Paint Problems

[Booti]

Please can anyone give me some advice.
I have recently got back into the game of paintballing and have started off with a Sypder Imagine running on Co2 and a Revolution hopper.
I have played both indoor and outdoor sites over the last 2 months and i seem to be getting the same problem with barrel breaks over and over again.
Whenever i use Dracula paint, every hopper load will produce about 15-20 breaks. If i move to Diablo Blaze i get maybe 2 breaks per hopper.
The gun is in stock form at the moment, but i really want to get this sorted.
Is this a problem with the size of the barrel, is the paint just weaker or am i running too much gas thru the gun.
Any suggestion on how to fix this problem, and what to get (this barrel, that paint etc) would really be a help

Cheers

Booti

 

[Liz]

Your first and easiest thing to check must be the paint sizing. Take the barrel off the marker & try dropping a number of balls down in. Ideally, they should all pass down with just a tiny bit of encouragement, e.g. blowing GENTLY down the barrel. If any stick, then the barrel is likely to be too small for the paint.
This looks the most likely problem for a number of reasons. Firstly, you say that the breaks are all in the barrel rather than on the bolt, which suggests a barrel problem not pressure. Secondly, you say that different brands are breaking more often than others and as different brands (and even batches of the same brand!) will vary again this indicates that paint is the problem. I haven't used Drakula so can't comment on whether it's usually larger or smaller than Blaze, but Blaze has not tended to be particularly large recently. Paint doesn't seem any more fragile these days to me - I can still put most paints down my old 12 year old Mag - and if you're using paint supplied by sites then it's likely to be less fragile than the tourney paints you can get anyway and I know Blaze isn't particularly fragile.

Another possibility is that there is a blemish of some kind on the inside of your barrel. Clean and swab it very carefully then look along the barrel in good light. It should look completely smooth & shiny with no irregularities whatsoever.

 

[Booti]

Thanks for info
I'll have a look at it as soon as i get a chance
Can you just clarify something though. How can i tell if the ball is breaking in the barrel or at the bolt? I didn't realise there was a difference.
You mention pressure. I have been having to chrono the gun every time i get the bottle refilled as the speeds can vary so much. A bottle that has just been filled will give me 230-250 while a bottle that was filled the night before and kept indoors can be giving me 320-330 without any adjustments. Do i need to be looking a some form of pressure regulation.
All i can tell you for sure at the moment is that the marker is running more like an air driven spray gun than a paintball marker some times.
If it does turn out to be the barrel, and i know you have all been asked this a thousand times, can you recommend a replacement barrel.
I have limited funds, no more than £50, i obviously want fairly good accuracy, but do not really want to screw a 2 foot extension to the end of the marker
I have been doing a lot of reading up on the different barrels available and am currently torn between a tear drop from smart parts, a quiet riot, whisper, or ice cold from 32 degrees or a dye excel.
I aint captain marvel out there on the field and am not not trying to hit a keyhole at 200 paces (not yet anyway) i just want to make my game more enjoyable, so i dont spend the sessions with a squegee in my hands all the times

Thanks for reading
All advice is welcome

Booti

 

[Liz]

Well I'm not exactly the world's best marker tech, but I'll do my best.

Firstly, telling where the ball is breaking. Drop the bolt out of your marker after you've had one of these breaks & have a look at it. If there is paint on the end of the bolt (or in the marker behind where the barrel ends), then that's where the ball is breaking indicating a pressure problem. If the bolt is clean and the paint from the break starts anywhere in the barrel, then the barrel is the problem.

Techy boys help us out here if I'm getting this wrong!
Regarding the change in pressure, that's probably due to the nature of CO2 as a gas. When you fill your bottle it chills down, sometimes enough so you can get a nasty freeze burn (so should always wear gloves when filling with CO2). Once your bottle has been sitting in your nice warm house overnight the gas in it warms up making the molecules more excited which can lead to the pressure rising.

