AKA's response to WAS/FSDO on their markers .... [Archive]

-=Squid=-

03-23-2004, 10:37 AM

I swear... I buy an 04 viking because I figgured it would be the best marker I could buy. I receive it, and hands down, like I thought, it was *in my opinnion* the best marker I have ever shot. Fast, good looking, VERY efficient, doesnt chop, among other things.

But! To my dismay, no more than one month later THEY GET PUT OUT OF PRODUCTION, and now AKA no longer supports WAS as well? A company that regardless of what the general forumite concensus is, I support?

Whats next... The humphrey solenoids have a timer that shoots acid everywhere after so much use? That would be my luck... at least they are holding EXCELLENT resale, so I dont regret my purchase one bit... Blah... time to buy my WAS switch and equalink cable.

Oh ya, may as well add, I dont, or ever did, have FSDO. Even if I did, one ball is not worth voiding my WAS board warrenty, in my opinnion.

LittlePaintballBoy

03-23-2004, 10:43 AM

I don't think AKA is not supporting WAS, I think they just did a test and that was the outcome. I don't think it really comes off as they are dissing WAS.

Gecko

03-23-2004, 10:47 AM

btw
aka NEVER warenteed the electronics (on the was boards)
All electronics problems have always required you to deal with Jim at WAS

-=Squid=-

03-23-2004, 10:50 AM

If you read the article it says "AKA will no longer be supporting WAS boards."

Banshee23

03-23-2004, 11:09 AM

Originally posted by LittlePaintballBoy
I don't think AKA is not supporting WAS, I think they just did a test and that was the outcome. I don't think it really comes off as they are dissing WAS.

No, that's exactly what AKA is doing. WAS said that the FSDO problem isn't their fault & that AKA's capacitor fix was blowing their boards. As a result WAS won't warranty any boards that have the mod done & won't fix a FSDO board because they say it's not their problem. Now AKA says it's WAS's fault & that if you have trouble with the board that AKA SHIPS their guns with you have to goto WAS. So you're basically screwed. Boy do i feel great that I have a WAS'd excalibur on the way :rolleyes:

03-23-2004, 12:32 PM

Originally posted by -=Squid=-
and now AKA no longer supports WAS as well?

they never supported WAS. I swear some of you AKA owners walk around with crap in your eyes, leaving you unable to read. Heck they dont even support thier own 'noids. Any warrenty issues invovled with the electronics that is out sourced is on the 3rd parties warrenty, more often than not your dime!

thei3ug

03-23-2004, 12:51 PM

When AKA switched to WAS boards, they made it very clear that all warantee fixes were done by WAS.

The Capacitor mod is NOT FACTORY STOCK. YOU HAVE TO REQUEST IT. All AKA owners do not have to worry about having a voided warantee from the factory.

if it says "no longer," it's just a mischoice of words, it will not predate the origional warrantee agreement.

Besides, even if it did somehow magically make them able to service WAS boards in the past, are you somehow going to be able to travel back in time to get it serviced by AKA?

-=Squid=-

03-23-2004, 01:41 PM

Originally posted by gtrsi

they never supported WAS. I swear some of you AKA owners walk around with crap in your eyes, leaving you unable to read. Heck they dont even support thier own 'noids. Any warrenty issues invovled with the electronics that is out sourced is on the 3rd parties warrenty, more often than not your dime! If they "no longer" do, then they must have previously. No sir, I have no crap in my eyes. :rolleyes:

EDIT: You also OBVIOUSLY COMPLETELY missed my point in that post.

68magOwner

03-23-2004, 03:12 PM

why is FSDO such a big deal anyway, my imp has always had it, and it has NEVER effected gameplay, you only get it after having your marker sit there for like 10 min, so it never happens in a game, and really, when you gass up your marker, dont you normally fire a shot or to just to see that it works before the countdown?

-=Squid=-

03-23-2004, 04:23 PM

thei3ug

03-23-2004, 04:25 PM

my gun is spring driven. booyah.

Rope a Dope

03-23-2004, 04:33 PM

Originally posted by thei3ug
my gun is spring driven. booyah.

your gun is slow. booyah.

thei3ug

03-23-2004, 04:45 PM

awwww, someone's a little jealous. how cute.

