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Well now that we have covered most of the major system parts of the Automag I, will finish up this little segment with the on/off assembly. This is probably the most over looked area for minor leaks in the gun.

Working with the Automag On/Off Assembly

The On/Off Top - This is a very basic part that most people feel the need to change at some time with the latest neat little doo dad with more holes, deeper channels etc. I have covered the aftermarket parts for the most part but I will mention that when you are trying to find a problem with the gun, try to go back to the stock parts and work from there. Once you have fixed the base problem, then you can try to put those nifty go-fast parts back into the gun and see if they were actually causing the problem.

Now as for problems with the stock tops--if the gun has worked for some time with the stock part there most likely isn't going to be a problem with the top itself (unless someone got grinder happy) that would require you to replace it. Sometimes you get a little scoring on the outside edge. That is generally not going to be a big problem unless you are getting brass parts in your reg seat. You can take a fine file and remove a little material from the sides and that should solve any mild hangups in the on/off well. Before you get any bright ideas about "smoothing" anything in the on/off well area, you will void your warranty and if you really mess up. If you think you are having more than a little problem with this, then call AGD and get a "return authorization number and send it in to them.

On/Off Pin - This is another easy part take care of. First visually inspect the pin to see if the chrome plating is pealing off. This will look like a dull area with a ridge or break line were the plating is flaking off. If it's pealing you will get problems with choppy trigger pull and leaks past the Teflon o-rings. Sometimes you will get the dull area with no peal. This most likely won't be a problem.

The next thing to look for is a small machine flaw on the "grooved" end of the pin. This will be a little nipple or high spot. This will sometimes cause a "shoot down" effect. The easy fix for this is to use a fine file and remove the flaw. Be very careful not to take too much material from the pin as this will create a whole new set of problems. If you end up swapping out the on/off pin, make sure to swap out all the Teflon o-rings as well. They will be sized to the old pin which might be bigger than the new one.

On/Off Bottom - This part is most likely the most over looked area of the gun. I'll show you a few reasons why you should pay very careful attention to this area.

1) You have 2 sealing o-rings here that can cause those mystery leaks out of the rail. The easiest of these to fix is the Teflon o-ring. This seals against the on/off pin and if it's loose or very dirty it will leak through the rail. The dirt will wear out your on/off pin (think about what causes the chrome plating to wear or peal) . If you have changed the Teflon o-ring and you are still getting the odd little leaks that come and go, you are going to have to change the power tube o-ring in the on/off bottom. It's rare that you have to change this one, but it's a pain to do when necessary.

2) While you have the o-rings out of the bottom you should take this time to really clean this part. You would be surprised at the amount of gunk that will accumulate in the power tube o-ring grove and the hole the on/off pin goes through. Take a Q-Tip and pull most of the cotton off the tip and then run that through the on/off pin hole. You may have to do this a few times to get all he dirt out. Clean the o-ring grove with paper towels.

Now for the things you can't just fix yourself. You will get leaks if you have bent your frame rail or main body and you will fix one problem and have another pop up. Sometimes the on/off well area is milled too deep and it gets missed at the factory.

Just because a part is new does not mean that it is good. Sometimes things slip past the quality control people at the factory. Try swapping out two or three o-rings if you can't get a leak fixed. Try a friend's assembly just to see what happens. Try a friend's main body/rail to see if your problem goes away. Do the same thing with their AIR valve in your gun and see if the problem pops up.

Thanks for reading.