new washing machine that leaked when it drained? Probably not.
I wouldn't be happy with a new gun leaking. Although we all should be prepared to fix a leak here or there after a period of ownership, accepting that on a brand new airgun will only make the sellers and the manufacturers complacent in their QA. New guns should be working on delivery with no issues - especially for something costing $2K. Would you accept the same from a brand new washing machine that leaked when it drained? Probably not.
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Well hopefully AoA can fix it. I'm not trashing the warranty to open it up and futz about with it myself just yet.
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If you live on the cutting edge of technology, sometimes you get cut. AOA does great warranty work and I am sure they are expecting some returns as the bugs are worked out. Only quirk is you pay shipping there.
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Are new airgun purchases like audio gear purchases, you have a trial period if not satisfied you pay return shipping and a restocking fee? For any reason whatsoever if not satisfied? Could be 7 days or up to 90 for some audio gear.
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I would at least check the air gauges... seems to be where new guns usually leak from. A quarter turn clockwise and you're on your way.
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If it is under warranty, why fix it yourself unless it is an easy and obvious fix.
I have only had one PCP develop a leak so far and it was my Umarex Origin. Yes, I probably could have fixed it myself, but I figured it was less than a year old, so I sent it in, they replaced it with a new one with the next generation of improvements and it came with another hand pump, magazines, and all the other things that came with the first one.
Since then I have upgraded to better guns, and have had no issues yet.
I have only had one PCP develop a leak so far and it was my Umarex Origin. Yes, I probably could have fixed it myself, but I figured it was less than a year old, so I sent it in, they replaced it with a new one with the next generation of improvements and it came with another hand pump, magazines, and all the other things that came with the first one.
Since then I have upgraded to better guns, and have had no issues yet.
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bring a regulated pcp without a hammer it has 2 internal "top hat" seals that are prone to failure. these are internal and not normally user replaceable.
my rattler which was early production also had a leak they tried to fix twice and was unsuccessful.
my advice buy a later generation model. they are both great pcps!
on a side note i wish they made the sidewinder in 357 cal. i know it defeats the purpose of the rattler but essentially what i want is the size/weight/removable mag of the sidewinder in rattler power.
my rattler which was early production also had a leak they tried to fix twice and was unsuccessful.
my advice buy a later generation model. they are both great pcps!
on a side note i wish they made the sidewinder in 357 cal. i know it defeats the purpose of the rattler but essentially what i want is the size/weight/removable mag of the sidewinder in rattler power.
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Sidewinder.30 Cal is less powerful than the Rattler.
I suppose that a Sidewinder in .357 would also be less powerful... But only the designers could tell.... Maybe the difference in power is given by the length of the barrel only... Do not know...
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Nope, AoA provided a shipping label and its waiting a trip to UPS. Shane was super nice in helping with it. I used to not like AoA, but they are becoming my favorite vendor over pyramyd, especially since they sent me some daystate revere orings for free...
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they could easily put a 357 barrel and magazine in it, the air bottle is the same size as rattler
barrel length is a tad bit shorter which will affect it slightly
the biggest issue would be the size of the internal plenum where the regulated air is held, it is probably smaller on the sidewinder and the power knob basically increases/decreases this size which is the amount of air which is released to push the pellet.
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@wimpanzee other than the leak (which sucks) how did you like the Sidewinder? I’m torn between it and the Huben K1. The .30 cal for the extra FPE is what has kept me from just buying the K1.
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I like my Sidewinder A LOT !!
No cons yet !
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I like my huben a lot more than the sidewinder. It feels a lot more refined and polished. The sidewinder had the performance, but felt too much like 'parts bolted together' than streamlined engineered product. also my first bottle gun and that is a bit of a turn off, but i did go get an atlas bipod clone to try on it, so that may change my feelings!
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My question is WHY is a $2200 hand assembled rifle leaving the warehouse with a leak? Or did the leak occur soon after purchase? Something like this should be leak tested several cycles and filled to full and left a week or so to make sure no leak will occur before shipment.
I'd be stomping mad if I bought one and had to ship it back ESPECIALLY if I had to cover shipping costs.
I'd be stomping mad if I bought one and had to ship it back ESPECIALLY if I had to cover shipping costs.
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I'm pretty sure it was leaking when it arrived. I shot it quite a bit the first few days, several fills...then after not shooting it as much is when i realized it was losing air over a couple days. turned out to be 20bar a day...almost enough to pass for heat loss from frequent fills until it stacked up and went from 300bar to 220bar over a couple days.
I'm not mad tho, AoA covered all the shipping, and they are going to keep it a couple weeks to make sure it doesn't still have any slow leaks.
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