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-Additions-
In this shot you can see we have
added an additional item to the
build of this cannon. Not that it
is necessary if you are using your
regulator on your compressor tank
to keep the air at the necessary 60 this cannon works at.
However, if you want to have the
convenience of running your air
line at a higher rate so you can
feed air out to multiple props, installing
a dedicated air regulator is a
great idea. Of course this
and the fittings needed here were
not part of the initial how-to
steps and parts list, since air
cannons do not come equipped with
this feature. In the event you wish
to add one to yours, I included the
info here in the Additions section
of our how-to.
Here is a photo of the compact
regulator I use on all of my
animatronics. It is a Harbor
Freight item
no# 90590-0VGA 1/4" Air Regulator With Guage and is NOT to be
confused with an Air PRESSURE
regulator sold for a few dollars
less at the same store. The
diaphragm regulator works like the
unit on your air compressor,
releasing a total air pressure as
shown on the gauge and never more
than that. An air pressure
regulator is a FLOW regulator only.
Meaning that if you have a flow
regulator adjusted to 28 lbs and
are sending 105 lbs of pressure
going into the intake AND keep the
air flowing through constantly, the
pressure coming out will stay at 28
pounds. But once you stop this
flow, the pressure that backs up
against its inner mechanism allows
the full blast of pressure you have
going in to be emitted initially,
until the flow stabilizes. Thus, if
you have an animatronic that works
on 28 lbs of pressure such as the
Lynching, a PRESSURE regulator,
if left hooked up to 105 lbs of
direct pressure will send your
puppet through it's cycle about 4
times as fast as needed and
probably through the ceiling. Funny
as hell for a just a moment until
you realize you have to replace all
its working mechanism and patch
that hole in your garage roof. So
be sure you are buying a DIAPHRAGM
regulator.
To add the regulator you will
need a 1/4" 'close" threaded
fitting (In the shot above I used a
1 1/2" fitting and it didn't really
need to be that long) to space away
from the reducer, a 1/2" 90 degree
elbow, a 1/4" threaded
fitting and a female IID quick
coupler, rather than the male one
used on the $20 cannon. The
regulator used here comes from the
factory set up with swivel style
connectors for both the air IN and
OUT which look different from
standard pipe thread fittings, but
they are the same thread and can be
used with standard fittings. I have
been confused regarding these
swivel fittings for a long time
myself but after extensive
research, I found these type
connectors are usually used with
swivel-end air hoses only. Swivel
fittings and adaptors are not
largely made with these flared and
concave ends, because their use is
primarily stationary and do not
need to swivel during use. You can
simply use a 1/4" male pipe fitting
in to the swivel female and tighten
it up tight and it will seal even
though your pipe fitting does not
have a concave end. On the male
side you will need to wrap the
threads very heavily with Teflon
plumber's tape to get that to seal
well for some reason. I use enough
wraps that you can no longer see
the threads below the tape. Then
when I attach the coupler it pulls
up tight.
A video of the cannon will never do
it justice, as you cannot see the
concussion that accompanies the
sound, but turn up your speakers
and you will get an idea of how it
sounds from this
MPG.
Like the $20 Cannon, notice the eco in the room
where this test run took place.
This is roughly 4 times as loud as
releasing air from a standard air
line at 120 lbs pressure.
As a side note here of caution,
remember you are using highly
pressurized air being released very
quickly which could easily damage a
person's eyes or ear drums if fired
too close. Be sure to keep the
cannon mounted at waist level or
lower so you don't put your victims
at real risk.
And there you have the Concussion
Cannon, an extremely affordable,
super effective event that is so
easy to build!
Rest In Pieces,
Death Lord
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