Accuracy International AT-X

[diggler1833]

Welllllllllllllllllllllllll crap. *****Fixed in post 5,975*****

My AT-X firing pin started going home on its own when I close the bolt. I suspect that the comp trigger is gummed up, so cleaning it will be my first course of action as soon as I get some time off.

I was right in the middle of recording myself (no homo) shooting a 10-round string at 650. I'm somewhat tempted to figure out what my problem is, and then create the video. I've got some internet searching to do for now though.

Round count is 422. Dry fire estimate is about 200. This rifle has seen zero rough field conditions, usually getting pulled out of the safe to shoot a few groups and then back again.

Half of my barrel cleaning was with the barrels removed.

Hopefully this is an easy fix and I get to share that easy fix for the next guy to find on his internet search.

 

[wcberry]

Welllllllllllllllllllllllll crap.

My AT-X firing pin started going home on its own when I close the bolt. I suspect that the comp trigger is gummed up, so cleaning it will be my first course of action as soon as I get some time off.

I was right in the middle of recording myself (no homo) shooting a 10-round string at 650. I'm somewhat tempted to figure out what my problem is, and then create the video. I've got some internet searching to do for now though.

Round count is 422. Dry fire estimate is about 200. This rifle has seen zero rough field conditions, usually getting pulled out of the safe to shoot a few groups and then back again.

Half of my barrel cleaning was with the barrels removed.

Hopefully this is an easy fix and I get to share that easy fix for the next guy to find on his internet search.

You could also call AINA at 540.368.3108 and talk to a tech.

 

[diggler1833]

You could also call AINA at 540.368.3108 and talk to a tech.

That would be a logical idea.

However, after my call, message, and no return call regarding a barrel issue I had with my factory 6.5CM barrel - I'm out of the desire to repeat that process.

Not that I hate AI...I'm just enjoying my one and only less and less. Hopefully it is a stupid simple fix as easy as cleaning/blowing out the trigger - as I am a stupid simple person.

 

[hafejd30]

Welllllllllllllllllllllllll crap.

My AT-X firing pin started going home on its own when I close the bolt. I suspect that the comp trigger is gummed up, so cleaning it will be my first course of action as soon as I get some time off.

I was right in the middle of recording myself (no homo) shooting a 10-round string at 650. I'm somewhat tempted to figure out what my problem is, and then create the video. I've got some internet searching to do for now though.

Round count is 422. Dry fire estimate is about 200. This rifle has seen zero rough field conditions, usually getting pulled out of the safe to shoot a few groups and then back again.

Half of my barrel cleaning was with the barrels removed.

Hopefully this is an easy fix and I get to share that easy fix for the next guy to find on his internet search.

What year rifle?

 

[clefairy]

Might have to make trigger heavier. That’s worked for custom bolt actions anyway.

 

[diggler1833]

What year rifle?

2023

 

[hafejd30]

2023

I haven’t looked in the box for mine recently but do they come with multiple springs? Think there was mention of issues with it being to light in the past.

 

[diggler1833]

I haven’t looked in the box for mine recently but do they come with multiple springs? Think there was mention of issues with it being to light in the past.

Yeah, there was an extra spring packaged. I think that it was the light one though and my "heavy" one is installed. It is actually too light for my numb fingers. More than one occasion I pulled through the wall just trying to register it.

I need about a 2lb trigger at it's lightest. Most of my stuff has a gorilla-like 3lb trigger.

I'm 90% hopeful this can be cured with a blast of (not even going to mention it) and then blown out by compressed air. I'll take the bolt apart too, but with the firing pin going home as I cock the action I'm pretty confident there is an interface problem at the trigger sear (or what I would call the sear...don't have a schematic in front of me).

 

[hafejd30]

Yeah, there was an extra spring packaged. I think that it was the light one though and my "heavy" one is installed. It is actually too light for my numb fingers. More than one occasion I pulled through the wall just trying to register it.

I need about a 2lb trigger at it's lightest. Most of my stuff has a gorilla-like 3lb trigger.

