A question for guys that use pumps

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scubajeeper

scubajeeper

Member
May 13, 2015
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Louisiana, United States
I've never had the pleasure of using a hand pump to fill a gun so I need some info from you that have. A friend wants to get into PCPs but can't afford to get set up with a tank etc. He's looking at pumping a gun with a 360 cc bottle to a fill pressure of 3000. What's your opinion? Is it doable for a guy who is in fairly good shape but weighs around 160 lbs? Any idea how many strokes it will take to take it from 1500 back to full? Thanks.
 
I use a combination of tanks and a hand pump. When I am at home I pump and when at the range or other matches I fill from a tank. My 10 meter gun gets well over 200 shots from a fill and it takes maybe 100-150 pumps to fill. My AA protarget gets 50-80 shots a fill and takes maybe 75-100 pumps to fill. I pump 25 strokes and then take a break, for me and the pump. I am 72 yrs old and am around 195 pounds. Not particularly strong and pumping does take some substantial but not overwhelming effort. The hand pump is a Gehmann and is fairly old, maybe 7-10 yrs, and has never been overhauled.
Pumping is not a big deal but it is work.
Rick B.
 
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I weigh about 155 and I use an FX 3 stage pump no problem. Thats for my Wildcat that fills up to 3330psi. My only complaint is that my 17 self I found that I can refill a gun much faster than the pump was designed. The pump gets really hot after the 4 minutes it takes me to fill from 150 to 230 bar. Right now my pump is being rebuilt at AOA while my carbon fiber tank is being shipped out. The good part of a pump is that you can just sell it once you have the money to upgrade and it makes the upgrade cost relatively doable.
 
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No problem... It only gets tough for me when the temp is 40+ (105F+) even then it's not hard but keeping the dripping sweat off the gun/pump can be a challenge... 

I'm 150 lbs and use the FX 4 stage filling a 480cc bottle from 125 bar to 250 bar. I only switch to the 4th stage at 200(ish) bar but I can (and have) gone all the way to 250 on the 3rd stage. I've never counted the number of strokes. It's done when it's done...

Perhaps when I start collecting a Social Security check I might buy a shoebox compressor, but as long as I'm still able I'll earn my shots...

To summarize- YES! it can be done with a pump. 
 
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I filled my maurader with a hill pump. Took me 90-100 pumps to fill from 2000 psi-3000psi. My weight is 150lbs. It's not impossible, by any means. He shouldn't have any problems. Did that for two years. It does take longer to fill gun due to the actual pumping and waiting for pump to cool. I've since bought a carbon fiber tank. It's definitely allowed me to shoot more, because of the ease of filling the maurader. 
 
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I have the Benjamin pump that came with a Discovery combo. That was my first rig to test the PCP waters and its all I have used. If you're shooting hundreds of rounds from a big hunting rig hand pumping is going to get old quick. If you're shooting dozens rounds from an efficient .177 its a piece of cake.

Filling up an AirForce Condor from empty is a decent workout! :) And watching guys top off with a tank makes me jealous. If I shot a lot I would get a tank and a compressor or find a source nearby. 

 
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Going from zero to 200 BAR on a 490 cc bottle with an older Hill pump takes me about 900 strokes. Fortunately going from zero only happens when I have to take the bottle apart for some reason and I believe I have settled in on my regulator setting so no more of that for me. Going from 150 BAR to 207 BAR takes about 150 strokes. I do about 100 per session and then let the pump cool down. I'm 64, 6'2" and 210 pounds. Pumping is hard on you if you have arthritis no matter what kind of shape you are in.
 
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I have a Hill hand pump that I've pumped up an FX Boss to 3,650psi with. That's a 500cc tank!! I'm only about 155 lbs. It's all in the technique. Most folks pump too fast. You need to pause for a second at the top and bottom of the stroke. This cuts the number of strokes needed to fill the tank by about 30%. It also keeps the pump from heating up. The downside to pumping is that the air is not completely dry when it goes into the gun. But in terms of physically pumping up a 360cc bottle to 3000psi, no problem. 
 
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