hello, new dude here.

Build a homemade water gun or water balloon launcher and tell us about it.
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randomblahguy
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Joined: Wed May 16, 2007 11:08 pm

hello, new dude here.

Post by randomblahguy » Wed May 16, 2007 11:18 pm

hi, i'm randomblahguy, resident of arizona where good water fights are a very nice thing to have going in the summer...

currently i'm interested in the possibility of using CO2 as a convenient way to pressurize water cannons (using a pressure valve, of course) as well as WBLs.

i think a couple of my friends are going to have a water fight at some point in the summer so i might want a homemade soaker to help my team win...

in any case, its nice to meet you all :)

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Silence
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Post by Silence » Wed May 16, 2007 11:38 pm

Welcome to the forums!

CO2 is fine - as long as you contain it in metal tubing up to a regulator or a couple of regulators, and as long as you have access to CO2 canisters. But even then, I would not necessarily use CO2 with PVC unless you know there aren't going to be any cooldown issues - PVC weakens when it is cold. You could use metal, I guess. At any rate, I think having to pump a lot is part of the game, but whatever.

What are your plans for the water gun? Will it be a CPS homemade or an air pressure homemade?

randomblahguy
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Post by randomblahguy » Thu May 17, 2007 12:05 am

at the moment i have no plans except for the WBL...it'll probably be an shoulder-fired cannon similar to a bazooka with breech-reloading capability. i seem to recall seeing a paintball cannon that did that, using a CO2 tank, pressure regulator and i believe the air tank was PVC, but i can't be sure of my memory anymore after AP tests and finals...@__@

i wonder if the 110+ degree weather we experience in AZ will help in the cooldown issues. i'm aware that PVC will get brittle when its cold (and the freeze that happened this winter did crack a few of our sprinkler pipes...), but the generally hot weather should keep the temperature from dropping too much. i'd be worried about expansion...

right now i'd like to build a CPS homemade someday but i have no plans for that as of now. perhaps i'll see if i can obtain a CPS 2100 or some similar soaker and mod that first.

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Silence
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Post by Silence » Thu May 17, 2007 12:46 am

Ah yes, people have done shoulder-mounted cannons before. I'd advise checking out spud gun, paintball, or airsoft site if you're interested in them, at least for the moment. Especially if using CO2.

The 110 degree weather probably isn't going to help too much. Considering how cold the CO2 is, and considering how much it can cool down the PVC if uncontrolled, having a temperature 10-20 degrees higher than some other places might not help too much. Once again, though, we water gun enthusiasts don't know much about CO2 systems, at least as far as I know.

Exams...ugh. This year wasn't bad for me, but I'll be taking at least 5 APs next year...at least it means we're excused for the entire school day. But things will free up soon, as school's over in less than 3 weeks. :)

randomblahguy
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Post by randomblahguy » Thu May 17, 2007 3:52 am

eureka!, i found the link that had the launcher i'm attempting to base mine off of!

http://www.pukindogspaintball.com/cannons/BECC.htm

the guy used a regulator to bring the pressure down to manageable levels as well as an anti-siphon to prevent the regulator from freezing...hm, that sounds good. if i used metal for the chamber and the pipe leading up to the valve as well as a check valve set to open at ~90 psi i think it could be done. and i'm scaling up the pipe to 2"...

i had an idea for a riot cannon that uses both compressed air and pump power to launch blasts...i'd explain it but i'll post that in some other thread, seeing as i'm tired and i have a physics final to study for =/

hahah AP (remember, it stands for Advanced Procrastinators)...i'm a sophomore and i've taken AP world history, AP us history, and AP calc...means that next year (when most of the kiddies take 5 or more) i'll only be taking two or three =D

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SSCBen
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Post by SSCBen » Thu May 17, 2007 10:56 am

Welcome to the forums!

