American Tactical TAC-SX2 12 Gauge Matte Blue/Black Tactical Semi-Auto Shotgun

I received the SX2...

I received the SX2 after some delay since I ordered it the Monday after Black Friday and it took 7 days to get it out of processing and into Shipping. After a quick cleaning, I loaded the gun with several 12ga shells and got ready to fire, assuming it would work right out of the box. Loading was very stiff initially so I only loaded a single shell into the chamber. Pulled the trigger, Click....nothing happened, eject that shell, tried another with same results. No marks at all on the primers. Tried several other sizes of shells including some 3" with no results. After unloading the gun, I used a light and took a good look at the firing pin and striker mechanism. The striker seemed to be barely hitting the firing pin so i disassemlbled the gun and worked it over with a liberal dose of BreakFree cleaner/lube. Loaded it up again and gave it another try. First time, same result, second try it finally fired, one time but would not fire again. Disassembled the gun again and worked the mechanism for a while to get the lube into all the parts. This time when I reassembled the gun it fired the first time but then would only fire about every other time. Finally after messing with it for a while it would shoot several rounds in a row. Took it apart and cleaned and lubed it again. About this time I noticed small pieces of shiny foil material near the bolt and trigger mechanisms. When I reassembled it this time, it actually fired the full 6 rounds without failing. I have now fired several boxes of shells with only occasional failure so I suspect the gun now works as good as can be expected. I sure seems like this gun had never been test fired and that possibly some type of foil label had been left inside the mechanism. The SX2 shoots ok now, recoil is not bad except with 3" loads, but the fit and finish is pretty rough. After my experience, I have a low level of confidence in the gun and sure wish I had spent a few bucks more and bought a Mossberg or Stoeger. Hope this review helps others avoid my mistake! .