Texan owners... how many of you are having issue with valve lock?

[Marauder22]

Slowly by slowly the pressure fill for a clean shot is getting lower and lower. I usually only max fill to 2800 and I haven't had any velocity drop. Well today... a month later... I filled to 3000psi and for 4 consecutive shots you could watch my round ball leave the barrel and hit the ground in front of the target. Then at 2600psi it picks back up with a full power shot. My sweet spot was 2800 and now its 2600. Does Airforce install weak hammer springs?

[aceflier]

Mines still new but I can fill to 3100psi and hit 980fps with 168gr EPP slugs I did have to adjust the tuner near the first line toward breach. I've heard there is a spring issue but airforce does not confirm it. I would like to find replacement springs but the only ones available are in South Africa. I don't want to pay $35 for a spring then pay shipping also. Not yet anyway. If I was only able to fill to 2600 then yes I would consider it.

[Marauder22]

I guess I'll adjust it tomorrow after work thanks. From 2600 to 2000 I get 3 full power with my 143. 2 full power with the 250. I saw the springs from AAO also. Shipping to me would cost an arm and a leg. Too bad Airforce won't acknowledge this issue. We can crank it down all we want but eventually we'll lose anymore adjustment. Maybe if we get enough complaints up they'll listen?

[jkingsouthafrica]

Mines still new but I can fill to 3100psi and hit 980fps with 168gr EPP slugs I did have to adjust the tuner near the first line toward breach. I've heard there is a spring issue but airforce does not confirm it. I would like to find replacement springs but the only ones available are in South Africa. I don't want to pay $35 for a spring then pay shipping also. Not yet anyway. If I was only able to fill to 2600 then yes I would consider it.

Hi its  $25 for a set of  3 springs and if you ship via air mail its cost $12.50  There is a 99 % chance that after a few months of use  you will start to develop the same issue

[Marauder22]

Mines still new but I can fill to 3100psi and hit 980fps with 168gr EPP slugs I did have to adjust the tuner near the first line toward breach. I've heard there is a spring issue but airforce does not confirm it. I would like to find replacement springs but the only ones available are in South Africa. I don't want to pay $35 for a spring then pay shipping also. Not yet anyway. If I was only able to fill to 2600 then yes I would consider it.

Hi its  $25 for a set of  3 springs and if you ship via air mail its cost $12.50  There is a 99 % chance that after a few months of use  you will start to develop the same issue

Same for shipping to Hawaii?

[dyotat100]

They didn't design the spring right. Sounds like it is working past the maximum recommend use.

[Randbo]

I have had my Texan for a year and have shot about 100 lbs of lead trough it and at one point last spring it got so if you let it set over a couple days the first couple shots would valve lock and I called air force and they had me work a little oil around o ring on top hat and it fixed the problem. I shoot 340 gr. Bullets at 3200 lbs. and it work perfect.

[jkingsouthafrica]

Mines still new but I can fill to 3100psi and hit 980fps with 168gr EPP slugs I did have to adjust the tuner near the first line toward breach. I've heard there is a spring issue but airforce does not confirm it. I would like to find replacement springs but the only ones available are in South Africa. I don't want to pay $35 for a spring then pay shipping also. Not yet anyway. If I was only able to fill to 2600 then yes I would consider it.

Hi its  $25 for a set of  3 springs and if you ship via air mail its cost $12.50  There is a 99 % chance that after a few months of use  you will start to develop the same issue

Yes by Airmail

Same for shipping to Hawaii?

[Marauder22]

I have had my Texan for a year and have shot about 100 lbs of lead trough it and at one point last spring it got so if you let it set over a couple days the first couple shots would valve lock and I called air force and they had me work a little oil around o ring on top hat and it fixed the problem. I shoot 340 gr. Bullets at 3200 lbs. and it work perfect.

Would you be able to tell me what type of oil you used? I have pellgun oil but I know they'll mess up the o rings.  Thanks in advance!

[Randbo]

Would you be able to tell me what type of oil you used? I have pellgun oil but I know they'll mess up the o rings.  Thanks in advance!
[/quote] This is the oil I used

[MJP]

Everyone is complaining about the spring in different forums, so I'm asking how difficult it's take it out and measure?
World is full of springs and making new ones isn't so hard, we have the technology.
Just measure the compressed length that the spring will be in, choose from catalogue the right spring.
Marko

[KnifeMaker]

Air Force is notorious for NOT addressing issues, or admitting there is a problem. Gaylord covered up for them for years while working there. He didn't do them any favors and helped in give them less than a stellar rep. for years. Folks would return guns with exactly this problem and he would return them saying they were fine.

When questioned as to why the velocity dropped, and what he got on the chrony in testing the gun with a problem, he would tell customers that he didn't use a chrony, as he could  determine the  fps by how the gun sounded. A true hack! Grrrr!!!

There are springs aplenty available commercially, you just have to search for them. McMaster Carr is an excellent place to start. 

I learned the need to keep the top hat shaft and "0" rng lubed years ago in the AF platform. I use 10 weight Silicone oil for mine. I get it from lucas oil, in their RC silicone oil offerings.
Place a drop on the shaft of the valve, just behind the top hat, and fire it a couple of times.

