AIA B2 and B3

chanman said:
I always found the No.4 looking model a little amusing considering Lithgow never made No.4 rifles. It just feels like a more appropriate retro-look would have been with a SMLE-style front end, either with the Mk. III open sights like the Ishapore 2A1s or the peep sights like the Mk. V
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They (AIA) originally wanted to build new Enfield No.4 type rifles first for the local and then international market place from NOS No.4 parts sourced from places like Pakistan and others etc. as they thought this was a better/stronger design for the higher powered .308 Win ammo they would be chambered in and Lithgow had already stopped making SMLE's decades ago so they had no ready supply of NOS SMLE parts, plus the Australian Government had sold off all their spare SMLE parts and remaining rifles in the mid 1990's to a gun dealer (John Jovino Co.) in New York, USA.

AIA should be commended for taking on this task, but as often happens they could not make a go of it in the international market and over extended themselves financially and had to pull back to Australia to concentrate on the local market. There is talk they may one day again start making rifles in volume and start exporting again but who knows.

All I know is that the AIA rifles I have and had have all shot really well, have been well put together and have never suffered a broken part or let me down, In all the years they have been in use in both Australia and Canada I have never heard of owners complaining about poor quality or breaking parts.
 
The B3 minigun barrel is quite an interesting construction. It has a tapered bore done in four steps and as can be seen from the pics is surprisingly thin.

From what I have been able to piece together online AIA got burned hard in the USA by a couple importers. That financial hit seems to have really influenced AIA's decision to focus on their domestic market. The guy with the website who was all sour about not getting a freebie to test probably did influence some people to pass on these rifles when they were available. I have never seen anyone who actually owned one complain about a serious issue. No buyers remorse with me.
 
klaus enuff said:
The B3 minigun barrel is quite an interesting construction. It has a tapered bore done in four steps and as can be seen from the pics is surprisingly thin.

From what I have been able to piece together online AIA got burned hard in the USA by a couple importers. That financial hit seems to have really influenced AIA's decision to focus on their domestic market. The guy with the website who was all sour about not getting a freebie to test probably did influence some people to pass on these rifles when they were available. I have never seen anyone who actually owned one complain about a serious issue. No buyers remorse with me.
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Yes it is, it is from the M134 minigun, you should never be able to wear that barrel out in a bolt action rifle. Some info on the M134 -

"In order to develop a weapon with a more reliable, higher rate of fire, General Electric designers scaled down the rotating-barrel 20 mm M61 Vulcan cannon for 7.62×51 mm NATO ammunition. The resulting weapon, designated M134 and known popularly as the Minigun, could fire up to 4,000 rounds per minute without overheating. The gun was originally specified to fire at 6,000 rpm, but this was later lowered to 4,000 rpm. The U.S. government had procured some 10,000 miniguns during the Vietnam War. By 1975, production of spare parts had ceased with the Army in possession of a large inventory. By 1985, there were few spares left in the inventory."
 
Cb750k said:
That sounds awesome, I'd love an Enfield in 7.62x39 with an Ak mag. Cheap plentiful ammo in a looker of a bolt action rifle. It would see reg use for sure.
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They are around, I have had 2 and now have only one (sold the other on the EE), they are very accurate with handloads out to at least 200 metres and also have hard chrome lined chamber and bore.
 
My only problem with my 7.62x39 M10 A1 is laquered czech surplus sticking in the chamber. I think it is a combination of the laquer and a tighter cut chamber than say an SKS or AK. That and the fact a manually operated action does not have the same immediate and violent cycling of the action.
 
klaus enuff said:
My only problem with my 7.62x39 M10 A1 is laquered czech surplus sticking in the chamber. I think it is a combination of the laquer and a tighter cut chamber than say an SKS or AK. That and the fact a manually operated action does not have the same immediate and violent cycling of the action.
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Yes I had the same problem with lacquered cases in a hot chamber, switched to copper washed steel and problem went away, had the same issue with a SKS after shooting lots of the stuff through it.
 
Hard to say now as so few around, Last time I noticed them for sale it was about $750 for one used but complete with scope mounts and 2 mags in nice shape.
 
bobbynewmark said:
who can say.. but those seem like common complaints with Marstar from lots of people... :)

also that guy seems to know his stuff, and is one of the 'go to' sites for the .303... ? It is common knowledge that AIA was super sketchy.. try and find them or get a hold of them now. As far as I know it is impossible.
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You mean the same guy who reproduced the Canadian / British military manuals then claimed he owned the copyright....
 
