Level X carrier o-ring life cycle

[drg]

I've read a few posts about the bolt stem o-ring (in the carrier) leaking progressively on a level x setup, and people seem to use tighter and tighter carriers to eliminate the leak, then replace the o-ring when the smallest carrier leaks.

Is this the normal life cycle of that o-ring? What kind of longevity should i be expecting out of each ring? Just trying to get a feel for whether and how many I need to stock up on to keep my level x mag happy, and whether I am experiencing premature wear. I am experiencing the first leak after perhaps 2-3 cases.

[jade_monkey07]

if it was a brand new oring, yes you will see some immediate wear on the seams of the oring. in my case once i tuned it the second time it was perfect, i havnt tuned it in 8 months and about 30 cases of paint (i play alot) :P

LUUUV my mags

[Spider-TW]

Same here. I think I had about four cases through before the leak became more than 'occasional'. Haven't changed that one for about eight cases and it is just now starting to act broken in again. How often you oil them should have a lot to do with the life of that particular oring. I guess I oil my mags a little less than once per case.

[athomas]

After the initial carrier change due to oring break-in, you probably won't have to change the carrier again for a long time. I ran over 50 cases through mine and still had no oring problems. I still use the original carrier oring that I put in when I bought the level 10 years ago. If you don't get the gun dirty or run dirty air through it, the oring will last for years and many cases of paint.

[drg]

Wow that is excellent news. Thanks!

[Spider-TW]

Yeah, dirty air was present each time my level 10s reached their "break in" leak, now that you mention it.

If you clean your bolt and power tube after playing at a field all day and it has fine black residue on it, you should use more oil than you use with clean air. You can see a big difference between old gasoline compressors with poor filters and a good supply of industrial nitrogen.

You will usually get a little residue anyway, and you can only run so much dust and exhaust carbon through a high pressure compressor before it stops putting out, but if you can see the difference you can bet your oring will feel it.