by Tom Gaylord, a.k.a. B.B. Pelletier
The suggestion for this report came from blog readers ricka and Terd Ferguson, who both expressed concerns over the safety of precharged airguns. That’s safety…as in wondering if one can blow up!
It’s been a long time since I felt those same concerns, but I did at one time. Before I got my first PCP in 1995, I was quite concerned about keeping a scuba tank filled to 3,000 psi in my house. I’d seen the movie Jaws and was suitably impressed when the shark was blown up by a scuba tank at the end. So, these two readers are probably expressing the same concerns that hundreds of you share. I’d like to address those concerns in what I hope will be a straightforward series of reports that are easy to understand.
Do firearms blow up?
Veteran readers of this blog know the answer to that. Firearms do blow up, and I’ve shared at least one such personal story with you — my Nelson Lewis combination gun. I overloaded it and blew the percussion cap nipple out of the barrel! You can read that report here. In retrospect, it was my fault, so we can call that experience a stupident.
I’ve been involved in two other firearm blowups. One was caused by a rim failure in a .17 HM2 rimfire cartridge, and I’ve since come to find that this cartridge is known for that weakness. When it happened to me, shards of hot brass blew out the ejection port of the 10/22 clone I was testing for Shotgun News. One piece of brass cut my right arm and drew some blood; but aside from that and a lot of extra noise and smoke, no other damage was done. That event was out of my control, so it was an accident.
The other blowup was caused by a squibb round (one without gunpowder that drives the bullet into the barrel but not out again) in a Colt SAA revolver. I was firing very fast; and when the squibb happened, I was unable to stop before I thumbed off the next round. The revolver’s barrel was split lengthways when the second bullet hit the first one halfway down the barrel. That wasn’t an accident — it was a stupident.
Shooting a round into a bullet that was already lodged in the barrel burst this 7-1/2 inch Colt SAA barrel. The bullet was struck where the ejector housing screw was.
Do precharged airguns ever blow up?
Yes, they do. The causes are as random as they are with firearms, and the results range from sudden surprises all the way to death. The blog readers are entitled to a frank discussion of the kinds of accidents that can happen with precharged guns, and that’s what I’m about to give you.
When I bought my first precharged rifle—a Daystate Huntsman—and a brand new 80 cubic-foot aluminum scuba tank, I was properly awed. No, make that frightened. It was not unlike setting off my first charge of TNT in the Army! I respected the power potential of both that dive tank and the airgun I was filling.
Like any new thing, though, this awe and respect lasted only as long as it took me to become comfortable with the technology. If you do something enough times, the edge of respect starts to wear off—I don’t care what it is. It isn’t good when this occurs, but it’s human nature. Familiarity breeds contempt.
Boom!
And then it happened. My gun blew up! Okay, it wasn’t actually the rifle; it was the hose that connected the rifle to the scuba tank. And to be honest, it didn’t really blow up. The soft wall of the rubber hose ruptured, violently releasing compressed air. The tear in the hose wall was about one inch long, and the warning signs were there before it happened. The hose had developed a noticeable bulge at the point the blowout occurred. That should have told me that the reinforced fabric liner under the outside rubber was failing, but like I said—familiarity breeds contempt. And I didn’t want to stop shooting my airgun. I took a risk and the explosion happened.
I was standing in my basement when the hose blew. The noise sounded like a concussion grenade, although I’m quite sure it was nowhere near as loud or forceful. The blast loosened a storm of dust from the floor joists above my head; and my wife, whose office was right above me, jumped out of her seat.
The net result was no injury to me, beyond a bruised ego, and no physical damage to anything other than the now-ruined hose. I was momentarily stunned, and it took about 15 seconds before I regained my bearings, because Edith had already gotten to the basement before I turned off the tank’s air flow.
I shared my experience with other airgunners who were more acquainted with precharged airguns and was told I had been lucky the hose hadn’t broken off completely, whipping me violently before I could turn off the scuba tank’s valve. That was when I discovered that nearly everyone who uses precharged airguns has either had an incident like this happen to them or knows someone who’d had one.
Can this be avoided?
Can this kind of incident be avoided? Absolutely! There are several things you can do to keep this from happening. First, if you use microbore air hoses, the likelihood of blowouts is reduced — not eliminated, just reduced. Microbore hoses carry the same internal air pressure as regular hoses, but the surface against which the air presses is so much smaller that it reduces the amount of stress on the hose material. However, most microbore hoses are stiff and will eventually soften at the point at which they are bent. That’s usually up near the tank, where they come out of the tank’s air valve. You still have to watch for that, because when they soften, they also weaken at the same spot. The hose I have linked to in this report has springs on both ends to prevent this bending to a large extent — but you still have to look for it.
Another safety measure is to use a hose that has a braided steel sheath on the outside. This sheath keeps the rubber that’s underneath from expanding and blowing out. The hose that blew out on me was an early rubber Daystate hose that had just a 3,000 psi rating. It was rated for nearly the same pressure it worked at (2,500 psi), which isn’t good. The hoses with braided steel sheaths are rated much higher.
The stainless steel wire braiding on this air hose will prevent it from blowing out.
The most important safety measure is you! Examine your fill equipment every time you use it; and if you spot something like I did, you stop right away.
Another type of stupident
If you fail to fully connect the two halves of the Foster quick-disconnect coupling during a fill, the air pressure will disconnect it for you! It will be accompanied by a small explosion and often by the violent whipping of the air hose. Here’s another place where a microbore hose protects you because it doesn’t whip as much, plus it’s smaller, so it doesn’t hurt as much when you get hit. But the best thing is to never get hit at all. When you make the connection, listen for the click of the knurled ring on the larger female fitting as it snaps into position. That indicates that all the ball bearings inside the coupling are now safely inside the groove of the male fitting.
This female Foster fitting (left) has a spring-loaded collar that pulls back to allow the ball bearings to move outward. They go around the flat spot on the male fitting on the right, then the spring pushes them into the groove. They will hold the two fittings together under pressure, but only when the ball bearings are in the groove. It’s important to hear the two parts click together.
Summary
That is as far as I will go in this report. I know how important this information is for many of you, so I promise to come back to this quickly for part 2.
For now, however, I want to leave you with this thought. I’m being honest with you about the potential dangers that are present whenever precharged airguns are used. You have to keep an open mind about this because the things I’m presenting are not that common. They do happen and most of them can be prevented by the means and methods that we’ll discuss.
Operating a precharged airgun is no more dangerous than having a gas-fired hot water heater in your house or operating a lawn mower. There are things to be aware of; and if you follow the rules, no harm should come your way.
