Fx Panthera barrel leak, valve seat?
- Thread starter Powerage
- Start date
Unfortunately its normal these days. We get to pay for being a test bed, oh joy.
It's happened to me twice now and is very frustrating because if a person doesn't know how to work on airguns then its also pay shipping time too.
Or pay someone that works on airguns to fix the problem as well as the parts.
That's why I refuse to buy new releases anymore. Heck even future generations can still have problems that aren't quite worked out yet.
I cringe when I buy new airguns. Hope for the best....
Upvote 0
It's an FX pretty common to have issues after first release lol. And not saying this doesn't happen with other guns or companies at all but isn't out of the ordinary for FX
Upvote 0
Haha too true.
That 'new gun' tingle down your spine is no longer excitement these days, it's fear
Upvote 0
Name me one car model that's flawless from the start...
Here we help each other or we drive 30 minutes to the gunstore. I prefer to do it myself. It's no rocket science.
Upvote 0
Had lots of problems with used vehicles so I started buying new ones hoping to avoid payments on used vehicles as well as paying to fix them.
Ha, cars have a couple thousand more parts in them than airguns do so not a very good comparison. But here's a few I've personally owned from brand new that had no problems for literally years. Had lots of problems when I was younger with used vehicles so I started buying new ones.
80's Ford Escort.
90's Dodge Caravan.
90's Ford pickup.
98 Nissan pickup.
2004 Dodge pickup, well except the radio was faulty so I brought it back a few days later for replacement.
2008 Toyota Yaris.
2018 Toyota 4runner.
What are the chances all these would work perfectly, you know like they were supposed to/expected to?!
I don't know if you are new here but myself and others have seen plenty of posts of people buying new airguns that have had problems from the get go.
People buy new stuff to not have to mess with problems. Over the years I've bought tons of new things that have worked correctly but BY FAR airguns have been the most annoying things I've bought new - because of problems, problems which should have been corrected before release !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thankfully I do have a friend an hour away that is a great gunsmith but I prefer not to bother him if at all possible.
Oh, I recently rebuilt my 10 year old FX Royale. It has a slow leak but at least it'll hold air for 3 days vs a few hours. It's an airgun which was fine for 9 of those years and I bought it new.
Last edited:
Upvote 0
It also seems that it's FAR more common for people to pounce all over FX if they ever produce anything new or have a single issue compared to other companies. I remember reading comments blasting the last two releases. The Wildcat BT and then the Panthera announcement. Both seemed to get negative bias before they were even in the hands of shooters.
I've owned FX, Air Venturi, Benjamin, Air Force, etc and I've had 'something' go wrong on all of them.
All I'm saying is that not only is there an FX fanboy base, but there is certainly a hater base as well.
I've owned FX, Air Venturi, Benjamin, Air Force, etc and I've had 'something' go wrong on all of them.
All I'm saying is that not only is there an FX fanboy base, but there is certainly a hater base as well.
Last edited:
Upvote 0
It seems that airguns are not meant for everyone.
You don't have to be here for years to notice that you have two kinds of people here. Those who help another, and those who just complain all day long. Last edited:
Upvote 0
I’ve had an 08 Honda Civic for a year and a half and haven’t put one penny in un expected expense into it. Done with American based company garbage. That’s an unfortunate thing to say.
Upvote 0
It seems that airguns are not meant for everyone.
Or three kinds of people - Passive aggressive much??
Maybe some of us have enjoyed airguns for over half a century and have had quite a few that worked properly.
And possibly expecting their $2000 plus purchases to both perform exceptionally well and hold up for years without trouble.
Then "helping" others by proclaiming their actual first hand experiences and frustrations having learned their lessons from it.
Like loss in shipping charges sending back the gun initially, gun coming back still having problems, then having to ship back again losing more money, and only to have the reg wack out within days necessitating a 3rd trip. Then giving up and asking a friend to fix that and the other problems "correctly".
On top of that I bought some no limits rings that wouldn't tighten down hard enough with enough stiction which caused the rings to slip down little by little over time. That was a fun one!
Previously a few years before that gun I had bought a new gun that cost $1600 and it was worse than the one in my first paragraph and after most of a year of problems I demanded something be done where I bought it from. It turned out to be a $500 loss because my best option at the time was to trade it in at that store because I wasn't going to sell the POS the way it was. Or I could have gone through the hassle of small claims court. The loss of money and the whole thing was absolutely ridiculous!
And I've got more recent examples from people I know personally and this concerns $3000+ airguns.....
No, No, HELL NO! Life isn't perfect but some things ought not be and this kind of crap certainly is one of them!
I'm not a hater of Co's and It's not just FX I have ought with. See my 2nd to last paragraph.
That FX Royale I referred to in my other post has been a great rifle. No complaints. The other two guns from this Co that gave me problems I'm not happy about.
