Noob questions...

[PVC Arsenal 17]

Well I'm a potato gun vet but I am really new to the whole "strafer" scene.
From what I have looked at on this site, there are two types of strafers. Cloud style guns and others that use a vortex block to work.

Basically, all I gather from this is that these receive a constant flow of air that somehow sucks bb's into a barrel and fires them out.

Which is the most effective and powerful of the two designs?
I understand how the cloud types work but it seems to me that the rate of fire would not be constant because bb's only occasionally make it into the barrel.

I do not understand what vortex blocks are. Please fill me in on what they do and how they work.

Thanks for the help.

[SpudStuff]

vortexes suck. they ware down and are hars to get working prefectly. make a cloud it works better and shoots faster

[x.X.Cpt.Rollhart.X.x]

vortexes suck. they ware down and are hars to get working prefectly. make a cloud it works better and shoots faster

not really ...

[PVC Arsenal 17]

Another question: Why is it that tha barrels on clouds are located at the top of the cap?

[Shrimphead]

Clouds are simpler and don't require maintenance, vortexes are more efficient but will eventually have to be replaced after they are worn down by the bbs.

[WOW!!]

I like the strafers, they are more mats and steps but they are kool, i would go with a cloud and then a strafer.

[huse_spud]

Another question: Why is it that tha barrels on clouds are located at the top of the cap?

ummm...a swirling "cloud" of bbs is created at the top and then the bbs that get too close to the barrel are guided out of the chamber on a stream of air.

btw a blowgun at the bottom vents the bbs upward so... hopefully that answers it all.

[PVC Arsenal 17]

Is a cloud still as effective if air is being vented in from the back rather than the bottom? Where is the barrel paced then?

[carlbelcher]

No, a cloud would not be near as effective with the air inlet in the back of the chamber, you would end up with a lot of bbs trying to escape though one small hole resulting in a jam. If you want to put the air inlet on the end of the pipe you would have to put the barrel on the side of the pipe.

[drac]

It's apparent that "some" people don't know what they're talking about.

It doesn't matter where you place the air inlet, because as the air flows out the barrel, it sucks BBs behind it. Clouds don't "jam" , which is why they're preferred over the vortex guns.. As long as the air agitates the BBs, it doesn't matter.

[frogy]

It's easier to get agitation when the air inlet is on the bottom, but like Drac said, it doesn't matter... Since the gun is perfectly sealing (should be) except for the barrel it creates a vacumm type suction that pulls any BB's that have been agitated out of the barrel with it...

Having the air inlet on the bottom front of the gun seems to make it agitate more because it's underneath the BB's...

Clouds are easier to make and easier to maintain than strafers (vortex's)

Strafers look cooler IMO though

[PVC Arsenal 17]

Thanks to your help on these clouds I'm starting to put together some ideas. I wanted a gun that looks a bit more realistic than the typical cloud but performs just as well if not better.

This is one concept I might try:



The tee is the "cloud" part and both handles are plugged. The angled handle has the blowgun in it. The plug connecting the 45 to the tee is tapped with 1/8" threads and has a barbed adapter screwed into it. A hose runs from the blowgun to the plug and vents air into the chamber from behind.

If is is more effective to have air come from beneath, I'll just redirect the hose through the vertical handle and tap that one's plug instead.

The tee has a male adapter on it and the cap with the barrel just screws on.

How do you think it'll work?

And here's my turtle Sebastian:
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[Darkerweb12]

Hey PVC, that gun design actually looks pretty badass, well, I think it does.

Anyways, how drac described the cloud was exactly how it happens inside the gun, Clouds generally have a higher rate of fire than vortexs, but vortexs have less wasted air because of the consistency that BBs get fed into them.

The barrel is at the top of the chanber in clouds because that allows you to load more BBs in without them rolling out.

And another thing, Clouds can be outfitted with more than one barrel per chamber, allowing for a fairly rediculous rate of fire, although velocity is reduced.