Regarding a replacement barrel, really anything from a reputable manufacturer that has the right Spyder thread, a largeish bore if you can't afford a multiple bore type barrel (e.g. .689 - .691) and about 14 inches should be fine. Personally I'm a Smart Parts gal & will usually go for their stuff, though bear in mind that the teardrop porting can be a bitch to clean. I think they may have some single barrels on offer at the mo if you aren't too fussed about getting something that's a perfect colour match to your marker, though I couldn't say if they have any for Spyders.

 

[Booti]

Thanks again for all the advice Liz

I'll go bust some balls and see what the results are

Booti

 

[JoseDominguez]

I think you answered your question when you said you get 15 breaks with dracula and 2 with blaze

your stock barrel should be big enough for any paint, the spyder is just a little harsher on the paint than say a cocker so expect more breaks........how reliable is your revvy? you might be out firing it?
Oh, and check how fresh your paint is............you might just be hitting a few dodgy balls from each batch (unless you are ordering it and using it straight away) how are you storing it?
Might be something that simple.

 

[Booti]

i have done some tests since i made the last post and found the following

If the barrel is slightly damp, say from blowing a ball thru as originally suggested by Liz then the next ball will not go thru to easily. The more you do it the more i was using a squegee to get the blockage back out. This is with the dracula balls.....i do not have any balze to test at the moment, but i do hope to get some more soon to try those

You ask how reliable the revvy is......not sure really as i am new to this......it seems to spin when the hopper neck is empty and stop when it is full....but it is brand new

As to out firing it.....i suppose it is possible....but i didn't think i was firing that fast to be honest.....didn't think i could

The paint is totally fresh from my point of few.....as in it is bought at the site and used that day.......some of it does tun over to the next event....but no more than 500 balls

The balls that do remain is stored in a dry, warm place......ie my lounge floor. Lose balls are kept in pots and bagged balls are left in the bags.

 

[joe bob]

I have had my spyder for about a year now, and i usually use diablo blaze, it is a bit small but i think I have only had one break and I still use my stock barrel, so theirs probly a scrach or some dirt or sand in you barrel.


when u have a break look wear the smear on the inside starts, your flaw shouldnt be far

 

[JoseDominguez]

Originally posted by Booti
i have done some tests since i made the last post and found the following

If the barrel is slightly damp, say from blowing a ball thru as originally suggested by Liz then the next ball will not go thru to easily. The more you do it the more i was using a squegee to get the blockage back out. This is with the dracula balls.....i do not have any balze to test at the moment, but i do hope to get some more soon to try those

You ask how reliable the revvy is......not sure really as i am new to this......it seems to spin when the hopper neck is empty and stop when it is full....but it is brand new

As to out firing it.....i suppose it is possible....but i didn't think i was firing that fast to be honest.....didn't think i could

The paint is totally fresh from my point of few.....as in it is bought at the site and used that day.......some of it does run over to the next event....but no more than 500 balls

The balls that do remain is stored in a dry, warm place......ie my lounge floor. Lose balls are kept in pots and bagged balls are left in the bags.

Get hold of some other paint...... you've no idea how long the site has had the paint, and how do they store it? That's probably your problem. It shouldn't be the dampness in the barrel that's stopping balls going through (shouldn't be in there long enough to swell)..... maybe just a bit irregular in shape/size (from storage)
(just speculating, I don't know which site you go to..they may buy the paint fresh and store it in a temp controlled lock-up)
If it is stored well, just say so......don't mention the site by name

 

[Booti]

After speaking to a lot of people we have come to the conclusion that the dracula paint must be very slightly bigger than the blaze paint

I know that both lots of paint are fresh, as they come from 2 reputable sites

The point i was trying to make in the lasy post Jose was that if there is any dampness in the barrel, from either blowing the balls thru manual, or from the gun firing and chilling the barrel, it results in the balls sticking. I am not saying that this causes the balls swell or change shape, but i makes the barrel that little too tight, so that the balls are getting jammed

Thanks to everyone for the advice........ i have deceided to get a new barrrel and see how much of a difference that will make. One Dye Xcel coming right up (when they get them back in stock )