In 2009, I gave Pyramyd AIR two articles about the basics of precharged pneumatics:
Introduction to precharged pneumatics/A look at the history and technology of the precharged powerplant
Helpful info for working with precharged pneumatics
While I put a lot into both articles, there will be new things in this series of blog reports.
G’day BB
When I was having problems with the Eliminator’s trigger safety it discharged with a bang (unloaded) and nearly knocked the vertical blinds off the kitchen window from 2 feet away! I could not believe it was that powerful. That type of compressed power could physically remove eyes.
Yes, I nearly had a brown skid mark too.
Cheers Bob
Bob,
I did the same thing with a firearm. I adjusted the trigger on a Sako .222 Remington that I used for hunting roe deer in Germany. When I closed the bolt on the rifle in the field, prior to climbing up0 in the high seat, the firing pin dropped and the rifle fired!
Code brown all the way!
B.B.
BB I dont have any experience with PCP air guns as I prefer pumpers( us old guy got get exercise some way) but I did have a fire arm blow up on me in my early twenties, And goes right along with what you have stressed in this article to inspect and insure your equipment and gun is safe and undamaged. I had purchased a colt 45 model 1911 from a friend of mines mother that she was selling after his father passed away. This was military issued 1911 with last patent date of 1913 on the receiver that his father picked up from a deceased fellow solder in WW1 when you were allowed to bring military weapons back as souvenirs. I failed to properly inspect all parts of this gun before going to shot it I just stoked to be able to buy it and wanted to shoot it. I also got three boxes of the same WW1 original full metal jacket ammo.When I shot the first two or three clips through it with no incident,but on the fourth clip it fired three of the eight rounds in the clip fine but the fourth round made a very different sound and visibly did not hit the targets we had. After that and a quick inspection of the gun I found that the breach was stuck in the rear unchambered position and would not close until I dropped the clip out of the gun but when the breach did close the barrel was sticking about three inches out past the end of front of the gun and could moved in and out of breach easily by hand. when i got home and took the gun apart I found the front barrel bushing and recoil spring were missing and the small pivot link that held the barrel in it proper position was split at the lower pivot point and then I found the reason for the gun malfunctioning was that that fourth round was still in the barrel cocked almost perfectly sideways. I discovered that this gun had been shot so many tine with full metal jacketed ammo during the war that there was no rifling at all left in the barrel and the bullet wedged sideways in the barrel trying to take it with the bullet.Fortunately there was personnel injury to me or the friends with me other than a bruised ego. So it was promptly took to a gun smith to be repaired. The irony to this that with the gun and ammo I purchased I also was given a brand new barrel that obviously was with the gun for a reason that I found out why the hard way. So accident and stupidents do happen all the and since then i tend to triple check everything cause I could have lost a hand that day. It is now back in operational condition and I have not and will not shoot it again so as not lessen it historical significance.
Buldawg76,
If you trust your smith and he has given a thumbs up for your 1911 being safe to shoot….shoot it. You won’t hurt any “historical significance” that remains. Enjoy it.
Kevin
Hi klentz
I appreciate your reply about my 1911 and I do trust my smith as I do remember now I did shoot a couple clips through it after repair. I have done research on the value of this pistol and the fact that it is a US Military issued first edition 1911, not a 1911a1 or any more recent revisions model it has a value of between 5 and 7 thousand dollars to a collector in unrestored and decent workable condition I am just not willing to shoot it and risk it failing again for any reason. I plan to pass it down thru my generations of family and I have plenty of other guns to play with and it never was very accurate any way, you are lucky to hit the broadside of a barn with it. Doing anything to it to make more accurate which I know can be done would destroy its value. As I have aged I guess I have become more respecting of fallen members of the military ( my father was in WWII and Korean war as a copilot of B-26 bombers) and just don not think is paying respect to the dead solder by shooting it rather than preserving it as it was when he probably used it to fire his last shot with it. Since I also have the Calvary style holster that it was issued to him with I can tell you that due to the stamping on the back side of the holster that ” Perkins Campbell 1917″ is who it was issued to I will show all the respect he deserves for are freedom
Mike
buldawg76,
The ammo for U.S. 1911s through WW II was highly corrosive — both the primers and the powder in the beginning, and then just the primers. I have seen sparks come from the barrel on the first shot because the bores were not cleaned for several days after shooting that stuff. That’s probably what got your gun.
I’m glad you weren’t hurt.
B.B.
Thank you for this report, B.B. I haven’t managed to forge into PCP territory yet, but boy is it on my list. (And so I follow with interest.) Thus far everything seems very logical, but the simple statement you make that most people who run PCPs seem to have either a first or second hand story, is a very useful reminder in and of itself.
I’d also like to see a similar report, at some point, on considerations for working with CO2 and green gas/propane powerplants (which at least arguably also qualify as “precharged” designs). I know the pressures are in a different ballpark than what you’re talking about here, but I imagine that at least a few things overlap. My interest in CO2 stems from the equipment that I may well be charged with keeping and maintaining in the capacity of building the 4-H rifle program here on the southern Kenai Peninsula. The rifles they use for this program are Avanti 888s (bulk-fill CO2), and in the enablement program the instructor showed us the rudiments of using their scuba-sized fill tank to fill the rifles. I’d love to get your take on the ins and outs of this practice; although it seemed straightforward enough, I’d value your opinion highly.
As far as a green gas powerplant goes, I’m now personally invested in my first example (an Airsoft 1911 pistol) and am learning as I go, for the most part. Information on good practices for filling, lubrication, troubleshooting and maintenance has been surprisingly sparse, and although from what I can tell I seem to be doing things well enough to get expected results, I’d sure value some further opinion (in the vein of your first installment here) to either confirm what I’m doing or set me right before I develop bad habits in good faith.
Kevin,
I will do that. I was thinking about the CO2 report when I read your comment. I will wait until finishing the precharged report, because there is a lot more to come, and I don’t want to confuse anyone, but I have put your recomendation in the book.
B.B.
Kevin,
I used to bulk fill my CO2 rifle and paintball tanks. I had a 20 lb tank that I had inspected and filled. I always thought that CO2 was safe because of the relatively low pressure involved until one day when I was in the process of filling a rifle and the brass fitting holding the hose snapped off. The tank blew onto its side and started spinning around. I tired to grab it and got cut up pretty good. The tank took out 2 legs on a table on the other side of the room and broke a marble table top that was leaning against the wall waiting for me to refinish the table base. This seemed like it went on forever until I was able to throw a moving blanket over the tank and finally get the valve turned off. I realized later that the only reason I was able to do this is because the tank was starting to freeze up. I learned 2 things that day, well maybe 3. Make sure the tank is secured with chains or straps, never use brass fittings, and dont try to grab a deadly object moving at high speed. The lesson cost me some pain and totaled a $300 table and top, it also involved me having to explain my stupidity to my wife and forfeiting my shooting budget until the table was replaced.
