Which one is right for me as a paintballer is the question we hear again
and again. This however has no simple answer as it does
depend on the paintball player and their style or intended paintball play venue.
CO2
CO2 is actually a liquid that must be changed to a gas
within the paintball markers expansion chamber. The Conversion from
liquid to gas causes your tank to get cold and the colder
your tank gets the less pressure it will produce. The ideal
paintball co2 tank temperature is about 70 degrees, this is because at
70 degrees liquid CO2 produces about 850psi, which is the
average operating pressure needed for optimal performance
of most paintball guns. As the tank temperature gets lower
the pressure drops and the paintball gun performance drops as well.
The faster you pull the trigger on your gun the colder your
tank gets. At some point most guns will end up sucking in
liquid CO2. This will cause things to freeze inside your
gun which will cause your gun to stop working for a short
period of time. In some instances this can cause damage
to o-rings. In most cases CO2 works ok, but if temperatures
are below 50 degrees you can expect to have some problems
with things freezing up.
Some other points to think of on the issue of CO2 are tournaments
and cost. First on the tournaments issue and the “free
air all day” issue. Free air is usually HPA only.
Plus tournaments are normally setup to accommodate HPA fills
only. So this will cause problems when you show up with
CO2 tanks to and all HPA tournament or event. Always call
ahead to make sure that there will be CO2 fills available.
CO2 fills can be expensive when they are done in volume.
With tank fills costing from $3-$7 depending on the size.
The attractive part of CO2 is the relatively low cost of
the cylinders. CO2 cylinders can be bought for $20 or less
depending on size.
Lastly because of the nature of CO2 in that it must go
from liquid to gas within the internal passages of the marker
it is rather unstable at times. CO2 is greatly affected
by humidity and temperature. CO2 fps chrono readings can
range 15-20 fps depending on the weather. Plus as you may
all know when you fill a CO2 cylinder it will gain its capacity
in weight when full. In smaller 9 oz cylinders this is really
not that big of an issue, however when you get into 20 oz
cylinders it can add a considerable amount of weight to
your marker as a whole which will in effect handicap your
game by making it harder to snap shoot or turn quickly on
a target. CO2 tanks will feel cold to the touch after filling
until temperature stabilizes. This is normal.
HPA
HPA is far more stable. HPA or Nitro starts in a gas form
and stays gas through the entire cycle. It is cleaner and
better for the internal components of your marker. Compressed
air systems use a regulator to regulate the output pressure
fed to the marker. Many marker configurations incorporate
2 regulators to get perfect air pressure at all times. These
regulators are usually adjustable from 0-about 850psi. Many
blowback type markers on the market can properly operate
at pressures far below the 850 psi that CO2 operates them
at. Many marker manufacturers have targeted the CO2 market
and build their markers to accommodate the popular CO2 setups
that can be purchased anywhere you can purchase a marker.
However with some experimentation you will find that your
marker will properly operate around 450 psi or lower. This
lower air pressure will greatly improve shots per tank
fill and lessen the firing report from your paintball marker.
The designation of 3000psi, 4500psi, or 5000psi refers to
the pressure capacity of your tank. The more pressure you
can fill it with, the more shots it can deliver. The same
goes for larger cubic inch sizes. How many shots will your paintball tank
get? 3000psi tanks deliver about 10 shots per cubic inch
(68ci = 680 shots, 47ci = 470 shots, 88ci = 880 shots, 114ci
= 1140 shots). 4500psi tanks can deliver 15 shots per inch
(68ci = 1020 shots, 88ci = 1320 shots, 114ci = 1720 shots).
Shots fired vary with each gun depending on the type of
setup you are using.
HPA paintball cylinders cost most than CO2 to get started in. Depending
on your uses of the tank and the rest of your paintball
rig your prices will go up and down. Steel cylinders are
among the cheapest, then aluminum, and lastly the expensive
fiber wrapped tanks. The fiber wrapped tanks are desirable
because of their extremely low weight in comparison to the
other cylinder types. Some things to consider when selecting
a tank are your needs. Naturally you want something that
will keep up with the volume of paint that you would like
to shoot. You would never see a self respecting back player
with a small 45CI tank. This tank is simply not big enough
to get the job done that a back player requires. There are
some pros and cons to each of the tank setups that you can
get. One of them is applicable if you are a woodsball player
that does not frequent an organized field. This is due to
the fact that your local hardware store or other CO2 fill
source may not be able to fill these cylinders. They require
a special multi stage compressor that is capable of reaching
3,000-5,000 psi.
Each of these cylinders has different hydro test requirements.
Some are 5 year cylinders and some are 3 year cylinders.
Ask before purchasing if you have any questions, as to having
a tank hydro tested will take about 3-5 days to get done
if it must be sent out and will cost you about $15.00-$20.00.
Steel: Heavier than the others and has an unlimited life
span. These tanks are generally much cheaper to get than
the fiber counterparts. Good entry level HPA tank source.
These cylinders will do well in rec ball and mild tournament
situations. They are also durable and quite resilient to
damage.
Aluminum: Light weight also has an unlimited life span.
These tanks have a comfortable spot right in the middle
of price and lifespan realms. Good mid level HPA tank source.
These tanks can be damaged more easily than the steel tanks.
Fiber Wrap: Lightest paintball tank of them all and has a life span
of 15 years. These are also the most expensive of the three.
These tanks are also far lighter than the previous two,
making them a perfect cylinder for a player that must be
fast on their feet as well as being able to quick draw or
snap shoot. These are the tanks you see on all of the pros
markers. These tanks are not very durable as far as impact
goes. If any part of the fiber on a cylinder is damaged
it compromises the over all integrity of the tank and it
must be fixed by a qualified repair facility. Do not attempt
any repairs to these cylinders yourself. Always use a cover
with these tanks as this will help alleviate most impact
damages.
In closing with the move to HPA our test marker “Spiker”
cut only one ball in a case of paint. This was probably
user error as our Halo hopper was not on at the time. Before
on CO2 “Spiker” would cut around 2-4 balls per
1000. In a high speed environment this was unacceptable
and was the reason for that change. Also by moving to HPA
“Spiker’s” fps leveled out with a variance
of +/- 6-8 fps, which was a drastic improvement from the
old 10-15 fps variance. Plus one of the biggest advantages
to HPA is that fact that the weight gain over all on the
cylinder is near zero unlike the paintball CO2 cylinders, which fill
by weight. Because HPA does not have a true liquid weight
like CO2 its weight gain after filling is nominal. These
tanks will also feel warm when they are first filled, this
normal.
Keep on smilin',
Best Paintball Sites Staff
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