level 10 - occasional leak down the barrel. why ?

[CFD323]

Here's the chronological order of my tweaking :

Monday : Installed the level 10 in my Emag with a 1.0 carrier and 2 shims. Fired about 800 balls in my backyard and worked fine although velocities were all over the place. Not sure if that was due to too small of a carrier or poor paint to barrel match.

Tues/Wed : Fired more paint through it and worked fine other than erratic velocities.

Thurs : Got parts from AGD and replaced the reg seat. Velocity still not the greatest but I think much is still attributed to bad paint to barrel match. Still running the 1.0 carrier and 2 shims

Sat : Go to the field to play. Gun works fine first couple games but then as I'm pinned down right near the opposing flag station the gun stops firing. It just makes a clicking sound when I pull the trigger. I turn off the tank and turn it back on again with no luck. I shake the gun with no luck. As I'm walking off the field I'm shaking the gun, in case a ball is somehow stuck in the breech. All of a sudden the gun starts working again. I added another shim and assumed that was the problem. For the rest of the day though, whenever I would set my gun down between games and then pick it back up again to fire, the first shot would just click again although the 2nd shot would then fire fine. It did this for the rest of the day. Not sure what the problem was...

Tues : Posted a message on AO Tech Forum about this problem and BlackVCG advised me to switch carriers. I had brainfarted when I first installed the level 10 and I wasn't using the same o-ring when I was trying to find the best carrier. Duh, that can cause a big problem. So today I use the SAME o-ring and try different carriers. I find now that I could go up to a 1.5 carrier with 3 shims and it works fine. I tested the 2.0 carrier but it leaked so 1.5 it is. I oiled up the gun and fired some shots through it and then notice as I chrono that every once in a while when I hold the trigger after a shot that there's a leak down the barrel. The leak lasts about 2-3 seconds and stops. Sometimes it happens and sometimes it doesn't. Maybe once in every 40-50 shots. Could this be a level 10 problem or should I replace my on/off o-rings ? I don't want to go down a carrier size because I think that's what was causing the gun to occasionally not fire. When I let go of the trigger there's never a leak so I think the carrier is ok but why does it occasionally leak while holding the trigger ? And if it's the on/off o-rings wouldn't it leak all the time ? Is the carrier o-ring maybe broken in now and it's not making a perfect seal ? Other than that my velocities are more consistent and I'm very happy with this bolt. (Diablo Blaze paint sucks !!)

I've put probably 300 dry fires through the Emag and I've shot another 2300 balls through it. The o-ring should be broken in by now I would think.

Any ideas anyone ?

[Hopalong]

Sounds like On-Off

The first problem that you were experiencing was probably bolt stick. The O-ring fit was a bit too tight so it would sometimes the bolt would get stuck on it.

As for your new problem, if your marker doesn't leak down the barrel normally, but does leak in spurts like you described when you hold down the trigger, then it's probably your on-off.

Here's what's going on: your on-off is slowly leaking into your valve chamber. Since you're holding the trigger down, the sear isn't in place to hold the bolt back so when enough pressure builds up in the valve chamber, the bolt "burps" to vent the pressure.

Try replacing your on-off O-rings and see if that helps.

[BlackVCG]

The leak down the barrel when you hold the trigger is perfectly normally for a Level 10 equipped gun with a loose carrier o-ring fit. There's just not enough pressure to get the o-ring to seal, so it leaks by. All that is leaking by is the residual pressure in the air chamber.

You'll never notice it in E-Mode and there's no reason to hold down the trigger, so don't worry about it.

Just leave it the way it is and get it out and run some paint through it. It will take some time for everything to set in and get more consistent.

[rmhawk]

i had the same problem. I would get a small barrel leak every 50-100 shots. then it would just stop. i just let it go and have now fired about 400 rounds without it leaking anymore.

[tmnothing]

Just today I noticed I'm having the same problem. I get a leak that lasts 2-3 seconds every time I pull and hold the trigger. I have a minimag 1.5 carrier/2 shims. My first thought was that my carrier o-ring is broken in and I was going to go to the 1.0 carrier. After I saw this thread I was thinking maybe that's not what needs to be done. One time I had a small barrel leak without holding the trigger but I shot a few times and it stopped and hasnt happened since. Should I go down a carrier or do I have something else going wrong?

[BlackVCG]

Originally posted by BlackVCG
The leak down the barrel when you hold the trigger is perfectly normally for a Level 10 equipped gun with a loose carrier o-ring fit. There's just not enough pressure to get the o-ring to seal, so it leaks by. All that is leaking by is the residual pressure in the air chamber.

You'll never notice it in E-Mode and there's no reason to hold down the trigger, so don't worry about it.

Just leave it the way it is and get it out and run some paint through it. It will take some time for everything to set in and get more consistent.

[Tunaman]

a leak down the barrel with the correct carrier in there is surely a sign to take out those shims. Add them back one at a time till it leaks again and remove 1. This makes for some chop-less days for sure...