Paintball Cannon

Disclaimer: This is for informational purposes only! By building this

cannon, if you hurt yourself in any way, shape, or form, I can not be

held responsible. This cannon could cause serious injury or even

death--Excersize extreme caution when using this cannon.

Imagine yourself walking onto the paintball field and having all of

the other players laughing and taunting you because you have this

near 4 foot long PVC pipe sticking out of your backpack. You think to

yourself--He who laughs last...

Ok! I'm going to show you how to build a CO2 cannon (Uses the 12g)

that will shock and amaze paintballers all over the place. It is a

bit pricey to shoot, it uses ONE CO2 12g, and 20-40paintballs PER

shot.. But its worth every penny when you see somebody dripping with

paint.

First go down to your local sprinkler and plumbing shop and get

items #2-#7 on the list. (You probably already have #1 (Quick Change

Adapter) If not, most paintball stores have these relativly cheap)

Pick up some PVC glue while your there too.

Make sure that parts #2, #3, #4, and #5 are METAL. If they were PVC

plastic there is a good chance that the cannon will explode on you.

So BE SURE that parts 2-5 are METAL.

All of the PVC parts (#6,#7,#8)must be glued together with some sort

of PVC glue or they'll fall apart. If you have problems with pressure

leakage in the metal parts, wrap some teflon tape around the threds

and screw it back together.

If you still have problems with leaks, put some CO2 in it, and hold

it under water (In the sink works if you wait to put on the barrel

(#8) untill last). Then either put some teflon tape on the problem,

or slop on some more PVC glue (Whatever it takes)

Now assemble this thing and go have a blast! (Hey, if it blows up on

you, or if you hurt/kill somebody with this cannon it is not my

fault. This is an information resource and I take no liability for

anything you do or create.)

Goggles and eyeglasses have a horrible habit of fogging up.

Especially after you've saturated the foam with sweat. Even thermal

goggles fog up too under hot, humid conditions. I recommend that

everyone build a fan to defog their goggles. But that costs about $25

and there are a lot of cheapskates out there in paintball land. So

try this, home made no-fog spray.

Materials :

Spray bottle

Baby Shampoo (tear free stuff like Johnson's)

Water

Directions

Mix a solution of water and shampoo. I recommend anywhere from 5:1 to

10:1 (water : shampoo) in the spray bottle. You can experiment with

different strenghts of the solution for best results.

Spray the solution on you goggles or eyeglasses and wipe off any

excess.

I provide no guarantee of success. Success is up to you. This no-fog

spray is used by SCUBA divers around the world, but even under

extreme conditions (high heat and humidity) even this will fail. So

don't count on it as being a fix-all solution because there is none

when it comes to keeping goggles fog-free. Except using a

combination, fan, spray, and thermal lenses. Even then you still run

into the occasional foggy lense.

Mask fan

Here is how you do it:

Get a 486 cpu fan (or a Pentium - these are usually heavy though).

Make sure it is plastic only. Get a 9volt battery. Get a 9volt

battery cap/attachment that has two wires still connected to it. Get

a small switch - plunger,lever whatever... (old lamp switches which

are a part of the cord are perfect for this - small!) If you have a

surplus electronics store around you, the most expensive thing you

will have to buy is the battery.

There are two wires that come out of the fan: red and black (most

likely) You will attach these to the two connection on one side of

the switch. The leads from the battery cap you will attach to the two

connections on the other side of the switch. To see which wire goes

where experiment by leaving the wires on right side and trading the

wires on the left side of the switch. Just hold them there at first.

Find someone with a soldering iron - perhaps your dad, your shop

teacher, the guy at the surplus electronics store, someone in a

computer or hardware store, Tv/radio repair man Etc... Now that you

know where the wires go you can solder them in place. Make sure that

the length of the wire is enough to reach both the battery and the

fan in their proper places on your mask.