I'm 90% hopeful this can be cured with a blast of (not even going to mention it) and then blown out by compressed air. I'll take the bolt apart too, but with the firing pin going home as I cock the action I'm pretty confident there is an interface problem at the trigger sear (or what I would call the sear...don't have a schematic in front of me).

That is likely the case! Let us know how it works out

 

[XikoPlavi]

^^^hmmm. I would think this would be something someone elae has ran into at this point with these atx. Kinda crazy

 

[diggler1833]

^^^hmmm. I would think this would be something someone elae has ran into at this point with these atx. Kinda crazy

There were several gripes about the comp triggers going down in either this thread (maybe around page 90), or one of the other AI threads.

An AI rep said that it was all but one time due to operator error in adjustment. I have found a couple similar issues with basic Google searches, but I still don't have the time to deep dive.

It isn't a first time for sure. I did find an Australian guy who had some issues and cleaned his out with brake cleaner on YouTube. He got ~900 rounds though in matches before he was getting light strikes 50% of the time. Mine has been babied.

My firing pin drops as you lock the bolt...similar to if you close the bolt while holding the trigger.

I've not messed with a thing, but I'm about to.

 

[Rodney65]

2023

As someone mentioned a light trigger could be the culprit had the trigger been adjusted and if so do you know what pull weight it is at? Sorry if you mentioned it and I didn't catch it.

 

[diggler1833]

Welp, it was most simple fix in the world. I'll go back and edit my original "issue" post once I finish typing this. Hopefully if someone else runs into an issue, they find this and it too helps them quickly fix their problems. Hell, the tool that they need is literally inside their cheek riser.

Pulled my rifle apart. Very first thing I noticed...BOTH screws that hold my trigger in were lose...as in wobbly/at least two full rotations loose. Somehow they came undone (Capt Obvious statement). That problem was remedied pretty quickly. Firing pin no longer releases when the bolt is closed. *For the record, I checked all of my screws when I bought the rifle last summer with a torque wrench, and nothing was loose. I have never removed or adjusted my trigger until this evening. Loctite is your friend.

While out, the trigger - while pretty clean on the outside, got a thorough cleaning and light lubrication. It was certainly dirtier on the inside than the outside, but at no point did there appear to be enough grime to effect the sear...so back to simple fix #1.

I did adjust the trigger a tad heavier for the second stage and for my numb fingers...it is golden now. I don't know how frigging light it was from the factory but at my now noticeably heavier pull it is 1lb first stage / 13oz second stage.

I am absolutely going to mention this potato-level problem I had on video, along with what to check. If it can happen to a moron like me, it can happen to other morons as well.

 

[diggler1833]

As someone mentioned a light trigger could be the culprit had the trigger been adjusted and if so do you know what pull weight it is at?

Typed your answer as you were typing your question man . I had never adjusted the trigger prior. I would guess it was somewhere around 1lb first stage (still is) and probably 6oz or less on the second stage. It is 13oz now on the second stage after about 1.5 rotations on the screw.

 

[Rodney65]

Typed your answer as you were typing your question man . I had never adjusted the trigger prior. I would guess it was somewhere around 1lb first stage (still is) and probably 6oz or less on the second stage. It is 13oz now on the second stage after about 1.5 rotations on the screw.

If you make a video going over your issue and remedies like you mentioned it would be much appreciated!

 

[beetroot]

There were several gripes about the comp triggers going down in either this thread (maybe around page 90), or one of the other AI threads.

An AI rep said that it was all but one time due to operator error in adjustment. I have found a couple similar issues with basic Google searches, but I still don't have the time to deep dive.

It isn't a first time for sure. I did find an Australian guy who had some issues and cleaned his out with brake cleaner on YouTube. He got ~900 rounds though in matches before he was getting light strikes 50% of the time. Mine has been babied.

My firing pin drops as you lock the bolt...similar to if you close the bolt while holding the trigger.

I've not messed with a thing, but I'm about to.

Frank did a podcast where he spoke with Scott (from AINA) who said it was extremely important to keep it clean of any lube, cleaning fluid, oils etc.
He said almost every single issue they've had was messed with by the owner or gummed up with cleaning product.

