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This is just a fun exercise.
During my 25 years in business we always seemed to be the company that received items from the manufacturer that had been built on a Friday e.g. head gasket missing, bearing missing, fuel tank missing, and many performance related issues that the importer "had never heard of before" and apparently no other dealer had experienced (sort of inferring that we somehow at fault). It's a running joke in my family that I'm a magnet that attracts these things and I've just come to accept that it's to be expected any time I purchase something new. This will probably confirm that view.
Let's move on to my experience with airguns over the last two and a bit years that I've been participating in this very addictive hobby/sport. This is a list of the faulty new guns I've purchased in that time and the particular issue(s) that I can remember off the top of my head (I'm not a spreadsheet guy!). Perhaps you can outdo me?
FX Dreamline (local purchase) Shot like crap, could not get it to group at all. Returned to supplier, shroud cap at the muzzle end was out of alignment ex factory. It was repaired and I still own it, albeit in a fairly modified form.
Norica GRS (local purchase) I quite liked this gun, nice looking, light and it shot reasonably well. But, I couldn't get 80% of pellets into the breech without resorting to a pusher and if not home fully it would shave the end off the skirt. It was returned for a replacement but apparently all of the remaining units were exactly the same so I opted for a refund.
Diana Outlaw (local purchase) Cocking lever jammed and was shooting like crap. There were two issues and I dealt with both myself although the supplier was advised. It was a cheap gun and I couldn't be bothered with inevitable delays in getting it fixed.
The first problem was caused by a pellet remnant lodged in the mechanism. No idea of how it got there but was easily removed once I figured out what was happening. The second issue was caused by a badly misaligned factory fitted suppressor. When I say it was misaligned, it was clearly visible and there was no way a pellet could travel through it without clipping. I replaced it with a multi-section rimfire suppressor and modified the original for use on another gun. I still have it and won't ever sell it as not only is it a gorgeous looking gun but it's deadly accurate - as good as the Dreamline.
Weihrauch HW98 (imported) Shot well from new but quickly deteriorated indicating a seal issue. Pulled it apart and found a shard of aluminium jammed into the cylinder wall/breech cap junction which chopped chunks out of the seal. Repaired and new seal fitted myself for obvious reasons. I still have this gun and have no intention of moving it on.
Diana N-Tec 340 (local purchase) Performed well from new but noticed awful graunching developing when cocking. Removed stock and found that no grease had been applied to the cocking arm. An easy fix and I really do like the gun.
Daystate Red Wolf (imported) My latest problem child. Although universally celebrated as one of the best PCP rifles out there, it has failed to live up to expectations regardless of power setting or pellet/slug weight. It just wouldn't group even at 25 yds. I decided the barrel had to come off expecting to find evidence of clipping, but instead found that the shroud supports were heavily contaminated with lead particles, this was after probably no more than 200 shots. The first push through of a patch also produced lead particles and pushing pellets through the LW polygonal barrel revealed that the bore was rough as guts. It appeared that this was peeling lead off the sides of the pellets/slugs causing the inaccuracy with the resulting particles blown into the shroud. Realising that an email conversiation with the overseas supplier was likely to be long and protracted, I again opted to forgo the warranty and risk having to purchase a new barrel. A good polish using the Autosol and knotted boot lace method used by Sub12 Airgunner on YouTube produced a nice smooth passage for the next lot of test pellets. It's now shooting as I'd hoped with further improvement expected as I trial pellet/power setting options and the barrel leads in. This is a keeper even if I have to fit a new barrel, but if I do, it will probably be with conventional rifling. I'm not convinced the polygonal is everything it's cracked up to be.
Can anyone beat this??
------------- Daystate Red Wolf .22 FX Dreamline .22 Diana Outlaw .22 AA S410 .22 HW98 .177 HW30 .177 Diana 340 E-Tec .177 FWB Sport 124 .177 Gamo 900 .22 Baikal IJ-22 .177 Crosman 2240 Custom .22 Brocock GP .22
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