25 years now and I still get a quizzy feeling every time I think of it or go to fill a rifle.
Sam
Your experience made me remember years back when working as an auto technician and using R-12 freon when filling a/c systems on cars with 30 pound cylinders of freon having hoses and fittings break or come loose luckily the cylinders where securely mounted on a cart so the only danger was the hose whipping about which can still hurt badly. I never got hurt when the hoses broke luckily.
This was before all the regulations came into effect and they switched to R-134, but and the end of the work days we used to get a large cup like a 32oz Slurpee cup and put warm cans of beer in the and place the end of the freon hose in the bottom of the cup and open the valve on the tank until the beer can was covered in liquid freon, you could have a ice cold beer in Less than 5 minutes. we also would break in new tech buy waiting till they were working under the hood of a car and take an empty antifreeze jug, cut a small x in it with a knife and screw a male airline fitting into the jug at the cut so it fit real tight then unplug the air hose from the wall outlet and slide the jug with air hose attached to up under the car and then go back and plug it in the wall outlet, you would swear someone just set off a stick of dynamite when that jug exploded, it did not hurt anything or anyone but would sure be fun to watch the tech jump ten feet in the air.
Mike
Mike,
Don’t get me started on industrial pranks! I was a steelworker in a can factory during a couple summers in collage and we darn near killed each other with our pranks.
B.B.
Having owned a camera store (remember those?) for some years, the favorite prank visited on the poor women in the accounting office was the casual walk-through, “just to say hello and see how things were going…” followed by the equally casual exit.
In those halcyon pre-digital days, the work-space was always populated with recycled plastic film containers (remember those?) containing paper clips, rubber-bands, parking meter change and such.
Who could possibly suspect pure evil in an apparently empty plastic film container?
Also in those days we would occasionally special order exotic films requiring special handling and temperature control and sometimes we would receive said items packed in dry-ice.
As I write this, I can visualize, light bulbs coming on over the heads of every engineering type wonk out there as the possibilities of techno-prankism manifest themselves.
Chipping a smallish chunk of the dry ice and placing it into the sealed film container gives one about 115 seconds for a casual walk-through of the accounting department, including casual and unnoticed placement of the nefarious device followed by a quick retreat.
The delay is just long enough for the accounting department to settle back into routine when the outgassing dry-ice fires the end cap off at a significant fraction of light speed and a report like BBs Luger.
Ah, good times.
We had dry ice where I used to work.
I heard some people would make small bombs with dry ice, water and empty soda bottles. Apparently it was hilarious. Not that I would know anything about it.
J-F
Mike,
When I think of some of the things we used to do to each other at work I wonder how I ever made it to retirement. I worked on Xray equip. and my initiation was while I had my hands in the transformer that generated 150,000 volts one of the guys dropped the service binder flat on the floor. I jumped about 10 ft. before the echo stopped. Even though the power was off your nerves are still on edge because the system can be a giant capacitor.
Sam
I can relate to your experience with work around high voltages. Shortly before I quit working at the auto dealership (Nissan) they where bring out the Nissan leaf a completely electric vehicle. You had to be a Nissan master tech to work on it and also had rope and cones set up around the cars with a rubber mat on the floor about two feet larger than the cars itself. I did not want anything to do with a car that house 3000 lithium polymer batteries with 480 volt and a discharge capability of over3000 amps you don’t get a second chance if you make a mistake. Nissan sent a giant tool box full of special insulated tool just for repairing this car, they also required another tech observing at all during repairs.
Mike
Now that makes me wonder how they got that to pass safety regulations. Electric cars.
Li-Poly batteries and out runner electric motors was a big game changer in electric flight with R/C planes. Lighter, more powerful, and didn’t develop a memory with its charge cycle. That’s all I fly now. And its less clean up time on the planes. And you don’t have to worry about what material you use to build your plane. Nitro-Methane and oil could do some quick damage to a plane if you didn’t keep up on the maintenance and inspection of the plane.
But on the other hand a Li-Poly battery can cause a heck of a fire. And then like you said the other hazard associated with working on them (electric cars). Getting shocked. I always hated working on something that I couldn’t see. Electricity.
Gunfun1
I used to race electric cars back in the 80s and 90s with Ni-cad batteries cause I did not want to deal with the mess of nitro fueled cars. The nitro cars were a little faster then the electrics but just to messy. When your racing off road buggies that get covered with dirt and red clay and then add nitro its a real mess chore to clean car between races. Now the electric cars with li-pos and brushless motors are faster than the nitro cars. Traxxas has a road car that does 100mph right out of the ready to run on li-pos. I know back in 80s and 90s we ran brushed motors and we would charge the 6 cell ni-cad packs at 12volts and 15 amps which would allow you fully charge the pack in ten minutes ( recommended charge rate by sanyo was 1200 millamps for 12 hours to fully charge) so we used hi tech chargers that would monitor battery volts and millamp peaks to stop charging right before the battery packs would be destroyed. It was very hard on the batteries and a pack would be quite hot at the end of the charging cycle. The races we ran lasted 4 minutes and you would gear the cars so you had about 4 1/2 to 5 minutes run time till battery was dead. those cars would suck 100 to 150 amps from a dead stop at wot throttle depending on type motor you were using. Still got all my r/c stuff three off road buggies and two on road cars. Had a blast racing them back then.
Mike
Mike
I did off road electric cars about that same time period also.
The new technology electric motors and batteris is amazing.
And back when I flew the nitro planes it was off of grass and dirt fields. I always had a bottle of windex and a roll of paper towels in my flight box.
And 20 years agoI would of never thought that the electricc planes would perform the way they do now days. Some combinations will give a plane a 3 to 1 power ratio. In other words none stop vertical performaance.
