More small hopper ideas

[skibbo]

We should just say screw keeping it simple and go all out. Regulated air (12 gram??) powered pneumatic hopper system w/board and solenoid. Just do something completely nuts.

[PBSteve]

We didn't want the player to be stuck ordering a battery from us that was expensive and a possible long lead time item when they could just pick one up at Walmart. A 9v, while cheaper and easier to find, did raise the cost of the board. In looking at a PE board which is dual sided and quad layer we can put almost all of the same on a single sided dual layer board, so the price of the RCR123 with charging port and cable made up for it in total cost of the board. And the player still gets a rechargeable battery system, and multiple batteries and chargers are available cheap and easy to get.

Anyone know what microcontroller PE uses? I did not realize they were using a 4-layer board, that seems pretty unnecessary in my mind. Guess I'll have to take a closer look at the board in my shego...

[skibbo]

Anyone know what microcontroller PE uses? I did not realize they were using a 4-layer board, that seems pretty unnecessary in my mind. Guess I'll have to take a closer look at the board in my shego...

No idea what's in the older models but according to the LV1 specs:
Electronics
User Input – 3 Pushbuttons On Frame, Tourney Lock on PCB
Display – Transflective Graphic LCD Module with Tru-Color Adjustable Backlight
Solenoid voltage – 5V
Processor voltage – 3.3V
Processor – 16-Bit 16MIPS Flash Microcontroller
Power Supply – 1 x 9V (PP3) Battery
PC Interface – E-Portal Compatible
Source

[pbjosh]

If somebody can take some pics of it he will get you the specs on the board and whatnot.

I might have heard him wrong also! Just putting that there as a caveat.

(Edit - that was per a virtue board... maybe not PE. My bad?)

[Lurker27]

Pneumatics are horrible in terms of energy density. They're just power dense. Power isn't an issue in hoppers.


Personally, I'd been looking at making a tank cover with the battery in it for your hopper because it's a pretty big change in feel to move the weight from up high to down low. Tuck it under the grips, then snake it up to the hopper with a beefy enough connector and I think it would be pretty cool.

[Simon]

That's how I ran my original force feed hopper prototype that were under the gun. RC car battery in the tank cover.

I really need to scan and post up some of those pictures from my early days of testing...

[cockerpunk]

Because AA's are still better and more conveniently found. CR123's just help for sizing/packaging.

size and packaging is the goal of a small motorized pocket hopper

I'm pretty concerned about this.

they can be found in almost every store that sells any kind of batteries (walmart, target etc etc)

[pbjosh]

The RCR123's are also all over Amazon, Ebay, etc. With wall chargers.

[PBSteve]

size and packaging is the goal of a small motorized pocket hopper

Due to the configuration required by a feedneck, you're always going to have room for batteries on one side of the feedtube or the other. I don't see a real gain in going to different batteries here.

they can be found in almost every store that sells any kind of batteries (walmart, target etc etc)

I think my threshold is the gas station. Most paintball fields I've been to are in rural areas, and I recall several times running down the road to get new batteries because I had forgotten them and mine were dead.

Until they become common stock in gas stations I don't think I can get on board, and I don't see their use in paintball having much effect on this.

[Simon]

I think my threshold is the gas station. Most paintball fields I've been to are in rural areas, and I recall several times running down the road to get new batteries because I had forgotten them and mine were dead.

Until they become common stock in gas stations I don't think I can get on board, and I don't see their use in paintball having much effect on this.

This is pretty much how I feel also. I don't think it will be long until you can get them in gas stations though.