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Morning all.
Ive recently aquired a triplet (well, a pair and an odd one out) of smallish low pressure rams (along with a small freebie valve - cheers Simon
).
Theyve been sat in a shed without the holes covered (so Im told) for a while, so theyll need to be stripped down, checked over, dried out and reassembled. I think I already know the answer to the question Im about to ask but still...
Should I just do as Ive said above - i.e. dry them out completely then reassemble them - or is there anything else that Ill need to do? For example - are there any bits that should be lubricated or WD40d before I put them back together? I know I need to get rid of the water (popular quote - CO2 and water dont mix - Ill take their word for it but I dont know why) but is oil similarly dangerous? I vaguely seem to remember something about a potential explosion risk with oil in pressurised CO2 tho I could be wrong.
One other question relating to the freebie valve - it currently has a sort of spring loaded roller arm on one end to actuate the valve itself. If I wanted to replace this with a solenoid - how would I go about it? Its a standard 5/3 jobby (I think - well, it has three ports on one side and two on the other) and its made by Norgren - has a little diagram on it with the ports numbered 1-5 and the ends (one end with arm thing and one with a plastic cap) numbered 12 and 14 I think.
OK next questions. Im considering starting out on 50psi with a small 12V compressor filling a buffertank (so the CO2 issues above arent immediately critical admittedly). Ive worked out that for the larger of the cylinders (50mm bore) I should get about 150lb of lift at the ram which is ample for now. However, Im not sure how to do the whole linkage thing. I have a small tank Id like to use (no pressure rating on it but its metal and itll be fine for 50psi) and I can work out the part where I drill out the valve at the top, braze in a piece of tube and tap a BSP fitting into it. However, how would I go about connecting the compressor to the circuit? Ive got a car style valve knocking around (and Im sure I could get more) but Im assuming that the adapter on the compressor wouldnt give a reliable enough connection - and then theres the issue of how Id get the valve into the tank in the first place (as they fit from the inside) so how are people currently doing this?
Also, if I buy a really cheap compressor Id need a 50psi relief valve to keep the pressure down - do these exist and does anyone know where I can get one?
Finally - Im intrigued by the RRC approach. How did they connect a plastic bottle to a pneumatic system via a valve? I didnt see the Real robots issues where they did the pneumatics so Im completely at a loss as to how it works. Was it a proper solenoid valve? Or was it all car style fittings and some sort of servo operated valve thing? And how did they modify the bike pump - if they did - to be used as a ram?
Thatll do for my current shotgun effect of questions for the moment although Im sure Ill be back with more.
Cheers all
-- Kev
Ive recently aquired a triplet (well, a pair and an odd one out) of smallish low pressure rams (along with a small freebie valve - cheers Simon
). Theyve been sat in a shed without the holes covered (so Im told) for a while, so theyll need to be stripped down, checked over, dried out and reassembled. I think I already know the answer to the question Im about to ask but still...
Should I just do as Ive said above - i.e. dry them out completely then reassemble them - or is there anything else that Ill need to do? For example - are there any bits that should be lubricated or WD40d before I put them back together? I know I need to get rid of the water (popular quote - CO2 and water dont mix - Ill take their word for it but I dont know why) but is oil similarly dangerous? I vaguely seem to remember something about a potential explosion risk with oil in pressurised CO2 tho I could be wrong.
One other question relating to the freebie valve - it currently has a sort of spring loaded roller arm on one end to actuate the valve itself. If I wanted to replace this with a solenoid - how would I go about it? Its a standard 5/3 jobby (I think - well, it has three ports on one side and two on the other) and its made by Norgren - has a little diagram on it with the ports numbered 1-5 and the ends (one end with arm thing and one with a plastic cap) numbered 12 and 14 I think.
OK next questions. Im considering starting out on 50psi with a small 12V compressor filling a buffertank (so the CO2 issues above arent immediately critical admittedly). Ive worked out that for the larger of the cylinders (50mm bore) I should get about 150lb of lift at the ram which is ample for now. However, Im not sure how to do the whole linkage thing. I have a small tank Id like to use (no pressure rating on it but its metal and itll be fine for 50psi) and I can work out the part where I drill out the valve at the top, braze in a piece of tube and tap a BSP fitting into it. However, how would I go about connecting the compressor to the circuit? Ive got a car style valve knocking around (and Im sure I could get more) but Im assuming that the adapter on the compressor wouldnt give a reliable enough connection - and then theres the issue of how Id get the valve into the tank in the first place (as they fit from the inside) so how are people currently doing this?
Also, if I buy a really cheap compressor Id need a 50psi relief valve to keep the pressure down - do these exist and does anyone know where I can get one?
Finally - Im intrigued by the RRC approach. How did they connect a plastic bottle to a pneumatic system via a valve? I didnt see the Real robots issues where they did the pneumatics so Im completely at a loss as to how it works. Was it a proper solenoid valve? Or was it all car style fittings and some sort of servo operated valve thing? And how did they modify the bike pump - if they did - to be used as a ram?
Thatll do for my current shotgun effect of questions for the moment although Im sure Ill be back with more.
Cheers all
-- Kev
.
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