Hello BB and Fellow Airgunners
Today’s blog is an essential read for future and present owners of PCP air guns. As you state BB, it is human nature to eliminate fear from our minds after we learn and become familiar with what we consider safe operating procedure. The more times a task is performed, the more mundane it can become until a momentary lax in safe procedure causes a potential life altering event. Most of us will get away with just a scare, and as Bob from Oz so aptly admits, “a brown skid mark”. If we are wise, we will learn a valuable lesson for the future, and as BB has done, pass the lesson on so others may avoid embarrassment, and/or injury. However, some like me, don’t get a second chance to make things right, and are left to deal with permanent life altering changes. I will just say I went from being your average healthy 19 year old know-it-all, to having to cope with a brand new life as a paraplegic in less then 1 second. All from a completely avoidable work related accident 43 years ago. I hope this doesn’t prevent anyone from owning a PCP. Thats definitely not my point. I merely want to reinforce the point BB is trying to get across as I see it. And as my Mother would always remind me, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Ciao
Titus
Youth is not always the culprit, Titus. I was 58 when my life changed, like yours. We old goats can screw up, too. I, also, would like to see BB write the “Complete Airgunner”. It could,, if he chose,, include a lot of the history that I, for one, find so interesting. It could end up being a three volume series.
ed
Titus,
I am so sorry to hear of your misfortune. The son of a friend (Otho) works with heavy machinery and had an accident that put him in the hospital for weeks. It wasn’t his fault — it was due to a new worker not being properly trained on safety procedures. It caused the young man who was injured to consider a new career path.
B.B.
I worked with a guy that had four fingers between his two hands, and it didn’t happen all at once… some jobs are very dangerous, galvanizing steel wire on spindle and splice. This guy had been there for 30 years and over that period of time lost all those fingers and I would see him doing stuff that easily could’ve taken the rest. I think he was just used to it, that and something like 10,000 a finger made him pretty careless.
Its bad enough when you hurt yourself. But If I hurt somebody else well that would be just terrible.
I think the biggest point BB made was inspection. Know what condition things are in and maintain them.
Most people here know that I also mess with R/C airplanes and Drag racing at the local Dragstrip.
To start with I also use to pylon race the quickie 500 planes. There was a class that had a 500 inch wing area and the plane weighed about 3.5 lbs. The class I raced used a Nelson engine. The fastest .40 size fuel engine you could get at the time. It would swing a 9″ diameter prop with a 8″ pitch at a little over 22,000 rpm. 160 mph was obtained very easily. So some thing as simple as a clevis coming loose from a control surface or if the receiver battery wasn’t charged fully you could loose control of the plane.
Imagine what it would be like to have that coming at you out of control. And I have seen a number of people cut their fingers and hands bad on the propellers after they start the engines. The prop becomes invisible even when the engine was idling let alone at full throttle. So maintenance and a inspection of the plane needed to happen every time before you flew it. And you needed to pay attention to that propeller at all times. Of course for safety but also the cost of the planes could get ridiculously expensive and could crash in a blink of a eye if you over looked something.
And all that I can say about drag cars is I sure ain’t getting into the drivers seat of a car that’s about ready to do 150 mph in the quarter mile with out going over that car and know whats been done to it and how it was maintained. If I wasn’t involved in the work that went on to that car I wasn’t going to drive it either.
The way I see it you have to be more than aware of the situation at hand. And sometimes if you keep a mindset that there is danger that could arise that puts you one up on keeping safe.
So yes BB this is a very important report.
BB offered very good points on safety. I would also want to add that tinkering with PCP (esp the air tube and valve) is whole different game.
For example, it is easy to strip a thread or two, or replacing missing original screw with unknown tensile strength screw. Remember that those high tensile screws are chosen by the maker for a reason.
I personally witnessed a low quality replacement screw failed at higher pressure and throwing the filling nipple at steel target box. Quite a dent for sure.
BB, you can add this to the list of things I didn’t know anything about that I wrote on your previous post. I hadn’t heard of any lethal pcp risks, but my mind was full of worries. I’m glad you wrote frankly on this.
Question. How much pressure does a pumper create (say a 392 for example)? Is it dangerous? If it’s not as much pressure as a pcp (say 2500 pounds), why not? And how much pressure does it take to drive a 10 grain pellet 900 fps? I say that number because I’d love to own a pumper that could do it. Maybe it’s already out there? Lastly, why dont pampers retain their air so you can take multiple shots off of on pump-up?
Things I’ve been wondering about.
Rob
I’m by no means an expert but will try to answer.
Different pumpers have different max achievable pressure, but in general in 1200-2000 psi range. Many comes with pressure release valve as safety feature or as regulation requirement. Some tinkerer drill a hole on the valve and put a pressure gauge so that figure should be pretty accurate.
900 fps with 10 grainer on pumper has been achieved. But standard factory parts won’t survive long, esp the pump linkage. No free lunch though. In addition to parts upgrade/mods, some considerable effort to pump is required.
Retained air pumper is a common mod on 392/397 series. Even on standard 392/397 you can get second shot on retained air, albeit of much lower fps.
Is it dangerous? Personally everything that throws projectile I counted as potentially dangerous. But for comparison, 392 valve volume is somewhere around 5cc while Disco have somewhere around 125cc.
Thanks very much. Had no idea the pressures inside of the pump ears. With pcp going big, maybe the pump makers will start advertising their own pressures as a power demo.
Rob,
Lee hit the nail on the head. W.H.B. Smith says 1,200 psi in his 1957 book. Dennis Quackenbush has see up to 2,000 psi in a pneumatic he put a gauge on. So 1200-200 is what they do. Most probably operate below 1500 psi most of the time.
B.B.
Wow, didn’t know that. Thanks. Makes me appreciate my pump rifles more now.
Lol, pampers don’t retain air cause they’re made to retain fluids! I have little ones and couldn’t help it, oohh man.
Great article, B.B.
Main safety switch is still in the airgunner’s head, it must be always on and there’s no shame in re-checking if one’s not sure 100%. I’ve got 2 additional rules of my own for operating precharged airguns (while I’m still not their fan, but still):
1. Move and think slow to avoid situations when you need to think and move fast.
2. When you’re sure about something, re-check once more to refresh your confidence or to find that you were not to be so sure – both results are good for you.
Matt,
Please check mail, I’ve got al the numbers in place.
duskwight
duskwight,
Those are 2 rules that I hope surgeons and pilots live by!
B.B.
I just made the forray into pcp last november when the synthetic marauders came out. Initially with a pump, then a 4500psi tank.
Several days ago, I almost got my own skid mark, when going to fill the gun, and air started blowing out of the fill knob of the tank. In or out, air just dumped out of the fill knob. Really scared me until I was able to determine that all my fingers were intact, and it was just a leaky seal. PA was gracious in accepting it as a return, and my new one is now on backorder…
I had to make sure my fingers were all intact, because several years ago a roman candle exploded in my hand – but, again, no injury at all! It blew up right down to where my fingers gripped it. I was done with fireworks forever after that, but I don’t think I am done with airguns!
wimpanzee,
Welcome to the blog and thanks for sharing your story. I debated whether to put seals in today’s report, because when one lets go it can be unnerving!
B.B.
Holy C#*P!
Glad to hear you weren’t injured with the squibb round in the Colt. That happened to me with a rifle but it split the barrel near the end, nowhere near as close to my face as a revolver would have been.