This really works well with masks that have visors because the fan

has protection - so JTs are ideal.

My friend placed the battery in the loop of the elastic band just by

his right ear on his Spectra. The fan he mounted directly on the top

where the Crosswind would go. He found that the screws that came with

the cpu fan he got were prety much the same size as the holes on top

of the lens.

Unfortunately the screws came loose after a day of play. Other

possible ways of mounting (these are guesses) are:

Hot melt glue - could break off in the end,but just might work.

Tie the fan down with wire.

Pin it in place small metal brackets etc. (hard to precisely explain

without writing a book, and I want to go to sleep)

Bigger screws, but there would be a problem with the holes in the cpu

fan.

This worked wonders for my friend. He turned it on when he needed it.

It performed just like the Crosswind, quiet and quick.

How to make your own paint grenades

I have spent a long, long time researching paint grenades. I have

spent an equally long time surveying peoples experiences of using

paint grenades. Paint grenades fall into two basic categories:

explosive, and "splatter". Explosive grenades use a small charge,

usually no larger than a firecracker, to break open a paper shell and

spew out the paint contents. They are usually lit with a fuse or use

a pull-pin.

I admit these grenades are fun, they go boom, hell I want to play

with one. But they don't, repeat don't engender a safe atmosphere.

Okay, that's off my chest. Now on to the good stuff!! Okay, where was

I, the second category of grenade is the "splatter" kind. Grenades

which fall into this category are: the SquadBuster by Tippmann (which

is pictured in the photo at the top of this page);

:

the Little Betty (manufacturer unknown); the grenade which you will

be making here; and water balloons. These type of grenades rely on

paint under pressure to hurl their contents onto targets. So let's

begin shall we?

Materials needed: A section of 1/8" rubber tubing about a foot long.

(available at hose supply stores, medical supply stores, or chemistry

supply stores.) Alternately, you could use a used SquadBuster.

A plastic clip tie

A large syringe ( if you don't have medical friends, you can find

syringe like "emergency pumps for basketballs" in your local sporting

goods store)

Some paint (either boiled down paintballs or childrens washable non-

toxic paint

A pair of hemostats

Some ball bearings of slightly larger diameter than the tubing (you

can find these in your hardware store)

Some cotter pins

Some alcohol

A rubber band (optional)

A target

1) Take the tubing, and cinch it down tight in the middle. If you

want to make smaller; Little Betty type grenades, use only a six inch

length and tie off one end of the tubing. If you're using an old

SquadBuster, this is already done for you.

2) Fill the syringe with the paint mixture and inject it into one

side of the tubing. Leave about 2 to 2.5 inches at the top empty.

3) Before you remove the syringe, crimp off the tubing below it with

the hemostats. The filled section of tubing should look like a

hotdog.

4) Lubricate one of the ball bearings with the alcohol and insert it

into the tubing above the hemostats. If you still have the cap from

the SquadBuster, just fold the tubing tip over and place the cap on.

5) Insert one of the cotter pins above the ball bearing, through the

tubing. Or place the old SquadBuster pin through the hole in the cap.

Leave the hemostat on until the alcohol dries. If you are making a

Little Betty type grenade, you are now done.

6) Take the other empty side and repeat the process, except use the

same cotter pin to hold both bearings in.

7) If you want the grenade to have maximum area coverage with a

smaller paint coverage, simply leave as is. However, if you want

maximum paint coverage put a weak rubber band around the grenade. The

theory being this: When you pull the cotter pin out and throw the

grenade, the non-banded kind will fall apart, pointing in two

different directions. The banded kind will however, spray a greater

amount of paint at a specific area. However, both types will spray in

a radius because the release of pressure will make the hose tip wag

around.

