Since losing my nearby source for getting tanks filled I've been searching for alternatives. I finally settled on the 6k nitrogen tank route but even that has become troublesome after dealing with Praxair and their account application process. I'm almost to the point of purchasing a new Bauer Junior II compressor and be done with it. Anyone facing a similar situation? If so, what solutions are working for you?
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Frustrating Air Situation
- Thread starter beeser
- Start date
I was in a similar situation as the guys wife died and then he had a heart attack, so I decided to buy a shoebox and fill my own tanks and I am so glad that I did. It is nice to be independent and not have to rely on someone else for an air source. Just do it you won't regret it.
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Check with local welding supply companies. When I used N2 it was 1/2 the price from a welding company than Airgas. The gas supply companies use medical grade N2 so it's a lot more expensive. I rented the tank for $8 per month and gas refills (tank exchanges) were $45. The only application I filled out was giving my name and providing a credit card for auto-pay on the monthly rental. They would not deliver to a subdivision so i had to go there and get the tanks but I could have set-up arrangements to meet them at a business and they would load/reload the tanks on the truck with a lift.
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I'm going to caution you on going that route. 6K N2 is extremely dangerous without a proper regulator to slow fill your guns with. I don't know of one that is available to choke down the the 6K to a usable 3k pressure. With carbon fiber bottles it's pretty easy to slow throttle the bottle valve too control the air flow. With the N2 valve I know from personal experience it's not that easy to do. I work with N2 on a regular basis at work and am very familiar with the bottles and their valves. I can slow throttle a 2.2K bottle fairly easy but I have to think that at 3 times that working pressure it would be a challenge to do it in a controlled manner. I myself inquired about getting N2 from a supplier I deal with for work. I have a working relationship with this guy and he refused to sell me N2 gas at that psi. He felt it was way to dangerous considering my application and now I actually agree with him. I have also found that when a task is sometimes to difficult to achieve and you run into a lot of roadblocks, there may be a good reason for it.
Have you checked with the local volunteer fire house? Mine has filled mine a couple times for a $10 donation to the firehouse. As long as your tank is up to date and in good shape, it most likely won't be an issue. The volunteers are really good guys who are into stuff like this themselves. I think you would be surprised if you asked them. If not what about one of those $300 off shore compressors like Mrod Air sells? Reading the forums lots of guys are having good luck with them. I would get one myself but I'm lucky enough to have several sources for air locally. Best of luck, I'm sure something will pan out.
Have you checked with the local volunteer fire house? Mine has filled mine a couple times for a $10 donation to the firehouse. As long as your tank is up to date and in good shape, it most likely won't be an issue. The volunteers are really good guys who are into stuff like this themselves. I think you would be surprised if you asked them. If not what about one of those $300 off shore compressors like Mrod Air sells? Reading the forums lots of guys are having good luck with them. I would get one myself but I'm lucky enough to have several sources for air locally. Best of luck, I'm sure something will pan out.
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Thanks for the input Rosco860! My plan was to use the 6k N2 tank to fill my 100 cu. ft. carbon fiber tank and then use the CF tank to fill the guns. I had the same concern about not using a regulator but Joe Broncato's staff at AirTanksForSale.com maintained it wasn't a problem unless trying to fill a gun directly from the N2 tank, the same I think you are trying to warn against. I checked most if not all of the local fire departments and they all refused filling any tanks other than their own citing insurance restrictions. I only have one source for the N2 here in our somewhat rural setting. If this doesn't pan out I'll be forced to get a compressor or just give up on airguns.
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the fire stations in Austin wont even talk to me about filling. I went the paintball route and quickly tired of driving way too far for my $10-20 refills so I bought a compressor.I know its tough not buying another rifle,but I saved my pennies and got a nice set up. It is totally worth it to have friends over to shoot and just carry a bottle out and fill it. shoebox is ok if you have good water trap and all day to fill.just my two cents
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If you think you will stay in this sport, buy a compressor, but choose wisely.
I have the daystate 2, but there are other reliable compressors at a lesser cost.
The daystate 2 compressor is fast, reliable and not the cheapest but depending on how long you plan on staying with pcp's
it is probably the only one you will ever buy. And fillings normally take no more than 6 minutes per tank, scuba, scba.
Having your own source of air allows you to do all the things you want to with concern of remaining air etc.
Pellet experimentation, change scopes, tuning etc.
Allows full enjoyment of the sport.
Get a few more rec for compressors, costs, vendors, support etc.
I have the daystate 2, but there are other reliable compressors at a lesser cost.
The daystate 2 compressor is fast, reliable and not the cheapest but depending on how long you plan on staying with pcp's
it is probably the only one you will ever buy. And fillings normally take no more than 6 minutes per tank, scuba, scba.
Having your own source of air allows you to do all the things you want to with concern of remaining air etc.
Pellet experimentation, change scopes, tuning etc.
Allows full enjoyment of the sport.
Get a few more rec for compressors, costs, vendors, support etc.
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I would also go the compressor route. At one time the Bauer was the best way. There are many more options now. The costs vary widely. The key is to be sure you are putting dry air into your tank. There are many discussions in this section on several compressors to help choose which works the best for you.
