SpudFiles

I bought a Bell brand bicycle pump a couple weeks ago, as my old one was ready for the trash.
At first, everything seemed fine. I threw together a small metal airsoft gun and the pump worked perfectly on it.

I put it away and didn't use it for a week, then used it fill up my hybrid, but I couldn't get past 10psi before I heard an airleak. Suprisingly, the leak wasn't from my hybrid, it was coming from the pump. It was coming from the BOTTOM of the pump, which is supposed to be a solid piece of plastic.
Now, thoroughly PO'd at bell, I took it apart, and found this inside. What appears to be chunks of scrap plastic were melted into the housing at the bottom. At first I thought I might have caused something to melt from the heat of compression, but I hadn't hardly use it yet.

What's worse, my old pump had sat outside over the winter, and also about 3 months worth of rain, and I could still use it. It was just inconvenient, as the piston didn't seal reliably.

I wasn't able to find the leak, but I think it's coming from inside the check valve, and somehow leaking out the underside.

Has anyone else had problems with bell? I can't return this, so I apparently wasted my money.

That blows!
Scavenge what you can, the main part of pumps can hold quite a bit of pressure. My beloved Blackburn bike pump which is about 35 or 40 years old was broken by my mom's class (frickin' 6th graders ). I'm planning on using the aluminum body as a chamber for something, not sure what yet.
I'm also planning to get a large bike pump, hooking up a propane meter to it, and using it as a portable Gen II hybrid tank.

I have had trouble getting much pressure from my Bell pump also. Mine will get to about 60 or 70 psi before it starts leaking air like crazy.

Here's what you can buy if you're not planning on going past 100 PSI and you want a little quality.

Go to Home Depot, go to the air tools section, (with the air-compressors, air fittings like Q.D.'s and such), and buy a Husky floor pump. Their only around eight to nine dollars and they last for a LONG time. Just don't go past around 100 PSI or try to pump up something ridiculous like a truck tire or a carry tank with it, as the heat of the high or sustained compression melts the little check-valve inside of it. I got one to pump my marble cannon up to 300 PSI before it finally crapped out, as well, so their a little more tough than your average bicycle pump.

markfh11q wrote:Here's what you can buy if you're not planning on going past 100 PSI and you want a little quality.

Go to Home Depot, go to the air tools section, (with the air-compressors, air fittings like Q.D.'s and such), and buy a Husky floor pump. Their only around eight to nine dollars and they last for a LONG time. Just don't go past around 100 PSI or try to pump up something ridiculous like a truck tire or a carry tank with it, as the heat of the high or sustained compression melts the little check-valve inside of it. I got one to pump my marble cannon up to 300 PSI before it finally crapped out, as well, so their a little more tough than your average bicycle pump.

couldnt you just install a metal check valve in the hose?

just go to the store and buy some CA glue the stuff is crazy. i was at someones house once filling up a 5 gallon air tank wit a bike pump. i got to about 80psi then suddenly a piece of the pump went flying accompanied by a rather loud boom and the hiss of leaking air. i turned off the tank witch had leaked down to about 50psi. then i went found the piece put a few drops of CA glue on it, put it back on the pump, and waited 15 min. the pump worked fine, no leaks. now since then i have switched to reg'ed co2 becuase i realized how annoying it was to pump a 5 gallon tank, but if you just need something temporary grab some CA glue

i have the same exact pump and that also happened to me. It sucks but i can still pump it to 100 psi or so.

Bell has a warranty that they will replace it, dont they? My helmet has that anyways!

I have a repco pump similar to the bell ne which leaks at about 70psi thats why I got a mini compressor, it cost the same as the foot pump but can go up to 250psi

I'd like to see what a marble at 250psi would do to the guy that made this dodgy pump!!!! kidding!! I'll never point it at a living being

mtronic wrote:I have a repco pump similar to the bell ne which leaks at about 70psi thats why I got a mini compressor, it cost the same as the foot pump but can go up to 250psi

I'd like to see what a marble at 250psi would do to the guy that made this dodgy pump!!!! kidding!! I'll never point it at a living being

trus me, they do quite well but they spin liek crazy and curl off course.

i had this problem the other day, i might try a hop up to get the marble to spin the way i want it to.

peace

They're too light and get effected by the wind far too much, like my fishing sinkers fly dead straight but because of there weight they have a huge parabola in flight so I either I use higher pressures or aim higher.

MrCrowley wrote:They're too light and get effected by the wind far too much, like my fishing sinkers fly dead straight but because of there weight they have a huge parabola in flight so I either I use higher pressures or aim higher.

yer my sinkers fly straight as well freaking great ammo but expensive/time consuming to make.

im just thinking of a way to make use of marbles, i was think that backspin may help at least a little bit

Yeah if you force the spin you want on the marble it might work but then you still have the wind problem, my paintballs do the same thing. I buy my fishing sinkers, I get 20 for $3NZD so its not bad at all.

not sure on the exchange rate but its $2 for 5 where i last saw them so its a lot cheaper to buy/take/borrow to keep old batteries and make my own.

well that pump sucks! get a Tigro they have them in australia, i got mine off my dad he had it for 20 years he said, and it is still going strong, i just had to change the hose cause i left it outside and it went all hard and weird? but now it work perfectly and pumps up to about 300 psi in 3 minutes.