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Busted Vindicator

Posted: Mon Mar 08, 2010 12:29 am
by soakernerd
Oh NO!! My vindicator's PC burst while I was pumping it :mad: :(
Has this happened to anyone else? Is there anyway to fix it? I believe that the OPRV failed, though I have never opened it. If it has any bearing on what happened, a small hole under the gun was dribbling after I filled it.

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Mon Mar 08, 2010 1:00 am
by zeda.beta
That could just be an overflow valve in action, but you might want to open the gun and take a look. If you have seen the hole in the PC, check the link here.
-Zeda

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Tue Mar 09, 2010 6:28 pm
by soakernerd
Great News!!!
I opened the gun up prior to ordering a replacement from amazon with the hope that it could be salvaged. Thankfully, the bladder was intact! The problem was with a plastic ring, which holds the bladder to the pipe leading to the nozzle valve. I will be posting pics when I get the chance. This weekend I will probably replace the broken plastic ring with a metal tubing tubing clamp. That should make it nice and sturdy.

However, this still leaves the problem of how it broke in the first place. I am positive that I over-pumped it, but since I had not removed the OPRV, it still shouldn't have broken. Does anyone have an idea about how to fix the OPRV? I would like to not have to count pumps while in battle.

P.S.
The bladder on the Vindicator is not shaped like a traditional CPS-bladde, but is rather a cone with a dome at the flat end. I am not sure how it will respond to a K-mod, and I am not going to try it, as everyone in my area uses stock guns, and wars aren't fun when you can walk all over the competition.

P.P.S.
Within the resevoir, there is a woven "net" that keeps the bladder from swelling to much.

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Tue Mar 09, 2010 9:41 pm
by C-A_99
Stock blasters are supposed to be designed so that you're not able to over-pump them. At worst you may wear out the PRV but that's also not supposed to happen.

Post some pictures if you can. Sounds like the PC they're using is a hybrid between a spherical and diagragm now. (I highly doubt they'd shape it like any kind of cone with sharp bends) This sounds plausiable given the shape of the Vanquisher's PC case/reservoir extension. Given the other end is still a flat plate with the rubber part nailed down, I doubt this gives much performance gain over the older diaphragm.

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Tue Mar 09, 2010 11:31 pm
by soakernerd
Here is the Bladder

Image

should I wrap tape or something around it so the hose clamp doesn't dig in to it?

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Tue Mar 09, 2010 11:56 pm
by zeda.beta
That would be a smart idea, but I would probably use teflon. It dulls the sharp edges while increasing the fit between the two.
-Zeda

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 2:26 am
by steelboot
With the right sized balloons, that bladder looks k-moddable...

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 6:24 pm
by cantab
It looks more like a variant on the cylindrical PC to me. The shape makes power-modding awkward, since ideally you need a balloon shape that matches. I think cylindrical (modelling) balloons would be better than spherical, but you still might have a problem in that the wide end would be stressed when empty while the narrow end wouldn't

If you could dip it in liquid rubber, that would likely be the best possible option. Similar to traditional candlemaking. I'm not sure if the 'liquid latex' sold for kinky purposes would have the right mechanical properties. Something like this, http://www.tomps.com/shop/liquid-latex- ... -p-15.html , intended for craft and mouldmaking use, might be better.

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Wed Mar 10, 2010 6:47 pm
by C-A_99
Well on the bright side, it's much easier to power-mod than the HydroPower PC.

I'm curious to what the bladder's shape is when expanded. A PC replacement may be easier to do than a power-mod on the existing bladder though. The Vanquisher is likely to be using a similar or the same PC as this one.

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Sat Mar 13, 2010 4:46 am
by soakernerd
Update: when attempting to fix the gun, I accidentally snapped the pump off were it connects to the bladder. ugh. to salvage the gun, I used a hose clamp to connect the bladder to a 1/2" PVC coupler. that was then connected to a tee, which was hooked up to both a ball valve and the pump. using this setup, I was only able to get ~30ft of range. Why? It is using the same pressure system, but larger tubing. this should mean more range, not less.

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Sat Mar 13, 2010 1:33 pm
by JuchTurtles
That's kinda weird. Sounds like the Vindicator is sorta like a Spherical CPS with a cone shaped bladder. And it's also weird how you're getting less range with larger pipes.

Maybe the pipes are so large that you aren't getting the amount of push the smaller tubes can give it. Like the big pipes are half empty when you pump, and the small ones are full with water per pump. Then when you shoot, it takes more effort for the water to come out, thus 30 feet of range.

Maybe if you disabbled the PRV the larger tubes would work better.

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Sun Mar 14, 2010 2:08 am
by soakernerd
by attaching a check valve to the nozzle, I was able to fully remove any air from the blaster, just by pumping in water. I believe that the problem is the nozzle size. I am using a endcap with a 7/64 hole in it. more tests will be done when it stops raining. (wind+rain=bad soaker weather= :( )

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Sun Mar 14, 2010 2:28 am
by C-A_99
As long as it's warm, rain is perfectly good weather to have water wars in. I haven't gotten to have any nighttime wars though.

Once the PC is pumped up with water, does any of it leak out of the nozzles?

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Sun Mar 14, 2010 2:34 am
by soakernerd
no. the ball valve keeps it sealed tight. I have scrapped the shell and am using 1/2" PVC for the tubing. it is a straight shot from the PC to the nozzle.

Re: Busted Vindicator

Posted: Sun Mar 14, 2010 2:37 am
by soakernerd
As long as it's warm, rain is perfectly good weather to have water wars in. I haven't gotten to have any nighttime wars though.
I was referring to testing, because it makes it hard to measure the distance.
The ball valve I am using makes a perfect seal.