SpudFiles

So far I have purchased 2 solenoid valves and in the end screwing both of them up. My problem is that the design of my modded solenoid is that the blow gun is mounted right to it. (I am not doing it any other way because of the design) Occasionally I get a massive (I mean massive lol) kickback with a specific projectile which in turn displaces the valve and brakes the seal. This has been a very big problem so far. If I wanted to move over to electrically activated how much slower would the valve open? Would it be noticeable?


I have looked at the sprinkler valve guide but It didnt answer my questions. Any help?

Several times slower, perhaps up to five times slower. Through a chronograph you would notice a small change, though you would not be able to notice a difference while shooting.

Would you notice a difference in projectile distance?

Not unless you used identical pressure every time, with a consistent, accurate projectile, no wind and identical angles, location etc.

Even if you did that, the loss would be very low.

Infact, the loss would be overcome by the benefit that nearly every single shot would be identical.

What's your barrel length?

electric solenoid valves have something to prevent whats call water hammer so as inonickname said they will open much slower but i will have to disagree with him on the power vs a modded one have you taken a look at the hole the solenoid seals its about the width of a pencil lead and gives substantially longer opening times i believe you will get satisfactory results but you will notice a difference in power over a modded valve(unless you have a LONG barrel then opening times won't make much difference)

If the round is really massive then you don't need a fast a valve. A slower valve will give about the same performance. GGDT is your friend and'll give you an idea of how much the performance will change.

If your problem is recoil, then a slower valve won't help much. The only easy way to decrease the recoil is to decrease the muzzle energy.

Is your problem that the recoil puts too much pressure on the blowgun snapping it out of the valve body? If that is the case then just move the blowgun off the main valve. Connect it with a short piece of pressure hose, perhaps using a pair of 1/4"NPT to hose barb adapters and a hose clamps. If you are using a blowgun as both the trigger and the handle to support the gun then I wouldn't be at all surprised if the recoil was enough to rip the blowgun out'a the valve.

spudtyrrant wrote:electric solenoid valves have something to prevent whats call water hammer so as inonickname said they will open much slower but i will have to disagree with him on the power vs a modded one have you taken a look at the hole the solenoid seals its about the width of a pencil lead and gives substantially longer opening times i believe you will get satisfactory results but you will notice a difference in power over a modded valve(unless you have a LONG barrel then opening times won't make much difference)

The opening time is 1/2 the story.

The rate the electric pilot can vent the pilot area is a finite speed. The rate the chamber pressure drops with the valve open is a finite speed. If the pilot pressure drops slower than the chamber does, then the diaphragm will be balanced to close. Sux if it happens before the projectile has left the barrel. Major performance hit if it closes during the launch, and then re-open as the pilot continues to drop after the projectile left.

Can you say Honk? This is the cause. Smaller chambers are more prone to this.

My Barrel is 2ft long. Has anyone ever though of throwing one of these on their modded valve if they still want to go electric but still get a better performance? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Brass-1- ... ccessories

well considering it cost more than the sprinkler valve itself no i haven't it wouldn't increase performance terribly either if i was going to spend enough to get the sprinkler and that i would just make a piston valve

walapu wrote:My Barrel is 2ft long. Has anyone ever though of throwing one of these on their modded valve if they still want to go electric but still get a better performance? http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Brass-1- ... ccessories

Many of these valves are special purpose and are listed by the pipe size (1/4 inch). The valve orifice size is most likely another size, but not listed. You may need to contact the manufacture for this detail.

If you wish to maintain electric operation, examine your sprinkler valve carefully. Many of them can be drilled out to a larger size and still operate. Remember doubling the diameter increases the cross sectional area 4X. The entire pilot valve path will need to be re-sized including the port through the diaphragm. Do not adjust the eq port size. Leave it at it's original size.