I post this not to disprove or discredit any other posts documenting experiences contrary to my excellent experiences buying pre-owned from A0A; rather, to illustrate a level of inconsistency in their descriptions that sometimes can, and often does err on the side of conservative grading. My latest such experience, probably purchased within a day or two of another gentleman's decidedly bad experience, is an excellent example of conservative grading in the extreme.
My new-to-me Theoben Evolution was described on AoA's Pre-owned page as "Very Good condition (90% or better), but shooting weakly." Having everything required to correct the weak-shooting issue, I crossed my fingers, rolled the dice, jumped on it for the asking price, and held my breath in hopes the description was accurate. It wasn't! What came out of the box is actually a MINT cosmetic condition Evolution; easily 98%.
However the rest of their extremely brief description was entirely accurate. After adding some pressure to the gas ram my Evolution shoots like the virtually unused gun it was when I received it. In the past I've also bought a pre-owned FX Wildcat that AoA graded conservatively, and a Japanese Bushnell Elite rifle scope they graded conservatively.
My point is this- Despite their usual excellent service, unfortunately we still occasionally see inconsistencies in AoA's performance. Also unfortunately, that's a whole lot better than the almost universal incompetencies we endure from other busy businesses in 2023.
To close, a helpful hint to avoid bad Pre-owned buying experiences. If in doubt, ask the phone rep to get the pre-owned item in his hands, then ask POINTED QUESTIONS about it's description. I've done that, and they happily obliged.
My new-to-me Theoben Evolution was described on AoA's Pre-owned page as "Very Good condition (90% or better), but shooting weakly." Having everything required to correct the weak-shooting issue, I crossed my fingers, rolled the dice, jumped on it for the asking price, and held my breath in hopes the description was accurate. It wasn't! What came out of the box is actually a MINT cosmetic condition Evolution; easily 98%.
However the rest of their extremely brief description was entirely accurate. After adding some pressure to the gas ram my Evolution shoots like the virtually unused gun it was when I received it. In the past I've also bought a pre-owned FX Wildcat that AoA graded conservatively, and a Japanese Bushnell Elite rifle scope they graded conservatively.
My point is this- Despite their usual excellent service, unfortunately we still occasionally see inconsistencies in AoA's performance. Also unfortunately, that's a whole lot better than the almost universal incompetencies we endure from other busy businesses in 2023.
To close, a helpful hint to avoid bad Pre-owned buying experiences. If in doubt, ask the phone rep to get the pre-owned item in his hands, then ask POINTED QUESTIONS about it's description. I've done that, and they happily obliged.
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but you scored a winning Lotto ticket. I'm still a fan of AoA I've been around long enough and realize errors can be made and the most important point is how its addressed.
