My little project

[snoopay700]

yea, thats another one of the things I was trying to limit also. IDK about their royalties, but I'd think that a board/noid conversion would have a lower fee than a whole marker since they would sell at a much lower value than a complete electronic marker. IDK, I'd like to avoid paying someone else for my work every way possible....

this is all really hypothetical thinking at this point, I'll be more worried about that in a month or so, depending on this giant waste of time coconut cutter project.

Yeah, i'm in the same boat as you, but i figured i'd rather have something that works rather than having to have people learn to shoot my marker, so that's why i'm opting for my electronic design. I may just not actually produce it, just make it to say i did, get a patent if i can, and wait until hopefully theres a time when that whole SP thing gets challenged from previous artwork, although i don't see that happening anytime soon sadly.

[y0da900]

There is always the option of pneumatically timing things to create a "dwell" that should help eliminate/reduce the risk of short stroking. Although that would add further complexity/tiny parts to the design.

[snoopay700]

There is always the option of pneumatically timing things to create a "dwell" that should help eliminate/reduce the risk of short stroking. Although that would add further complexity/tiny parts to the design.

Exactly, i was trying to stay away from that because it would be hard to build, especially if i was the one building these things, and i wanted my marker to be as simple as possible. I think i've achieved that with this design i have, but i'm going to need to pay royalties most likely.

Maybe i should go back to my newer design i came up with and come up with a way to make it legal.

[Hilltop Customs]

There is always the option of pneumatically timing things to create a "dwell" that should help eliminate/reduce the risk of short stroking. Although that would add further complexity/tiny parts to the design.

what I'm working on right now has very little restriction on the air path to fill the dump chamber....and it begins filling when the bolt is less than 1/6 of its way on the back stroke. I'm hoping that will limit short stroking.

The possibility of short stroking on my initial design(bolt I posted earlier) was massive, and looking back would have definitely required a board to control....or be limited to low rof. I was actually thinking about drawing up a pump marker based on that bolt and a sear, but I just dont have time and there were a few problems that would need worked around(user would have to completely stroke pump back or it would basically auto-trigger at partial pressure).

[Hilltop Customs]

Exactly, i was trying to stay away from that because it would be hard to build, especially if i was the one building these things, and i wanted my marker to be as simple as possible. I think i've achieved that with this design i have, but i'm going to need to pay royalties most likely.

Maybe i should go back to my newer design i came up with and come up with a way to make it legal.

without going into too much detail could you explain why it would go full auto(i think thats why you said it wouldnt be legal)?

[snoopay700]

without going into too much detail could you explain why it would go full auto(i think thats why you said it wouldnt be legal)?

Well one idea i had to fix it would make it full auto, but otherwise it would just shoot twice per trigger pull which isn't very legal. I still maintain that it's one of my best designs but getting it to work 1 shot one pull is hard.

[y0da900]

what I'm working on right now has very little restriction on the air path to fill the dump chamber....and it begins filling when the bolt is less than 1/6 of its way on the back stroke. I'm hoping that will limit short stroking.

The possibility of short stroking on my initial design(bolt I posted earlier) was massive, and looking back would have definitely required a board to control....or be limited to low rof. I was actually thinking about drawing up a pump marker based on that bolt and a sear, but I just dont have time and there were a few problems that would need worked around(user would have to completely stroke pump back or it would basically auto-trigger at partial pressure).

I think the real issue with short stroking is not how long you stay off the trigger between shots to allow the chamber to pressurize, but the possibility of removing your finger too quickly during a pull and forcing the cycle to start over mid dump.

That is assuming that the design would fire in a similar fashion to a mechanical Ion would, by venting from a point, you create a differential pressure and subsequent shifting of forces.

You can also go out of your way to make sure there are as few restrictions as possible in that vent stream, or design a cycle that can't stop until it finishes, then requires a reset of the vent or supply (more difficult of the two).

[Hilltop Customs]

actually the volume to vent and the distance from ram to 3 way is already minimized by design(3 way is seperated from ram fill point by ~1/10" and the orface size is the area of the 3 way sealing o-ring, right now being 3/32".....its a different design of a 3 way/ram than I've ever see) Exhaust port size has yet to be determined, I think I'm going to start with it small to have a restriction, which can be drilled out larger if needed in the future.

the volume required is determined by the stroke of the bolt and the surface area of the bolt where there is a pressure difference.....in my case the cross sectional area of the bolt near the tip+ the area of the ram rod(haha, "car-ram-rod".....2 super troopers quotes in a day!) determines the minimum area to balance the system.


back to simulation labs

[Hilltop Customs]

well, I was just thinking.....I'm going to put off the paintball gun at the moment. I had plans on prototyping it in my CAM class as my project, but Instead I think I'm going to produce a cnc mill

I realize it will be an expensive project, materials, bearings, motors, and a control center.....I'm imagining a investment not even including the control center close to $1k, but coming out with a machine would be well worth that investment, especially considering I'm planning on purchasing one in the near future either way.

I'm going to have to calculate the theoretical tolerances of the product, and discuss with the prof about a serious amount of precision grinding required. I think its a feasible project, just have to have approval yesterday so I could study the HASS centers now, order all the components within the week, and begin drawing up all the machined components next week as parts arrive, and begin machining in 3 weeks.

If the project gets switched.....I might keep this thread updated with it untill I can run my first project on the homebrew-precision mill.....which will be my marker design.(hypothetically if the mill project is accepted)

just emailed my professor about the switch, have to see what he thinks

[Hilltop Customs]

just a quick little update, havent had chance say much in here much lately. Anyway the prof said I could do anything I wanted, but if I didnt finish what I had planned, my grade would reflect it....also he didnt like the fact that it was expanding well outside the relm of the class. I considered retrofitting a standard mill to keep the parts creation solely under the CAD/CAM designation of the class, but decided to stick with the gun project and save the possible mill project for after graduation. I'm considering joining one of those membership machine shops for prototyping after graduation instead of purchasing/converting a mill, but there is none in my area....have to figure out if it would be worth it to commute.

Anyway, the things left that have to be done are:
Decide final mounting method for the rear cap...I'm torn between a couple options here, would like to go tool-less, but sealing could be a problem.
Completely redo the forgrip/asa mount/consider internal air line.....internal line would require a regulator like the mini.....I'm not sure if I'm happy with that or not.
Dimension the 3 way seal/rod
Figure out a way to implement a trigger activation point adjustment....this one is going to be tuff, might leave it out to save time
Figure out an effective/easy to make/easy to operate safety design...this one might also be left out for the initial prototype.
Probably more thats slipping my mind right now

I'm trying to get my classwork done tonight, so I can actually get a chance to knock some of this crap out tomorrow and monday....that is unless my coconut cutter group comes calling