Boom! The classic potato gun harnesses the combustion of flammable vapor. Show us your combustion spud gun and discuss fuels, ratios, safety, ignition systems, tools, and more.
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spudmatic
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Sun May 11, 2008 5:02 pm
I dont know if there was another thread like this but im too lazy too look so ill make one. I have a box of about a couple hundred paintballs left from when I sold my gun

and im not a fan of pneumatics so I was wondering could I make a Paintball combustion? or would it work or just shoot a splash of paint out the barrel?
My thoughts were if I made it with low enough power(smaller chamber) it might work.
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Lentamentalisk
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Sun May 11, 2008 5:35 pm
My guess is that the gases are too hot and you would just bust your balls (not too much of a pun intended.)
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spudmatic
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Sun May 11, 2008 5:38 pm
Putting the heat issue into perspective I guess I could try putting some sort of wadding behind it, even a potato piece.
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LynyrdSkynyrd
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Sun May 11, 2008 5:39 pm
The only way i see that working is to put wadding between the ball and the chamber so the gasses won't "bust your balls".
you could also make a paintball shotgun by building a bigger cumbustion gun with a 2" barrel and fill a dixie cup with paintballs and put wadding on top.
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daberno123
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Sun May 11, 2008 7:37 pm
It has been done before, and sold commercially.
Ever heard of the
Tippmann C-3?
It runs off propane instead of CO2 or HPA. So to answer your question, no, the paint won't burst from the heat
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Lentamentalisk
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Sun May 11, 2008 7:47 pm
that would be really nice to make a combustion paintball cannon near semi-auto.
I must have been thinking of a hybrid paintball gun... that must have been it.
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Do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come;
Live life in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering.
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Carlman
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Sun May 11, 2008 7:54 pm
daberno123 wrote:It has been done before, and sold commercially.
Ever heard of the
Tippmann C-3?
It runs off propane instead of CO2 or HPA. So to answer your question, no, the paint won't burst from the heat
the gases dont actually ignite though, its like using green gas in airsoft..sure its combustible but its used for pressure not combustion

Aussie spudders unite!!
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Lentamentalisk
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Sun May 11, 2008 9:11 pm
are you sure? Those stats can't be right then about the number of shots that they get off, because there is no way in hell there is more propane in a propane tank than CO2 in a CO2 tank, because propane is a huge molecule in comparison to CO2, so its liquid must be larger. Even if it is a similar size, there is no way there is 60 times as much. There has got to be some combustion going on in there.
Do not look back, and grieve over the past, for it is gone;
Do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come;
Live life in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering.
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FordGtMan
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Sun May 11, 2008 9:20 pm
I thought the whole idea was for it to combust but im not sure
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Eddbot
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Sun May 11, 2008 10:24 pm
I think it starts off as liquid in the chamber, then goes to an expansion chamber, which is then compressed via the hand pump (read the picture dots) then let escape through the barrel. That's how you get 50,000 shots 8)
edit: i doubt that the heat from a combustion is hot enough for long enough to actually melt a paintball, just my $0.02
:edfirst:
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Lentamentalisk
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Sun May 11, 2008 10:33 pm
actually rereading it I am pretty sure that (I should hope) They let a tinsy little bit of propane into the chamber, and then with a single stroke of the pump, refill the chamber with fresh air. Maybe they do it in the other order, but either way, that is how I would do it if I were them. Though I would think you could get more than just 50k shots, but I could be wrong.
Do not look back, and grieve over the past, for it is gone;
Do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come;
Live life in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering.
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MrCrowley
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Sun May 11, 2008 11:58 pm
spudmatic wrote:I dont know if there was another thread like this but im too lazy too look so ill make one.
Next time leave that attitude at the door before coming in.
You're not going to get very far if you keep posting without searching. This is your only warning.
And I can recall a few threads asking the same question, so why don't you stop being lazy and go find them.
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Insomniac
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Mon May 12, 2008 12:49 am
The C-3 actually does use combustion to propel the paintball. From memory, the pump action is to vent the chamber and load another ball, and also activates a small valve to let a teeny bit of gas into the chamber. When you press the trigger, it uses a battery and a stungun-like circut to ignite the gas. Then you pump it and fire again. I was reading about it and apparently it starts to get warm after a few shots, which is the opposite of what would happen if the gas was used without combustion.
I wonder how much deeper the ocean would be without sponges.
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psycix
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jrrdw
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Mon May 12, 2008 4:14 pm
MrCrowley wrote:spudmatic wrote:I dont know if there was another thread like this but im too lazy too look so ill make one.
Next time leave that attitude at the door before coming in.
You're not going to get very far if you keep posting without searching. This is your only warning.
And I can recall a few threads asking the same question, so why don't you stop being lazy and go find them.
Seconded! and backed up!!