That oring should have been in a groove on the outer perifery of the reg. I have no idea why FX chose to put it in a hole. That's really the only hard part so we live with it.
I'm not about to get rid of Fx rifles over it.
I agree totally. I have not been able to identify any reason that oring is not on the reg body (maybe the reg body wall isn't thick enough and it's just not obvious to the user). Just doesn't make sense to me, but like you, I've lived with it for 6-7 years now. In all fairness, though, this is the first time I have had this much trouble, and if I had done a preventative reseal earlier instead of a reactive reseal after leaks started, I probably wouldn't have had that much trouble. These orings got older than they should have and hardened. That's on me. I resealed another MKII reg 5 or 6 weeks ago, and I had more problems getting the new two small orings on the reg adjuster pin than I had getting the oring out from inside the reg tube. That oring was still very pliable and took a stick and pull to come right out of the groove. I was actually very surprised.
I also didn't get rid of my FX rifles over this oring ordeal. Until about 4 months ago, I had never owned or shot anything but FX Impacts. I even went to the Pyramyd Air Cup last September with the intention of upgrading to the M4 for the better trigger, even though it was disturbing that the only improvement I was really getting over my M3 was the better trigger. I was just ready to retire and upgrade my MKIIs. Shooting on the same benches as and beside some SKOUT Factory Team and High Pressure Pneumatics Team shooters, I got to talk to them a bit. I also got to see the Skouts being used. I decided to wait on upgrading to the next Impact.
Aside from the serviceability (I had always accepted the oring intensive build and very involved teardown of the Impacts), the three main things I disliked about the Impacts were:
1) Barrel liners
2) Sub-standard trigger for the level of the gun
3) Foreign manufacturer (this was compounded by the FXUSA fiasco)
The Skout platforms now have solid barrels (full bull and hybrid bull), the electronic trigger is far superior to my M3, and the Corporate HQ/Factory is a 6 hour drive from me, not to mention local on my cell phone vs international if I want to talk to someone at the factory. An added benefit is the level of customer service from Skout is impeccable. I heard this from every single person I talked to about Skout during my research before switching from FX to Skout. Then, I experienced it. I emailed Skout to ask a few questions about the theory of operation, and the tuning process and the details of its differences from the Impacts. I expected the typical few days before I would hear anything back via email, but within 1 hour, I received a call from Bill Gardner, the owner of Skout Airguns. He had seen my email and wanted to talk live so he could be sure I got all my questions answered to my satisfaction and be certain I had a clear understanding of the tuning process and operations of the Skout guns. Six years as a loyal FX customer and solely dedicated FX Impact user, and I never got so much as an email reply from Fredrik Axelsson. Should I have expected a call from the President of FX? Of course not. I didn't expect a call from the President of Skout either, but I got one.
So... solid barrels, a superior trigger (my opinion... I acknowledge that some people will NEVER feel an electronic trigger is superior to any mechanical trigger), Americal made, superior customer service, and better serviceability. Please don't think I was suggesting you get rid of your FX rifles because of a difficult to change oring (where an accidental scratch changing a $0.15 oring renders a part costing hundreds of dollars useless). I'm just saying that another airgun company now offers a rifle that gives me the rest of the things I want in my $2300-$2500 airgun and I don't have to give up accuracy to get them. Since I was looking to upgrade anyway, it was time for me to make the switch. If you get everything you want from your FX rifles, it's clearly not your time to switch, and I suggest you don't.