Scary stuff.
I’ll admit I sometimes wonder if leaving the Disco sitting in the gun cabinet fully charged is a less-than-intelligent thing to do…but the convenience of being able to pick off a pigeon at a moments notice overrides my good sense. : )
DD,
I think leaving PCPs fully charged is a safe practice. It keeps their seals in place and they generally don’t have any problems when fully charged. I leave all my PCPs charged all the time.
B.B.
Off-topic … I’ve been away from the blog for some time and spent the last weekend catching up on the last two years of posts.
But I haven’t seen anything about the proper way to hold a pistol with two hands. Any references you can point to me?
Thanks.
Jikm K.,
There are several competing way to 2-hand a pistol. The government teaches one way and defense instructors teach another. The placement of the thumbs is apparently a big deal. Since 2-handing a pistol isn’t my strong suit, I will leave the rest of the answer to those who know more.
B.B.
Which was the biggest problem I had in the CCW class range sessions…
They had all four fingers of the off hand under the trigger guard, and the on-side thumb locking down over the base of the off-side thumb. (and an isoceles stance — both arms locked out)
But for decades when I did hit a range I’ve used a modified Weaver (off-side hand pulling back while on-side hand pushes forward, which does mean at least one bent elbow) with off-side index finger on front of the trigger guard — which moves the off-side thumb too far forward for on-side thumb to press against.
Jim,
I am by no means an expert on this but can point you in a direction. Massad Ayoob is a nationally recognized firearms instructor, teaches shooting schools for law enforcement including the Feds and is called upon as an expert witness. He has a number of shooting books out, one called Stressfire, which goes over the several two handed grips and stances (Weaver, modified Weaver, Chapman and Ayoob – yes he has his own grip). You can find it on Amazon if PA doesn’t carry it. In another book, he advises not to shoot using the pad of the index finger as we do for target shooting but the first joint – particularly on double action. You can make your own decision
Fred DPRoNJ
RE: The two handed grip.
In my very, very lucky life, personal Instructional commentary from a number of highly experienced people boils down to this; “Whatever it is you’re shooting at, the two handed grip on a handgun remains only necessary if the shooter wishes to hit the intended target.”
If your “$100 PCP” comes on the market. I’ll be an owner of a PCP. Until then,a $1500 price tag keeps me away. I’d rather buy a quality 1911 in .45. Or a nice waterfowl gun.
Of the subject. Did anyone catch the new program on the “American Heroes Channel” last night?
B.B. touched on this but I’m going to hit the point hard.
Not all high pressure fittings and high pressure hoses are created equal. Pay attention to the rated working pressures of what you buy. Not long ago an Airgun Retailer (not Pyramyd Air) was selling fittings and hoses only rated to around 2,500psi. Many customers were using higher working pressures to fill their airguns and many hoses failed. Don’t remember if any of the fittings failed. Luckily no one got hurt. This was one of the reasons this dealer was banned from a popular airgun forum.
kevin
Kevin,
I haven’t gotten that far, but I have preached this to the folks at Pyramyd AIR. When I talk about pressure ratings I’m going to tell some horror stories about builders who didn’t know what they meant and were putting people’s lives in jeopardy!
B.B.
Being in the process of piecing together my first “homemade refrigerator compressor powered pcp”(sound scary much?) this will probably be at, or near the top of the list, of reference material I will be using for this project. The other tab I have open right now is brazing vs soldering. I’m absolutely ecstatic…Thank you all very much gentlemen!
I am also happy to say that after what feel like months, as of tomorrow, I will finally officially be the proud new owner of the Benjamin 3120 I asked your opinion on in one of my first posts. Deal went down like this; Separated pump cup, tastefully refinished (overspray in muzzle), missing rear sight & 747 rounds (number 747 still in the hollow bolt probe) of Gamo .22 round lead ball = $100!
Truly luvvin’ life right now!
Reb
I also wondered about the pressure That pumper developed in their valves and never thought to install a gauge to be able to visible see just what it is. I am a dedicated pumper person at this time cause I can’t afford a PCP but If a 100 dollar one becomes available I would buy it. I have modified my pumper valves per some of the forums readers posts and some of my own thoughts to improve performance. Glad to know that they do get in 1200 to 2000 psi ranges. I do own a crosman 1400 which is a long stroke pumper in which I have increased the internal air volume of the valve and changed the valve and hammer springs to allow full dump at any number of pumps and regularly pump it to 15 and 20pump with the occasional 25 pumps to impress friends just getting started or to make long distance shots. I am thinking of building my own 2100 hybrid that was tested here by BB and Dennis.
Mike
Mike,
The thing is, when you install a gauge on a pneumatic rifle, the volume of the compression chamber changes, because the gauge adds volume. So that must be taken into account.
B.B.
BB
Yea I did not think about that ,its enough work to pump it 25 time I definitely don’t want to pump it 30 or 35 to compensate for the gauge volume. That’s why i enjoy this blog so much in the few days I have been a member cause several heads are better than 1.
Mike
Oh forgot to mention that my 1400 at 25 pumps averages 950 fps shots easily
Mike
B.B.,
Thank you for starting this series. A good, scary, safety reminder puts us back on the safe path until time passes and we become complacent again. A pressure vessel filled with compressed air has an unbelievable amount of energy stored in it. My original concern about PCPs was an air reservoir blowing up. But as you have mentioned today, there are a lot of things to watch out for other than the reservoir. Being 100% vigilant, 100% of the time is the only safe course, and I wish I could say I always heeded my own words.
I have done strength calculations on many different PCPs, and I am happy to say that I have not found anything that really scared me. The worst safety factor that I have found has been about 2.5 to 1, but some of the components that folks are often concerned about (reservoirs and end plugs) have safety factors of a reassuring 5 or more to one. I have also pressurized parts to failure (during controlled testing) to verify calculations. I always like to say that destructive testing is only used to confirm your calculations. The airgun manufacturers have done a pretty good job. The number one concern, and best line of defense, is the human factor. Proper maintenance and inspection, education, and just thinking before doing will make all the difference. In my case, the safety related incidents have been preventable stupidents, and almost no real accidents.
Thank you again for the reminder and the examples.
Lloyd
Lloyd,
Thank you for weighing in on this topic. Most of our readers know your credentials as the man who invented the Benjamin Rogue technology, to say nothing of building the Disco Double kits and others.
I know how careful you are, but it’s good for the other readers to see how you address safety with compressed air.
B.B.
