im using a brand new AEA Megalodon 22 inch 58 cal and on my second fill i pumped it to just below 300 bar and i think it has valve lock but since ive never had valve lock before i have no clue what it sounds likes or looks like, does anyone have experience with this? thanks
AEA what does valve lock sound like and look like ? my gun is not firing and makes a thud sound
- Thread starter forestsounds
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Can you bleed off some pressure some how and try again? I would be surprised if you actually are experiencing valve lock. The more likely cause is an issue with the hammer strike or sear etc.
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yes i believe by using a wrench i can slightly loosen the gauge on the gun and that will let out the air also i bought a wood dowel to knock the bullet out of the barrel to eliminate that as a possible stuck slug, when i try to fire the gun it just makes a thud noise no air comes out, after i knock the bullet out ill try to fire it and if that does not work then ill try releasing some air, i heard 4100 psi was the sweet spot and that some users who filled to 4500 psi had valve lock but i also heard some method of taking out the cocking bolt or something and that allowed them to get full power even with a 4500 fill but i was hoping to not need to take apart the gun to fix this issue
also im not sure what a sear is or how to check it, as for hammer strike ive only read about people removing the cocking handle to fix the problem
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Loosening a guage to de gas, check the bore for a squib and to look at the fcg and hammer sounds like a great course of action. My little hpss aea suffered that issue from ingesting pellets backwards and lead shrapnel gumming up the works. I would degass and fill to your former pressure and test fire it that way.
After checking for barrel obstruction.... As for valve lock, it usually sounds like a half hearted shot with a lot more hammer click or knock but let's some air out if you're lucky. If it's so locked from pressure behind it that it cannot be opened with a shot, i advise against repeatedly firing it in that condition because it's just beating up hardware.
Aeas seem to all be set up "hot" so there could be another failure elsewhere that is not helped by the fact aea runs their gear way up high in it's performance envelope for parts.
After checking for barrel obstruction.... As for valve lock, it usually sounds like a half hearted shot with a lot more hammer click or knock but let's some air out if you're lucky. If it's so locked from pressure behind it that it cannot be opened with a shot, i advise against repeatedly firing it in that condition because it's just beating up hardware.
Aeas seem to all be set up "hot" so there could be another failure elsewhere that is not helped by the fact aea runs their gear way up high in it's performance envelope for parts.
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im new to this so im not sure what a squib is or to check the bore for it, also dont know what the fcg is or how to check it or the hammer, i will make sure the barrel is clear and degas and try again, when i slightly loosen the gauge and some air comes out can i then close it or should it let it fully degas before closing it back up? thanks for your reply
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A squib is a round that gets stuck in the bore, usually due to an underpowered load. And a fcg in this case I believe is the fire control group, meaning the trigger, sear, hammer assembly.
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Sorry.
Squib - a bullet that is stuck in the bore and didn't exit.
Fcg fire control group. It encompasses all the bits from safety to sear that releases the hammer.
Once degassed, be careful if it's regulated it could be hiding some high pressure somewhere. Use a flashlight and see if the bore passes light, or if a cleaning rod can come back thru the breech. If it can you don't have a squib (stuck bullet) I'd gas it up to your normal level and see if it fires, and if it doesn't you degass again unfortunately.
You don't have to tear everything apart, you can peek around with a flashlight and move things and look for something that looks very out of place. Any of excessive wear on parts finish, metal bits etc.
I have very little faith in aea valve pins, but when they fail they usually let all your air out for you.
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thanks for the reply, when i slightly loosen the gauge and some air comes out can i then close it or should it let it fully degas before closing it back up?
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If you check for a barrel obstruction, you could leak it down to the old pressure with the guage and tighten it up and try it.
Heres the obligatory be safe message, don't go taking the guage all the way out or multiple turns past a minor leak or it can become a projectile and tear threads out with it, don't let something you didn't expect to be in the barrel shoot you in the face checking the bore.
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Check youtube & see if there are videos showing you how to SAFELY do what you intend to do with your particular gun. High Pressure air might still be in areas you might not be aware of.
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This is my biggest fear for new guys, more than seeing if there's a barrel obstruction. At our pressures a set screw or guage can become a projectile in short order. Don't be scared, but use extreme caution and think out every scenarios possible outcomes to stay safe. Not just objects but gas injection injuries which can be awful.
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I also have a strong dislike of aea and some of their engineering practices after my hpss22 and my entire group of friends with hpss in 22 or 25. There's things they just did plain WRONG in that model gun. The are more accurate than they should be, far more powerful than they should be for the price.... Punching above your weight with little margin for error causes breakage. That said I still haven't sold mine even if I wanted to cut it in half for about a year.
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ok happy to report that the gun is working great i had a blast shooting yesterday i did notice the cocking bolt is loose after every shooting session and that bullet was jammed just one i believe from a low power shot caused by valve lock, once i unjammed the bullet with a wood dowel 7/16th in in width and used the gauge to slowly release pressure to 250 bar it worked as expected from now on ill fill to 4000-4100 psi or maybe try it without the cocking bolt ive heard 4500 psi fills work fine if it remove it, anyway i love the gun as expected my only concerns are the limited availability of parts and unlike a real gun it has alot of moving parts that can break
anytime i look down the barrel i make sure the breech is open no slug is in it and the safety is on and i try todo as much research as possible and talk to all of you before i do anything waiting is the hard part lol and i greatly appreciate all of your quick replies, thanks everyone
anytime i look down the barrel i make sure the breech is open no slug is in it and the safety is on and i try todo as much research as possible and talk to all of you before i do anything waiting is the hard part lol and i greatly appreciate all of your quick replies, thanks everyone
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That's where the flashlight trick works well and a mirror.... I highly recommend the flashkight trick
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