Should I buy these used tanks? Weren't used for diving.

[FredT]

Probably a wash inside would be a good idea if used with an non-diving compressor. Normal compressed air has more than a little hydrocarbon in it.

Other than that At $75 for the pair, you can afford to have them hydroed and cleaned. The first thing I'd do before doing the deal is yank the valves and drop a light in to check for gross corrosion. Absent that you should be within the allowable risk envelope.
The valves can be easily cleaned and rebuilt.

BTW a serviceable "emergency" tank light can be made from a 12V dome light bulb, a bit of clear electrical tape and length of speaker wire for under $6. just make sure the bulb you buy is under 3/4" in diameter so it fits in the hole. Power it off your car battery and position the tank in the shade for the inspection.

 

[deepstops]

Tanks have never been in the water. He always used air in the tanks, obtained from a LDS or from a friend with a compressor. (I thought all paintball guns used CO₂, but what do I know?) He would take the 2 filled tanks out to the field where they played, and refilled their guns from these tanks.

He's no longer into paintball and will sell me the 2 tanks together for $75.

I did see a picture of them, and they appear to be in good shape, of course I'll do a visual lookover before purchasing. They are stamped with the following:

M4002 06C02 CATALINA S80 TC-3AL M207

Visual decal is dated January 2003.


My 3 questions, as I've always been a renter of tanks:
1. What does the stamp indicate about the cylinders?
2. Should I be concerned that it was used for non-breathing air? I'm sure a hydro and a vis inspection will assure me of it's structural integrity, but what about cleanliness?
3. Would you buy these 2 tanks for $75?

thanks in advance!

Just re-reading this post and the following thought came to mind. If the only viz sticker is dated January 2003, I doubt that tank has been filled by a LDS compressor since January 2004.

As Fred stated, cleaning is probably a very good idea.

 

[Glock Diver]

Well, I purchased the used tanks and had the tests done. Passed both hydrostatic and visual inspection, so its off to the sea for me!

Not a bad deal... $75 for 2 tanks + $70 for 2 hydro/vis/air fill.
I had asked the LDS to also do an O₂ clean and certify them for Nitrox. Was an extra $15 per tank. Unfortunately this wasn't completed when I came to pick up the tanks, so the owner said to bring 'em back next week and he'd cover the O₂ cleaning and Nitrox decal.

 

[spectrum]

Score!