Pneumatic or Combustion?

[spudnik11]

Hi everyone, i haven't made a spudgun yet, but i was wondering, which is better to make a simple starter gun?

[MrCrowley]

Combustion is always great to start out with, because once you go pneumatic not many people go back

They're probably both as easy to make depending on the difficulty of the cannon you're trying to make, but starting out combstion is generally more safe because even with non-pressure rated pipe, a hairspray combustion should be fine.

There are loads of topics similar to this one, go to the <A HREF="http://www.spudfiles.com/forums/search.html">advanced search tool</a> and search the forum for your answer, trust me it is there.

Just make sure to have a decent search of the forum prior to making a topic, you're new so you will be surprised with the amount of topics we have covered, 99% of the time we will have your answer already somewhere on the forum.

[Zen///]

http://www.spudfiles.com/spud_wiki/inde ... =Main_Page
Spud wiki page




Well it's up too you,

Puenematic: Usually more powerfull, power source is usually free (bike pump)

Combustion: Basic ones are more powerfull then basic puenematics, need fuels (axe, propane) and are more loud (usually)

simple starter gun

make your first a hybrid, like novacrastrian did

[TheTrooper]

Well my first cannon was a simple 1:1 ratio ball valve pneumatic. That got me started, although i never tried a combustion, i probably never will like what MrCrowley said

[SpudBlaster15]

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[cwazy1]

^^ yeah , i agree with spud, i like the power of a pneumatic, but a cobustions just has something extra. but i do hate the damn loudness of one. my neughbors are literally 20 feet from me, but they dont mind too much as long as its not in the middle of the night or anything..lol

[MrCrowley]

Combustion is always great to start out with, because once you go pneumatic not many people go back

I went back.

Hence me saying 'not many people'.

[Zen///]

My burst disk puenematic is as loud (louder?) as my friend's combustion

And it doesent use a union, the "stock" is extndable with a locking mechanism, the barrel is atached and the chamber is fixed to the opposite end. Unlock the ajustable thingy(im not sure how to describe it, but it's a leg from a telescope tripod) slide it forward (pump action?) and insert the ammo, put the burst disk (a piece of clear tape that bursts at 75psi) slide it back, lock it, close the ball valve ( ) fill it to 80 psi, look through the scope, actuate valve, hear the "vomisss" of the tape under pressure, BOOM, screw dart through 4 inches of a 2000 page phonebook.

[The Kid]

well i've always liked pneumatics more than combustion (combustions never really appealed to me). Most people will probably start off with a basic or ghetto combustion but in the end its really a personal preference of what you want more, power and reliability or portability and ease of use.

peace

[Eddbot]

i think pneumatics and combustions are pretty equal, many pneumatics can be just as portable and easy to use as a combustion, you just have to decide when you want to use more effort, when you're building or when you're reloading, to put it in laman's(spelling?) terms all you have to choose is if you want a sniper or a cannon

edit: you need a "both" button in the poll

[TurboSuper]

It depends on what you're shooting, really.

If you have a large diameter projectile, say a D cell, you'd probably want to go combustion since they're easier to scale up than pneumatics.

If you have a small one, go pneumatic since they're more powerful.

[watto]

Don't waste your time on combustions, unless your going to build a complicated propane injected gun which I doubt you want to. Build a simple over under solenoid sprinkler valve gun, they are more powerful and reliable than simple combustions.

With pneumatics you actually get a chance to aim them or carry them around while they are loaded, instead of having to spray stuff inside and quickly screw on a cap then fire it instantly afterwards, thats If it decides to fire at all.

[Ragnarok]

Ooh, the typical newbie question.
Long and short of it in my opinion:

Combustion: Usually simpler, less powerful and less reliable. Quite simple to operate if you can handle the fuelling. Power limits set by low combustion pressures, but easier to build large.

Pneumatic: Bit more complex, more powerful and more reliable.
More complex to operate, but good for a smaller launcher.

To get an idea of popularity between the two types, you just have to look at the relative sizes of the Pneumatic and Combustion forums:
Pneumatic: 882 threads, 17791 replies
Combustion: 456 threads, 6127 replies

I have to say, combustions rarely wow me as much as pneumatics do, but that's more because of the higher complexity of pneumatics. It's hard to be really grabbed by something that is pretty simple.

For a newbie, I'd recommend a combustion - it's a cheap way to learn basic principles of construction (like using primer, ALL pressure rated parts, and waiting 24-48 hours after gluing for the glue to dry properly), and if you start with the right design, you can make changes later on to make it more powerful, like adding propane metering and chamber fans, so you can start simple, then you can come back later (perhaps after building a pneumatic), and add some stuff to make it better.

But if you do make the switch to pneumatics, don't restrict yourself just to them, keep a basic combustion around somewhere, because it's nice to do something different every now and then.
I wouldn't use combustion for every cannon, but I still enjoy breaking out my early combustions every few weeks.

[DYI]

I still have the first spray'n'pray combustion that I made from plans on advancedspuds.com more than a year ago, and it is still one of my favourite to shoot.

I never have got around to making an advanced combustion because of the high complexity compared to pneumatics IMO, but I'll probably make one soon - think handheld, 3"x48" barrel, for noise and shooting rutabagas. My pressure source (90 cubic foot nitrogen tank) isn't exactly portable, and I can't stand being stuck with just 160 psi from my bike pump, so I don't really have any portable pneumatics. My pneumatics are more for the effects on the targets than how fun they are to shoot.

So, I would recommend a good advanced combustion, or even a simple combustion, for a first build. Because you probably will have a hard time going back after you make a good pneumatic.

[Ragnarok]

I dunno, I'd say there was a good chance that most people will go back occasionally. My next launcher will probably be a combustion, and I've built - 10, I think - piston valves (some launchers had more than one, using one for piloting, and I replaced some with later versions), so I qualify as a pneumatic nut.

Still, it's really a matter of personal preference. Build one of both, then decide from there.