Go to ebay or Amazon and search for RC Shock oil, 10WT. Cheap, and very available!

If going hunting, I will fire one shot without a bullet in the barrel just to make sure the valve is completely free, then top off. This will assure a good first shot.

If a bullet is in the breach, I will partially slide the hammer forward manually, and let it lightly hit the breach a couple of times. This is not enough to move the bullet n the barrel, but it will prevent the valve from sticking and causing a low power shot .

Knife   

[Marauder22]

Air Force is notorious for NOT addressing issues, or admitting there is a problem. Gaylord covered up for them for years while working there. He didn't do them any favors and helped in give them less than a stellar rep. for years. Folks would return guns with exactly this problem and he would return them saying they were fine.

When questioned as to why the velocity dropped, and what he got on the chrony in testing the gun with a problem, he would tell customers that he didn't use a chrony, as he could  determine the  fps by how the gun sounded. A true hack! Grrrr!!!

There are springs aplenty available commercially, you just have to search for them. McMaster Carr is an excellent place to start. 

I learned the need to keep the top hat shaft and "0" rng lubed years ago in the AF platform. I use 10 weight Silicone oil for mine. I get it from lucas oil, in their RC silicone oil offerings.
Place a drop on the shaft of the valve, just behind the top hat, and fire it a couple of times.

Go to ebay or Amazon and search for RC Shock oil, 10WT. Cheap, and very available!

If going hunting, I will fire one shot without a bullet in the barrel just to make sure the valve is completely free, then top off. This will assure a good first shot.

If a bullet is in the breach, I will partially slide the hammer forward manually, and let it lightly hit the breach a couple of times. This is not enough to move the bullet n the barrel, but it will prevent the valve from sticking and causing a low power shot .

Knife

Thanks knife! I will check out that oil and get some. As for AF....got a return email after asking about the problem. Then crickets. Chirp Chirp Chirp. No response back. I guess this'll be the last AF for me. Time for me to step up to QB or Extremebigbore rifles.

[KnifeMaker]

Not sure a QB would be a step up.  But the Extreme is a nice set-up!

I would love to have the frame from a .45 Texas. But would have Dyotat make it into a real AirGun. No, I'm not kidding one little bit!

Dougs creations are far beyond anything available for anywhere near the price.  By pure accident, the AF Platform, with all of its limitations, is perfect for what Dyotat does with them.

I know of Nothing that gets the efficiency and power out put, with extreme accuracy as a Dyotat100 Creation. 

Ironically, he tried for years to get AF to listen as to what he had learned with the plat form, and they ignored him right along with the ones of us using his platform. Now they use a joke of a personality to test and hawk their AG's!

It's embarrassing. 

Knife

[Marauder22]

Crazy isn't it? I read up on some of his posts. He knows a thing or two for sure.  Sometimes I wonder if the ego comes before an engineering standpoint in AF's build and design team.

[Tofazfou]

Crazy isn't it? I read up on some of his posts. He knows a thing or two for sure.  Sometimes I wonder if the ego comes before an engineering standpoint in AF's build and design team.

BINGO!  I believe it does with every builder.  Think about it, They build something then we change it and say it wasnt right.  Im sure that has to hurt the ego therefore creating resentment therefore them not wanting to listen.

[rsterne]

Seriously a SPRING

Somebody pull a NEW one out, measure it up, measure the spring rate (it ain't that hard), and post the data here.... My bet is you'll have several sources for springs at less than $10 the same day you ask.... 

BTW, the first thing I do before installing a hammer spring is "set" it.... I measure the overall length, then I slide it over a rod that fits inside, push on the ends until the coils collapse completely a few times.... and then I measure it again.... Most springs will show no change or at most a slight decrease in length.... My guess is that the spring in the Texan, if submitted to this treatment, will lose a LOT of length.... which IMO means it is lacking in design and/or materials....

The benefit to setting a spring before use is that once done, it doesn't change after that.... You can adjust the gun and forget about the spring causing you problems....

Bob

[dyotat100]

The problem is the spring size they use doesn't have a good selection.

The spring fits in a tube and over the barrel so there is no room to change size. I have a few spring but haven't checked to see if they will work yet.  Maybe today. They poppit broke and I have to make a new. Going to make it out of peek because stock one was settling into the valve a little.

[Horatio]

Crazy isn't it? I read up on some of his posts. He knows a thing or two for sure.  Sometimes I wonder if the ego comes before an engineering standpoint in AF's build and design team.

Engineers, that's a whole other subject for sure!

[aceflier]

Bob I would love to get thise measurements but I'm new to this platform and I don't have the slightest idea where the spring is lol. It's way different than my Mrod and other rifles. Mines got 30 shots through it and after lubing the top hat seems to not even mind a slight overfill of 3100psi.

Any and all info on that spring size would be great. I happen to know a guy who can make springs.

Has anyone polished the top hat to see if it did anything for the rifle? I told myself I wasn't going to tinker with this one lol.