I don't have much to say about the water balloon launchers, but I do have a few things to say about CO2. Don't use it. The main problem you will encounter is that it is expensive compared against air. Paintball and Airsoft guns are meant to use small amounts of gas, while water guns use large amounts of gas. This also brings up another problem: the number of shots you can get from a single CO2 tank is low because the tanks do not contain very much gas. Another reason is convenience. If you have an air compressor, pressurizing that way is much more convenient than pressurizing from CO2 tanks. When you completely run out of CO2, you'll have to either switch the cartridges or refill the cartridge with a larger tank of gas.

I think the brittleness issues are exaggerated too. That wouldn't be my first reason not to use CO2. There are other more significant problems.

Now don't get me wrong. If you think CO2 would work great, by all means try it out. I just don't see CO2 being comparable to air in convenience of price.

As for AP, it stands for many things, among them, Added Pain, Added Paper, and Adventures in Pain. I'm sure there's some better alternate versions of the acronym too. SilentGuy, I would not suggest taking 5 AP classes. I was taking 7 before I changed my schedule the first time and then moved down to 5 the last time I changed my schedule. It's not a good idea. You won't be able to focus on any one individual class. That and it's simply too much stress due to the way they work you up about the entire thing.

randomblahguy
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Post by randomblahguy » Thu May 17, 2007 10:45 pm

hm, i do suppose you're right about the cost of CO2 and it'd be a little harder to come by since i dont think you're allowed to buy pressurized gas in AZ if you're under 18. and since i don't paintball, i really dont have any other good reason to buy CO2. =/

hm, i wonder if the the gases that airsoft guns take (green gas, TOP gas, etc) would be feasible in a WBL. i'm just pointing out that they exist and perhaps i'll look into the use of those in a WBL. Compressed air free but what about the compressor? if there exists a battery powered one that would last a battle or two and is powerful enough to get to around 90 psi then i'd definitely use that over CO2...

and yes, about AP, i agree. 5 AP classes = death. or if you dont die, you'll have no life. i really don't suggest taking them unless a) you're einstein b) you're jesus c) you're god.

no, seriously, if you want to stay sane, don't do that.

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Silence
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Post by Silence » Fri May 18, 2007 1:45 am

I would also be concerned with the price and convenience of gas - I was under the impression that you were a paintballer or whatever though, or that you had already considered the potential issues. For me, it would not be so much an issue of price (C3H8, CO2, high pressure air, etc. are cheap if you get large tanks - cheaper than a large air compressor), actually. Just that I am more comfortable having the capacity to power my own weapon (just like I'm a person who prefers buying books than using the library, although I do both), for safety, for convenience, you'll need a more complex setup for high pressure gas, etc. And most of all, you don't really need to use such sources. I'm glad you found the link, because it shows the plausibility; it's just that you can have a multi-shot water balloon launcher that uses CPS rubber tubing for constant pressure instead.

Don't even think about airsoft gases - those are even worse in terms of price. They're just repackaged (green is C3H8, red is CO2) gases that are sold at fifty times the price and in unsafe containers.

There are definitely battery powered compressors that can last a good while. Search for wetmonkey442's water balloon launcher - it's got a potent air compressor with a battery. I think he said it lasted for eight charges of the fairly large pressure chamber.

Yeah, I'm probably going to die next year. I'll probably have to drop everything non school-related, definitely including sports and perhaps the forums. You're half on the mark by suggesting I'll have no life; it's actually somewhat the case right now. Soaking is just an outlet.

AP Chemistry is going to be the real kicker next year, but AP Physics C will be easier. Next year, I think I'll either put off all history for 12th grade (since I'm loading up on sciences next year) or take AP US History online, and replace the school period with AP Computer Science AB. I took Comp Sci A this year, and both levels are easy - very fun, and no homework. Online US History will dissipate nearly all the workload, especially since I've seen the review and I know I can already do very well without taking the class. That would also bump me up to 6 APs while lightening the workload. Pretty nifty, eh? :D

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