I'd imagine cleaning it out with brake cleaner, contact cleaner or lighter fluid regularly would be a good idea for comp trigger owners.

 

[diggler1833]

Frank did a podcast where he spoke with Scott (from AINA) who said it was extremely important to keep it clean of any lube, cleaning fluid, oils etc.
He said almost every single issue they've had was messed with by the owner or gummed up with cleaning product.

I'd imagine cleaning it out with brake cleaner, contact cleaner or lighter fluid regularly would be a good idea for comp trigger owners.

I think I will add a regular 400 round interval of pulling it apart, cleaning the trigger and bolt, and applying blue Loctite to the screws.

Admittedly, I'm a 700/70 pattern action bedded into a stock guy. I imagine the chassis guys are probably more familiar with checking mounting hardware. It is easy enough to remedy.

I certainly spent more time yesterday researching what other people were having problems with on the forums than I did breaking my rifle down and solving my own issue. Lesson learned there.

 

[tnichols]

Mine in 6 Creed.

 

[Mj30wilson900]

Mine in 6 Creed.
View attachment 8410201

If given a chance to trade for the newer model but you would pay an additional $1500 would you?

 

[tnichols]

If given a chance to trade for the newer model but you would pay an additional $1500 would you?

Nope

 

[Mj30wilson900]

Yea me

Nope

neither. Got mine just in the nic of time. After official shot show launch it was amazing how fast mile high sold out and f at-x gen3.
The only thing that would make me pay up is if they made interchangeable bolt faces to upgrade to the 6.5 prc and wsm cartridges. But I bought mine at mile high for $4250 and now they want msrp $6538. Nah I will be happy with what I got. If I get the urge to get a 6.5 prc I will buy another different rifle which for the $2200 difference shouldn’t be to hard.

 

[Rodney65]

Mine in 6 Creed.
View attachment 8410201

Oh nice. I wish my gen 3 was black.

 

[XikoPlavi]

I said I was keeping my atx in a different thread and someone said “its your funeral”. Im not sure what that means but I gotta say it is VERY frustrating.

 

[4O6shootist]

I said I was keeping my atx in a different thread and someone said “its your funeral”. Im not sure what that means but I gotta say it is VERY frustrating.

LOL, don't pay attention to what others say, who cares......

 

[Mj30wilson900]

I said I was keeping my atx in a different thread and someone said “its your funeral”. Im not sure what that means but I gotta say it is VERY frustrating.

They added lug engagement to the new actions the only thing that I could think of what he meant by it’s your funeral. But the at-x has a war proven legacy action that has been around for decades so you don’t have anything to worry about there.

 

[jbuck88]

I said I was keeping my atx in a different thread and someone said “its your funeral”. Im not sure what that means but I gotta say it is VERY frustrating.

The good thing about the at-x was it shared a lot of parts with the others in their line up. So support was likely to continue. Now with the discontinued rifles that shared parts there is likely going to be a end of support down the road. Or at least slow down the parts production.

 

[jbuck88]

I hope to see a run of bolts soon. I'll grab 1 or 2 just to throw in the spare parts bin

 

[XikoPlavi]

LOL, don't pay attention to what others say, who cares.....

I don’t really care, but lets be honest everyone is gonna think the legacy atx is valued less now and in the future. I don’t care per se’ BUT im gonna have to keep it. AI “should” take a trade in for a new one BUT I know they won’t.

At least I got mine for 4250$. Whatever ill keep it.

 

[XikoPlavi]

I hope to see a run of bolts soon. I'll grab 1 or 2 just to throw in the spare parts bin

Good idea. Bet they wont lower the prices though!

 

[Mj30wilson900]

I don’t really care, but lets be honest everyone is gonna think the legacy atx is valued less now and in the future. I don’t care per se’ BUT im gonna have to keep it. AI “should” take a trade in for a new one BUT I know they won’t.

At least I got mine for 4250$. Whatever ill keep it.

Yea I bought mine at $4250 and it would be a hard pill to swallow to fork out $6500 for the new style just so in the future I could potentially shoot 6.5 prc.
I can also see them modifying the chassis and elongating the mag well so they can lengthen cartridges with the mag bolt face.
I am happy with what I have.

