Major Leak After Regulator Adjustment on FX Impact M3 (.22)

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Hi all,

Looking for some help diagnosing a big leak I’ve developed in my FX Impact M3 (.22) after trying to adjust the first regulator.

It had been a long time since I last used or tinkered with the rifle. I was planning to tune it for accuracy with 18.13gr JSB pellets, but I made a mistake during the process.

I removed the bottle, dry-fired a few times to degas (I now know to unscrew the reg adjustment) then went to lower the first reg (which had been set quite high at 175 BAR). Unfortunately, I turned the regulator screw the wrong way and ended up increasing the pressure instead. I suspect I may have reversed the intended pressure gradient between the two regs.

After reattaching the bottle and pressurizing the rifle, I immediately noticed a major air leak coming from the atmospheric vent hole behind the safety switch. I also saw grease leaking from the flat faces of the plenum area, which I haven’t seen before.

I’m guessing I may have blown a seal or damaged a reg piston, maybe even damaged the valve, but I’m not totally sure what failed or what I should inspect next.

Would really appreciate any advice on identifying the issue or what steps to take next. Also happy to post follow-ups if teardown is needed.

Thanks in advance!

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[Vetmx]

You didn’t cause the leak by playing with the first reg. What happened to you is just what Impacts do. You degassed the whole gun and it just decided to leak. Everything is fine. You just need to tear it down all the way and start replacing orings.

 

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You didn’t cause the leak by playing with the first reg. What happened to you is just what Impacts do. You degassed the whole gun and it just decided to leak. Everything is fine. You just need to tear it down all the way and start replacing orings.

So one should never remove all air from the gun? If a regulator needs to be reduced, is it better to just degas the chamber that it is regulating?

Also, are you saying that instead of locating the leak I should indiscriminately change every O-ring incase it is causing the leak?

 

[coastal drifter]

Sounds like Reg leak. Replace Orings there.

 

[Vetmx]

All PCP’s have to be degassed at some point so you can’t always avoid it. But when a gun has a crazy amount of orings like an Impact, sometimes a degassing causes a leak. Orings under pressure start to deform. When you release that pressure then apply it again, a leak can happen.

I would do the second reg and the dreaded one down inside the reg hole.

 

[Trucker3573]

Yeah leak out of the vent hole by trigger indicates a failure in reg 2. I think this is more apt to happen in a gun that hasn’t been used for an extended period.

 

[6gun]

So one should never remove all air from the gun? If a regulator needs to be reduced, is it better to just degas the chamber that it is regulating?

Also, are you saying that instead of locating the leak I should indiscriminately change every O-ring incase it is causing the leak?

I wouldn't say never, avoid it if you don't have to for the reasons vetmx said. There's a bleed screw on the action BTW and you can unscrew a guage slightly on any gun in a pinch. Look at reg 2 first because it's not a full disassembly. After you've done that, gas it up and see if it leaks. If it still leaks just do a full rebuild because you're already there, it's a mechanism. I put humas on my m3 after an oring and a piston failure on a reg.

I'm happy to try and help where I can in the thread too.

A friend sent his maverick to 190 bar because moar power and beers. We ended up rebuilding the whole gun chasing leaks later on.

The impact isn't that bad to rebuild if you like Legos, and the oring count is only overwhelming at first. Ernest Rowe videos can help walk you thru it.

 

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I wouldn't say never, avoid it if you don't have to for the reasons vetmx said. There's a bleed screw on the action BTW and you can unscrew a guage slightly on any gun in a pinch. Look at reg 2 first because it's not a full disassembly. After you've done that, gas it up and see if it leaks. If it still leaks just do a full rebuild because you're already there, it's a mechanism. I put humas on my m3 after an oring and a piston failure on a reg.

I'm happy to try and help where I can in the thread too.

A friend sent his maverick to 190 bar because moar power and beers. We ended up rebuilding the whole gun chasing leaks later on.

The impact isn't that bad to rebuild if you like Legos, and the oring count is only overwhelming at first. Ernest Rowe videos can help walk you thru it.

Thank you, and everyone else who has responded. I have a reseal kit and some dental picks coming in the mail and I'll get to work pulling this thing apart. I knew that this day would come at some point when I bought this rifle, I didn't think it would be at the one year mark though. Definitely hard to factor in operator error. I have degassed the gun a few times before and have always done it more gently. This was a brainfart moment.

Anyway, I'm excited to perform these repairs when I get the parts (I do like Lego). If I get stuck, you may hear from me again 6gun and others

 

[Vetmx]

Thank you, and everyone else who has responded. I have a reseal kit and some dental picks coming in the mail and I'll get to work pulling this thing apart. I knew that this day would come at some point when I bought this rifle, I didn't think it would be at the one year mark though. Definitely hard to factor in operator error. I have degassed the gun a few times before and have always done it more gently. This was a brainfart moment.

Anyway, I'm excited to perform these repairs when I get the parts (I do like Lego). If I get stuck, you may hear from me again 6gun and others

Once again, you did nothing wrong. You could bypass the first reg and send a full 250b at the second reg and it will handle it no problem. This is the most important part of this whole topic. It concerns the oring way down inside the gun. You don’t dental pick it out. You stab and lift it out. If you scratch the oring groove under that oring by using the wrong tool, it’s game over. You’ll have a slow leaker forever.

 

[cavedweller]

So one should never remove all air from the gun? If a regulator needs to be reduced, is it better to just degas the chamber that it is regulating?

Also, are you saying that instead of locating the leak I should indiscriminately change every O-ring incase it is causing the leak?

Orings flatten harden and deteriorate with age 18 months to 3 years max you should rebuild

 

[6gun]

Once again, you did nothing wrong. You could bypass the first reg and send a full 250b at the second reg and it will handle it no problem. This is the most important part of this whole topic. It concerns the oring way down inside the gun. You don’t dental pick it out. You stab and lift it out. If you scratch the oring groove under that oring by using the wrong tool, it’s game over. You’ll have a slow leaker forever.

This is important. No Mar tools and an air compressor with air blower might help.