fill air tanks
Printed From: Kiwi Airgunners
Category: General
Forum Name: Flub's General Discussion
Forum Description: General discussion goes in here.
URL: www.kiwiairgunners.co.nz/forum_posts.asp?TID=437
Printed Date: 18 Aug 2025 at 2:28pm
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Topic: fill air tanks
Posted By: samba
Subject: fill air tanks
Date Posted: 04 Nov 2019 at 1:36pm
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Hi folks, It has been ages since I was last on here, but I finally have ordered my PCP and I need to get everything sorted so I can use it when it arrives. The big issue is- filling air tanks! The gun I ordered is an FX Crown Continuum, and the bottle fills to 250 bar. I will likely have a carbon tank to fill from and need to be able to fill that. I am in Wellington, and so far I have not found a dive shop that will fill above about 230-240 bar; and the paintball place only fills to 200 bar. Does anyone know of a way to get a fill to somewhere north of 250 bar, especially in the Welly area? I have heard that a fire station may have the gear to do it, but am not sure if they would be allowed to. Does anyone have any siggestions? Cheers, Pat
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Replies:
Posted By: Edz
Date Posted: 05 Nov 2019 at 5:15pm
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There should be a service facility to test and fill 300 bar tanks for fire and rescue services,give them a call,someone will know. ------------- Ed. |
Posted By: dvlnme
Date Posted: 11 Nov 2019 at 5:17am
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just a dumb quiestion here,but why buy a pcp you know will have fill problems with???its pretty well known that 250 bar/4500psi airguns have issuses finding anywhere to get 250 bar hpa bottles filled as most dive shops even if they can doso, wont doso,for whatever reasons,fire stations wont fill bottles they dont own,proberly for liablity reasons caused by testing issues with carbon fiber hpa bottles etc,its not all bad as a regulated gun will run perfectly well at lower fill pressures,tho shot counts will be lower,this isnt a big issuse really as will still give a decent shot count for hunting,i rarely fill my own regulated guns up to max fill pressure and am happy enough getting 25/30 full power shots for hunting,i dont know enough bout your rifle to know if regulated or not,but fx are excellent pcp guns and you certainly be disappointed with yours,check your local airgun club,some one will definatly know where to get 250 bar fills,i am lucky my club has a 250 bar compressor,so dont have your problem,carbon fiber bottles have to meet strict test proceedures,any evan slight damage will cause them to fail tests,not to have them tested when required isnt a good idea,as its very definatly a safety issuse,guns that require 250 bar fill pressures certainly have their own issuses that proberly wont change unless the dive industery changes to 250 bar bottles forcing dive shops to be able to fill to this pressure,this has happened to certain extent here due to the oil industy needing large hi capacity hpa bottle banks on off shore platforms and drilling rigs,my local dive shop in new plymouth will fill and test 250 bar carbon fiber bottles,but only started doing so in last 2years,so maybe things changing. cheers mike
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Posted By: nunga
Date Posted: 13 Nov 2019 at 4:11pm
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Im pretty sure Alex can full up to 250 bar but he is no where near you ------------- 2nd place HP springer - WFTF World Championships 2014 |
Posted By: dvlnme
Date Posted: 14 Nov 2019 at 3:58am
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250 bar tanks going be prob for some time as is testing of them to get filled etc,dont believe this will change much unlees commercal divers start using 250 bar tanks,as the demand for dive shops to upgrade their systems for 250 bar isnt currently there,local dive shop in new plymouth bit closer than alex and owner does fill 250 bar tanks,tho not sure if he can test them as well,he does test metal bottles up to 220bar tho,prob being that all pcp rifles now require a firearms licence this has significantly affected sales of pcp rifles as well as use of them,so less are now sold etc,this in turn has proberly had an effect on clubs prepared to spend the significant outlay in buying compressors for club members as well,fact is there are not as many 250 bar pcp rifles out there as the lower fill pressure rifles using lower fill pressure hpa bottles etc,its just a question of numbers as far as dive shops and club fill stations go,personally cant see the point in having a 250 bar gun if cant fill it eh!!as 250 bar guns are really mostly bout getting higher shot counts not bout getting more power,as said previously a regulated gun will work just fine at 200/220 bar,but just give less shots per fill,yet still give a very decent shot count,so its not actually that necessary to actually fill to 250 bar on many rifles for them to still very practical rifles,they just need to be filled more often than at 250 bar. there must be some one in your area who can fill your hpa bottles,just be matter of finding them. dont want seen negitive on this one but just trying be practical as i cant see things changing ant time soon with 250 bar fill pressures,the other choice is to buy your own small compressor on line,they can be got for approx $500 but can be lets say problomatic,a local club member has one and its given no probs for several years no,but does require freqent maintanace.i guess at this price you definatly get what you pay for,but if looked after an maintained not abused will work for years,it will depend for sure how much use it get i guess,the other option is to visit placemakers a see if you can buy one new hpa nail gun compressors they sell,i believe they do sell these compressors separatly from the nail gun,at approx $ 900 i heard. cheers mike
