Post by di$TOrTed on Apr 15, 2009 10:25:23 GMT -5
How to make your Spyder "LP" (Low Pressure)
Alright disclaimer time. By following this guide in no way am I or anyone at ND$ liable for anyway you damage your gun and/or more importantly yourself. This guide is the knowledge I have collected and the things I have experienced. All Spyders are capable of being LP. Taking your gun LP is an investment. It will not be cheap. When choosing parts try to get the best quality parts. While they will be more expensive than that other part the price guarantees quality and effectiveness(in most cases).
What is LP?
Low Pressure(LP) is the concept of lowering your operating pressure while increasing your efficiency. Having an LP setup will give you more shots per tank, a quieter gun, less ball breaks, and a smother operation which is good for the frame of your gun and your internals.
LP is not an exact science. What works for your friends will probably not work for you. Just putting LP parts on your gun does not guarantee a smooth operation. After installing all your new parts you must configure your spyder to achieve optimal performance. Having an LP gun is not all about who can get the lowest operating pressure. You must find the right pressure where it’s low but the guns performance is not affected. Spyder LP operating pressures range from 225-400 psi. It’s all about how much upgrading you do. The more LP parts you put into your gun the lower operating pressure will be.
The benefits of LP.
If you are using Co2 LP will do wonders for your consistency and your ball breakage. By lowering your operating pressure there is less chance of a malfunction in cold and hot weather because of the fluctuating pressures of Co2 because of the weather. It decreases ball breaks because you are applying less pressure to the ball. Instead of pounding it with 850 psi you are pushing it with 350 psi. This puts less stress of the ball keeping it round and improving your accuracy. Even if you’re using HPA or Nitrogen the same principles apply.
What is needed.
Unlike what you might have heard adding one upgrade does not make your gun LP. It is a combination of parts working together to achieve a lower operating pressure. I also suggest not buying all the parts at once. Buy the parts separately not only to be easier on your budget but so you know what each part does so you can fix problems easier than having to check all the parts.
Now you’re probably wondering how much your going to need to spend. On average it will cost between 150-200 dollars to buy everything that is needed. While this is a little high the benefits are well worth the price. Also note, however, that many high performance markers can be obtained for the same price, so it depends really on how far you want to take your Spyder.
The parts.
The Barrel: yes a new barrel may be a necessity to making an LP setup. The thing is a paintball needs a certain amount of space to get up to terminal velocity. Terminal velocity is the highest speed an object can go. The problem with most barrels is that the porting starts too early on the barrel. A paintball needs a good six inches to achieve top speed. If the porting starts too early the gas propelling the paintball will escape causing it to lower its speed. This will cause you to increase your velocity which will increase your pressure which is a waste of gas. A good barrel for an LP setup is a J&J barrel. Also Custom Products barrels work well also. Also a good paint to bore match is critical. You need to find a paint that fits your barrel and stick with it or invest in an insert kit. The insert kit makes your barrel different bore sizes so you can always have a good paint to bore match no matter what paint you use.
The Regulator: A good regulator is an important part of taking your gun LP. A regulator controls the amount of pressure going into your gun. It will help with your consistency because it feeds your gun the same amount of air each time. If you’re going to be using Co2 get the Palmers Male Stabilizer, SP Max-Flo-R (not regular Max-flo) also a Bob Long Torpedo reg might also work well for you. Not many regulators handle CO2 well. If you’re using an HPA tank I suggest using the CP grip, AKA 2-liter, AKA sidewinder, or a Dye Hyper inline or any other number of quality regulators on the market.
The Valve: The only two valves made specifically for LP are from AKA and Maddmann. The AKA is more expensive but it is probably the better valve. The only problem with it is if you use it above 450 psi for an extended period of time it will ruin the valve. The Maddmann rocket valve is a great valve at a lower price. If your on a tight budget you could get away with a valve from New Designz. They make a high flow valve that gets the job done. This is an instance when the more money you can spend the better part you will get. The valve is very important in a LP setup so I suggest getting one of the more expensive valves from AKA or Maddmann.
The Bolt: You can get off easy with this one. All you need to do is take your stock bolt and remove the venturi. The venturi is the little star shaped thing inside your bolt. All this does is restrict airflow which is bad for an LP setup. All you need to do take a pair of needlenose plyers and unscrew it. If it won’t come undone heat the bolt near the base of the venturi. This is because it is sealed in with probably some Locktite. The heat loosens the seal making it easier to unscrew. There are countless guides out there on how you remove your venturi so if you’re having problems with it just do a search. Or if you want to by a new bolt just buy an AKA lightning bolt which was designed for an LP setup. Also, a lot of nice bolts can be found at www.alamocitypb.com
The VA: The VA or vertical adapter is the thing you screw your regulator into. There are two ways you can take care of this. One way is you could just take a dremel tool or a drill to your stock VA and make the holes bigger. This maximizes the airflow that is able to go through the VA. The second way is to get a new VA. A good one is the Check-it Assault Block. Also others are made with different angles for your comfort. Some come with gauges on them so you can see how much pressure you are putting into your gun if you don’t have a gauge on your regulator.
The Spring Kit : While this is probably the cheapest of your upgrades that you buy it may be the most important. The spring kit is used for more tuning your spyder with the LP parts. What it is used for is putting different strength springs in your valve and on your striker. Without this upgrade you may not be able to get your velocity down low enough. Which means without this you will be shooting at a consistent FPS rate of about 350 or more. There is no common setup to this, just try out different valve setups in your gun until you find the one that works best.
