Co2, which size?

Inc · **Posted:** Fri Mar 28, 2008 1:01 pm

I am looking to get my hands on a Co2 setup and I am not sure what size I will be needing. I will pretty much only be using it for tire fill ups and that is it. I don't think I need it for anything else on my rig but again I am not sure. I don't want a beastly 20# or even a semi beastly 10# I am thinking 5#er maybe even a 2.5#er. Are those just ridiculously small or what? I am not too hardcore off road, but I do want to be able to air down and up on the trail. Need help!!!!!

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Fri Mar 28, 2008 1:19 pm

Finding a 5lbs or less CO2 tank is hard to find,go with the 10lbs tank.You'll get about 10-15 trips out of it if just filling your tires.

Inc · **Posted:** Fri Mar 28, 2008 3:16 pm

I think I saw Powertank made 2.5 and 5 # tanks on their website under comp series. What would a downside of a smaller tank be other than less Co2?

VTNomad · **Posted:** Fri Mar 28, 2008 7:39 pm

You might try looking under kegerator. I got a 5lb CO2 tank to use with my kegerator. I believe it was brand new around $50.

Here's the link.

http://www.beveragefactory.com/draftbee ... /co2.shtml

jason thompson · **Posted:** Fri Mar 28, 2008 10:55 pm

I have 2-5#'s and a 20# CO2
I keep the 5's as back up when I think the 20 is running low I carry a 5

If you have NO plans to use it for ANYTHING but airing up tires then a 5# would work great
even if you kept a cheep 1/2" impact for the rare case that you get a flat on the trail you would still be fine
I use my 20# to do all kinds of stuff besides airing up and it lasts for ever

I have done ,as of now, on 1 fill up ?? trail rides
rotated the tires on the KJ and the TJ and removed and reinstalled 2 tires after some trail damage on the TJ and still have CO2 left
I plan to remove and reinstall 2 more tire tomorrow so that would be 3 rotations of 4 tires with an impact and I would guess I aired up my 31X11.5 LTBs from 14 to 25 psi 3+ times not to mention how many others I have aired up with it

stuff just last a long time who knows why ( I know the principal but still get amazed by it)
also best thing you could do is to weigh it empty and stamp the empty weight on the tank
then after every GOOD use weigh it again then you will know when you are running low
best thing would be to play with the numbers
weigh it empty then get it filled and weigh it again
air down for a ride then air up after
weigh it then and you will know how much you used and how much you have left
also you will know that you can get X number of trail rides out of 1 fill up

hope this helps CO2 is great stuff

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Fri Mar 28, 2008 10:59 pm

jason thompson wrote:

I have 2-5#'s and a 20# CO2
I keep the 5's as back up when I think the 20 is running low I carry a 5

If you have NO plans to use it for ANYTHING but airing up tires then a 5# would work great
even if you kept a cheep 1/2" impact for the rare case that you get a flat on the trail you would still be fine
I use my 20# to do all kinds of stuff besides airing up and it lasts for ever

I have done ,as of now, on 1 fill up ?? trail rides
rotated the tires on the KJ and the TJ and removed and reinstalled 2 tires after some trail damage on the TJ and still have CO2 left
I plan to remove and reinstall 2 more tire tomorrow so that would be 3 rotations of 4 tires with an impact and I would guess I aired up my 31X11.5 LTBs from 14 to 25 psi 3+ times not to mention how many others I have aired up with it

stuff just last a long time who knows why ( I know the principal but still get amazed by it)
also best thing you could do is to weigh it empty and stamp the empty weight on the tank
then after every GOOD use weigh it again then you will know when you are running low
best thing would be to play with the numbers
weigh it empty then get it filled and weigh it again
air down for a ride then air up after
weigh it then and you will know how much you used and how much you have left
also you will know that you can get X number of trail rides out of 1 fill up

hope this helps CO2 is great stuff

If you get the PowerTank regulator it has a 2nd gauge to tell you the PSI left in the tank,makes it nice to judge how much you have used and when you are running low.

jason thompson · **Posted:** Fri Mar 28, 2008 11:04 pm

tjkj2002 wrote:

If you get the PowerTank regulator it has a 2nd gauge to tell you the PSI left in the tank,makes it nice to judge how much you have used and when you are running low.

