Paintball

[wildfire59602]

I just joined th VM family, and I have a simple question. What problems can I expect from running Co2 in the stock location (under the barrel?) Past problems with Co2 says it will freeze up, but I also don't know how hardy the VM is.
Thanks

[Menace]

Ah,

You just go ahead and run yer lil' ol' Co2 all you like.

She'll drink it like sodee-pop.

The only problems you'll have are wiping the silly grin off your face.

The VM is a bank vault. You will likely only harm yourself by trying to hurt it.

Welcome aboard!

[wildfire59602]

Thanks, I like the VM, and I'll run o2.

[Dave-D]

Agreed with Menace.

The VM will take all the abuse that you can deliver. A little co2 will do no harm to the internals of the VM Drawing liquid into the gun will change the velocity and theirby the accuracy of your shots. but will not harm the gun.

[wildfire59602]

So, an expansion chamber would keep the velocity down and help with accuracy? I need to be accurate (I need all the help I can get!)

[Dave-D]

An expansion chamber will not lower the velocity. Velocity adjustments for the VM is done through the rotation of the valve and by adjusting the flow through the bolt.

An expansion chamber gives the liquid portion of the co2 coming out of the tank more area to vaporise into before it makes it all the way through the gun. When liquid finds its way through the gun and behind the ball when you fire... it expands much more violently (and unpredictably) than just the gas. When that happens one (or more) balls will leave the marker faster or slower than the rest. All balls being the same size and weight (We can only hope) the faster and slower paintballs will fly further or drop sooner contributing to our already poor aiming skills

All of this doesn't matter to people who use HPA (high pressure air) since there is no liquid in these tanks. For guns on HPA expansion chambers do nothing.

[Menace]

Agreed with Dave D, mostly.

In my experience, it is possible to see a drop in velocity for a given adjustment, depending on a number of factors, including the efficiency of the EXC. But that is shop talk, and it's probably best you forget all about that stuff. I've run with and without EXCs and I'm always happy.

The VM is a gas hog. Get used to it, and love it. HPA will possibly drive you nuts, depending on how trigger happy you are. I'll never use it on the VM, unless I want to be silly. You'll get many more shots with Co2, but unless you are running a Palmer's Stabilizer, it won't be as consistent.

This brings us to acuracy. There is accuracy, and then there is 'accuracy.' There is no such thing as accuracy in paintball. Only consistency. Anyone who tells you different is either silly, or silly and also a noob. If you put your marker in a vice and shoot it, and it throws out left-hook shots all day long, but each ball hits close to the others before it, then, all things being equal, you have an 'accurate' marker, because it puts balls where you expect them to go. We are, after all, lobbing glorified water balloons at one another. But the more consistently we can lob them, the more 'accurately' we can lob them.

But that too is another story for shop talk.

Go the simplest route with your VM, and you'll be happy. Get to know it before you start messing with it. It will have better balance with a bottom line setup, but it's all personal preference.

Check out the various pics posted around here to give you ideas, but really, the simpler the better.

Cheers.