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I pumped for years ... no more. Trying to get a pump to reliably fill an Impact without regularly blowing O-rings is an exercise in futility that grows old quickly. To be able to just pull out that tank and open the valve is a huge relief. Yeah, it's not cheap but if you plan on staying in this game it really is the only way to go.
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Beeser, I'd advise against the N2 tank route because of the overall expense for rental fees and additional cost to purchase a decent regulator. I don't recommend a Bauer because it's like owning a Learjet to only fly across town. It's a wonderful compressor, just overkill for a single user unless you find a good price on a lightly used one. I've owned and researched just about every fill option there is. I know the benefits vs. cost of the fill options available today. My advice for performance and value is the Carette compressor with Alpha filter. There are smaller and cheaper options but the cheaper compressors are not as well made, nor as quiet, and won't have the long term durability of a Carette. The Carette has most of the features and robust build quality of a dive compressor at a PCP user sensible price. If you want plug and play, quiet running, and durability the Carette hits the mark on all counts and it costs less than half of a new Bauer Jr. II. It is way less hassle and long term expense of an N2 rental tank with regulator. I've run my Carette for six months and it purrs like a kitten without any hiccups. I sold a used Bauer I had owned for 3 years prior when I saw what the Carette can do for a much lower price.
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Well, after spending some time researching this issue I decided to take everyone's advice and no one's advice depending how you look at it. I just purchased a used Bauer compressor to satisfy my itch to try out that option. Something I failed to mention before is that I enjoy working with older quality machines. The compressor I purchased is not the Bauer K14, Intersoll Rand or Bristol that I preferred but it seems well made and parts are still available for it. I already purchased the connections necessary to hook up to a 6k N2 cylinder and will explore that option too if and when my local supplier decides to rent to me. I think there will be advantages and disadvantages to both approaches. It should be interesting to see how this turns out. If anyone comes across any one of the compressors mentioned above for sale I would still like to buy one if the price is reasonable.
I should mention that while searching for a compressor an important factor was the availability of parts. These machines are working hard producing 4500 psi and eventually will have to be rebuilt. That may not be important for the limited use by most of us but I've never been able to accept the throw away mentality induced by so many machines produced today. Bauer for example still has parts and service manuals for compressors made years ago. I don't think the same can be said for any of the Chinese built compressors. Not having anything to do with compressors or airguns but I purchased a very heavy cast iron adjustable table recently that was made probably in the 60s. Turns out the company has been making the same table since the 40s and still does today. Parts are also still available. Cool!
I should mention that while searching for a compressor an important factor was the availability of parts. These machines are working hard producing 4500 psi and eventually will have to be rebuilt. That may not be important for the limited use by most of us but I've never been able to accept the throw away mentality induced by so many machines produced today. Bauer for example still has parts and service manuals for compressors made years ago. I don't think the same can be said for any of the Chinese built compressors. Not having anything to do with compressors or airguns but I purchased a very heavy cast iron adjustable table recently that was made probably in the 60s. Turns out the company has been making the same table since the 40s and still does today. Parts are also still available. Cool!
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Glad you solved your problem. I went with a Shelden compressor. It's overkill but I like the fact that it's built to withstand heavy shop use. He uses military compressors that were made to operate at 25000 psi so working in an airgun environment at 4500 psi is no strain for them.
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I contacted Jim Sheldon and he stated that all of his lower priced units were sold. The only thing now available start at $4000.
"made to operate at 25000 psi"!!!! I'd like to see one of those.
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I am not but were I in " your" position the new Bauer Junior II sound like the choice. Have seen one used ta the Woirld's took care of everyone just fine.
Lot's of $$ ( but if you can sure ) , warranty .... .
The Sheldon may well suit you every bit as well.
I went the $600 booster way due to need after moving. IF I had a bauer laying around that's what I'd be using.
John
Lot's of $$ ( but if you can sure ) , warranty .... .
The Sheldon may well suit you every bit as well.
I went the $600 booster way due to need after moving. IF I had a bauer laying around that's what I'd be using.
John
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Mr. Shelden adjusts them to operate at 4500 psi. The military units were made to operate the hydraulics of tanks and jets before he modified them.
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Would you mind posting a pic of the compressor you got from Jim Sheldon? I'm curious to see what they look like?
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I actually got it from a fellow airgunner. He was getting out of PCPs. I had to choose between a nice 30 cal RAW and the compressor. It only had 13 hours of use time when i got. I have talked to Mr. Shelden. He likes to follow where his compressors are and keep a registry of owners. He said there are some of his compressors still in use that he built in the 1970s. I have 13 PCPs, 5 (ea) 87 cf tanks, 3 (ea) 65 cf tanks and one 45 cf tank and the compressor still on has 25 hours on it. I volunteer to fill my shooting buddies tanks because it is pretty fast.
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I just received an email from Pyramid Air that the compressors that were expected to be available 8-31-17 are now in stock for immediate delivery. Interesting timing because I just picked up a used Bauer compressor yesterday. Hopefully it doesn't turn out to be a pig in a poke as I wasn't able to test it before purchasing. Despite being almost 30 years old it looks brand new with the shipping labels still intact. I also received word that my 6k N2 tank will be available mid-next week too. I'm anxious to give both setups a try.
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