 

[carbonbased]

I don’t really care, but lets be honest everyone is gonna think the legacy atx is valued less now and in the future. I don’t care per se’ BUT im gonna have to keep it. AI “should” take a trade in for a new one BUT I know they won’t.

At least I got mine for 4250$. Whatever ill keep it.

I said I was keeping my atx in a different thread and someone said “its your funeral”. Im not sure what that means but I gotta say it is VERY frustrating.

$4250 is like, the cheapest recent AI!!! If I were you I’d be dancing

I mean, just wait 30yrs and profit like an AW!

I mean, by then all of the AW, AT,
& AX shooters will have died from all of the million catastrophic failures that AI’s are well known for.

It’ll be a seller’s market bruh!!!

 

[4O6shootist]

I don’t really care, but lets be honest everyone is gonna think the legacy atx is valued less now and in the future. I don’t care per se’ BUT im gonna have to keep it. AI “should” take a trade in for a new one BUT I know they won’t.

At least I got mine for 4250$. Whatever ill keep it.

I have a gen1, bought early 22 in elite sand. A discontinued color, in the oldest gen, prob the worst case depreciation scenario. Luckily I am into it, not much over your clearance price. New models will likely msrp over 6k. Maybe we can get 3500$ for our used rigs, but probably not as I couldn't sell mine on here for $3300 a year ago. I don't dislike my ai, I had to try the kool-aid, but I didn't turn into a cultist fanboi like a lot of AI shooters. Will just have to try and get some backup parts, cuz once it breaks and it cannot be repaired you have a $4k paperweight, that will piss you off every time you look at it.

 

[smarcus]

Gen 1 Elite Sand Bros gotta stay together.

 

[XikoPlavi]

$4250 is like, the cheapest recent AI!!! If I were you I’d be dancing

I mean, just wait 30yrs and profit like an AW!

I mean, by then all of the AW, AT,
& AX shooters will have died from all of the million catastrophic failures that AI’s are well known for.

It’ll be a seller’s market bruh!!!

Well, at least the scope I bought will hold its value!! These MOA Arkens are the shit!!!!

at least I have 600 yards on my own land to shoot. Ill just beat the shit out of it and use the fucker practicing.

 

[Mj30wilson900]

Well, at least the scope I bought will hold its value!! These MOA Arkens are the shit!!!!

at least I have 600 yards on my own land to shoot. Ill just beat the shit out of it and use the fucker practicing.

Mile high will still support the action. Also ai will still be making the at action for quite some time for law enforcement purposes. So I would expect a couple decades or more before anyone has to even start to worry.

 

[diggler1833]

I paid $4,500 for my gen 3 ES AT-X. No way am I considering taking a loss to move it, and in no way do I consider the upgrades to the new ones worth the extra scratch.

I like my rifle, but I'm one and done with owning an AI. Great stuff, but not enough benefits *to me* to outweigh the drawbacks. YMMV.

It was something that I wanted for 20 years though, and I'm still tickled that I was able to get it.

 

[Mj30wilson900]

I paid $4,500 for my gen 3 ES AT-X. No way am I considering taking a loss to move it, and in no way do I consider the upgrades to the new ones worth the extra scratch.

I like my rifle, but I'm one and done with owning an AI. Great stuff, but not enough benefits *to me* to outweigh the drawbacks. YMMV.

It was something that I wanted for 20 years though, and I'm still tickled that I was able to get it.

Totally agree it was a bucket list item for me to.

 

[4O6shootist]

Totally agree it was a bucket list item for me to.

It wasn't bucket list for me, but I read so much good, how great it is, super badass. I'd never handled one, finding a shop that sells them or an owner of one here in podunk Montana was next to impossible. So I just bought one, and it'll likely be my last, unless this new actjon has the bolt manipulation forces of my 3 lug archimedes. Then I might think about it. I do think the ATX chassis is a true winner, I have 3 aics atx chassis and shoot them a LOT. It's one the only chassis I've found that has no zero shift and a very secure vblock lockup without bedding it.

