making a pony?

[wyty22]

First of all I'm new to the forum so hello to all

Ok, I was wondering if it is possible to make a pony bottle form a paintball tank? I have a 3000 psi 50 ci aluminum tank that I used for paintball a number of years ago. I thought if I could remove the valve and attach a K-valve it would, in theory, work. Has anyone done this before???

I was looking into spare air systems and other pony bottles, then I remembered i have this small tank. So if anyone knows if it is possible I would appreciate it

 

[Rhone Man]

In the old days people used to make ponies from fire extinguishers, so the short answer must be "yes".

However, good luck getting a VIP sticker on an ex-fire extinguisher. Paintball tank should be OK though.

 

[scarefaceDM]

First thing I will ask here is:
What is your life worth to you?

Next is:
Why?

And then:
That paintball tank is no where near enough volume to use for a proper bailout tank. Your reference to a PONY. At the minimum you would need a 30 cub foot scuba certified tank. which will give you plenty of gas in case you need it or need to hand it to someone in the even of an OOA.

However I would try to get a valve on it to use as an inflation system for a drysuit.

If you do a search.. The SPARE Air syndrom has been debated and beaten down several times.
As I can see the reasoning for wanting to save money...But you will not save anything.

You would be best served to get the proper tank which has been inspected and certified to be used for scuba.
( VIP, CLEANED, Eddie current tested and Hydro static tested) Cost of this can be th eprice of a good used scuba tank.

You will save money buy buying a tank that has been serviced - used ones are abundant and can cost from 70- 150 depending on size. 19 cub to a good 40 cub. Look around before you take that plunge. factor the cost of getting that paintball tank certified and serviced plus the cost of the valve.Not to mention that a Scuba tank, the valve is 3/4...if i am not mistaken, the paintball tank, the neck size is alot smaller.

safe dives

 

[FritzCat66]

Search these forums for "pony" and you'll find all kinds of recommendations for pony sizes. While 30cf cylinders are sometimes used, 19cf seems to hit the sweet spot for most of us, but certainly no less than 6cf, which is still quite a bit larger than a 4cf paintball cylinder.

 

[Rhone Man]

Poll: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/advanced-scuba-discussions/290745-how-big-your-pony-ies.html

 

[WD8CDH]

Other than being too small (a 50 ci tank is only 6 CF at 3000psi), the main problem of the paintball tanks is the neck thread. No SCUBA valves were ever made in the paintball thread. I think a Spare Air regulator would fit but just purchasing a larger suitable size SCUBA pony is a much better idea.

 

[rstofer]

You can probably do better but a 13 cf cylinder costs around $140 and a 19 cf cylinder costs around $160.

Required capacity is a function of assumptions concerning depth, diddling around time, speed of ascent, the ever popular safety stop and the stressed SAC. Good luck with the math.

I just bought one of each because Luxfer is not going to make them any longer. All of my diving will be less than 40' and the majority less than 30'. I can't imagine a 13 cf tank being too small. I can make a CESA from 30' (well, I could 20 years ago) so 13 cf sounds like a lot.

Richard

 

[NorthWoodsDiver]

First of all I'm new to the forum so hello to all

Ok, I was wondering if it is possible to make a pony bottle form a paintball tank? I have a 3000 psi 50 ci aluminum tank that I used for paintball a number of years ago. I thought if I could remove the valve and attach a K-valve it would, in theory, work. Has anyone done this before???

I was looking into spare air systems and other pony bottles, then I remembered i have this small tank. So if anyone knows if it is possible I would appreciate it

When you can get a Hymark al40 tank (copy of luxfer) for like $120 shipped to your door with a pro valve its not hardly worth messing around with something like this.

What is your life worth?????

 

[HenrikBP]

When you can get a Hymark al40 tank (copy of luxfer) for like $120 shipped to your door with a pro valve ...

That sounds like a fantastic price - I'm interested. Who sells at that price?

Henrik