ATI Nova Freedom .177 "no warranty parts gun" (pic heavy)

[Wayne52]

That air bleed screw roughness is one of the first things that I noticed when I removed it from my Liberty soon after I bought it.  I did smooth it out with a dremel but in reality it doesn't affect any sealing surface directly.  These guns are what they are, they're made pretty good with some flaws but they're a perfect candidate for a tinkerer like I am.  I know that I'm sure happy with the way that they're performing for me though, I'll definitely be using them a lot in the future.

[WilsonLR]

Okay, I know this thread hasn't had a post since last year. I spent a week plowing through it since I'm looking at getting an Aspen Seneca. Since there's so many "re-engineers" in this thread, I thought I'd ask a couple questions now that you've had these parts guns operational.

With all the pump and leakage problems, is the Freedom/Seneca fundamentally flawed and not a gun that will last?

Anyone familiar with the Seneca Aspen Gen 2 changes supposedly arriving in August?

The Seneca does not come with open sights. Only the Freedom. Rear sights can be had for the 11mm dovetail but has anyone found a barrel band for a front sight other than a scrap Freedom one?

After reading this thread I wonder if even though it's an accurate/powerful gun with the freedom from PCP accessories, are Freedom/Aspen owners pretty much faced with a fiddly gun?

TIA

[Madd Hatter]

I have the Aspen in.22 I've had it since March of 2019 and have had no problems at all except when I first got it. the pump was really dry and hard to pump but after putting in a few drops of silicone oil then pumping, put in a few more drops of oil,then pumping. Repeat until the pump moved freely and of course pumped in the air. I never shoot more than 1 shot before pumping back up to the sweet spot for my rifle which is about 2900 psi. Think of it as a high powered single shot pump pumanic and it should be fine. Also pump slow and steady. You don't want to over heat the pump. I find it easier to pump up the Aspen with it's built in pump than using a floor hand pump.

[avator]

I had the Freedom no warranty gun in .177 for quite some time. Only issue I had was a slow overnight leak. The pre-charge tube never did leak off, just the main.
I won an Aspen .22 in one of GTA's contests and passed the Freedom off to another member. I haven't shot the Aspen much yet but I didn't find any issues with it when I did. Last time I checked, it had the same air pressure in it as it did a couple months ago when I put it in the cabinet.
I've since picked up several different pellet samples so it's likely that I will get back out a play with it soon.

[darkcharisma]

After reading this thread I wonder if even though it's an accurate/powerful gun with the freedom from PCP accessories, are Freedom/Aspen owners pretty much faced with a fiddly gun?
TIA

I can say the freedom can shoot 45 fpe on a regular basis. And 55fpe if you decide to invest money on it, and 60fpe if you decide to invest more money on it. Is it accurate? Yes even with crosman hollow point 14.3 grains. I am proud to say I can shoot birds heads to 85 yards if I do my part.

The negative will be the leaking poppet and leaking pump at some point. And it can be tricky to work on the pump

[Samcirrus]

After reading this thread I wonder if even though it's an accurate/powerful gun with the freedom from PCP accessories, are Freedom/Aspen owners pretty much faced with a fiddly gun?
TIA

I can say the freedom can shoot 45 fpe on a regular basis. And 55fpe if you decide to invest money on it, and 60fpe if you decide to invest more money on it. Is it accurate? Yes even with crosman hollow point 14.3 grains. I am proud to say I can shoot birds heads to 85 yards if I do my part.

The negative will be the leaking poppet and leaking pump at some point. And it can be tricky to work on the pump

I agree and will say that as the only working pcp I have right now is a freedom, AFTER you first replace the 3rd stage piston orings, clean and relube the rest....then touch up the poppet (shave the can mostly) or make a new seal in the can(many threads here tell exactly how)....then its reliable and effective and efficient. I honestly get 6 shots with 15 fps difference from 3k psi before repumping.

[Samcirrus]

The only fundamental flaws are poor poppet (easy to fix or not too expensive to have made) and the 3rd stage flat o-ringwhich causes the check valve to leak when its broken off pieces get stuck. Change those and its golden.
Now I don't have a lathe, only a drill and a dremel but by tonight I'll post some pictures of my modified valve, hand made poppet using the oem stem,and a transfer port. They are such fun to work....and 109$ gets you a second chance if you mess up(if ATI still has some)

[darkcharisma]

Post lots of pics Sam

[WilsonLR]

So a new Aspen has no open sights. Anyone found a front sight other than a leftover Freedom?

[Samcirrus]

Duy....pics are coming...got delayed by night school and haircuts for my daughters.....

Les....try calling ATI for a parts freedom or 2. Other than that I have an extra back sight and front band for you. PM me yr address and you can paypal me for shipping.