 

[Mj30wilson900]

It wasn't bucket list for me, but I read so much good, how great it is, super badass. I'd never handled one, finding a shop that sells them or an owner of one here in podunk Montana was next to impossible. So I just bought one, and it'll likely be my last, unless this new actjon has the bolt manipulation forces of my 3 lug archimedes. Then I might think about it. I do think the ATX chassis is a true winner, I have 3 aics atx chassis and shoot them a LOT. It's one the only chassis I've found that has no zero shift and a very secure vblock lockup without bedding it.

Podunk Montana we vacation in billing for the last 4 years and surrounding parts like red lodge, bozeman and dip into Cody Wyoming and Sheridan. Where about you talking about?

 

[4O6shootist]

Podunk Montana we vacation in billing for the last 4 years and surrounding parts like red lodge, bozeman and dip into Cody Wyoming and Sheridan. Where about you talking about?

I live in NW Montana, flathead valley. There's a Lotta gun nuts around here, even a large local militai crew, but they all packing 400$ 80% lower builds in 65grendel. AI is lil too rich for most these folks. If they gonna spend that kinda money, they go with proof or Defiance as they are local in valley companies.

 

[Mj30wilson900]

I live in NW Montana, flathead valley. There's a Lotta gun nuts around here, even a large local militai crew, but they all packing 400$ 80% lower builds in 65grendel. AI is lil too rich for most these folks. If they gonna spend that kinda money, they go with proof or Defiance as they are local in valley companies.

Nothing wrong with either of those two. Lots of good gun related companies up in that area like Hornady,weatherby, huskamaw,proof research, Falkor Defence and I am sure I am missing some. Not a weatherby fan myself because they just slap their name on imported rifles. But I have proof barrels and even a .308 on my ai is a proof and they all hammer. I couldn’t justify $200 more over the proof to buy the bartlein barrel for my ai.

 

[carbonbased]

As long as you never think stuff you buy for a hobby is an “investment”, you’ll be happy.

You want an investment? Speculate in real estate or in the stock or bond markets etc.

 

[diggler1833]

As long as you never think stuff you buy for a hobby is an “investment”, you’ll be happy.

You want an investment? Speculate in real estate or in the stock or bond markets etc.

I agree with this but...

Man, I've got a lot of old and limited run guns that have climbed in value quite a bit over the last decade.

Initially most weren't purchased as an investment...however, I plan on financing a lot of the kids' college with their sales.

Certainly buying as an investment takes a lot of the fun out of it though.

 

[beetroot]

I paid $4,500 for my gen 3 ES AT-X. No way am I considering taking a loss to move it, and in no way do I consider the upgrades to the new ones worth the extra scratch.

I like my rifle, but I'm one and done with owning an AI. Great stuff, but not enough benefits *to me* to outweigh the drawbacks. YMMV.

It was something that I wanted for 20 years though, and I'm still tickled that I was able to get it.

What are the draw backs, is it just the trigger issues you have had recently or have you had more bad experiences?

 

[carbonbased]

I agree with this but...

Man, I've got a lot of old and limited run guns that have climbed in value quite a bit over the last decade.

Initially most weren't purchased as an investment...however, I plan on financing a lot of the kids' college with their sales.

Certainly buying as an investment takes a lot of the fun out of it though.

Totally get it. Some camera gear I own became an accidental investment over the years. I think that’s the rub…when buying gear it’s mainly a miss and rarely a hit if you’re trying to make money on it. Especially new gear.

We’re all going to die very soon in the grand scheme of things, so just enjoy the thing and don’t whinge about losing money.

 

[diggler1833]

What are the draw backs, is it just the trigger issues you have had recently or have you had more bad experiences?

Great question...it isn't the simple trigger issue/fix that I had earlier. That was as much on me as anything else for not checking to see if anything loosened up.

If you go to page 100, and start on post 4,964 and go down to the bottom of the page you'll see where my factory 6.5CM barrel shot okay out of the box, but had/has a significant copper fouling issue - as in after shot #4 I stuck a patch halfway down it and broke a cleaning rod getting it out. I'm at 58 shots on that barrel now, and it just sits in the corner...waiting on me to start messing with it again. I had it looked at, and I'll leave it at that due to the rash of expulsions on this site lately. Let's just say that it still holds copper. I emailed and also called and left a message with AINA. I never hear back.

