Discharging HPA

[eukanuba]

I bought a HPA cylinder and reg, charged it up ( on marker ) and it seemed to empty over about 3 days.. So i thought, must be a leak on the marker.. so I detached the cylinder, filled and let sit.. it also discharged....

Is this normal ?

- Euk.

[matches]

yep ive had the same problem on the Bulldog 2 HPA system usually its the o-ring in the fill nipple leaking sligtly.
Ive had no problems with it during play though. :)

[Bill]

I had my ole Raptor sitting on 3000psi for about 4 months once. (damm lack of fields out here :( )

You have a tiny leak somewhere, first thing I would look at are any O-Rings as matches said.
Make sure the O-Rings are lubricated.

[eukanuba]

I had my ole Raptor sitting on 3000psi for about 4 months once. (damm lack of fields out here :( )

You have a tiny leak somewhere, first thing I would look at are any O-Rings as matches said.
Make sure the O-Rings are lubricated.


My Me'lee air america reg is supposedly a " NON SERVICE " reg.. I will check the fill nipple however..

Its discharging even off the marker.. and besides - wont leaving it discharged lengthen its life for hydro ?

I saw on the scuba site that " Aluminium cylinders dont last as long as they stretch eventually ".. therefore if i leave mine empty when not in use.. I should get longer out of it...

Comments, suggestions ?

- Euk.

[TIMMAH]

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[eukanuba]

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[GAV WA]

Make sure the O-Rings are lubricated.
People do not (DO NOT) do this, never put oil on seals or fittings in your high pressure air system. After the reg (low pressure side) is ok but never put any drops of oil on the fill nipple or down it or anywhere on the high pressure side, YOU STAND A HIGH CHANCE OF STARTING A FIRE OR AT THE EXTREME CASE AN EXPLOSION SO DON'T DO IT, EVER. The air is under a lot of pressure so the oxygen content is compressed and of a very high content per the size of the cylinder therefore the flash point of the oil drops dramaticly. Live with the leak if it's that slight or get some high pressure grease with anti-dieselling properties. NEVER USE OIL ON THE HIGH PRESSURE SIDE OF AN AIR SYSTEM.

[Mike]

Gav is 100% correct.

[kodos]

Gav is 100% correct.

Yep he sure is

If you want to read more this link is from Nz paintball site and makes for an interesting read

http://www.paintball.co.nz/safety.htm

[Elfboy]

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[GAV WA]

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[kodos]

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[Mark]

Although you may have to live with the leak, you should always keep some air in the tank (approx 1000psi)...ok not if you are flying but then your laws probably stop you doing that too;)
The reason is that an empty tank can condense water vapour and this will cause premature ageing of the ally and this in turn will cause you to fail a hydro test...part of the visable test is an internal inspection and they are looking for an oxidised surface...if they find that then they will fail your bottle..same rational as scuba tanks.

[GAV WA]

Excellent point Mark, Euk a lot of the times the problem with a screw in is it slowly leaks from the push pin, very common and not a big deal. But I think you said yours was still leaking when on the marker so it could be the fill nipple.

[eukanuba]

bump...

There was a new thread about this in here, so I thought I'd just reiterate what GavWA said.. still valid.. might help someone out who's looking for this info.. :thumbsup:

[JagerCoRps]

My Me'lee air america reg is supposedly a " NON SERVICE " reg.. I will check the fill nipple however..

Its discharging even off the marker.. and besides - wont leaving it discharged lengthen its life for hydro ?

I saw on the scuba site that " Aluminium cylinders dont last as long as they stretch eventually ".. therefore if i leave mine empty when not in use.. I should get longer out of it...

Comments, suggestions ?

- Euk.

Just on the quote above "lengthen its life for hydro".........no it will not......why besacuse it has to be hydro tested every "x" number of years, by law, even if it has not been gased in ages....the last time I looked the HPA bottles were not fitted with a hour meter logging the number of pressurised hours it's been in use, therefore there is no way you can prove that the bottle has not been gased.

For example if you go to a tourney, the organizer of the tourney would be legally bound by law to check when the bottle was last tested, the orgarizer / field operator would be looking for a test station stamp and date, the organizer / field operator would have a book issued by Workcover in NSW, of all approved test stations symbols and should identify all bottles checked, if the date on the bottle is expired, you should not be allowed to fill the bottle let alone play...........

if the organizer / field operator allows you to fill / play and you blow yourself and several other people up, Workcover will simply ask for the safe work procedure regarding the inspection and approval of bottles on site.............

when the organizer / field operator can't produce one..........the organizer / field is gone a row of big brick sh*thouses.

P.S The coroner,familys solicitor / barrister and magistrate will want to know the same things as well.

it would not be valid to use the excuse that "I have not had the bottle gased for 5ys, so can I still use it to play" the organizer / field operator of the tourney has a "Duty of Care" I believe and know.................also ignorance is no excuse for the law.

Aluminium cylinders 12oz, 20oz etc have a service life of 10yrs, check the date stamped into them when manufactured and add 10yrs..........As I understand.

The scuba site you mention uses Aluminium cylinders filled to
450Bar or 450 atmospheres or 14.7psi x 450 = 6615psi no wonder they stretch, they stretch the thread where your reg screws in, newsflash.......so does the HPA cylinder.

HPA Cylinders are Aluminium Fibre wrapped cylinders As I understand.

Anyone buying a "NON SERVICE" regulator is ripping themselves off, because you should have bought a serviceable reg in the first place, obviously so you can either make repairs yourself or take it to someone who can repair a serviceable reg, instead of either throwing away or attempting a repair on a Non Serviceable reg.

ALSO USE SOME SOAP AS LUBE OR RING the Australian Safety Engineers in Canningvale as what they use in HPA systems for lubrication of dynamic "o" ring type seals.

No doubt someone will correct me if I'm wrong, hope this helps people get organized properly.

Mark Fitzgerald:)

[eukanuba]

Mark, all valid points - but you might notice that the post was from december 03.. I have learnt alot since then, just thought it might help others with their questions considering someone put oil in their cylinder then blew the crap out of it in the states..

Might have of helped someone here.. :yes:

[JagerCoRps]

People do not (DO NOT) do this, never put oil on seals or fittings in your high pressure air system. After the reg (low pressure side) is ok but never put any drops of oil on the fill nipple or down it or anywhere on the high pressure side, YOU STAND A HIGH CHANCE OF STARTING A FIRE OR AT THE EXTREME CASE AN EXPLOSION SO DON'T DO IT, EVER. The air is under a lot of pressure so the oxygen content is compressed and of a very high content per the size of the cylinder therefore the flash point of the oil drops dramaticly. Live with the leak if it's that slight or get some high pressure grease with anti-dieselling properties. NEVER USE OIL ON THE HIGH PRESSURE SIDE OF AN AIR SYSTEM.

Just to add to that never use mineral based oils on Oxy/Acetylene equipment either, because the oil will instantly oxidise (burn) as soon as the oxygen touches it............big explosion. Oxygen bottles have oxygen in them about 4.5 times more pure than what we breath. For the people who are wondering, the air we breath is made up of 78% nitrogen 21% oxygen and x% of other stuff i can't remember.

If your so worried about lube in your HPA systems use soap....................or check and see about silicon or ring the Australian Safety Engineers in Canningvale ask what they use...................

In the HPA