FYI a 5oz bottle is plenty for a 4.5 unit battlecruiser. I've got one in my Seydlitz and it's more than enough. I even ran a 4 oz in my Baden back in the day, before the 5oz bottles were available.
Yeah, but can’t find one for anything that can be considered reasonable price. And Ive got the space for the tank I have. TBH Id rather use HPA than CO2 but not in the rules.
HPA is a lot less energy-dense than CO2 for our purposes, and a proper fill-station setup is a major pain. I tried the stuff back in the day. Liquid CO2 is provides more than twice the number of shots of an equivalent-size HPA bottle. If you normally use a 4- or 5-oz bottle, you'll need to use a 9-oz or 12-oz equivalent bottle of HPA. The paintball guys like HPA because it doesn't freeze, but remember that they're often running, jumping, and holding their paintball guns at angles that suck liquid. They are also not limited by size or weight. We are able to set our bottles so they cannot suck liquid unless the ship capsizes, so the benefit of HPA is largely lost. As for filling HPA bottles, a proper HPA fill station requires multiple tanks. One provides the bulk fill, and then the next one provides a small top-off to get your bottle up to the 3000 or 4500 PSI you're aiming for. After just a few fills, however, that top-off bottle is no longer good, so it becomes the next bulk fill tank. End result is you're lugging around 3+ large, heavy tanks instead of one large, heavy tank. Either that or you get a compressor and a lot of patience.
Heh I played paintball for over 20 years. I am well versed in the sport (also why at 39 my knees are shot). You don’t need bulk storage unless you are filling a fields worth of tanks. A portable 12v/120v 4500psi 3 stage compressor can be had for under $300 which will fill a 13/3000 (a 4oz equivelant) tank in a minute (autoshut off pressure switch). And yes, CO2 has a higher specific energy because it is changing phase from a liquid to a gas. You and I have already discussed the drawbacks of HPA. Small CO2 tanks are getting harder to come by, so it is use a bigger CO2 tank or a smaller HPA tank (a 13/3k is about the size of a 9oz CO2 tank) My entire point was that 12oz is considered ‘over kill’ but for what? Carrying too much propellant? It is the smallest CO2 tank that I own. I have half of the hull empty and still need almost 9lbs to make weight. So it is put in a bigger, heavier tank, or fill the space with lead shot and epoxy.
I didn't know they had HPA compressors. That's potentially game-changing. And here I thought I was clever for acquiring a 20lb CO2 tank so I could fill my bottles at home.
I did. Going to raise the flag on Derf as soon as she is battle ready. They are actually cloth too. Was thinking of offering other flags too.
One of the best design decisions I made. Having revised the motor mount a few times already and after a catastrophic gearing failure yesterday at the lake, it needs redesigned again. Being able to build from a known surface has made updating designs so much better than having had the motor mounts as part of the hull.
I've been more away than not over the past 2 years, doing a little catch up. This build is looking really great. Love seeing how much 3d printing has taken off in the hobby.
Can we see what's under the turret cover? Is there one of @GregMcFadden 's cores in there or something different?
Theres nothing under there! The magazine is integrated into the gun house and barbette. It is my own core design.
Well... I just ordered the plastic to rebuild Derfflinger. My original design could have worked but it was not how _I_ wanted it to be. I compromised too much and did not plan out the build properly. I still have a few things to button up but I am a lot happier with this design. The hull form is correct (the stern was way off on the other one), there is actually space for the guns, bigger props, the pump is built in, there are mounts for the air tank, the battery box is built in, and everything has been given thought and consideration for where it goes, mounting holes added, wire management points have been added, and not just tossed in where it fit.