Steelrat

03-23-2004, 05:17 PM

Originally posted by gtrsi

they never supported WAS. I swear some of you AKA owners walk around with crap in your eyes, leaving you unable to read. Heck they dont even support thier own 'noids. Any warrenty issues invovled with the electronics that is out sourced is on the 3rd parties warrenty, more often than not your dime!

Was it really necessary to phrase it that way? Thats actually pretty disappointing.

phantomhitman

03-23-2004, 07:34 PM

i think mr drew is pushing himself further into the ground. at least aka is taking some type of action to fix the problem.

LeatherPants

03-23-2004, 07:58 PM

Well that's why we wait for the Chaos board to be finished.

03-23-2004, 10:13 PM

Originally posted by Steelrat
Was it really necessary to phrase it that way? Thats actually pretty disappointing.

YEs becuase every single thread I read about "what gun shoult I get" there is an AKA owner praising the AKA warrenty service.

I find it ironic that AKA, although they provide great service, are not up front with customers about what is and is not covered, but I guess that isnt an issue now....

LeatherPants

03-23-2004, 10:19 PM

Well as much as I am curious about the new Chaos board it was the WAS board that made the Viking what it is now. I'm all about trying something new but GTRSI does have a point the Vikign owners do tend to B**** about the parts alot.

Steelrat

03-23-2004, 11:38 PM

Its only really WAS that is upsetting the AKA guys right now. AKA has resolved the FSDO issue by wiring a capacitor in line with the solenoids. Jim Drew is claiming that the mod fries his boards, and has releatedly stated that 10-20 boards have been sent to him with this problem. Unfortunately, no one on the AKA board knows of anyone who has had an issue with the mod. This, and the testing methods described by AKA in the first post tend to undermine what he is claiming. This is frustrating AKA owners, as they are worried about having a blown board that WAS wont cover.

And I agree with LeatherChaps, the WAS made the viking what it is. No one went ga-ga over them when they had the old nelson boards. I'd buy a chaos, but only if my WAS board self-destructed and no one would cover the damage.

LeatherPants

03-23-2004, 11:42 PM

Pants damnit pants! I get paid to wear the chaps.

tyrion2323

03-23-2004, 11:47 PM

Who the heck is Jim Drew??!?!?!

Also, from what I've heard (not experienced!) AKA has been fairly lackluster in their product support. Vikings seem pretty awesome, but if a company won't even support their products.

It seems oddly familiar to Smart Parts' old rule that they wouldn't replace your marker. They would "help you fix it," but if it was messed up, you were screwed, or you needed to buy an "upgrade" (which really was a FIX)

Jacob

No sKiLLz

03-23-2004, 11:55 PM

LeatherPants

03-24-2004, 12:19 AM

I had FSDO in both the RAT and Adrenaline Impulse I owned. I got most of the kinks out but sometimes you would get a low shot just from moving one bunker to the next. As Skillz brought up yea it really affects your snapshooting.

Tyrion- Jim Drew is the owner of WAS.

AKA does support it's products. They do a free bolt upgrade and detent spring upgrade for the Halo double feeding problem. They will also so a capacitor upgrade free to patch the FSDO caused by the WAS board. They stand by all defects in their regs. AKA is a great company.

They just don't take blame for a problem they feel is electrical and not something they designed.

Steelrat

03-24-2004, 12:20 AM

No Skillz is right, the amount of time it takes to get FSDO varies, and it can screw you if you pop out for a critical shot, and the ball drops short due to FSDO.

Tyrion, Jim Drew is the president of WAS. And AKA has not been lackluster in their customer support. Some people think that the "lifetime" warranty is rather deceptive, as it only covers parts, not labor (I think), though if you get it from OTE, both are covered. But AKA will take care of you if the gun breaks. Cledford advertised the issues he had, but if you do some research, you'll see he experience is the exception, rather than the rule.

No sKiLLz

03-24-2004, 12:25 AM

Whoa! Did people just agree with me?!!:eek:

Steelrat

03-24-2004, 12:37 AM

Oops, didn't realize I had. I've edited it out. ;)

shartley

03-24-2004, 06:21 AM

If AKA openly lists what they cover and what they don’t, they are not being deceptive in their warrantees. Also anyone who has purchased a car, appliance, tool, and heck, almost anything of value knows that seldom does ANY company offer a FULL Lifetime Warrantee that covers parts AND labor. You have to READ what each warrantee covers.. period.

And when I buy things for my business (or major appliances) I usually get the extended warrantee that covers all the little things that the standard warrantees do not.