I have tested one of these, they do work, and expect about a 5 to 6

foot spray radius. Remember VERY IMPORTANT: get a good arc on these

or try to throw it at something hard (like a bunker right behind your

target) because you need to get enough pressure when it hits to push

out the bearing (or knock off the cap). Conversely, after you have

pulled the pin, DON'T squeeze the grenade or you will get very, very

messy! Also, after you pull the pin, if you notice a small amount of

leaking paint, throw it quickly or it will blow soon!

Tools/Materials Needed:

* Dremel Moto-tool or Mini-mite

* Router bit for Dremel

* Hack saw

* File or coarse sandpaper

* Electric drill and bits

* PVC Cleaner/Primer

* PVC Cement

* One Roll of Toilet paper

* 2" schedule 40 PVC pipe

* 1 1/4" schedule 40 PVC pipe

* 1" schedule 40 PVC pipe

* One 1 1/4" schedule 40 PVC end cap

* One 3/4" to 1 1/4" schedule 40 PVC male adaptor

(the 3/4" end should fit snugly over your barrel end)

Cut a 8" segment of 2" PVC, a 2" segment of the 1 1/4" PVC, and

file or sand down the rough edges. Take the 3/4" to 1 1/4" PVC male

adaptor and file any corners down so that it will fit inside the 2"

PVC pipe. Clean the ends of the PVC with the cleaner/primer, and

then cement the 2" segment of 1 1/4" PVC inside the large opening of

the male adaptor. Without cutting the 1" pipe, clean and cement one

end inside the the 1 1/4" portion that is glued inside the male

adaptor. Now, slide this piece that you've cemented together inside

the 2" PVC until the wide portion of the male adaptor is flush with

the end of the 2" PVC, with only the 3/4" end of the adaptor visible

sticking out of the 2" PVC. Cut the 1" PVC sticking out of the other

end where it is flush with the end of the 2" PVC.

Having cut the 1" PVC flush with the 2", remove the cemented

piece and use a permanent marker to mark the exposed end of the 1"

with 8 evenly spaced marks, as if you were marking the following

locations on a compass: N, NE, E, S, SW, W, NW. Now use a straight

edge to continue these marks all the way down the 1" until you hit

the 1 1/4" pipe. Now make horizontal marks around the circumference

of the 1" PVC at 1" intervals (you should come up with about 6).

The 1" PVC should now resemble a grid. Taking your electric drill,

drill a 1/4" hole at every intersection of the horizontal and

vertical lines (it's gonna be a lot of drilling, so if you have a

drill press, now would be the time to use it). After you finish

with the drilling, use a small screwdriver to clean out any loose

residue from the holes. Now, take the 1 1/4" end cap and set it

closed-side up on your work surface. Center the 1" end of your

assembled PVC and trace the edge with a permanent marker. Using the

drill and Dremel router, clear out the area just inside the marker

line (but do not go through the marker line). Set the end cap aside,

because you won't need it again until the very end.

Liberally apply PVC cleaner to the outside edge of the male

adaptor and the inside edge of the 2" PVC pipe. Now, slop a whole

mess of PVC cement on the outside edge of the male adaptor and the

inside edge of the 2" PVC pipe and assemble them.

Looking down the open end, try to center the 1" PVC as well as

you can inside the 2" PVC. Now set the assembled unit standing up

vertically on a flat surface (concrete, etc.) to dry. Once you set

it down, look to see if there are any holes around the male adaptor,

and if there are, then fill them with PVC cement. When the cement

is dry, take your roll of toilet tissue and begin crumpling up and

stuffing it in the open area between the 1" PVC and the 2" PVC. I

found that stuffing the paper in a circular motion without breaking

the chain of paper worked best, stuffing the paper down with a

scredriver from time to time. When you stuff the pipe to about 1" or

so from the top, take the end cap and apply plenty of cleaner to the

cap's outside edge and inside opening, as well as the inside of the

2" PVC pipe. Once again, slop a hefty amount of PVC cement on both

the endcap and the PVC. Push the open-faced end of the cap into the

2" PVC, so that the 1" PVC comes through just flush with the solid

end.

