AirMarksman Impact M4 "Copper" Backbone - An Honest Review - It's Disappointing

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tdhouser1964

tdhouser1964

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Jul 27, 2020
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Elk Grove, California, United States
I recently purchased the AirMarksman M4 Impact "Copper" Backbone after seeing a couple of videos on YouTube advertising it. The "Nail in the Coffin" which pushed me to purchase it was a recent Utah Airguns "Walk through Wednesday" video where it was displayed mounted on a Copper M4. I paused that video for about an hour and watched it full length probably 4 times to convince myself it was the "Real Deal". I "Pulled the Trigger" and made the purchase. It arrived safe and sound a few days later and I eagerly opened the box. Upon removing it from the tube it ships in, There it was.. and my heart sank instantly. "That's not Copper" I thought to myself so I checked the label to verify the item I ordered. Copper was boldly printed on the tube so I thought "Maybe its the lighting in this room". I grabbed my pristine, brand new M4 Copper and the Backbone and headed to the garage where the lighting is crisp "Daylight" 5000k LED. I set the rail down so it was lying at the top of the gun. "That definitely isn't a match the the FX Copper anodizing". Not only was the color lighter, more Gold than Copper, the texture was way off. FX Bead Blasts the M4 Copper parts before anodizing to give them a Satin texture. The Backbone had not been textured prior to anodizing and had a "Shiney" smooth finish. Completely disappointed I fired off an email to Utah Airguns explaining the situation. I stated that I fully understand that anodizing batches can run different and asked that they check on hand stock to see if they can find one closer in appearance to the the FX Copper. The weekend passed and I checked back in on Monday. I was told the Backbones they had in stock had all been checked and they matched the appearance of the one I had received. I requested to return it as it wasn't as advertised and did not match the Copper anodizing of my M4. I was advised on how to return it and that a "Restocking Fee" would apply. I then asked if a return shipping label would be supplied and was advised that return shipping would also be an additional expense to me. I boxed it up and sent it on it's way. In the end, it ended up costing me $52 out of pocket (Restocking fee + initial and return shipping) to once again discover that you cannot trust the advertising from most of the Dealers and Manufacturers in this industry and none of the Hype posted on social media from them. This is the second time in a year that I have been mislead to believe that the items you are selling are true representations of the product advertised. So bottom line.. the AirMarksman Backbone that is advertised as a match for the FX Impact M4 Copper anodizing is NOT a match, it isn't even close. BUYER BEWARE.

Copper Back Bone 2.jpg


Copper Backbone.jpg



Here's the video example: BIG DIFFERENCE!!

AM Copper BB from Video.JPG


AM Copper BB from Video 2.JPG
 
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bchannell said:
Well, a picture is worth a thousand words. It certainly does not match. It's not even close! I would have protested too.
I only saw bronze and gold. Looks like you got gold. Maybe bronze would have been closer. But I don't see copper?
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You have to choose the Backbone for M4, not M3/Earlier models, then you will see Copper as an available color.
 
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Years ago, my wife purchased a General Electric refridgerator.
A few months latter, she purchased a Ammana stove.
Both of them were advertised as ALMOND in color, yet they are slightly different in color.
At the time, we did not care, and certainly never considered returning them, and even years later, they both continue to work great.
Are we nuts?
 
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People are picky for their own reasons. I once recieved a new RX2 where you could clearly see a marked difference in the bluing on the rifle. The barrel/reciever and tube looked distinctly differnt. The bluing was off. I made a post much like this one. I ended up returning the rifle.

The OP made his decision to buy based on a video on the internet. I agree and feel for him. On top of that it's anodization, it is hard to match. Kind of hard to make big decisions through a screen. Now we live in a differnt era. At this point in life I expect disappointment, it seems to be the thing as of late.
 
