Level 10 and Cold Weather (Fairly Long)

[GeoffreyInNJ]

I would like to know, exactly how sensitive a Level 10 setup is to cold weather. I seem to be having trouble getting my gun to fire consistently in the 280-290 range without it over pressurizing and leaking out the back of the gun.

My current setup is a Level 10 installed in an RT Pro. I have the largest carrier in it, that will not leak (I think it is 1 ring). I have 3 shims in it and I have the middle spring. I cut about 1.5-2 coils off already to get it to work right when I set it up. I configured it in a room that was about 70 degrees give or take and I was able to get the marker shooting right on the verge of 300 with no trouble. It was also pounding away on RP Premiums and EVIL suspended half way between the power feed and the breech, by electrical tape and no chops and no boltstick. PERFECT

Sunday when I went out to play though, I had trouble getting the marker to fire above 260 without hissing air out the vent anytime the trigger was not held back. This day, we were using Sever paint, that was a pretty small bore and it was in the mid 20's-mid 30's all day. As soon as we got going the hissing started. I did oil it too, immediately prior to this with 7 drops of GOLDCUP into the macro like connector coming out of the RT Valve.

I figured that there was probably a incorrect paint to barrel match causing poor efficiency at first. I had a 14" JJ Ceramic barrel, a 12" CP .689 barrel and a Freak Kit, to work with. The freak was the worst offender in this. I tried going with a smaller and smaller insert, but by the time I got down to a .682 insert, the marker wouldn't fire. It seemed the bolt didn't fit correctly into the barrel when I went that small. It fired consistently with larger inserts, but the velocity was low and it hissed all the time. I have ordered a .14 inch .685 CP barrel and am looking for an Autospirit to see if either of these get better efficiency with the Level 10. I was thinking this might help my velocity issues and still have enough spring left to make the bolt stop on most paint.

Do this seem correct to any of you tech types out there?

The other question I have is about the Carrier O-Ring. I was trying to figure out what it's reaction would be to temperature extremes. Does it shrink or swell in hot or cold weather and what is the effect of this on the Level 10s performance?

My marker seems to have a very small operating window in terms of where the gun starts to fire and where it started to vent. When it is in that window at an acceptable velocity everything is great, but lately it feels almost like I'm tinkering with it as much as I was back when I got my first mag, before the days of Nitro and CO2 was always blowing out O-rings.

Would it be a good idea for someone with these issues to order a few more springs and cut them to slightly different lengths to have them handy? This seems faster than swapping out carriers should the carrier o-ring swell or shrink but not leak. The stock spring that came with the kit does not seem to have enough back pressure or tension on the bold to stop it from chopping paint. Especially in cold weather when the paint becomes even more brittle. I was also thinking of adding up on as many shims as I can and trying the stock spring, but would this cause the bolt to stick more often?

Well, this turned out to be more of a ramble than I thought it would be. If you took the time to read it all (and can make sense of it), I appreciate it and hopefully you have some ideas that can help me get this to work more consistently regardless of the temp and without having to tinker with it all day.

Thanks in advance.

[Dayspring]

I also ran into some problems with the cold on sunday as well. At the end of the day, it would take about 4 trigger pulls before the gun would fire. My guess is that all the oil I had put in at the beginning of the day was done... I guess the Level 10 SOP should be "oil in the ASA at every tank."

[BlackVCG]

Putting a new piston in your gun will increase the blow-off pressure. Over time, pistons begin to wear down in that they can't hold as much pressure without venting. A new one will give you more room to work with.

Chances are, things are a bit more stiff since it's cold outside. I'd try going to the next larger carrier and see how that performs. Sounds like you're doing everything right and just need a new piston and a change of carrier o-ring tension. Also, barrels under .686 have a tough time with LX because the bolt tip diameter of LX is increased to reduce blow back. If you get smaller barrels, try sliding the bolt into the barrel before you put it on and fire. You could end up with a stuck bolt in the barrel and possibly damage it. You can sand down the tip a bit if you need to.

[GeoffreyInNJ]

Thanks. I already tried a new reg piston before I started chopping the spring and that didn't help. When I finally cut the two extra coils off the middle spring, I was able to get the veloicty up in the 290's without venting.

[chuey]

Did you replace the regulator assembly in its entirety? How about the regulator seat? I did what the AGD tech told me replaced those two things, keep my mag oiled and its working great! My mag is about 4 years old and that seemed to do the trick!

[GeoffreyInNJ]

The RT PRO is relatively new. I got it around labor day. All I replaced was the Brass Can looking thing with the O-ring at the bottom. I popped a new one in I picked up at the store and there was no difference. I previously replaced the reulator seat when I was getting my first shot hot. Thanks.

[chuey]

Hmm Reg seat on backwards? If you notice its beveled and will only stay in place by snapping it in one way. If you have it on wrong it will just fall out. Outside of this I'm stumped since your marker is new.