Budget Sally
Posted: Thu Apr 19, 2007 11:44 pm
I made this one out of an old fire extinguisher, a 2 by 4 and some electrical pipe. This is as simple as it gets for using a fire extinguisher as a chamber.
Since I didn't have the right tools to weld I decided to leave the valve on the fire extinguisher and use the gauge built into it. The flexible hose you see attached to the extinguisher is a... well I don't know what it is but I forced it into the extinguisher, no leaks even without plumbers tape. The barrel is electrical pipe, its not pressure rated but I have done tests on it to 150psi and it still holds strong.
To fill it, I detach the quick connect fitting and attach it to a DIY tire valve on a hose, then I pull the trigger on the extinguisher till it reaches 120psi.
To load I pull the blue hose out of the barrel a bit so I can load marbles or grapes through the breech, then shove the hose back in.
To fire I detach it from the filling thingy and connect it back to the other thingy. Then squeeze the trigger while pressing your thumb down on the breech to stop the hose from flying out.
Its not super powerful, the fire extinguisher has pretty useless flow but if you get the right sized grape, it will splat it against the fence on the other end of my yard with reasonable force.
This gun is another good reason why you should never take good parts to the tip.
Since I didn't have the right tools to weld I decided to leave the valve on the fire extinguisher and use the gauge built into it. The flexible hose you see attached to the extinguisher is a... well I don't know what it is but I forced it into the extinguisher, no leaks even without plumbers tape. The barrel is electrical pipe, its not pressure rated but I have done tests on it to 150psi and it still holds strong.
To fill it, I detach the quick connect fitting and attach it to a DIY tire valve on a hose, then I pull the trigger on the extinguisher till it reaches 120psi.
To load I pull the blue hose out of the barrel a bit so I can load marbles or grapes through the breech, then shove the hose back in.
To fire I detach it from the filling thingy and connect it back to the other thingy. Then squeeze the trigger while pressing your thumb down on the breech to stop the hose from flying out.
Its not super powerful, the fire extinguisher has pretty useless flow but if you get the right sized grape, it will splat it against the fence on the other end of my yard with reasonable force.
This gun is another good reason why you should never take good parts to the tip.