Is AEA any good ?

The AEAs have a few issues. I owned a basic aea hpss in 25 caliber. It did fine for quite a while and then it had a trigger issue. The dealer couldn't figure it out and get it resolved after sending it to him a couple times and sent me another one. The second one had the same problem. So I got my money back and went with an AE HP SS plus. I've only shot about 100 rounds through it so far. Aea is knowledgeable of their trigger problems and are working to fix it. I'm happy with mine. I can shoot a 1 inch group at 40 yards with a red dot sight on a bench. True, you get what you pay for and aea guns are made in China. So it's all something to consider. But...since mine is semiauto, it's a blast to shoot. The grandkids blew through a ton of pellets when they were here in Thanksgiving. The best thing about them is they are wicked accurate and affordable.
 
Firewalker I'm beginning to think the Varmint is one of the best rifles in the AEA line. I would think the trigger can be down to 1.5 lb or so. The 24 inch barrel gives the gun plenty of power, not sure what they weigh. If they made a .30 Varmint I would have purchased that instead of the Terminator. I'm going to test some more today but the Terminator accuracy needs improvement. I don't know I'm a fan of their tapered muzzles on their barrels. I ended up recrowning the barrel on my carbine may have to do the same to the Terminator.

I can't get mine down that low without loosing the stop at the end of the takeup.
 
I have the .30 hpss backpacker (used to be called the assassin) and so far I've had 2 valve pins break and some cycling issues but I totally agree with Firewalker. I still like the gun.
Yeah, the valve pins and mags are the Achilles heel with these guns. I’ve actually never had problems with my mags, but I’ve broken two valve pins. There are several aftermarket reinforced pins out there now though…….I got one off ebay.
 
"Any good?":ROFLMAO:

ABSOLUTELY!:oops:

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I am tempted to buy an AEA hp max 45 or challenger pro but I e heard some horror stories from my local air gun shop. Right now I have a talon p but I want something with more power.
I did not have a good experience with AEA. returned two Hp max .357 both of which leaked and still leaked after being returned and repaired. I now have a .25 semi auto carbine that doesn’t leak but it jams pretty regularly. In fact, it’s sitting on the shelf in a jammed state right now. There are people on the forums who I trust who have had much better luck than me. I may have just gotten lemons…

You could add an 18” barrel to the talon P -to me that gets the power up to a nice level on my .25, especially when shooting heavier pellets or mid weight slugs.

The evanix Rex P is like a Texan/Talon P hybrid kind of. Same simple in-line design as talon p more or less but has a lever for easier cocking of heavy springs for more power, like the texan (but it’s an underlever on the Rex). The .357 I have is fun to shoot and is at around 90-120 fpe I believe depending on the valve and projectile weight. The newer valves produce a little more power than the older ones.
 
Most of the minor issues youll find with the max are easily fixed. If mags keep popping out theres 2 easy fixes. 1 tighten the barrel a bit more. Like 1/8th turn or so. Or 2 you can make a magnetic catch for less than 10 bucks.

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Im my case all leaking was caused by gen 1 parts. Pellet shop sent me all the new gen parts an its held solid for more than 700 shots so far. I love the trigger on the hp max .357. cleanest crisp pull of all my stuff- 5 airguns an 3 crossbows. Not very heavy pull either. Like maybe 3-4 lbs. Id say its a very similar pull to my centerpoint wrath trigger but alil more clean. An the best part is customization cost are like half of most other brands.
Hi, I m doing my homework to choose between the .30 and the ,35 cal for the HP Max. I assumed that .30 cal would be a faster projectile = more penetration; but the few posts I have seen show the same speed! Strange. I'm worried about the number of shots per tank. Since you own one, any info on your experience will be appreciated.
 
I have a challenger big bore 9mm (.357). Does what it is supposed to if you do your part. The trigger is abysmal but so far it has been reliable. I have read about numerous problems with valve pins and self destructing mags. I will most likely never buy another one. Maybe if they come out with a smaller caliber gun with all the necessary external adjustability one should have and proves reliable I will consider another. However I’ve seen zero progress towards this in everything they have done. It’s actually perplexing to the almost unbelievable level.
 
Seems like either people love them or hate them, I am in the hate them category 😀 horrible triggers, junk magazines, air leaks, etc.. i had a hp max in 30 cal and hated it
Hi. How long ago? because there is a new generation. I am planning my move form firearms to PCP and I like the AEA designs lots more than the expensive ones. But I don't want to get stuck with a dud either. I have not found any other PCP of that size, with that power for any price! Any help will be much appreciated.
 
Most of the minor issues youll find with the max are easily fixed. If mags keep popping out theres 2 easy fixes. 1 tighten the barrel a bit more. Like 1/8th turn or so. Or 2 you can make a magnetic catch for less than 10 bucks.

View attachment 311953
Im my case all leaking was caused by gen 1 parts. Pellet shop sent me all the new gen parts an its held solid for more than 700 shots so far. I love the trigger on the hp max .357. cleanest crisp pull of all my stuff- 5 airguns an 3 crossbows. Not very heavy pull either. Like maybe 3-4 lbs. Id say its a very similar pull to my centerpoint wrath trigger but alil more clean. An the best part is customization cost are like half of most other brands.
Hi: Could you give more details on the magnet, design and installation?. Thank you.
 
I have a challenger big bore 9mm (.357). Does what it is supposed to if you do your part. The trigger is abysmal but so far it has been reliable. I have read about numerous problems with valve pins and self destructing mags. I will most likely never buy another one. Maybe if they come out with a smaller caliber gun with all the necessary external adjustability one should have and proves reliable I will consider another. However I’ve seen zero progress towards this in everything they have done. It’s actually perplexing to the almost unbelievable level.
It seems AEA has found their niche and are sticking to it, affordable big bore guns with knock down power, that may or may not be a little rough around the edges, luckily my hp max 45 had no rough edges to speak of other than magazine quality, if you get 3 mags, 1 should end up being a winner, they work and the price works, I truly believe that you either get a lemon you hate or you get a work horse that you love, no in between, maybe just as the mags, 1 out of three guns will be a winner, not good numbers, but if you get a winner your first try then you can’t understand where the all hate is coming from. I’d love to see some solid mags with more metal than plastic, until then I guess I’ll roll the dice on new mags for my fortunately flawless gun.
 
If you want to learn how to work on your own airgun then they are a good one to start with. They do make good power for the price. I’ve had 7 (HP SS .25, HP Carbine .25, challenger bullpup .25, challenger big9 .357, challenger pro .357, HP max .30 and .357) The hp max .357 seemed great at first but developed problem after problem. The HP max .30 never gave me issue but I didn’t keep it for too long. HP carbine was good but the cycling spring under the shroud was super noisy so I delved it and made it bolt action. SS had issues with the trigger going floppy when trying to shoot. Challenger big9 was heavy and the stock was pushed up against the trigger causing it to fire one time as soon as I closed the breech, challenger bullpup .25 was bad aside from the tiny cocking bolt and rod coming out of the back when you cocked it which is where you would want to place your thumb while cocking. The challenger pro was my favorite out of all of them. Triggers suck on all of them that I’ve had but can be improved drastically with some sand paper and time. For me I don’t think I’ll own any AEA’s again