Since todays blog deals mainly with high-pressure, the interaction between that, soft, flexible rubber-like things, and safety, please allow me to remind everyone of a few things;
A. WE are soft rubber-like things.
B. Every day, most of us risk our soft rubber-like beings on our car/truck tires.
C. Most car/truck tires are only rated for certain speed/pressure/temp conditions. These conditions tend to be somewhat lower than you may think, and easily exceeded in easily achievable conditions. Bargin-hunters especially need pay attention.
D. As BB illustrates, consider the consequences of abrupt failure.
E. Never, for one split second, think it can’t happen to you.
Conclusion: You need to go out, right now, literally and figuratively, check where your rubber meets the road.
Hello, this may be a possible suggestion of yet another topic for a future blog,,maybe here,,, I don’t know??,, I know that everyone has second and possibly first hand knowledge of firearm accidents. We don’t talk about them much, and I think if we did, then maybe they served a purpose. It would be easy for an internet author like bb to not ever mention about a known problem hose that blew up, just due to embarrassment, I bet he knows about other occurrences. There are two incidents that happened to me that I never told my parents, or children about. I probably wont bother telling my mom now, but I will tell my kids about them, and other stories relatives and co-workers told me (mainly about accidental discharges). If the conversation was open to stories of accidents that we dont usually ‘brag’ about, then maybe someone can be saved some grief, possibly worst grief. I dont know if this is the place for such a conversation, I just know when someone starts talking about this type of thing, it seems like each person in the room has some similar knowledge that they never divulged. I always thought when I someday teach young people about shooting, I will include all the bonehead things I know about that took years for me to see so they maybe wont see the same things happen.
Pete, just yesterday, for the first time that I can remember, I prematurely and accidentally fired a pellet gun before I was ready. I was sitting down and had my finger in the trigger guard when I did it. I slipped and my finger pulled the trigger. Duh. Shot a hole in the ceiling. A good lesson for me. Don’t put your finger near the trigger until you are ready to fire.
Rob
BB
I know i got way off topic with the antifreeze prank but Sam talking about charging with CO2 just brought back some good memories of when it was fun to repair cars for a living and actually be able to make a living doing it. Today with warranties being just about forever and little to no service work required auto techs are struggling. Back in 1998 when I was a GM, Cadillac and ASE Certified master technician I was making 16.50 an hour flat rate. Then got the job at Harley research and development facility mainly due to my experience in computer controlled fuel injection system’s and the Harley V-ROD just starting to be developed and tested and none of mechanics at the test facility knowing anything about fuel injection landed me the best job of my life. Facility closed in 09 and moved to Arizona so I went back fixing cars for a years or so and 11 years later they would still only pay 17.00 an hour flat rate. Warranty work only pays about half the time it actually takes to make the repairs correctly and is why I quit being a mechanic ( could not stomach replacing a short block in a car that takes a experienced tech as my self 30 hours to do and getting paid 12 hours for the work but manufacturer, working 18 hours for free) so It has also took its toll on my body as I have been told by my doc that I need to stop working due health reasons from being a mechanic for 40+ years
Mike
They weren’t paying you enough. The local shop in our town charges $80.00 and hour plus parts. They are the only game in town. The next shop is 20 miles away. On the up side, they are good at what they do………most of the time. I don’t use them much because of the cost. I do what I can myself and have the help of a friend for more difficult tasks. In return, I handle any gun work he needs and watch his house when he is out of town. I’ll bet you could do a few jobs on the side and do well.
Mike
They make pretty good money on parts too. They don’t make a huge profit on small inexpensive parts, a light bulb will cost the garage 12$ and he’ll sell it to you 25/30$ but a transfer case part that is costing him 130$ will be sold to you over 300$.
Then you have repairs where the parts aren’t very expensive but will be very time consuming, like changing the heater core where the whole dash has to come off on most vehicules.
Paying for car repairs is never fun.
J-F
J-F
I do all my own auto and motorcycle repairs my self since I am a certified master tech on cars and Harley’s. And i,m like Gunfun1 I just don’t trust anyone else to fix my vehicles cause an incorrect repair has a potential for fatal consequences. When I did repair cars and Harley’s for the test riders at the test facility i work at those people literally put their lives in my hands trusting that the repair was done correctly. Beside I learned very early in my mechanic career that if you don’t have or take the time fix it right the first time then where are you going to find the time to do it right the second time cause you don’t get paid if it comes back with the same issue you were just paid to fix. Slow down to go faster is very real. You can get quality parts at very reasonable prices from a online parts store. Go check out http://www.rockauto.com they have parts for just about every car ever made some I never even heard about and you a wide selection of the same part at varying levels of cost so you can decide to buy cheap to in the middle or top of the line parts and they are all good brand name manufactures.
Mike
BB, would it be kosher to make mention of the $100 pcp to buldawg76 here?
John E.,
The $100 PCP is going to be a great little rifle! I can hardly wait to see it come to fruition and sell like hotcakes.
Edith
I have been meaning to ask if the 100$ pcp will be a ready gun or A kit to modify the pumpers it can go on? I think a kit with everything necessary to transform people’s existing pumpers would sell tenfold to an assembled gun, and the profits would be greater. Just a thought.
If it works out and is advertised and pushed like the current marauder and discovery it should sell like hot cakes. I would be willing to buy those i know who enjoy shooting but think of bb/pellet guns as toys the $100 pcp( the one currently under development by BB and Associates) as gifts as often as i could.
WOW! Did i jump the gun in buying a Discovery as my first PCP yesterday?
Mike over at Flying dragon air rifles has a $100 PCP rifle, but i was kind of afraid of the quality and felt sticking with a bigger name like Crosman was safer.
John E.
I have already read the 100.00 build post and am thinking of building my own. Thanks for looking out for though
Mike
Anything is kosher here but personal attacks, spam, foul language and unresolvable political debates. The last one usually provoke the first and third as we found out. “How this blog works” is a good reference to, well, how this blog works. Everyone here gets onto other subjects and it often produces lots of appreciated information, ad well as humor. I.E. the strength of bears and apes conversation.
It’s a maker not associated with PA and i don’t want the Mods to think i’m advertising is all.
Are you talking about the hundred dollar pcp bb is testing/making? Or A hundred dollar pcp that’s available for purchase stock? Cause a stock pcp hundred dollars new is definitely welcomed info!
I think he’s talking about the converted XS60C that’s been selling recently.
From the write ups it’s a tinkerers dream but not really meant for beginners like me.
I’ll take the plunge. It has been mentioned here before, the rifle is a conversion of the XS60C co2 rifle being sold at the FlyingDragon website. It is a tuners gun, but easily shot(though reportedly loud ala the disco) and reasonably accurate out of the box. I do plan on purchasing one in the near future. You can also get a pump with the gun for an additional charge. Again I didn’t want to veer from the actual rules of this blog so i won’t mention prices but lets just say it’s a great deal for someone interested. With buldawg76 asking i think it is not out of line to mention it.
