This is my contribution to the semi-auto zero valve. All the beige stuff is PVC and PVC couplings and reducer brushings. The largest piece of PVC is 1", the smaller piece to the far right is 1/2", and it's nested inside a ground-out reducer. The smaller piece to the left is 3/4" PVC. The kinda orange stuff inside the 3/4" is CPVC with o-rings. The golden tube is 7/16ths brass. The brown squares are dowel rods (or anything else that will cut off airflow) The black circles are holes, and the curved tube is clear plastic tubing of just about any diameter. The coupling on the nested 1/2" PVC is where the barrel is attatched.
The blue thing is mystery material. It's connected to the end of the brass. Basically, it's whatever would cut off air flow to the barrel best. I'm thinking some kind of rubber washer assembly, or maybe wood dipped in plastidip. if anyone has any sugestions, they would be most apreciated.
Basically air flows into the leftmost chamber from the airtank through the plastic tube. It flows into the brass through the fist set of holes, and out through the second set into the main chamber. When the brass is pulled back, the second set of holes is pulled into the leftmost chamber, cutting off the main chamber from the air tank. As this is happening, the mystery material looses contact with the nested 1/2" PVC opening the valve.
The idea is that when the valve is opened, the greatest possible volume of air can flow through the valve, without any restriction whatsoever. This design also eliminates the need for a third temporary air chamber like the one in zero's semi-auto valve.
Zero- If any of this looks familiar to you, this is an evolution of the d-valve design I showed you. I'm trying to convert it for a piston instead of a diafragm, but before I can get to that point, I need this design to work first, so I can eliminate some variables and potential problems first instead of trying a shitload of new things at once and not knowing which of them is making the whole system fail to work.
Edit: Just to explain the airflow, I've included pics of the valve open and closed.
Edited by Langley, 29 September 2004 - 02:56 PM.