Looking For help Building a Paintball Tank!

[spudkilla]

Hey, guys I need some help building a paintball tank. I have looked at tons of pics on war pig but i still don't know where to start. I have a riding lawnmower. I have access to a butt load of wood. And maybe a tig welder.
So any one else have or is making a tank that can give me some advice?

[paaiyan]

Hmm, I've never played a game with tanks so I'm not sure what all it needs to have on it and all that jazz. If you can give me some general specs I can throw some ideas your way.

[spudkilla]

Well What do you mean by specs? Here is the warpig page http://forums.warpig.com/phpbb/viewforu ... 4url]click

[paaiyan]

Well let's see, looks liek there's a turret, you could use a pneumatic breech-loader for that. In order to make sure you stay within the projectile velocity restrictions you couldfind a pop-off valve that would prevent the pressure from going above a pressure that would cause the projectile to exceed maximum velocity. Then it would probably be approved by field authorities. Make sure to cut small slits in the sides so you can fire out with a standard paintball gun, but rig it with flaps that open out. That way you can poke the muzzle of your gun out, but when you pull it back in the flap closes and no stray shots can take you out.

[spudkilla]

Hmm.....Those are some ideas there......What about the actual tank itself AKA the frame, how to mount it to my mower and be able to take it off my mower.

[paaiyan]

Well to tell you how to mount it I'd actually have to be there to see what you have to work with. For the general frame, you could use PVC, wooden dowels, aluminum tubing. For the skin, definitely use nothing weaker than 1/4" plywood, preferably 1.2". To get in you could do many things, you could have a top hatch, a side door, or you could rig somethign liek a funny-car body where the whole body tips up on a hinge and you could have a mechansim to lock it down. I'm thinking about how you could do removable. For that I'd say get a round frame amterial, like dowels or tubing of some sort, an dyou could have one of those little things that the tubing can snap into, I forget what they call them. It's shaped like a "C" and it snaps around tubing to hold it in place.

EDIT: You could use a clamp like <a href="http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=p ... e">this</a> to mount the frame on the mower in a few places where screw holes wouldn't matter.

[mark0491]

but then if you account the wieght if the "skin" is the lawnmower going to be fast enough i would suggest using yeas wooden dowels to build the over all frame then use something like Double walled Tarps the use as the skin Cutting flaps then sewing them Togeather using velco for easy closing as for mounting i would mount it Under the front end and on the ball hitch While adding "stabilizers on the side .

[paaiyan]

Well I don't know about how strong that skin would be. My paintball gun easily chot through 4 layers of heavy duty visquene when I was shooting just over 100 fps. Shooting at 300 fps I htink it would tear a tarp up. Maybe you could get hold of some good canvas, the real stuff, that's pretty strong.

[MisterSteve124]

well first off how big do you want it to be? I don't think that you could make it too big but I suggest you take the govener out of the lawn mower. You could probably make it big enough to hold 2 maybe 3 people including a driver.

[paaiyan]

well first off how big do you want it to be? I don't think that you could make it too big but I suggest you take the govener out of the lawn mower. You could probably make it big enough to hold 2 maybe 3 people including a driver.

Lawnmowers have governer switches?

[praetorian91]

Two people would seem a realistic goal. One person drives, and one sits up in the "turret". Three might be a little optimistic for a lawn mower.

[spudkilla]

Any sketches for the body?

[goathunter]

Spudkilla,I suggest you sign in to Warpig and ask the the guys for tips.I've played against most of them.They are good and helpful folks.They won't fault you for being new.If you're in the southeast there is the Blackhearts and ODX both teams have exceptional tanks.
Just ask around or go to a scenario game and see if you can take a look at the tanks.Most teams are more than happy to show off the goods.Just like a car show...Only cars covered in plywood and decked with guns

If you ask nice enough I know the Blackhearts and ODX both aren't past letting interested folks ride along.

[paaiyan]

There any good tank groups in Oklahoma?

[goathunter]

Check in Wyndotte(I hope I spelled that right). D-Day usually attracts a good amount of tankers.If there are any local teams those guys would know who.