15 replies to this topic

[THIRST]

Hey, right now im working on an airpowered shotgun.I really need it to shoot 50 feet PTG 9 shots out of 1 barrel. Ive got the barrel and shells worked out, but im stuck on what kind of SIMPLE(!!!!!) valve to put on it.
The basic idea is pump it 30 times with a portable bike pump, put the shell in holding 9 rounds, and fire it 50 ft with about a 2 foot spread.
I have absolutely no idea which kind of valve to put on it. Im trying to keep this really basic. A ball valve would be a bad idea because I want to keep it steady while firing, and its too hard to turn fast enough for 9 shots coming out of 1 barrel to go 50 feet. The problem with a hose nozzle is that it would be near impossible to make it perfectly airtight...so what kind of valve should i use? Remember its got to be simple to use, to make(because i need it easy to make many) and i dont want it to be homemade.
What kind of valve should i use!!!!!!?????
thanks

[rawray7]

use a solenoid sprinkler valve. hook three nine volt batteries together. one of the solenoid wires goes directly to the batteries, the other goes through a momentary switch and then to the batteries. it'll be about 12 dollars for a solenoid valve, and you can get them at home depot.

or, use a sprinkler pistol thing-a-ma-valve. that's about 8 bucks.

[THIRST]

This is a really stupid question to ask, but what is a momentary switch?

Oh, and you cant hook just one wire up to a 9 volt let alone 3! If I were to get 3 9 volt battery cases , connect the wires so the red are with the red and the black are with the black, I would need 2 connecting wires: one for the red wires and one for the black wires. I would need at least 2 wires to hook up the solenoid to the batteries. And I dont know what a momentary switch is, so i dont know how to hook it up...

[Zero Talent]

Well, if you want to get technical, you can buy cases made for 3 9V batteries, with two electrodes on the outside for wire connections... Or you could even cut that one wire into many small wires! ...Either way, a momentary switch is a simple 1/0 switch. Basically, push switch, a connection between the wires is made, release switch, and the connection is broken. Or at least I've heard it that way... Do solenoids have spring return mechanisms? Otherwise, you'd have to reverse the current to close the valve, and I have everything wrong.

[THIRST]

Where could I get a momantary switch?

[rawray7]

1) you can get a momentary switch at any hardware store in the electrical section
2) zero, solenoids are open with a current, and closed without one, no reversing is needed.
3) 9v batteries are the 8th wonder of the modern world, they actually lock themselves together. so, you still only need one wire, seeing as how the solenoid has two built in.

[THIRST]

please elaborate, and thanks for all your help guys, im stupid and cant post pictures on the internet(dont know how lol:( ) so i gues ill fax it to u guys or nerfhaven, so when im all done with my shotgun, if it wokrs ill get it to u guys.

[taber man]

one more problem rawray, if you connect two 9-volt batteries together, they basically just run their currents through each other, and if they are left like that for too long, they could explode. and how would you connect the third battery and the wires? and you want to know how i know that a wire could not fit in two connected 9-volt batteries? because i have done it before.

[THIRST]

no taber man, he doesnt mean connect them so the energy runs through the same current and just runs through both batteries and wires, he means take 3 9V batteries, use the adaptor. Thjey should now each have 1 red and 1 black wire, twist all of the red ones together, and all of the lack ones, and then connext each set of wires to a different thing...it would work, but the selanoid only has 2 wires, and we need 3, 1 for the black, 1 for the red, and 1 for the momentary switch.

[rawray7]

okay....you are all wrong.

let's think of 9v batteries as bricks in a brick wall, they alternate:

**+ *-
+*-**+ *-

in this diagram each set of + - correspond with the knobs on the top of the 9v battery. if you view those bottom two batteries as right side up, then the one on top will be upside down. (for some odd reason, it's taking out my spaces, so i added the ** to make everything align. disregard the **)

now that is how you hook them together. then, you attach the wire from the solenoid to the = below A. then you attach a wire from the - below B to the momentary switch. then, the other solenoid cable to the momentary switch.

edit: will someone with half a brain and a digital camera help me out here?

[Zero Talent]

http://www.geocities...ied/9Vbrick.txt
?

[taber man]

okay, THIRST, Rawray, forget what i said then, i wasn't thinking on the same frequency. sorry.

[rawray7]

?

zero, i love you.

[THIRST]

thanks for all your help guys, but Ive got my new basic design figured out. In this prototype it uses a fancy ball valve lol, and uses my own custum removable airtanks. Bacicall its 3 in. of pvc, then a ball valve, then 12 more in. of pvc, then an endcap with a hole drilled in it for a tire stem valve. I am making 7 seperate removable air tanks. When I run out of the 7 tanks, i have an emergancy bike pump at the back of the gun. Interchanging the tanks is done really simply, just put one on, untwist the ball valve on the tank, and the connecting ball valve on the gun, air gos thru, close them both up, put in a new tank(or shoot whatever u wanna do first) and do the whole process over again. Each tank will have its own tire stem valve so you can refill it with a pump before the battle. This gun(it would be easier to understand with pictures...but i dont have any cuz i havnt made it yet) is so easy to make, the hardest part about the gun would be making the airtanks. Essentially, the barrel with be 12 in. long and will hold 5-7 homemade 5/8 homemade darts each having 1 # 6 washer(Ive been using those for years and they work great). Im positive that all 5-7 darts the gun shoots will reach at least 70 ft. or more, depends how full the airtanks are, if your using its own pump and how full it is. I for this gun i will need: 10 ball valves, 3 T's, 8 tire stem valves, 10 endcaps, 2 45 degree elbows, 1 portble bike pump, and a little under 15 feet on 1/2 in. schedule 40 PVC...the gun itslef looks awsome...at least the drawing does, and I am confident about this guns abilities as a loser or a shotgun...because it wil be so easy to use because of the pre-pumped air tanks...waht do you think?

[rawray7]

to tell you the truth, i am feeling a little woozy about your air tank design. i mean, i think i could pump up a gun faster than i could reach to my belt, grab an airtank, unhook the airtank, then put the new one on, then open the ball valve, then shoot, then repeat. it sounds....eh.....hefty.

[THIRST]

ya, it does, but its really not...I just made it seem longer tha it is...this is all you have to do: put airtank on on ball valve connector on gun, turn both valves. Thats all, and when you want to take it off and put a new one just do this: pull the tank off, put new one on, turn airtank ball valve. thats all, i jut made it sound complicated by doing some optional things. really, the connecting ball valve on the gun is just so if you want double the firepower, you can by turning it closed, removing the airtank, put on a new one, open............. and to allow more air circulation when not in use, and so it will leak less. Its actually really simple to put one on and switch.....: put airtank on, twist both ball valves, shoot, take airtank off, put new one on, twist airtank ball valve. Its one of those things that you have to see for yourself...of course Ive never seen it cuz i just invented it today....but im pretty confident it will work. Because of the obvious diffusion rate, some of the air inside of the airtank will stay in there, but most of it will go down into the main air chamber in the gun, but all you need to do is pump it up alot before the game. Ray, you said you could pump it faster than you could change tanks...your completely wrong. Changing air tanks will take a maximum of 6 seconds, pumping it 30+ will take you more like a minute...but if you really want to you can, thats why i incorporated and emergency pump at the back conencted to a tire stem valve just inc ase you run out of your 7 air tanks(you never will in a battle... it you can either hitem up close with your shotgun, or pickem off from afar with the loser...all you have to do is change how many darts you put int the barrel. I hope to have this gun finished by the end of the month, and I will eventually end up maing many more interchangable airtanks.