Air Arms Owners Club

Hi everyone,

I've always felt annoyed, having to be somewhat 'tethered' to making the 70 mile round trip (x2) to my closest, understaffed dive shop, having to come back a 3rd time because they couldn't be arsed to do it on the day I dropped it off (during my lunch hour) multiplying my journey time and fuel costs (and annoyance)! They sometimes don't respond to email and leaving phone messages has been all but useless. I think they see us airgunners as riff raff, despite them only ever having seen me in my formal office attire!

My local HFT club does offer refills but at a quid a pop. Me and my son shoot regularly....so on top of lane fees...after you have zero'd on the range...the cost is the same to top up the pressure before hitting the lanes. It all adds up and it kills me that I have a perfectly good 4.5l bottle only a year old, going to waste.

I have seen youtube vids of guys topping up their cylinders with Omega compressors - lovely kit - if you have a spare £1500 quid to part with. I've always been jealous of having that capabilty, so that save for pellets - you are 100% self sufficient to maintain your treasured hobby (for me it's HFT shooting with my beloved AA S400).

So I stumbled accross these really small, very simple Chinese high pressure (300bar) compressors, specifically for PCP airguns - either direct fill or a separate bottle. I have seen some reviews where guys have stripped these open, with very surprising results. The piston and crank appear to be very well made, precision machined with piston rings no less! It also features a safety valve with plenty of 'burst disks' so that you can replace them yourself if they fail...etc.

I know that with those sorts of pressures, you have the equivalent of small grenade in your back garden. Despite this, I have mulled it over for about a month, after reading & seeing loads more positive reviews by our 'Murican cousins on the ol' interwebs, I decided to take the plunge and I ordered the pump per the pic. It's on the proverbial 'slow boat' and I should get it in about 3 weeks. I can't believe the cost. £230 delivered to my door from Shenzhen, Guangdong, P R of China.

The bolt thingy on the top is the saftey pressure release valve, which has done its job in some of the reviews I have read. I will actually strip it down and have a good old nosey in it before I re assemble and use it. If I am still alive after using it - I will happily report back to the forum on my success and subsequent freedom from poxy Diveshop refilling buggerance!

it will be interesting to hear your findings. many thanks.

Theres a few youtube vids under "aceeagle pump". Looks like it needs a bucket or bottle of cooling water to put the pvc pipes in. Buddy bottle takes about 7 minutes but theres an interesting digital display that seems to show 250C, possibly internal temperature?
I wonder what filters and driers are inline?

TenMetrePeter wrote:Theres a few youtube vids under "aceeagle pump". Looks like it needs a bucket or bottle of cooling water to put the pvc pipes in. Buddy bottle takes about 7 minutes but theres an interesting digital display that seems to show 250C, possibly internal temperature?
I wonder what filters and driers are inline?

It comes with a small aquarium pump that needs to be used to circulate cold water around the waterjacket (around the 2nd stage/head). It heats up pretty quick - they say it shouldn't go over 60deg c.Maybe the one you saw had a faulty temp sensor or perhaps it read 25.0 deg? A number of folks put ice in the bucket or just let a garden hose quitely overflow a bucket. With our winter approaching, our ambient water temp should be cold enough!

Some guys have come back to the original vids a good 5 months later reporting that their pumps are still going strong and have just had to replace filters and such and those are our American cousins with their unrestricted, bigger bore PCP's ...etc. As mentioned in my original thread, there was one guy who pushed his past its limit and the high pressure busrt disk did its job. It also appears that you get some of these as spares as well as a bunch of spare seals and o rings.

I believe there's a moisture trap and a highpressure,inline aluminium cannister type filter (with spare, replaceable highdensity cotton looking inserts - I think you get 5 initially and can be re ordered). Looks like it is already fitted with a best fittings type female quick release foster fitting. I have ordered a male to male decant fitting so I don't have to frig about too much when I want to fill my 4.5l.
In terms of air quality - it's not 'dive quality' of course but I don't think in principle it would be any different to air from a stirrup or hills pump.

Seems like a lot of engineering and cost when you can achieve the same result with an Airtab

Raj wrote:Seems like a lot of engineering and cost when you can achieve the same result with an Airtab

shame there are none in stock anywhere in the country for at least another 6 months

neil wrote:

Raj wrote:Seems like a lot of engineering and cost when you can achieve the same result with an Airtab

shame there are none in stock anywhere in the country for at least another 6 months

I thought BBF had bought the remaining uk stock? Perhaps he has a few left over?

May I have the links to the videos you mention, thanks.

Normally it is easy to find on youtube but in this case nothing is showing for the Ace Eagle pump.

Rob.

thats possibly because you searched for "Ace Eagle". Try to look under "aceeagle pump" as suggested.

Just got a notification from FedEx - delivery of my 'Chinesium Compressor' is due on the 3rd Nov, way ahead of schedule..