Please understand that I'm pointing out the attitude that these Co's put out some expensive products not fully tested before initial release resulting in similar threads. This is BS and shouldn't happen.
The attitude that we are expected to find out the hard way is what baffles me???!!!
No thankyou - I'll wait a year or two before making a purchase and let other people suffer through the beta testing until the Co's eventually fix all the problems and put out a solid product because I'm not doing it anymore!
Upvote 0
I am always 'behind the curve' as far as brand new wunderguns are concerned, and yet, I still manage to have fun.
Let those who can stand the potential hit do the beta testing.
Let those who can stand the potential hit do the beta testing.
Upvote 0
I checked my Panthera this past Thursday prior to Easter vacation in Knoxville, TN. Pressure was at 210 bar. I checked again this morning, and it was at 210 bar. Mission accomplished...
Upvote 0
Yep, the new one I got mikes out at 3.01mm on the turned section and 2.41mm on the old. Diameter of the poppet is slightly smaller and looks to be PEEK. Shot cycle is much crisper now and I gained 20FPS with where I had my reg sitting before (170b 1022FPS / 40gr and now 1040FPS).Good news.
FX made a new valverod. Thicker in the middle. I got a new one yesterday and didn't even notice the difference at first.
I wanted to have a few made from stronger and thicker material. But now I will test these for a few thousand rounds and see how it will hold.
Be sure to polish that puppy slightly before installation
View attachment 346649
My leak is also gone now after I replaced the valve and broke it in.
Upvote 0
Same problem twice…bought Fx Panthera from Piramidal Air and leaked through barrel…have to return it…bought second Fx Panthera from Utah Airguns and leaked through barrel after just 2 weeks…same problem twice…dont buy this first eddition of Fx Panthera rifle…
Upvote 0
Fx Panthera is also less accurate than my Fx Impact at 50 amd at 100 yards…at 50 yards Fx Panthera is less accurate than a Venturi Avenger…Pantheras is capable of hitting targets after several attempts over 200 yards due to large plenuim…but below 100 yards they lack accuracy…
Upvote 0
My panthera is more accurate than any impact I've come across at pretty much any distance I care to shoot.
Point being you can't really make blanket claims based on your gun, with its particular barrel and state of tune.
Speaking of barrels etc - make sure your panthera came with the CF sleeve installed, and check which liner you've got. Mine came with a 1:16 liner (bonus in my opinion vs the 1:18 most have) and orings. Obviously a factory mix up with some liners and barrel outers destined for impacts. The distributor sent the CF liner straight through of course and it improved consistency nicely.
Upvote 0
I returned both Pantheras…very dissapointed…it is unacceptable that an expensive rifle had so many issues…you have to even change barrels, linners and hammers to ger average accuracy in a new rifle…that is unacceptable…
Upvote 0
I find it extremely odd that TWO separate rifles had the exact same issue. Just looking at the common denominator here and, uh..... ahem.
Not making any accusations, nor intending to offend you. I work in IT and I hear of all sorts of issues with our network. 99% of the time, it is a user issue and not equipment. I'm guilty of it myself sometimes.
Hey, maybe you just got extremely unlucky, which is unfortunate.
I've got two Pantheras as well as Impacts. Both have been phenomenal. Accuracy (at least with my old eyes and hands) has been right on par with my Impacts, which is great. It's All in the Tuning. The tiniest of adjustments and a few fps in speed can make ALL the difference.
I have not experienced the issues of leaking from the barrel.
I will also say that my Pantheras are definitely more consistent and get better standard deviation than my impacts. Both of my Pantheras get 2 or less fps in standard deviation, when I do my part and tune them.
You said "so many issues", but other than leaking from the barrel, what other issues did you experience with your Panthera?
Not making any accusations, nor intending to offend you. I work in IT and I hear of all sorts of issues with our network. 99% of the time, it is a user issue and not equipment. I'm guilty of it myself sometimes.
Hey, maybe you just got extremely unlucky, which is unfortunate.
I've got two Pantheras as well as Impacts. Both have been phenomenal. Accuracy (at least with my old eyes and hands) has been right on par with my Impacts, which is great. It's All in the Tuning. The tiniest of adjustments and a few fps in speed can make ALL the difference.
I have not experienced the issues of leaking from the barrel.
I will also say that my Pantheras are definitely more consistent and get better standard deviation than my impacts. Both of my Pantheras get 2 or less fps in standard deviation, when I do my part and tune them.
You said "so many issues", but other than leaking from the barrel, what other issues did you experience with your Panthera?
Upvote 0
I thought it was bad luck the first time…and I bought again…same leaking problem…same bad luck again… as others in this forum that are also reporting air leaks in their pantheras…too many unlucky buyers with these rifles…
Upvote 0