Yes, i agree. Its just discussing what is available, like saying wally world has such an such for such, just cause its online does make a little competition but pyramyd holds its own. Just ordered rail adapters today. As long as its not advertising we should be fine to say here has this or that. Pyramyd will be in business til the last pellet flies. Our father who art B.B., hallowed be thine blog, til tanks are empty and springs are sprung, one pellet in the ten as it is in competition, and give us this day our co2, and forgive us our flyers, as we forgive the flyers of others and lead us not into lack of ammunition, but deliver us our orders, for thine is the power of airguns forever, Amen
I hope that took you a while to think up.
But I like it. 😉
BB
That is what I do do now but mainly motorcycles, your right the labor rate at the dealer I went back to work for after being laid of at Harley had a labor rate of 90 dollars an hour but only paid its techs between 17.00 as in my case because I had just started back working there, but even the tech that had been working there for 10 years before I left there in1998 to work at Harley was only making 20.00 an hour flat rate which means you get paid 20.00 an hour per job and if warranty pays 3 hours to do the job and it takes you 6 hours to do it you still get paid 3 hours and there very very few warranty jobs that even the fastest tech can beat. I have been a ASE certified master tech for forty years and still with forty years experience rarely beat warranty times. Customer pay work is two times the hour figures that warranty is, but that is only applicable to wear items anymore such as brake pads,belts tires etc. Cars now have service intervals of 100,000 miles for trans and cooling systems and such. When I first started in 77 you did full services every 30.000 miles and got paid 9 hrs for 2to2 1/2 hours work. Also during my 11 years at Harley I also became a Harley Master of technology which means I have been to every service training class that Harley had to offer until I was laid off in 09. At Talladega Test facility we did EPA certified emissions testing to pass all regulations of the US and rest of the world, power train testing with the bike on a test stand/dyno that ran 24 hours a day for any where between 5000 miles to 100,000 miles, durability testing which is what I did as a mechanic by keeping the bikes repaired and running for the riders to ride in the speedway 24 hours a day and when I started there we were testing 7 days a week to get the required info to the engineers to fix issues with the development of the V-ROD to be released in 01, I was making 15.00 an hour salary when I started at Harley with anything over forty being time and half and Sundays double time. So I was getting paid for the time I worked not per job as in flat rate at dealerships plus all health care premiums were paid by company, two weeks a year vac, after 5 yrs 3 weeks after 10yrs 4 weeks corporate credit card for travel usage which occurred quite a bit for training and helping get the assembly line in Kansas city sorted out for mass production of the V-ROD and when I was Laid off in 09 I was making 25 an hour so to sum it up auto dealership techs do not get paid what you think they do in relation to what the dealer labor rate is, now independent repair shop do not have warranty to deal with but newer cars warranties are such that independent do not see them till they 8 to 10 years old and worn out. Besides I am also trying to get a airgun repair business going at home so the weather do not limit my ability to make money on side work cause my garage is not heated and I just do not deal with the cold weather so well any more. I got an 18 year old mind in a 58 year old body and they do not always agree.
Mike
This might be an off the wall question but have you ever thought of teaching? It seems your qualifications should easily get you a job as a master tech teacher at any of the automotive trade schools, the ones for techs after voc. school.
Sorry BB
That last post was in response to Mike blog not yours. My bad
Mike
John E.
Yea I have thought about it but the closet place that teaches auto mechanics is 50 miles away and I would rather try to work at home for my self. I had enough of working for someone else and having to accommodate there schedule instead of mine. Plus my health has got to where I cannot always work a 9 to 5 week 40 hour week. so I just tinker here at the house on my own schedule, luckily the house is paid for so i just got utilities to pay. And got a decent retirement paycheck from my years at Harley.
I’ve learned quite a few things about PCP guns in the last few years that I have owned them. One thing I have learned is they are a bit overly engineered to protect us from explosions. So as long as you stay within the manufacturer’s operating instructions you are safe enough. But go past what the manufacturer says it can do and you are at risk for injury. To date I have not ever suffered an explosion failure.
hello ,haven’t had time to read this yet just got in hope I don’t repeat anything here I’ll read after my farm chores are done.Interesting topic,I often wondered about when I’m shooting my AF talnonp that I’m hugging and everything but french kissing 3000 psi.pushed up against my face.I have to believe that person who certified my tank that day was paying attention.We all are trusting others Thur products that we purchase threw out lives such as cars,safe food etc.Do these airgun tanks have a deadline such as propane tanks were they become outdated?nothing last forever.on to firearms.Never had one blow up but I did have a 22 lr.bullet blow up the very second the semi auto ejected it.I thought I was going to be deaf for life! to this day I’m not sure what happened.Just taking a shot at a groundhog and the bullet blew up out side the chamber? I found the casing and it was black from powered burn.Next this was not a airgun but under pressure nothing like a airgun but hurt like …. the parking lot stripier I was putting air into using the port one the side of the tank blew to kingdom come nearly remove three teeth and seven stitches all because I failed to screw the hand pump lid on tightly.I did get to keep my teeth after they were wired back in.So that kinda pressure was nothing compared to we are holding next to our heads compared to a airgun! I would like to see a test done by a how do i say this,not to give airguns a bad name or scared anyone from this sport,and to be sure its lawful of course,to lets say a 3000 psi. air tank under a raw pork shoulder of ballistic Paddy and shot it with a still jacket 223 filming in slow motion.most may not want to know the results but I do and I can’t supply the tank to do so.cost to much! The auto insurance company’s wreak cars all the time to learn how to build them better and I’m sure these tanks are built to take much more pressure then what we use in them. probably two or three times overbuilt then what is safe.
Steve, maybe you could check with Lloyd Sikes, he does testing so he might film the tests or conduct some interesting Mad Scientist experiments!?!?
BB, i’m so honored that you mentioned me by name(s) at the beginning of the article, but i will be using just Ricka instead of “TF” from here on out. I know the PCP guns are safe but the recent event involving the truck tire has truly left shaken, but i’m starting to feel more like myself except my hearing is taking more time than i would like and may not get better. i have previous head trauma and concussion issues that have left me hearing the crickets and phone ringing for a big chunk of my life. SO, i purchased my first PCP a Marauder synthetic stock .25 cal back in November of 2013 and WOW what a rifle, if anybody has the chance to buy one or the interest in buying a PCP gun or rifle DO IT!!! This rifle is a joy to shoot and i would never give it up, i’m sold on pcp’s and will be looking in the future to buy another with a high shot count for target and small game/pest contol. I try my best to follow the advice that many have given here about going slow, checking hoses, fittings, storing with a charge to keep seals seated, and so on to give me the best chance to catch a problem ahead of time. The concern i had was more of a “has it happened before” and how bad could it be for the shooter or person charging the gun and less of me really wanting to get rid of my rifle, i made a joke because that’s how i deal with things, humor, i got it from my DAD. i will say i read a lot of reviews about the Hill pump and people complaining about the hose length and when i got my Hill pump that hose was the first thing i looked at, nice and short less whip effect right!!! So thanks BB for writing this article and i will definetly check out the other articles you noted and can’t wait for part two, and to all stay safe!
