GTA
All Springer/NP/PCP Air Gun Discussion General => PCP/CO2/HPA Air Gun Gates "The Darkside" => Topic started by: PaperPunch1 on February 25, 2012, 12:02:55 PM
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I have access to a Nitrogen tank, and a Argon tank. Will either of these tanks work for HPA so I won't have to buy a HPA tank?
If so....what fittings would I need to buy in order to fill a Marauder?
Thanks for lookin'.......
PaperPunch1
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Both are inert (or nearly so), the Nitrogen will give the better results as Argon is heavier than air and you will lose a bit of velocity with it, particularly if it's blended with CO2 which is quite common in welding gasses.... There are a couple of safety issues to address, because the Nitrogen is usually at 6000 psi and you should have a regulator to step that down to the 2000-3000 psi needed to fill your airgun.... Otherwise, one slip of the valve any you have an overfilled (and probably valve-locked) airgun.... The other involves making sure that ALL fittings and hoses are rated for the pressures they will see during the filling procedure.... Don't just buy plumbing fittings because the threads are the same....
Bob
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Bob's right about making sure you are safe with all your fittings, hoses and regulators but another question you should be asking is, "Where am I going to get such a tank filled?" I doubt paintball shops will fill an N2 or Ar tank with hpa. What were your plans on filling?
For another option, you might check out the local cost of renting and filling that nitrogen tank with nitrogen. A lot of guys on here use nitrogen and report great results. Just some thoughts.
joe
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To put this bluntly hpa can and will kill you if you cut corners on ur setup and safety steps.. get the properly rated hoses and fill setups
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Yes, thanks for the advice folks! Much appreciated.............however I believe I was misunderstood.
I asked if the tanks could be used for HPA, and what fittings I should buy.
The suggestion about simply using N2 is a good one, because I already have N2 in the N2 tank.
If I was going that route, what fittings / hoses do I need to fill a marauder?
Thanks....PaperPunch1
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Bob's right about making sure you are safe with all your fittings, hoses and regulators but another question you should be asking is, "Where am I going to get such a tank filled?" I doubt paintball shops will fill an N2 or Ar tank with hpa. What were your plans on filling?
For another option, you might check out the local cost of renting and filling that nitrogen tank with nitrogen. A lot of guys on here use nitrogen and report great results. Just some thoughts.
joe
Every small rural town has a nearby welding supply shop.
Thus, in most of the country (area wise, not population!) the availability of Argon
is literally thousands of times more than HPA (a paintball or SCUBA shop.)
I'm a little shocked that it's actually not the most popular. An average size (about chin height tall) tank refill costs about $30 (you buy the tank itself at first for just over $100. When you refill you just leave yours and they exchange them each time. That way they always pay for recertification.)
I do TIG welding for my vintage kart restoration and racing hobby, (and other household stuff, very handy) and regularly get my tank refilled not five minutes away.
BTW, at least for TIG welding, you would use pure Argon.
And no matter what, it doesn't come mixed with CO2 unless you order it that way,
usually done for MIG welding.
I would literally have a full day's drive to find a SCUBA or paintball (or airgun) shop.
Probably over 100 miles. So when I can finally afford that MRod, it'd definitely be Argon.
Maybe I'll get an even bigger tank by then too, or an extra ;)
Keep the cascade thing going and you'd always have welding and shooting gas for probably the cheapest yet.
Rod
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Argon is heavier than air, so you will experience a loss in performance at the same pressure as HPA....
Bob