Will it go Liquid? ....Different Paintball Guns on Liquid CO2

[Meleager7]

Here is the first gun I'll be testing with a liquid setup....got rid of the volumizer, and capped off the front. Still not sure if I need to try to further reduce volume in the chamber in front of the valve .

What I will change is the springs. I have some spring kits from ansgear stuck in Canada customs in Vancouver , BC for 13 days and counting....all for a tiny packet of springs. Incredible!

My plan is to use the heaviest valve spring, to limit the amount of liquid co2 that will flash into gas in the valve. I'll start with a light mainspring and tune from there.

This gun has a shocktech oringless supafly bolt, and I hope the effect is delicious co2 clouds bursting from all parts of the gun when fired !

With its electro sear tripper frame, this Spyder might be the only example of an electro-liquid paintball gun in existence (at least until this new trend in paintball takes off! )

[Meleager7]

I will say, however, that I once ran a 'Cocker on liquid. In the early days when an HPA system was still $400-$500, which I couldn't afford, and this being Alaska which means, if you don't play in the winter, you don't play much

Very simple setup, I threw it together from loose parts I had laying around. Pre-2K 'Cocker, with the small front block bolt. I simply used a solid bolt rather than the hollow banjo. Then I ran a braided hose from the bottom of the front block (where the usual "gauge port" is these days) to a duckbill bottomline, with a 7-ounce CO2 tank.

Then I had a 12-ounce siphon tank, which I simply ran vertically.

The LPR and cocking mechanism was run on the gas from the 7, and the valve on the liquid from the 12. The seal around the front block bolt wasn't perfect, but once both sides were pressurized, there was nothing to leak.

And actually, it worked great! Wasn't a big fan of the vertical tank, but I played a good chunk of games that winter, with it. (Then we got some HPA tanks, and that was the end of that. )

Doc.

that’s wild you put together a liquid cocker build, as the thought had crossed my mind as well! When I pictured it in my mind , I envisioned using jb weld to close up the banjo bolt, and then use a 12 gram and changer to power the pneumatics. The valve would be fed a liquid diet of co2 by the Siphon tank on an angled bottom line asa , steel braided line,etc .

[Grendel]

Never felt nostalgia for CO2. After shooting some Automags setup with N2 bottles and chatting with Tom Kaye and Mike Lauterborn (sp?) at IAO back in 92 I was sold. As soon as I could get a HPA bottle I did and have never been happier with getting rid of CO2.

[The Inflicted]

Strong recommendation: Don't try to run anything but spring-striker-fired poppet-valved guns on liquid. Anything with a regulator, dump chamber, spool valve or solenoid is pretty much right out. You will damage something.

I will say, however, that I once ran a 'Cocker on liquid. In the early days when an HPA system was still $400-$500, which I couldn't afford, and this being Alaska which means, if you don't play in the winter, you don't play much

Very simple setup, I threw it together from loose parts I had laying around. Pre-2K 'Cocker, with the small front block bolt. I simply used a solid bolt rather than the hollow banjo. Then I ran a braided hose from the bottom of the front block (where the usual "gauge port" is these days) to a duckbill bottomline, with a 7-ounce CO2 tank.

Then I had a 12-ounce siphon tank, which I simply ran vertically.

The LPR and cocking mechanism was run on the gas from the 7, and the valve on the liquid from the 12. The seal around the front block bolt wasn't perfect, but once both sides were pressurized, there was nothing to leak.

And actually, it worked great! Wasn't a big fan of the vertical tank, but I played a good chunk of games that winter, with it. (Then we got some HPA tanks, and that was the end of that. )

Doc.

Dual gas sources for the two halves of the operation? That's kind of brilliant. Makes me wonder how many cycles it would be possible to get out of a 13ci tank only powering the pneumatics.

[DocsMachine]

Strong recommendation: Don't try to run anything but spring-striker-fired poppet-valved guns on liquid. Anything with a regulator, dump chamber, spool valve or solenoid is pretty much right out. You will damage something.

I will say, however, that I once ran a 'Cocker on liquid. In the early days when an HPA system was still $400-$500, which I couldn't afford, and this being Alaska which means, if you don't play in the winter, you don't play much

Very simple setup, I threw it together from loose parts I had laying around. Pre-2K 'Cocker, with the small front block bolt. I simply used a solid bolt rather than the hollow banjo. Then I ran a braided hose from the bottom of the front block (where the usual "gauge port" is these days) to a duckbill bottomline, with a 7-ounce CO2 tank.

Then I had a 12-ounce siphon tank, which I simply ran vertically.

The LPR and cocking mechanism was run on the gas from the 7, and the valve on the liquid from the 12. The seal around the front block bolt wasn't perfect, but once both sides were pressurized, there was nothing to leak.

And actually, it worked great! Wasn't a big fan of the vertical tank, but I played a good chunk of games that winter, with it. (Then we got some HPA tanks, and that was the end of that. )

Doc.

[Euphie]

In my experience most Nelson, Sheridan and blowback guns can be made to run on liquid. The real limit seems to be some O-rings don’t handle the cold well but most cup seals are fine

i have always avoided anything with a dump chamber, with the theory that it could try to expand in that chamber but it is just that a theory, it might not happen so easily. It would be really interesting to make something like an unregulated automag with a siphon tank and see how well it works

[The Inflicted]

Pretty much any Nelson pump.

[Jonnydread]

Siphon is fun as hell to shoot in the winter, so smokey!

[infamoussmiley]

68 Specials,
98s
Pro Lites
Pro Ams
Carbines
VM 68s
Spyders
Mokal Mirage
Mokal Ultipro
Patriot

[Meleager7]

I'm starting this little thread for any interested paintball mad scientists to re-explore interest in liquid CO2 as a propellant.

Back when paintball started, 12 gram co2 powerlets (borrowed from the pellet gun world) were an obvious choice to power those first guns. Then increasing co2 capacity with constant air 7oz bottles was a logical next step.

The gun designers Tippmann and Montneel really had something, when they decided to design the valves in their guns around Liquid CO2 ......liquid co2 was very consistent , and not affected by temperature fluctuations of gaseous CO2.......

Still so many gun manufacturers did not adopt it, instead fumbling about expansion chambers, and angled ASAs and anti siphon tubes to try to deal with gaseous co2 velocity swings.....

With the advent of HPA , and electronic guns with their sensitive solenoids.......I think that was the death for liquid co2 !

Anyhow, it is a fantastic propllent in my limited experience with it, and I will be using this thread to test a few of my guns with "going liquid" !

More to come.......