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Posted By: nunga
Date Posted: 14 Nov 2019 at 4:41am
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Yeah the only time you really need that higher PSI is for the big bore stuff ------------- 2nd place HP springer - WFTF World Championships 2014 |
Posted By: Pauly5
Date Posted: 15 Nov 2019 at 12:54pm
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The other option is to fill up with your dive tank, and top off with a hand pump. Samba, I know we have talked already, but I believe the dive shop in Island Bay might do those generouus fills. But of course you're always going down hill pressure wise. ------------- |
Posted By: dvlnme
Date Posted: 16 Nov 2019 at 4:45am
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you right there paul,using 250 bar tank to fill 250 bar rifle does mean only getting few fills at full 250 bar etc,personally cant see point in 250 bar guns unless you have capablity to constantly fill them to 250 bar,and that means having your own compressor or pump you guts out with hand pump and am getting too old for that sh*t eh!!if rifle is regulated it will run perfectly fine at lower fill pressures the shot count will just be lower,but will still be a decent shot count,very likely higher than many other rifles,it just comes down to bassically how many shots will suit you i guess,i perfectly happy with 25/30 shots per fill,as thats 3 mags worth for my rifles,plenty for a day or nights hunting,i dont know what you shot count is from full 250 bar fill but imagine its significantly more the 30 shots,there fore using a lower fill pressure should still give you more than the 30 shots i am used to.evan if you do get your bulk bottle filled you will only get a very few fills at the full 250 bar anyway,possibly only one or two fills at 250 bar,it is what it is eh!!just find a comprimise and enjoy your rifle mate. cheers mike
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Posted By: Pauly5
Date Posted: 16 Nov 2019 at 5:06am
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Good point Mike, If the gun is regulated at say 120 bar, filling to 250 bar will only give you more shots, otherwise no advantage apart from a greater safety margin in the tank pressure. You would only know the difference if you filled it to max, and shot a string, then filled it to dive tank limit and compared shot count. ------------- |
Posted By: metallicsting
Date Posted: 15 Aug 2025 at 10:17pm
| How did you get on with getting a tank? I see gun city now sell them for an extortionate $1,199 , and they also sell an air compressor for $799. What did you end up doing? I'm interested in purchasing an FX Impact M4 and am looking at the filling situation also. Most annoying thing is most dive shops don't put how many bar the tank has. |
Posted By: Pauly5
Date Posted: 15 Aug 2025 at 11:11pm
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Gday metallicsting, I would suggest you look at a compressor. A decent one will completely fill your gun each time, where a dive tank will loose headpressure after each fill and then of course need a trip to the dive shop to get filled. Then there is the testing fo rthe tank that will happen every year that costs around $70 -$90. Some people think you don't need a test if it's not for breathing use, but it does need to be in test to be legally filled. Get a compressor that works on 12 v and it means you can fill it in the field off your car battery. I have a GX CS4. Paid around $900 landed, but I see Hunting and Fishing might be selling them under Gamo label with their new PPCP (plastic precharged Pneumatic) I also have an earlier Airbow compressor as a backup, and haven't used my dive tank for a few years now.
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Posted By: J-S
Date Posted: 18 Aug 2025 at 11:02am
PPCP  ------------- https://www.instagram.com/js_airguns/" rel="nofollow - J S Airguns Air Arms TX200('s) Theoben Sirocco HW77 FWB 300s Webley Patriot One or two others... Current projects: Too many.. |
Posted By: Grey Kiwi
Date Posted: 18 Aug 2025 at 11:48am
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The Gun City pump (GX CS2) is OK, but air cooled and heats up quick. Heat kills those wee pumps. Be prepared to pump for maybe 10 minutes, and allow to cool. Pump for another 10 minutes. Can get tedious. The next step up is the CS3 which has a fully enclosed case but the same guts as the CS2...so not much better at all. Better of the lot is the CS4. It's water cooled (has a built in radiator). I sold mine recently for $1000 to give you an example. They are rated to 5½ hours continuous running. I sold mine to get the Hill Evo-310, and pleased that I did. Only use it for gun filling, and it will outlast me I reckon. For the GX CS2/3/4 etc you get a better price by buying direct from Alibaba (not Aliexpress). The Aliexpress sellers are sometimes selling a clone...and they have no shame. For the money that GC want I'd be looking at a genuine Yong Heng (water cooled). Needs a bucket of water to pump from for cooling. Needs regular maintenance (yearly probably)...seals, grease, etc. Yeah, sod the scuba tank filling guys. Damn dear per fill, plus the yearly test, and the 5 year test, etc.
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