Set vertically on flat surface again, (end cap side down) and let

dry. Your silencer is now completed

Squeegie

>

>This is a cheap, easy to make, yet effective squeegie that you can

pull

>right through the feed port, without removing the barrel. Here's

what

>you'll need:

>

> a.. About 24" of 1/8" braided nylon cord (I used black)

> b.. 3 plastic or wood "pony" beads

> c.. 2 nylon flat washers, about 1/2" O.D.

> d.. 1 Sponge, 1/2" to 1" thick

> e.. 1 piece of absorbant cloth, about 3" square

>Cut two 1" (approx.) diameter discs from the sponge. I used a 7/8"

arch

>punch, but you could use a short length of 1" copper pipe. Just

sharpen one

>open end with a Dremel or round file, and use it to punch out discs

from

>the sponge. Scissors should work also, just cut the discs as round

as

>possible. You want them slightly larger than the inside diameter of

the

>barrel. Tie a slip-knot in one end of the nylon cord. (If you don't

know

>how to tie a slip knot, ask a Boy Scout!) Put the cloth through the

loop,

>and pull it snug. Slip one of the pony beads over the cord, and

slide it to

>the slip knot. Next, put on one of the washers and sponge discs. Tie

a knot

>above the first sponge, leaving room to loosen the slip knot, when

you

>replace the cloth. Refering to the diagram, put the the rest of the

pieces

>on the cord - bead, nylon washer, sponge disc. I poked a hole

through the

>center of each sponge with a small sharpened dowel, then pushed the

cord

>through with the same dowel.

>

>Tie a knot in the cord, above the second sponge, so everything stays

on the

>cord. You can trim the length of the cord now, according to your

barrel

>length. Cut the cord about 6" longer than your longest barrel. This

will

>leave enough to go all the way through the barrel.

>

>Using the squeegie is simplicity itself - remove your hopper, make

sure the

>bolt is pulled back (cocked) and your safety is on, then just the

cord

>through the feed port and out the end of the barrel. Pointing the

barrel

>down will allow gravity to help. Grab the cord, and pull it slowly

and

>evenly though the barrel, repeating as necessary. You may need to

guide the

>sponge discs a bit as they enter the feed port and make that hard

right

>turn into the barrel. If you have trouble getting the nylon cord to

go

>through the barrel, try putting a 14" length of 1/4" ID vinyl tubing

over

>the nylon cord. Makes it much easier to slip it through the barrel.

>

>Check the size of the cloth - you might need a larger or smaller

piece

>depending on its thickness. You need enough material to dry the

barrel as

>thoroughly as possible when it is pulled through.

>

>I used all plastic, nylon, and wood parts to keep from scratching

the

>inside of the barrel. That aluminum is pretty soft!

>

>Options: You could use neoprene or rubber discs instead of the

sponge. If

>you use rubber, make sure it's soft, and cut perfectly round. If you

can

>find 11/16" O.D. rubber washers, they should work. They have to be

snug

>enough to "swipe" the wet paint out of the barrel.

>

>You could use insulated wire instead of the nylon cord. 18 or 20

gauge

>stranded wire should be about right. The stiffness of the wire might

make

>it easier to put it through the barrel. You can actually tie knots

in the

>wire. Just be sure none of the strands are sticking out. It hurts

when they

>poke you!

>

>You also might be able to use very heavy monofilament, like the

cutting

>line from a Weedeater. The only problem with that, might be the

ability to

>tie knots in it.

>

> Make sure your Stingray is cocked and the safety is on. Push the

end of

>the squeegie cord through the feedport and into the barrel.

> Keep pushing the cord until it sticks out the end of

the

>barrel.

> Pull on the cord, gently but firmly, while

simultaneously

>guiding the sponges into the feedport.

> Pull it slowly and evenly, all the way out. Clean the

paint

>off the squeegie with a rag.