[Samcirrus]

So a bunch of pics of my attempt to modify my freedom valve and diy poppet.
After making them, I spun the poppet inside the valve to check on seating, there are points(as you can see by the marker still being on the edge of the poppet) that don't touch all the way. My question is if the pressure will push the PEEK poppet in even though it's not perfect.  My drilled out hole on the peek rod is .002 out of round, but when I go to shave it,(scissors pic) it gets worse... .009 or more. Also my countersink in the valve may not be perfectly straight on.
I can look through the valve exit port and see the tiny sliver of gaps when I push the poppet down hard into the valve....
Will the pressure make up those gaps or do I need it to seat perfectly before even trying for pressure?

[Samcirrus]

Finding center for the peek rod. Using3/8 standoffs and a #21 bit. The spin the rod and upsized to a #18.
I had trouble drilling  and tapping my custom transfer  port so I drilled it out and bonded a bolt thread in with methacrylate.

[BigBird]

Interesting work with hand tools and ingenuity!  I don't have enough experience with peek but it is pretty hard stuff.  Delrin may be more forgiving, not that you should use it.  Maybe the painters tape threw it off unless you get the end of the tape to match the beginning perfectly youll have a small bump. Also if the poppet IS off and you try to cut the high spot off (level it), your scissors will hit the high spot, jump up and create a low spot right afterwards.  Your hands can't make a solid enough rest but I think it is pretty good.

Watching this one and rooting for you.

We really need a Hand tools Gate!

[Samcirrus]

Thanks Dan, I did have the painter's tape perfect cut....but that was just rolling against the ball bearings....I'm going to adapt and just use sandpaper (pics coming) instead of shaving. Also I'm getting the face and countersink of the valve touched up on a lathe by a friend at work....I'll work on the poppet again. Updates coming.

[avator]

Thank you guys for continuing to add info to this thread.
You may or may not know that I won an Aspen on one of the GTA contests and passed my Freedom on to another member.
There is a ton of info in this thread for current and future Freedom owners.

[Madd Hatter]

Interesting work with hand tools and ingenuity!  I don't have enough experience with peek but it is pretty hard stuff.  Delrin may be more forgiving, not that you should use it.  Maybe the painters tape threw it off unless you get the end of the tape to match the beginning perfectly youll have a small bump. Also if the poppet IS off and you try to cut the high spot off (level it), your scissors will hit the high spot, jump up and create a low spot right afterwards.  Your hands can't make a solid enough rest but I think it is pretty good.

Watching this one and rooting for you.

We really need a Hand tools Gate!

No,we need a Mcgiver gate. LoL

[SILENT SQUIRREL]

Interesting work with hand tools and ingenuity!  I don't have enough experience with peek but it is pretty hard stuff.  Delrin may be more forgiving, not that you should use it.  Maybe the painters tape threw it off unless you get the end of the tape to match the beginning perfectly youll have a small bump. Also if the poppet IS off and you try to cut the high spot off (level it), your scissors will hit the high spot, jump up and create a low spot right afterwards.  Your hands can't make a solid enough rest but I think it is pretty good.

Watching this one and rooting for you.

We really need a Hand tools Gate!

No,we need a Mcgiver gate. LoL

+1

You'll need to sign a liability release before entering
Just sayin'

[WilsonLR]

Thank you guys for continuing to add info to this thread.
You may or may not know that I won an Aspen on one of the GTA contests and passed my Freedom on to another member.
There is a ton of info in this thread for current and future Freedom owners.

And how is the Aspen? Is it reliable? Does its pump need maintenance like a hand pump? What do you know about the Gen 2 that is coming? TIA

[avator]

Thank you guys for continuing to add info to this thread.
You may or may not know that I won an Aspen on one of the GTA contests and passed my Freedom on to another member.
There is a ton of info in this thread for current and future Freedom owners.

And how is the Aspen? Is it reliable? Does its pump need maintenance like a hand pump? What do you know about the Gen 2 that is coming? TIA

To be honest..
When I got it I opened the box, put a scope on it. Pumped it up and shot a mag or 2. Pumped it back up and put it in the cabinet. I checked it the next day and it held air. Then the SHTF at work with all this COVID-19 stuff and I haven't looked at it since.
I do know that the shroud work that Travis did on it made it probably the quietest gun I own.
The Freedom was a .177. The Aspen is a .22.
I'll have alot better time shooting it when the weather breaks.... I do not want to use the onboard pump in the heat..... I can think of better ways to die....

[Madd Hatter]

Thank you guys for continuing to add info to this thread.
You may or may not know that I won an Aspen on one of the GTA contests and passed my Freedom on to another member.
There is a ton of info in this thread for current and future Freedom owners.

And how is the Aspen? Is it reliable? Does its pump need maintenance like a hand pump? What do you know about the Gen 2 that is coming? TIA

No idea on a gen 2. Yes, you do have to maintain it like a hand pump or a compressor for that matter. Had mine over a year and the only thing I've done is oil the pump, clean and polish the barrel with JB paste, open the barrel TP to 3/16 and install some roller tipped set screws in the trigger for a silky smooth light trigger pull. Nothing more and it's been trouble free after I got the pump lubed up the way it should've when I received it.