Paintball Gas Systems
Propellant gas system is a tank which contains gases in compressed form. The function of this system is to propel paintballs across paintball marker barrel.
Gases used in paintball markers
Carbon dioxide is used in inexpensive markers as it is supposed to be of lower quality. This gas is cheap to manufacture. The tank containing carbon dioxide is pressurized at 1800 PSI. The gas may condense into liquid at this pressure. This gas can exist in two forms inside the tank, both liquid and gas. This liquid must be converted back into gas before it is used. During rapid firing, the liquid form of carbon dioxide may evaporate and cool the tank. Due to this, marker can freeze and stop working for sometime. It may also cause damage to the o-rings. Cold weather also creates problems by dropping the pressure in tank. Carbon dioxide is generally packaged in any of the four sizes of 9 oz, 16 oz, 20 oz or 24 oz. Larger tanks of 20 oz capacity have sufficient propellant for about 800 to 1100 shots, depending upon how efficient the marker is. The disadvantage of using this gas, is, that it may provide less consistency in performance if the temperature falls below 50 degrees.
Compressed Air is stored in tanks at high pressure. HPA tanks are much more expensive as they have to accommodate high pressure. They are manufactured from expensive materials. These tanks have volume between 45 ci to 88 ci. Tanks having 3000 psi are enough for 500 to 1300 shots depending upon the efficiency of marker. These tanks have much wider operating temperature. Compressed air is immune to the problems associated with cold weather. It provides consistency. HPA makes use of regulator for keeping pressure constant. Due to this, compressed air tanks are consistent and accurate. HPA is gas at all temperatures. It is much more stable gas than carbon dioxide. Hence it is cleaner and better propellant than carbon dioxide. Every marker can use HPA with ease.
An experienced paintball player always prefers to use a paintball compressor. Even though most paintball players use carbon dioxide as their primary paint ball gas system, it appears that this is a rather unreliable mode to adopt while playing paintball. What is happening now is that most manufacturers have started replacing their conventional paint ball gas system with nitrogen or compressed air. Now if you wish to compress your own air as per your convenience, every sports shop stocks a paint ball air compressor that you can purchase and for once you will have made an investment which will last you a lifetime for sure.
The only reason the paintball gas system is becoming so popular is because it is not just reliable but very easy to use. Paintball gas systems, popularly called paintball air compressors come in variety. For example those paintball compressors sold by Bauer are subdivided into categories like Field, Shop, Player and Team. This helps to group the kind of people or players who will use them. Most paintball air compressors are created and distributed by the American Airworks Company.
Paintball air options
The fact that nitrogen and compressed air have replaced the use of carbon dioxide in the game of paintball does not only make the use of carbon dioxide in the game obsolete but also helps the newer development to allow a greater number of paintballs to be shot at a time than could be done previously. Also the previous use of carbon dioxide caused the users to suffer from bad health due to the side effects of the gas but now the newer conventions in the paintball gas system has bettered health conditions for players.
The paintball air compressors that Bauer produces are of extremely good quality and have been recognized as one of the best in the market. These paintball air compressors include a high pressure air processing system to ensure that only pure, dry and hygienic high pressure compressed air is produced which will not freeze or foul the surrounding air, making it hazardous for users to breathe. However since high pressure air and nitrogen are used together so frequently as substitutes to carbon dioxide, it is obvious that one is confused for the other by most commoners. For the purpose of shooting paintballs, these two kinds of air are interchangeable but that does not make them the same.
NITROGEN VS COMPRESSED AIR
The basic difference between the two is the process of creating them as well as the method used to fill them in a paintball gas system. As of now the ready options for refilling paintball gas systems are limited. However, here are available some easy methods. The first option can be to purchase a scuba cylinder and a scuba fill-station, and then filling up the paintball gas system from the scuba tank. This is the most economic option definitely but limited too. Standard scuba cylinders cannot pressurize the air inside as much so the quantity that can be filled into your paintball gas system is not a lot either.
The other option that you can try is to use a booster. The booster is slightly expensive when you buy one as well as some air or nitrogen which you can easily avail of at a local welding or gas station. Then you can interconnect your rented storage cylinder, boosters and paintball gas system. You try to reduce the air in the bottle to a pressure as low as you can afford to make it and then with the help of the booster you boost this trapped air to your desired pressure again. This is the best option for low volume refilling and it is also cheaper in the long run than trying to indulge with the scuba cylinders every time.
The last option that can also be used is to utilize a compressor. New compressors do not need the complication of a booster as they are already integrated. What a compressor does is that it absorbs the air in the atmosphere around it and compresses it through multiple stages to the pressure you desire. This compressed air can then be stored in cylinders and used as and when it is needed. While most people do not use this method because of its exorbitant cost, in the long run this is the one that you can benefit from the most.