But personally, I would rather have a good product than a great warrantee. If the product is good, you don’t NEED the warrantee. And when it comes to a TOY, I never buy an extended warrantee… I take what is standard for the product. If the product is good, I buy it… not if the warrantee is good.

SkyBoySurfer

03-24-2004, 07:06 AM

so anyone who has purchased a car, appliance, tool, and heck, almost anything of value knows that seldom does ANY company offer a FULL Lifetime Warrantee that covers parts AND company offer a FULL Lifetime Warrantee

apperintly you dont buy CraftsMan. ;)

shartley

03-24-2004, 07:15 AM

Originally posted by SkyBoySurfer

apperintly you dont buy CraftsMan. ;)
Actually I do. ;) But not ONLY CraftsMan. But I think you need to look at their warrantees as well, not all CraftsMan products have truly FULL coverage for the life of the product.

Rigster_TBB

03-24-2004, 07:26 AM

Originally posted by 68magOwner
why is FSDO such a big deal anyway, my imp has always had it, and it has NEVER effected gameplay, you only get it after having your marker sit there for like 10 min, so it never happens in a game, and really, when you gass up your marker, dont you normally fire a shot or to just to see that it works before the countdown?

There are actually 2 different types of FSDO. Mechanical and Electrical. My Imp has some very minor FSDO, but mine is mechanical (sticky ram). It does take a good 10 minutes or so to set in and causes zero problems when playing (I still love my Imp and wouldn't take anything for it. Minor FSDO on a marker (Mi Impy) that works this well all the time is nothing to complain about. I guess if some people are experiencing electrical related FSDO (board or solenoid related), then I guess theirs could crop up most anytime and may cause some issues for them during a game....

AzrealDarkmoonZ

03-24-2004, 08:38 AM

FSDO is a problem, especially in my case. Imagine for instance like in my case the paintball did not make it out the barrel but got stuck halfway. Then the next ball slams into it breaking both and leaving a gooey mess, this is something shooting a paintball right before a game does not fix. At one time I would dry fire one, then let the mext cycle normally.

Az

Rope a Dope

03-24-2004, 11:47 AM

Originally posted by thei3ug
awwww, someone's a little jealous. how cute.

Actually no, I'm not. Especially since I'm about a half hour drive from Palmers shop and was chatting with Glenn a few weekends ago. :)

03-24-2004, 02:29 PM

Originally posted by Steelrat
you'll see he experience is the exception, rather than the rule.

he is not the only one that had that kind of experience. I was poped with a few charges for items such as orings while my old viking was in the shop. You mean to tell me that after I spend 30 bucks round trip on shipping that they cant toss in an LPR oring?

I can make a huge post on my experience with thier "warrenty" but I dont think it will do any good.

They just don't take blame for a problem they feel is electrical and not something they designed.

This is what really eats me up. Lets say that AGD sold you an Xmag that had unsatisfactory anno. Would AGD tell you to take it up with the anno company?

Lets all be realisitic about what AKA's warrenty is and isnt, and please dont compare them to AGD. AGD is light years ahead of AKA in the service department.

note: before viking owners flood this thread; I am not saying the viking is a bad gun, infact its a great gun. However lets call a spade a spade and not "hype" it up to something its not.

No sKiLLz

03-24-2004, 02:54 PM

Originally posted by gtrsi
note: before viking owners flood this thread; I am not saying the viking is a bad gun, infact its a great gun. However lets call a spade a spade and not "hype" it up to something its not.

A-freaking-men

Steelrat

03-24-2004, 03:01 PM

Gtrsi, you had one of those DD vikings, didnt you? I agree that AKA didnt handle that correctly. They should have taken responsiblilty for the poor quality of the anno they had put on those guns. As far as Cledford, who knows. I still dont think any of us really understand completely what went on there.

I never compared AGD and AKA's warranty. AKA's warranty, however, is better than the industry norm, and they have tried to address every issue that has come up. And they have been very up front about the WAS board and solenoids not being covered by their warranty. Which normally wasnt an issue, as WAS has its own lifetime warranty. But WAS is having issues with the FSDO mod done by AKA, though he has failed to show any testing methodolgy or proof, unlike AKA.

And I am not some AKA-fanatic who goes around invading other people's threads to sing the praises of vikings and excaliburs. This thread concerns the viking, and thats why Im posting here.