I have a dual gauge but problem with that is once you run out of liquid the gauge drops FAST
the scale never lies about how much liquid you have left
mine sits at about 800-1000 psi until it runs out of liquid then drops "like a dress on prom night"

JeepinMaxx · **Posted:** Fri Mar 28, 2008 11:29 pm

One of the guys that runs with me has a 5lb set-up. Fine for airing up his 33's on his Rubi for one or two runs.

I personally have a 10lb tank and do 3+ runs airing up 4 or five rigs on 32-35's. For just airing up (no air tools) the fixed 150 PSI regulators without the gauges work great. (and are less than $50). Since CO2 is an out gassing liquid (like propane) - Pressure is constant until it's almost out (that's why its better than Nitrogen or SCUBA). The pressure gauge is worthless for checking how much you have left in the tank. Forget the gauges on the regulator and measure the weight of your tank to know how much CO2 you have left. The cylinders have the dry weight stamped on the side - so when you weigh it full - subtract that off what you see on the bathroom scale and that's what you have left in the cylinder

PM me if you want to know all the parts and links for the the set-up I use. I did Tons of research on this

jason thompson · **Posted:** Fri Mar 28, 2008 11:39 pm

JeepinMaxx wrote:

One of the guys that runs with me has a 5lb set-up. Fine for airing up his 33's on his Rubi for one or two runs.

I personally have a 10lb tank and do 3+ runs airing up 4 or five rigs on 32-35's. For just airing up (no air tools) the fixed 150 PSI regulators without the gauges work great. (and are less than $50). Since CO2 is an out gassing liquid (like propane) - Pressure is constant until it's almost out (that's why its better than Nitrogen or SCUBA). The pressure gauge is worthless for checking how much you have left in the tank. Forget the gauges on the regulator and measure the weight of your tank to know how much CO2 you have left. The cylinders have the dry weight stamped on the side - so when you weigh it full - subtract that off what you see on the bathroom scale and that's what you have left in the cylinder

PM me if you want to know all the parts and links for the the set-up I use. I did Tons of research on this

X2 on most of that
I built my entire set up from scratch and for 1/2 or less the cost of power tank

JeepinMaxx · **Posted:** Sat Mar 29, 2008 12:07 am

BTW - Detours has OBA Tanks also -

http://www.detoursusa.com/ultimateair.php

Tokyojoe · **Posted:** Sat Mar 29, 2008 7:21 pm

JeepinMaxx wrote:

One of the guys that runs with me has a 5lb set-up. Fine for airing up his 33's on his Rubi for one or two runs.

I personally have a 10lb tank and do 3+ runs airing up 4 or five rigs on 32-35's. For just airing up (no air tools) the fixed 150 PSI regulators without the gauges work great. (and are less than $50). Since CO2 is an out gassing liquid (like propane) - Pressure is constant until it's almost out (that's why its better than Nitrogen or SCUBA). The pressure gauge is worthless for checking how much you have left in the tank. Forget the gauges on the regulator and measure the weight of your tank to know how much CO2 you have left. The cylinders have the dry weight stamped on the side - so when you weigh it full - subtract that off what you see on the bathroom scale and that's what you have left in the cylinder

PM me if you want to know all the parts and links for the the set-up I use. I did Tons of research on this

That is the cyclinder dry weight. Doesn't include the regulator and fittings you have added to it.

Inc · **Posted:** Sat Mar 29, 2008 9:47 pm

JeepinMaxx wrote:

BTW - Detours has OBA Tanks also -

http://www.detoursusa.com/ultimateair.php

What are the prices on those setups? Thanks

JeepinMaxx · **Posted:** Sat Mar 29, 2008 11:10 pm

Tokyojoe wrote:

JeepinMaxx wrote:

One of the guys that runs with me has a 5lb set-up. Fine for airing up his 33's on his Rubi for one or two runs.