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I would’ve done the same, as to invest in something and have to stare at it in disappointment everyday? Yeah that would bug me.
Correct me is I’m wrong, OP, but you just don’t own an impact, you collect them snd have every model made, the different generations of the impacts. I was wanting to do the same with the wildcat platform but don’t have the expenses to afford that. I wanted to not only have models since they first came out, but also variations of each model like a compact version, the VP, the sniper, wood stock, laminate stock, bottle version, and of course, the Ted Biers “Warcat” edition.

Now having said all that, if it’s structural integrity you were trying to upgrade to, I agree with VETMX, you could’ve just settled on the black model
 
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lloydf said:
If you talk to any anodizing shop they will tell you that every batch will be slightly off. If you want the color to match do ALL parts at the same time. Sweden and USA powder coat can be close but is very hard to match.
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Look at the example "They" present to generate sales.. I'd be happy with that.. but I didn't get that.
 
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Vetmx said:
So the perceived importance of the backbone became not so important because it didn’t match the color of your gun? If you weren’t just decorating your gun, you should have just swapped UA for a black one.
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Perception is key.. what you perceive is relative. I perceive that you're just trying to piss me off and completely miss the point which is a Dealer/Distributor/Manufacturer advertising one thing but think it's no problem to send you something completely different then continue to charge you when you bring it to their attention. THAT'S THE POINT. "Don't sell and ship me an apple when I ordered and paid for an orange and tell me an apple is close enough.
 
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Airgun Al said:
Years ago, my wife purchased a General Electric refridgerator.
A few months latter, she purchased a Ammana stove.
Both of them were advertised as ALMOND in color, yet they are slightly different in color.
At the time, we did not care, and certainly never considered returning them, and even years later, they both continue to work great.
Are we nuts?
Click to expand...
Nope, you're not nuts at all. But I'm also assuming that when you bought the stove the salesman didn't describe it as a perfect color match to your refrigerator. If he had, you'd understand the point of the post.
 
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lloydf said:
If you talk to any anodizing shop they will tell you that every batch will be slightly off. If you want the color to match do ALL parts at the same time. Sweden and USA powder coat can be close but is very hard to match.
Click to expand...
I'm aware and fully understand the batch difference possibilities in anodizing. Prior to purchasing the "Not Copper" Backbone I worked with Lee at Black Ice Coatings (Utah Airguns custom shop) on an attempt to color match the FX Copper with Ceracoat and Automotive quality Paint. Every attempt failed and we both agreed it just couldn't be easily done with enough success to go any further. Shortly after that experiment Airmarksman released the M4 Copper Matching Backbone with very convincing advertising showing that they had "Cracked the Code" and achieved the impossible. The point of my post was to pass along to other potential customers that they hadn't. The advertising isn't true, as most advertising today isn't, and you can't just trust hype.
 
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lloydf said:
If you talk to any anodizing shop they will tell you that every batch will be slightly off. If you want the color to match do ALL parts at the same time. Sweden and USA powder coat can be close but is very hard to match.
Click to expand...
They're either just covering their tails, or referring to very *tiny* differences that most people wouldn't even be able to discern. A good anodizing shop can match a color to well within what you can readily see. Look at all the anodized commerical products from big brands - those brands demand a very specific color ( and frequently "off" colors are flags for counterfeits ). No competent shop is going to produce the degree of variation shown above.

GsT
 
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tdhouser1964 said:
Perception is key.. what you perceive is relative. I perceive that you're just trying to piss me off and completely miss the point which is a Dealer/Distributor/Manufacturer advertising one thing but think it's no problem to send you something completely different then continue to charge you when you bring it to their attention. THAT'S THE POINT. "Don't sell and ship me an apple when I ordered and paid for an orange and tell me an apple is close enough.
Click to expand...
I was nervous about their “bronze” one when they introduced them for the M3. I figured if getting black anodizing to match isn’t always successful, bronze would be a long shot. So I just stick with black. Black can be close enough. Bronze can’t.
 
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