Scuba Tank Folks
Paintball shops around me either won’t fill a 88cf tank or won’t fill beyond 3000psi. Local Dive shop will fill on the spot to what ever their current tank pressure is. The 3 time I’ve been there the cascade tanks have been between 3200 and 3500. I have a 4500 psi tank. If I leave the tank overnight, they’ve been good enough to fill my tank first thing after running the compressor (which they do to fill there system after they close the doors at night). They charge the system to 4700psi so they can top me off easily.
Now why am I writing this.
1 – It’s a pain to make 2 trips on two different days.
2 – They charge a little extra for a high pressure fill.
3 – They just made me a customer for life (if the following continues).
Today, the owner and I got to talking. He’s seeing more and more paintballers so he started a ‘frequent fill club’. My fill today cost me $106.00, the next 19 will be free. That’s better than half price at the ONLY dive shop in my county. That’s right – 20 $12 fills for $106.00 ($100 plus tax) just by pre-paying. Ask your shops if they have such programs!!! Save some money!
oh… and don’t brag about your free or $5 fills on demand 👿 no such thing around here.
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HPA fill for me is $5
I pay $5 for a 4500 psi fill here, but then again I live on the water and dive shops are a dime a dozen…
Just wondering….
8 Mins. on my 88cf tank, from 2400-35/3600psi. It has a pressure relief (bleeds off excess air) at that psi, but not an auto shutoff. Noise level isn’t too bad, about like my well worn 30gal Craftsman shop compressor.
No but I will look into it. I also just remembered (doh) the place I get my CO2 tank filled. They are a fire safety company. I think they are called FireSafe. They may have a compressor but their CO2 ain’t cheap…
I’ll have to check with the local VFD too. The paintball folks said they got turned down so I skipped them. Maybe the right ‘grease’ will win me a friend or 2.
Anyway, I’m good for the next 19 fills. That’s buy me some time (especially if I’m willing to keep rebuilding my pump). I wonder if AF would send me a complete O-Ring parts list so I can source a complete high quality set (hmmmm). I sware the biggest problem is the cheapo rubber . Everything else does look EXACTLY like the pictures that go with the hill pump instructions. Gotta be tolerances or o-rings.
For those of you that have the HP Tanks, I have found that the local fire department will fill an SCBA ( 88cuft @ 4500psi) for free, as long as it is current on hydro. I offered a $50 donation the first time I went and have never been denied since. I have had my tank filled and topped off 3 times already. Just a thought for you folks that may have a long drive to a fill place. There is bound to be a fire department close by as most all of them have a fill station. If you know a police officer, I am sure he could help out as well in asking them. Hell, if your wifey can cook, I bet a bad ass pie or plate of cookies would go a long way as these folks like to eat 😛 and if all else fails I am sure a bottle of crown or case of beer would get someones attention …lol
Peace,
ASMALLVOICE
Hey Bean, have you considered leasing a Nitrogen tank?
I know it photo… I made all the calls before deciding on pump vs tank. I can get it cheaper if I drive out of my way, but I’d still need to leave it – which means 2 trips out of my way. Originally, I went with the pump because of the tank fill cost. Now I have both. I found that I shoot enough (much to the dismay of the wife 😀 ) that I’d have to refill once or twice during a session. That was enough strain on these muscles to ruin my aim.
Been using the pump when I’m not in a rush or at the end of a sesson to keep the AF tanks close to full. I use the scuba while shooting to keep tank pressure between 1900 and 2400. That seems to be my most consistent pressure range when shooting at 1.5 – 2 on the pw (indoor 20 yd at paper).
Bean, I wish I could say you can do better but your getting the best you can get 🙁 . I pay $2.50 for a 4500psi fill and sometimes I can get one or two Free99 fill’s and I can wait for it. Someone in your area could invest in a fill system setup or maybe a group of you could. It would take time for it to pay for it self at say $5.00 a fill but after that it would be nice to have in the long run. At $12.00 a fill that’s $1200 for 100 fills 😯 Too me it sounds like a good business opportunity for your area 😀
Hey Sharp, how much noise does that thing make? And how long does it have to run to fill a tank to 3600? Does it have auto shut-off at pressure or do you have to sit around and keep an eye on it to shut it off manually?
Just wondering….
A big money saver for you, congrats 😀
guess I’m one of the luck ones too………..except that I only get 3600psi fills
but…………..no travel, and on demand so can’t complain. 8)
Guess I am lucky.
HPA fill for me is $5
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Here in my city (Cancun) i get charged $27 PESOS (about US$ 2) for filling my 3000psi tank!, i guess im lucky too.
Only bad side is that my tank is 3000psi, but it does give me plenty fills at 2600 ~ 2700 psi, and about 3 or 4 at 2800psi.
I have a hand pump too, but i LOOOOOOOOVE my scuba tank! 😀