In fairness though, I have a factory 6CM barrel too, and it hammers with 108 ELD-M and H4350 across probably the widest charge range of any barrel I've owned.

The #1 gripe is essentially being ghosted by the company itself. For two years there were requests by consumers and little hints by the company at things like magnum bolts. Plus items like the gen 1-2 cheek and LOP...it seems like the company is good at making upgrades...but you have to buy the new model (and take a bath on the old) to get them... screw retrofitting. Add in part availability and support for legacy models and it just doesn't appeal enough *to me* anymore to buy another. Not that I don't enjoy my rifle, because I do. Like I said earlier, I wanted one for 20 years.

*****

Conversely, a week ago I found online an like new custom build (decade + old) on an old Prague, OK - built Surgeon 1086 action. I know the gunsmith who built it, and he used to work at Surgeon back in the day (I really wanted a Surgeon back then too). A 30 minute phone call later, and he's not only going to spin me up more barrels, but is also going to be my source for the vice and action wrench so I can have prefits done by him. He seemed just as excited about the project as I am, and actually gave me all of the original build info. He's also the guy who was happy to measure and spin up a new barrel for my AT-X, and now has everything to do prefits for them too.

When I spend several months' worth of disposable income on a 'want' and not a need, I appreciate a little customer service. You're not required to give a shit about me, but I'm not required to make more purchases either.

 

[TheBigCountry]

Great question...it isn't the simple trigger issue/fix that I had earlier. That was as much on me as anything else for not checking to see if anything loosened up.

If you go to page 100, and start on post 4,964 and go down to the bottom of the page you'll see where my factory 6.5CM barrel shot okay out of the box, but had/has a significant copper fouling issue - as in after shot #4 I stuck a patch halfway down it and broke a cleaning rod getting it out. I'm at 58 shots on that barrel now, and it just sits in the corner...waiting on me to start messing with it again. I had it looked at, and I'll leave it at that due to the rash of expulsions on this site lately. Let's just say that it still holds copper. I emailed and also called and left a message with AINA. I never hear back.

In fairness though, I have a factory 6CM barrel too, and it hammers with 108 ELD-M and H4350 across probably the widest charge range of any barrel I've owned.

The #1 gripe is essentially being ghosted by the company itself. For two years there were requests by consumers and little hints by the company at things like magnum bolts. Plus items like the gen 1-2 cheek and LOP...it seems like the company is good at making upgrades...but you have to buy the new model (and take a bath on the old) to get them... screw retrofitting. Add in part availability and support for legacy models and it just doesn't appeal enough *to me* anymore to buy another. Not that I don't enjoy my rifle, because I do. Like I said earlier, I wanted one for 20 years.

*****

Conversely, a week ago I found online an like new custom build (decade + old) on an old Prague, OK - built Surgeon 1086 action. I know the gunsmith who built it, and he used to work at Surgeon back in the day (I really wanted a Surgeon back then too). A 30 minute phone call later, and he's not only going to spin me up more barrels, but is also going to be my source for the vice and action wrench so I can have prefits done by him. He seemed just as excited about the project as I am, and actually gave me all of the original build info. He's also the guy who was happy to measure and spin up a new barrel for my AT-X, and now has everything to do prefits for them too.

When I spend several months' worth of disposable income on a 'want' and not a need, I appreciate a little customer service. You're not required to give a shit about me, but I'm not required to make more purchases either.

This guy gets it

Love my AI but the $1100+ just for a bolt is a little steep

I can get a new bolt and barrel for my Impact for that.

I’ll keep my AT a 308 and use my Impact for the 6mm/223 role and rock on

 

[4O6shootist]

@diggler1833 My factory 65cm barrel was no star either, moa to a bit less with factory match for 10 shots, a custom barrel in same cartridge shot groups half the size with same ammo. I picked up a wintac 6br pipe, it shoots well, as does the custom 6gt barrel I had spun, it's consistently 1/3 moa on paper at 400y, almost no load dev. That's made me more tolarable about the few short comings with the rifle, or AI in general.

