WaterWar.net

@Drench: What is the ideal pipe ID for the grommets? As you know, PVC is made to very precise OD specifications, but the ID can vary wildly. This is why I have trouble seeing PVC as a good, consistent pump shaft material. I've used rubber grommets as pump seals in both Riptide and Cloudburst, and b...

http://images.sscentral.org/riptide/pump_rubber_grommets.jpg I've posted about my design before. To me, it's a 100% functional pump design without any glaring flaws. I think it addresses most of those points. I'll address the points in order: - With two grommets, the design doesn't leak. One gromme...

There are a few types of drill bits, and flat and round bits are two of them. Another are hole saws, which are usually reserved for larger size holes (holes larger than 1/2 inch in diameter). When you think of a drill bit, you usually think of a round bit, which is a cylindrical bit that twists arou...

http://images.sscentral.org/cloudburst/cloudburst_prototype_internals_spring_test.jpg I've been testing out springs to make the gun function enough for battle. Unfortunately, I tried out a spring from Lowes and two springs from McMaster, and none of them close the firing valve all the way. There ar...

On a side note, I cannot get the end screw in the LRT to seal! They're simply not spec'd to the same diameter that barbs are, so while a barb and endcap are wasteful (you need twice as many parts as necessary and some teflon tape), perhaps a better alternative would be a plug insert. Unfortunately,...

Thanks for the feedback! I guess Cloudburst looks pretty good. It doesn't look as nice as a CPS 2000, but it certainly is the best looking homemade water gun so far. What kind of ranges is it getting and how much would it cost for me to build one. I haven't tested the ranges yet, but given that the ...

I'm finishing up my next homemade water gun. I call it DR-5 Cloudburst. http://images.sscentral.org/cloudburst/cloudburst_prototype_exterior_all.jpg Cloudburst is a standard cylindrical CPS gun, similar to the CPS 3000 or CPS 3200 but smaller. It's substantially similar to Riptide , though there are...

I accidentally used 1995 as the year instead of 1996. I updated the inflation calculation. My point is the still the same: homemades are not extraordinarily expensive. Something that would be interesting to 3D print would be just a regular, old squirt gun. This could act as like a "proof of concept"...

I think rapid prototyping (3D printing) can help, and it's already making good stuff on hobbyist sites ( an example ), but it has a long way to go. Granted, I do see how it can change the current framework of ownership -- if you could build anything instantly, why bother owning anything up until the...

I also think a web app would be the right way to go. I've been actually looking for a project so that I could learn Javascript. I have previously written some stuff with Javascript , but Javascript has seriously changed since then so I need a project to catch up. While I don't think I could write so...

Some parts of the design of Cloudburst (DR-5) are very much geared towards CPS, so as a whole I don't think it would work well as an air pressure gun. I'd recommend 3" chambers over 2" chambers purely because they hold much more water. They are kinda bulky, though. You should probably put the 2nd ch...

Just because the crack is tiny now doesn't mean it will stop growing. If there is enough stress for the crack to grow, it will continue to enlarge, and the problem will only get worse. A patch should help prevent crack growth. Without a patch, force perpendicular to the crack will continue to open i...

I haven't repaired any cracked chambers, but I thought I should chime in on a technique that may help. isoaker's recommendation is good. Generally, I wouldn't trust using just an epoxy, adhesive, or solvent without something to reinforce the crack. This something could be as simple as a strip of pla...

I'll most likely arrive late tomorrow night or early Saturday morning. I don't know exactly when yet, since I still don't know when I will leave. It all depends on when I leave work.

Most of the connections are threaded, so it can be disassembled pretty easily.

I should be able to bring 2 of Ben's APHs. In addition, I'm building one additional CPH from spare parts. If somebody wants this CPH after the battle, feel free to keep it, since I will have to scrap it afterwards (I don't have the room for it).

These kind of trigger parts were never designed to last that long unfortunately, and because of this I don't think just rotely copying the existing design into a computer and fabricating a new one will fix the problem. In a few years, it will break again, and we're back at the same place. What we ne...

SSCentral forum member built something similar to this. He called it the Mother of All River Cannons. It used some kind of motorized pump to take water from a river and propel it 80 feet or so. A similar design could work here.

Hmm. I didn't realize Charlotte Pipe's online CAD files were in DWF, which is difficult to open with free software. DXF is the standard and can be easily opened in free software. I found the CD. It's from 2005 and has about 200 megs of data on it, but no DXF files that I could directly open. It also...

Actually, Dusty used water bladder tanks, so this is just a big CPS gun. He said that he got them at a local well water and irrigation supply store. That rest of the parts are pretty standard stuff that you could pick up at a home improvement store in the plumbing section.