I have one of the 7.62x39's that Wolverine got in from the UK several years ago.

I'm made to understand that there were 59 of them that came into the country.

There are 2 in Halifax that I know of.

NS

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Pblatzz said:
You mean the same guy who reproduced the Canadian / British military manuals then claimed he owned the copyright....
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First I have heard of this. All I know is that he seems to be relatively knowledgeable, and has a love of the .303 Enfields. Also, he is one of the few resources available with a decent website and lots of info.

That being said... He may be a crack pot or a con man as well :)

HOWEVER, if some mystery company operating out of a PO box won't return calls, and neither will the dealer.... it just doesn't smell right. And I don't think he wanted a FREE rifle. It seems to me that he felt (rightly or wrongly) that it was customary to pay for the rifle after the demo, knowing that it was not a POS, and knowing he was doing the dealer and the manufacterer a service by promoting their wares.

That is what I got anyway... But you seem to know more about the guy than me so ....?
 
I have read his version of events on his website, he expected Marstar to hook him up. Whatever disagreement he had with Marstar was with Marstar and not AIA. But it seemed enough to make him disparage AIA and their products at every opportunity. Quite frankly he did as much damage to himself and his reputation as he did to AIA with his vendetta.

John at Marstar had good dealings with AIA and developed a good relationship with them; if we ever see these rifles imported again it will most likely be through him. I don't think John would bother with a dodgy company but others might know him better.
 
klaus enuff said:
I have read his version of events on his website, he expected Marstar to hook him up. Whatever disagreement he had with Marstar was with Marstar and not AIA. But it seemed enough to make him disparage AIA and their products at every opportunity. Quite frankly he did as much damage to himself and his reputation as he did to AIA with his vendetta.

John at Marstar had good dealings with AIA and developed a good relationship with them; if we ever see these rifles imported again it will most likely be through him. I don't think John would bother with a dodgy company but others might know him better.
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I will take as many dodgy AIA rifles as anyone is willing to sell me! After all if they are such bad rifles that are [FONT=Times New Roman,Times,serif]"cheaply made and likely to fail under use[/FONT]." I am sure everyone who has one wants to get rid of them, They should be selling them cheap too since they are so poorly built and unreliable. I will even trade them a nice reliable British No.4 Lee Enfield for each one!
 
I took a new to me B1 Sporter to the range last week and was ringing a 16 inch gong at 300 yards shooting from a squated position with my elbows braced on my thighs. The previous owner had installed a lee enfield milled flip up peep and a standard lee enfield butstock but hadn't shot it. I dialed it in at 100 yards by adjusting the front sight with the peep at the lowest position then raised it to the 200 yard mark and was hitting 200 and 300 yard gongs with South African surplus.
Fun gun and I look forward to more experimenting with the peeps and other ammo.
 
Pblatzz said:
You mean the same guy who reproduced the Canadian / British military manuals then claimed he owned the copyright....
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It's amazing how stories get twisted around. If you are going to bad mouth someone, at least get the facts right. At no time did I ever claim that I owned the copyright. I said, and will continue to repeat that the copyright is owned by the Canadian government.
 
klaus enuff said:
I have read his version of events on his website, he expected Marstar to hook him up. Whatever disagreement he had with Marstar was with Marstar and not AIA. But it seemed enough to make him disparage AIA and their products at every opportunity. Quite frankly he did as much damage to himself and his reputation as he did to AIA with his vendetta.

John at Marstar had good dealings with AIA and developed a good relationship with them; if we ever see these rifles imported again it will most likely be through him. I don't think John would bother with a dodgy company but others might know him better.
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I suggest you read my version of events again. Marstar contacted me initially and asked for a review. St. Amour did not email me; one of his employees did. At no time did I ask them to send me a rifle. At no time did I offer to review or do a write up about the rifle.At no time did I ask them to lend me, donate to me, or even sell one to me at a discount. They initiated the contact. And, for whatever reason, they changed their mind.

My reputation is undamaged. Marstar only ordered one shipment of rifles which took them much longer than expected to sell. If you are going to make posts in a public forum, you'd better have your facts right.
 
Hi Steve,
These stories don't just materialize out of nothing usually. Could you perhaps shed some light on why this negative story about said review is so pervasive as to become lore?
 
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