I feel your pain on the exploding tire.At the age of 11 I was filling my bike tire/tyre(for the Brits) with compresses air at a garage and got distracted. It blew up next to my left ear and i couldn’t hear out of it for a few weeks.
As for the Hill pump and Marauder I recently purchased the same, though in .177 and can’t be more pleased.
compresses=compressed. As for the left ear i have tenitis(sp) to this day, though being around compressors, using power tools and nail guns at work doesn’t help either.
John E., i also work around air tools and a large noisey shop compressor and various air operated machines, grinders, etc. i have been trying to get out for four years but when your boss keeps throwing money at you to stay what do you do? Just wish i got out before this latest incident and avoided more physical problems, don’t get me wrong,there are others who have it worse… BUT, on the airgun topic i love my Marauder, what a joy to shoot but might check into a .177 Marauder for more shots per fill but i think maybe something with way more shots like a 290cc and up bottle, 400cc would be nice, maybe .20cal, adjustable power, all the goodies. Tax returns will be here in April !!!
Sorry John E., tried to respond and got a server error? The constant noise of air compressors, tools, grinders and the like are getting to be to much. I think a desk job is next for me. The Marauder is excellent but I think a high shot count and larger res. Plus adjustable power and maybe .20 cal would be next!!!
John E,I to live with tinnitus and have most of my life.The constant ringing “never”ever stops.Some days are not so bad and some days it will drive ya crazy! then birds chirp sometimes that aren’t really there.But I have learned to live with it and for some reason since I had the massive H.Attack and quit smoking,its not as loud these days?
Steve and JohnE.
in the last nine months my health has slapped me in the face, I did not have heart attack but have had two stents in LAD artery in aug and one in the right coronary artery in nov, also have COPD/emphysema and quit smoking the night before my first heart cath and since then have had ringing in my ears that came and went, but lately seems to be more constant. i also worked in loud work places with compressers and air tools. got to tell my doc about, is there any way to treat it
Mike
I heard ads on WHAS 840 AM (out of Louisville, KY) all last year about help for tinnitus. You might try Googling their website, whas.com, inquiring about the claim to cure this with medication. Perhaps this ad is still current and your doc is aware of this option. Good luck, keep me posted.
Steve
Thanks for the info about Tinnitus on WHAS I have not check into there info yet but have looked up on the web and it states that it usually a symptom rather than a condition which means there may be another health issue that is causing the ringing to occur. They say its due mostly because of improper blood flow to the ear. But it is age result of age or sudden changes in health such as in my case of having heart and lung conditions come on suddenly. Got a doctor appointment next week to see what he says.
Thanks for the info
Mike
Hey Steve
I just got back from the doc yesterday and he said that the ringing in my ears is tinnitus and that I have a lot of fluid/mucus on the inside of my eardrums , mostly the right one. He gave me a script for some anti fungal meds to take and try to help get to Calm down some. he said it would probably not ever go away completely but the meds should help make it bearable at least. Going to pick up the meds today and we will see if it helps. I sure hope so because it gets so bad at times it like having a kid running his fingernails down a blackboard inside your head. I will let you know if it helps.
Mike
Imagine what I hear after working in a machine shop for 30 years. Not as much as I use to that’s for sure.
And I definitely have to pay better attention now days when I do get a chance to do some squirrel hunting. Can’t hear them little son of guns like I use to.
Any high pressure system has my respect and maybe a gets a healthy portion of fear too. I’ve never had anything let go on me dealing with high pressure hydraulics or aviation O2 but the modern lightweight O2 bottles still make me a little nervous just because even though I KNOW they’re strong I have trouble convincing my fears of that!
I still remember with amazement the story of the guy who was using high pressure O2 in a big bore PCP and continued to do so even after being warned.
The only way I imagine I’ll ever get a PCP is if my marksmanship gets to the standard that I’m competing so successfully in 10M air rifle that the only thing keeping me back is my 602 – at this point that doesn’t seem too likely 🙂
A few years back at an IDPA match , I was standing next to someone shooting a Glock 19 ( I was RO’ing). It was a long string and He had too shoot allot to knock down the poppers. He got a squib load , then did a malfunction drill and fired, before I could tell him to cease fire. Fortunately all it did was bulge the barrel !! . I went out and bought my Glock 26 after that !, had it been a gun with a thinner barrel it could have been bad. The cause was a reload with no powder, again attention to detail and having a mental checklist reloading would have saved him some money. GUYS ALWAYS WEAR SAFETY GLASSES WHEN YOU FILL YOUR PCP !! It is the rule here in the shop at Air Venturi.
Gene Salvino
Buldawg 76,hope you check for late replies as I do.So if you do all I can say is yes there was a radio add for the longest time last year every day.The radio channel called WHAS 840 AM out of Louisville Kentucky carried this add for a long time.The add person pitch was no operation just a medication and that they could reduce the ringing greatly or stop it.That’s all I can tell you and maybe that’s enough for you to research and get a answer.You might go to whas.com and inquire about this.I thought about but believe or not hearing aids help me to ignore the ringing plus I can hear a squirrel pass gas hundred feet away!So yes it now seems treatable wasn’t long ago nothing could been done about it.So good luck if you pursue it.
I have just put an order in from PyramydAir for my first PCP, a Benjamin Discovery.
However I had not ever given a consideration to the idea of be afraid of high pressure accidents,,, but now i am kind of a little. LOL! ;o)
I guess it’s good, in that your article helped promote a little caution in my thinking that may have otherwise been lacking. For example, I certainly didn’t know about the scuba tank hardening or metal working that you brought out in your linked articles. I was just going to run out and pick up a cheep used scuba tank, but now i’m rethinking that option.
Thank you BB for sharing your knowledge with us.
OldNoob,
Yes, a little fear that gives rise to respect is a good thing.
I would definitely rethink buying a used tank. Most are sold because their owners know they will probably fail their next hydrostatic test. I would buy a $150 tank for $40 if it is still in hydro. That way you are just placing a small bet.
B.B.