I personally have a 10lb tank and do 3+ runs airing up 4 or five rigs on 32-35's. For just airing up (no air tools) the fixed 150 PSI regulators without the gauges work great. (and are less than $50). Since CO2 is an out gassing liquid (like propane) - Pressure is constant until it's almost out (that's why its better than Nitrogen or SCUBA). The pressure gauge is worthless for checking how much you have left in the tank. Forget the gauges on the regulator and measure the weight of your tank to know how much CO2 you have left. The cylinders have the dry weight stamped on the side - so when you weigh it full - subtract that off what you see on the bathroom scale and that's what you have left in the cylinder

PM me if you want to know all the parts and links for the the set-up I use. I did Tons of research on this

That is the cylinder dry weight. Doesn't include the regulator and fittings you have added to it.

I used to weigh mine without the regulator - but now I weigh it with the regulator after a fill-up and write it on the side of the cylinder with a Sharpie and go by that.

Inc · **Posted:** Sat Mar 29, 2008 11:53 pm

Does anyone know the size dimensions of the 2.5# and 5# tanks? I am leaning towards a 5#. If not the 5 then most likely a step up to the 10#er. I am afraid the 2.5 might be too small.

I also saw this on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Co2-Onbo ... enameZWD4V

and this guy was on ebay but I can't find him anymore, he was doing a package deal for like $200 out the door:
http://inexair.com/

jason thompson · **Posted:** Sun Mar 30, 2008 6:40 am

incubusmike wrote:

Does anyone know the size dimensions of the 2.5# and 5# tanks? I am leaning towards a 5#. If not the 5 then most likely a step up to the 10#er. I am afraid the 2.5 might be too small.

I also saw this on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Co2-Onbo ... enameZWD4V

I would go with this one but with the 125 psi regulator

Inc · **Posted:** Mon Mar 31, 2008 3:23 pm

Can you paint the outside of the CO2 canisters, like with some of that bedliner paint you can buy at walmart? Or will the rising and falling of the canister's temperature while in use affect it too much and not allow the paint to stick even if sanded and primed? Just curious :wink:

Inc · **Posted:** Mon Mar 31, 2008 6:17 pm

The guy will sell me $185 for a 10# system or a 5# sytem for $165. I think I will spend the extra $20 for the upgrade. I get a regulator set for 125 fixed psi, High Flow CGA-320 Valve, 200 psi 20' self coiling hose, 1/4" Milton Quick Connect Fittings on Regulator and Air Hose, and of course the 10# tank with the on/off valve. Plus a cheap little canvas bag to carry some extra tools and goodies. Good deal???

jason thompson · **Posted:** Mon Mar 31, 2008 10:56 pm

Yes
you can paint them I painted mine with some left over touch up paint from a job I did

$185 for the complete set up sounds great
now you do know that after you get it you will need to have it filled
some people have questioned why they got a CO2 set up and it was empty when it arrived ,not here
it has to do with shipping pressurized gas cylinders and the fact that if the valve gets knocked off they tend to fly around

Inc · **Posted:** Mon Mar 31, 2008 11:06 pm

jason thompson wrote:

Yes
you can paint them I painted mine with some left over touch up paint from a job I did

$185 for the complete set up sounds great
now you do know that after you get it you will need to have it filled
some people have questioned why they got a CO2 set up and it was empty when it arrived ,not here
it has to do with shipping pressurized gas cylinders and the fact that if the valve gets knocked off they tend to fly around

Yeah, it is against the law to ship pressurized containers when they are filled. Not very safe if they burst open and shoot out of the UPS van and into on coming traffic. :shock:

Oh, and thanks about the painting info.

Tokyojoe · **Posted:** Tue Apr 01, 2008 11:58 am

To get a good idea of the damage a puntured cyclinder can do, watch an episode of Mythbusters. They shoot a pressurized cylinder, inside a cargo container. It flies around putting some major dents into the container. Just think of the damage it would do when it has a chance to build up velocity.

Co2, which size?

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