Most high end bolt gun manufacturers in the states, have the vast majority of their sales to the public, they know good customer service and parts availability is key to success in such a niche industry. A bad reputation spreads very quickly.

The public consumer of AI rifles is likely less than 10% of their sales. The majority is gov contracts and private security forces around the world. That's who they're going to cater to and make happy. The defense budgets allow them to buy without remorse, resale value, repairs, parts aren't much concern, as long as failure rates are within expectations. Perhaps the militaries get priority in extra bolts or components, hence the reason with have such low availability on the public side.

Maybe I'm way off base, but money always talks.

 

[diggler1833]

@diggler1833 My factory 65cm barrel was no star either, moa to a bit less with factory match for 10 shots, a custom barrel in same cartridge shot groups half the size with same ammo. I picked up a wintac 6br pipe, it shoots well, as does the custom 6gt barrel I had spun, it's consistently 1/3 moa on paper at 400y, almost no load dev. That's made me more tolarable about the few short comings with the rifle, or AI in general.

Most high end bolt gun manufacturers in the states, have the vast majority of their sales to the public, they know good customer service and parts availability is key to success in such a niche industry. A bad reputation spreads very quickly.

The public consumer of AI rifles is likely less than 10% of their sales. The majority is gov contracts and private security forces around the world. That's who they're going to cater to and make happy. The defense budgets allow them to buy without remorse, resale value, repairs, parts aren't much concern, as long as failure rates are within expectations. Perhaps the militaries get priority in extra bolts or components, hence the reason with have such low availability on the public side.

Maybe I'm way off base, but money always talks.

I agree completely.

 

[beetroot]

Great question...it isn't the simple trigger issue/fix that I had earlier. That was as much on me as anything else for not checking to see if anything loosened up.

If you go to page 100, and start on post 4,964 and go down to the bottom of the page you'll see where my factory 6.5CM barrel shot okay out of the box, but had/has a significant copper fouling issue - as in after shot #4 I stuck a patch halfway down it and broke a cleaning rod getting it out. I'm at 58 shots on that barrel now, and it just sits in the corner...waiting on me to start messing with it again. I had it looked at, and I'll leave it at that due to the rash of expulsions on this site lately. Let's just say that it still holds copper. I emailed and also called and left a message with AINA. I never hear back.

In fairness though, I have a factory 6CM barrel too, and it hammers with 108 ELD-M and H4350 across probably the widest charge range of any barrel I've owned.

The #1 gripe is essentially being ghosted by the company itself. For two years there were requests by consumers and little hints by the company at things like magnum bolts. Plus items like the gen 1-2 cheek and LOP...it seems like the company is good at making upgrades...but you have to buy the new model (and take a bath on the old) to get them... screw retrofitting. Add in part availability and support for legacy models and it just doesn't appeal enough *to me* anymore to buy another. Not that I don't enjoy my rifle, because I do. Like I said earlier, I wanted one for 20 years.

*****

Conversely, a week ago I found online an like new custom build (decade + old) on an old Prague, OK - built Surgeon 1086 action. I know the gunsmith who built it, and he used to work at Surgeon back in the day (I really wanted a Surgeon back then too). A 30 minute phone call later, and he's not only going to spin me up more barrels, but is also going to be my source for the vice and action wrench so I can have prefits done by him. He seemed just as excited about the project as I am, and actually gave me all of the original build info. He's also the guy who was happy to measure and spin up a new barrel for my AT-X, and now has everything to do prefits for them too.

When I spend several months' worth of disposable income on a 'want' and not a need, I appreciate a little customer service. You're not required to give a shit about me, but I'm not required to make more purchases either.

Understandable.
I don't think there will ever be a world in which AI is a real competitor to the custom action companies when it comes to options, CS and ongoing upgrades.

I guess where AI have run into problems is trying to appeal to the competition market but not offering the same level of CS as people are used to. Perhaps they didn't anticipate the difference in the customers between those wanting a military rifle vs a purpose built custom rifle.