Propane meter
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SpudBlaster15
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Last edited by SpudBlaster15 on Wed Jul 14, 2021 12:31 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Pete Zaria
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I use a meter setup almost identical to this on my combustion gun.
You can find some spreadsheets to help you find the right psi. Since you don't have a regulator, you just have to be quick on closing the first (propane tank side) ball valve when the gauge hits the right pressure. It works fine.
Make sure you use the right kind of hose (the clear flexible stuff bursts at ~70psi, and is DAMN loud when it does), and clamp down the hose clamps *really* tight. I recommend using 2 hose clamps on each connection, they tend to leak a bit.
Make sure you Teflon tape all the threaded connections and crank them down tight with a wrench. Also, its best to leak test the entire setup underwater in your bath tub before you install it on the gun. The whole thing should be waterproof, so no worries there.
Where you install it onto your gun, make sure you tap the elbow through to the chamber where a fitting and the pipe overlap (thus two layers of plastic), and use some epoxy on the threads to hold it in tight.
Just FYI, on my gun, it's easier to do two "shots" at 40psi than one at 80psi (for a 4% mix). Play around with the psi, sometimes what the spreadsheets tell you doesn't provide the best "boom" and distance in practice.
Just my input.
Whats your ignition source? How many spark gaps? Chamber fan?
Peace,
Pete Zaria.
You can find some spreadsheets to help you find the right psi. Since you don't have a regulator, you just have to be quick on closing the first (propane tank side) ball valve when the gauge hits the right pressure. It works fine.
Make sure you use the right kind of hose (the clear flexible stuff bursts at ~70psi, and is DAMN loud when it does), and clamp down the hose clamps *really* tight. I recommend using 2 hose clamps on each connection, they tend to leak a bit.
Make sure you Teflon tape all the threaded connections and crank them down tight with a wrench. Also, its best to leak test the entire setup underwater in your bath tub before you install it on the gun. The whole thing should be waterproof, so no worries there.
Where you install it onto your gun, make sure you tap the elbow through to the chamber where a fitting and the pipe overlap (thus two layers of plastic), and use some epoxy on the threads to hold it in tight.
Just FYI, on my gun, it's easier to do two "shots" at 40psi than one at 80psi (for a 4% mix). Play around with the psi, sometimes what the spreadsheets tell you doesn't provide the best "boom" and distance in practice.
Just my input.
Whats your ignition source? How many spark gaps? Chamber fan?
Peace,
Pete Zaria.
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mark.f
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This is also mostly the same setup I used on my first propane meter, (well, my second. First one was a syringe). It works good for a modified torch head, but I'm betting you'd have to install a flow regulator after one of those little tank x 1/4" MNPT adapter things. Too much flow.
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SpudBlaster15
- First Sergeant 3
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Cras nec placerat erat. Vivamus dapibus egestas nunc, at eleifend neque. Suspendisse potenti. Sed dictum lacus eu nisl pretium vehicula. Ut faucibus hendrerit nisi. Integer ultricies orci eu ultrices malesuada. Fusce id mauris risus. Suspendisse finibus ligula et nisl rutrum efficitur. Vestibulum posuere erat pellentesque ornare venenatis. Integer commodo fermentum tortor in pharetra. Proin scelerisque consectetur posuere. Vestibulum molestie augue ac nibh feugiat scelerisque. Sed aliquet a nunc in mattis.
Last edited by SpudBlaster15 on Wed Jul 14, 2021 12:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Pete Zaria
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You probably know this already, one spark gap near the back (just in front of the fan) and one gap near the middle of the chamber seems to work best. With a BBQ sparker, you have to use pretty small gaps - around 1/8th" or so. Using a chamber short (burntlatke) is easiest, and reduces holes in the chamber.
Just FYI, my current big combustion gun has a 250ci chamber and interchangeable barrels. The chamber has onboard propane just like you've setup above.
According to the math (fueltool, other spreadsheets) I should be using something like 60psi in my meter pipe. I've found that 80 (or two shots of 40) produces a bigger boom and better distance. This could be because of residual meter pipe volume, or incomplete fuel/air mixing (though I run the fan for a count of 5 before firing to mix fuel). But anyway, as I was saying, play with the amount of fuel you use. Sometimes the spreadsheets aren't quite right.
BTW, rather than trying to use the needle valve on the propane tank as a regulator, just open it all the way up. The pressure in the meter will slowly build. Shut the tank-side ball valve when the gauge hits your correct PSI.
I intentionally put a TEENY (smallest needle I could find) hole in the tubing between the propane tank and the meter pipe, so the unused propane after injecting a "shot" could escape. If you don't do that, then you need to vent the meter when you're done firing.
Anyway... sounds like a fun one. Post some pics when you're done?
Peace,
Pete Zaria.
Just FYI, my current big combustion gun has a 250ci chamber and interchangeable barrels. The chamber has onboard propane just like you've setup above.
According to the math (fueltool, other spreadsheets) I should be using something like 60psi in my meter pipe. I've found that 80 (or two shots of 40) produces a bigger boom and better distance. This could be because of residual meter pipe volume, or incomplete fuel/air mixing (though I run the fan for a count of 5 before firing to mix fuel). But anyway, as I was saying, play with the amount of fuel you use. Sometimes the spreadsheets aren't quite right.
BTW, rather than trying to use the needle valve on the propane tank as a regulator, just open it all the way up. The pressure in the meter will slowly build. Shut the tank-side ball valve when the gauge hits your correct PSI.
I intentionally put a TEENY (smallest needle I could find) hole in the tubing between the propane tank and the meter pipe, so the unused propane after injecting a "shot" could escape. If you don't do that, then you need to vent the meter when you're done firing.
Anyway... sounds like a fun one. Post some pics when you're done?
Peace,
Pete Zaria.