Modded sprinkler valve??

[akaddis]

I don't understand what a modded sprinkler valve does. Please explain how it works. I use a regular sprinkler valve (not modded) and I have 3 options to fire, the little screw, the twist thing under the solenoid, and the solenoid itself (electrically). So what does it do to mod it? And why do you need to attach a ball valve before it? And what is a blowgun?

[Pyro Ninja]

This is a question asked by many many people.
Ive never modded a sprinkler valve but i know how.
Before i thought it was hard to mod one so i looked at the valves and then i figured it out.
I really suggest you seach through the forums to avoid annoying people

http://www.spudfiles.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=305&

[The Haymaker]

Hey, I'll answer that instead of just blabbing for a paragraph and then telling you that you bug me.

The modded sprink is just providing an easier way to dump the air behind the diaphram, triggering the release. Plug all the holes you mention and add a fitting allowing the screw in of a blowgun or hose leading to a blowgun.

A blowgun is just that, a blowgun. The thing you use to blow air on the end of an airhose. Consider it a very fast, easy to hold in one hand, switch for air. You can get them almost anywhere for pennies.


This question woulda been answered politely in the first place at www.spudshot.com/Forums ! That crew appreciates members.

[akaddis]

yes but cant you just eliminate the sprinkler valve and just use the ball valve??? how does it help in releasing air if you modd it?

[Pete Zaria]

A modified sprinkler valve releases air 2-3 times as fast as a non-modified (solenoid) sprinkler valve.
This is because the pneumatic actuation (blowgun) vents the pilot volume and moves the diaphragm MUCH faster than the solenoid can, and thus releases the air in the chamber much faster as well.

A modified sprinkler valve opens (estimated) 15-20x faster than a ball valve. Ball valves are among the slowest opening valves - thus, among the worst for spudgun purposes. For potato cannons, the faster the valve opens, the better. This is why pistons and burst disks are best - uber-low opening time.

Search around. There are diagrams of how a sprinkler valve works, and even tests on exactly how much better a modded valve is.

Peace,
Pete Zaria.

[The Haymaker]

The sprinkler valve will release air far quicker than anything you could do with a ball valve. Figuratively speaking, it might take 1 second to open a ball valve, while a modded sprinkler would be somewhere around .005 seconds.

The slower time opening a BV results in a slowly growing "ramp" of air coming into the barrel. The projectile may leave the barrel, riding the leading edge of this "ramp", and never even see the max psi your rezzie is capable of delivering. But, with a SV, the "ramp" is now a "brick wall" of air, putting max psi and volume behind the projectile.

In the big 2" cannon I have posted in the pneumatic showcase section, I gained several hundred feet by swapping from simple BV to SV piloted 3" piston. There is no comparison, whether it be power, distance, or even sound. The air is released so suddenly that there is only one trmendous "crack" report instead of a whoosh of air like I was getting prior to swapping.

Try it, you'll like it!

E

[tylerthetatertosser]

to mod the sprinkler valve and doing all the steps are easy i should only take a bout 10 mins. dill a hole in plate face attach blow and dont froget to fill electic soleniod hole with jb weld it is very easy and simple and i know it will make your gun shoot way better.

[akaddis]

so is a blowgun the part that sometimes comes with an air compressor? (it has a trigger that you can squeeze to let air out) Its supposedly for cleaning sawdust or something......

[medievalman]

Yes, that would be the elusive blowgun...

[akaddis]

so when you pull the trigger how does it release air if you just stick it inside the hole of the sprinkler valve?

[medievalman]

all right, i will start over from the beginning:

on a solenoid actuated sprinkler valve, their is a diaphragm between the chamber, and the pilot area. the pilot area is emptied when the solenoid is activated via a small hole in the casing. When you modify a sprinkler, it replaces the tiny hole with a much larger hole for more air flow, and it replaces the solenoid with a blowgun for faster release times. thus more air flow+faster pilot release times=faster valve opening. the blowgun is letting the air out of the pilot area, causing the diaphragm to rise, and allowing air to pass thru, much faster than the solenoid ever can.

i hope this helps some of your problems and answers all of your questions!

[akaddis]

all right, i will start over from the beginning:

on a solenoid actuated sprinkler valve, their is a diaphragm between the chamber, and the pilot area. the pilot area is emptied when the solenoid is activated via a small hole in the casing. When you modify a sprinkler, it replaces the tiny hole with a much larger hole for more air flow, and it replaces the solenoid with a blowgun for faster release times. thus more air flow+faster pilot release times=faster valve opening. the blowgun is letting the air out of the pilot area, causing the diaphragm to rise, and allowing air to pass thru, much faster than the solenoid ever can.

i hope this helps some of your problems and answers all of your questions!

thanks that helps alot...

[medievalman]

yep, no problem. i had no idea how a sprinkler valve worked when i made my first pneumatic. i thought they were so complicated that using a ball valve would be better for me! then my ball valve leaked, and i got a sprinkler valve for my birthday, so i said what the hell and modded. suprisingly, it worked the first time! i just dont know if i am up to pistons yet...