The conclusion
As I stated before having an LP setup is an investment. If you choose to follow this guide and make all the upgrades and fine tune your spyder you will most likely have the best spyder on the field. Most of the parts mentioned above can be found at your local proshop. If not there they can be found on the internet. Well I hope you have found this guide helpful and are now informed about how to take your spyder LP. Good luck with your gun and keep paintballing. Post any further questions you may have in the ND$ forums.
Alright disclaimer time. By following this guide in no way am I or anyone at ND$ liable for anyway you damage your gun and/or more importantly yourself. This guide is the knowledge I have collected and the things I have experienced. All Spyders are capable of being LP. Taking your gun LP is an investment. It will not be cheap. When choosing parts try to get the best quality parts. While they will be more expensive than that other part the price guarantees quality and effectiveness(in most cases).
What is LP?
Low Pressure(LP) is the concept of lowering your operating pressure while increasing your efficiency. Having an LP setup will give you more shots per tank, a quieter gun, less ball breaks, and a smother operation which is good for the frame of your gun and your internals.
LP is not an exact science. What works for your friends will probably not work for you. Just putting LP parts on your gun does not guarantee a smooth operation. After installing all your new parts you must configure your spyder to achieve optimal performance. Having an LP gun is not all about who can get the lowest operating pressure. You must find the right pressure where it’s low but the guns performance is not affected. Spyder LP operating pressures range from 225-400 psi. It’s all about how much upgrading you do. The more LP parts you put into your gun the lower operating pressure will be.
The benefits of LP.
If you are using Co2 LP will do wonders for your consistency and your ball breakage. By lowering your operating pressure there is less chance of a malfunction in cold and hot weather because of the fluctuating pressures of Co2 because of the weather. It decreases ball breaks because you are applying less pressure to the ball. Instead of pounding it with 850 psi you are pushing it with 350 psi. This puts less stress of the ball keeping it round and improving your accuracy. Even if you’re using HPA or Nitrogen the same principles apply.
What is needed.
Unlike what you might have heard adding one upgrade does not make your gun LP. It is a combination of parts working together to achieve a lower operating pressure. I also suggest not buying all the parts at once. Buy the parts separately not only to be easier on your budget but so you know what each part does so you can fix problems easier than having to check all the parts.
Now you’re probably wondering how much your going to need to spend. On average it will cost between 150-200 dollars to buy everything that is needed. While this is a little high the benefits are well worth the price. Also note, however, that many high performance markers can be obtained for the same price, so it depends really on how far you want to take your Spyder.
The parts.
The Barrel: yes a new barrel may be a necessity to making an LP setup. The thing is a paintball needs a certain amount of space to get up to terminal velocity. Terminal velocity is the highest speed an object can go. The problem with most barrels is that the porting starts too early on the barrel. A paintball needs a good six inches to achieve top speed. If the porting starts too early the gas propelling the paintball will escape causing it to lower its speed. This will cause you to increase your velocity which will increase your pressure which is a waste of gas. A good barrel for an LP setup is a J&J barrel. Also Custom Products barrels work well also. Also a good paint to bore match is critical. You need to find a paint that fits your barrel and stick with it or invest in an insert kit. The insert kit makes your barrel different bore sizes so you can always have a good paint to bore match no matter what paint you use.
The Regulator: A good regulator is an important part of taking your gun LP. A regulator controls the amount of pressure going into your gun. It will help with your consistency because it feeds your gun the same amount of air each time. If you’re going to be using Co2 get the Palmers Male Stabilizer, SP Max-Flo-R (not regular Max-flo) also a Bob Long Torpedo reg might also work well for you. Not many regulators handle CO2 well. If you’re using an HPA tank I suggest using the CP grip, AKA 2-liter, AKA sidewinder, or a Dye Hyper inline or any other number of quality regulators on the market.
The Valve: The only two valves made specifically for LP are from AKA and Maddmann. The AKA is more expensive but it is probably the better valve. The only problem with it is if you use it above 450 psi for an extended period of time it will ruin the valve. The Maddmann rocket valve is a great valve at a lower price. If your on a tight budget you could get away with a valve from New Designz. They make a high flow valve that gets the job done. This is an instance when the more money you can spend the better part you will get. The valve is very important in a LP setup so I suggest getting one of the more expensive valves from AKA or Maddmann.
The Bolt: You can get off easy with this one. All you need to do is take your stock bolt and remove the venturi. The venturi is the little star shaped thing inside your bolt. All this does is restrict airflow which is bad for an LP setup. All you need to do take a pair of needlenose plyers and unscrew it. If it won’t come undone heat the bolt near the base of the venturi. This is because it is sealed in with probably some Locktite. The heat loosens the seal making it easier to unscrew. There are countless guides out there on how you remove your venturi so if you’re having problems with it just do a search. Or if you want to by a new bolt just buy an AKA lightning bolt which was designed for an LP setup. Also, a lot of nice bolts can be found at www.alamocitypb.com
The VA: The VA or vertical adapter is the thing you screw your regulator into. There are two ways you can take care of this. One way is you could just take a dremel tool or a drill to your stock VA and make the holes bigger. This maximizes the airflow that is able to go through the VA. The second way is to get a new VA. A good one is the Check-it Assault Block. Also others are made with different angles for your comfort. Some come with gauges on them so you can see how much pressure you are putting into your gun if you don’t have a gauge on your regulator.
The Spring Kit : While this is probably the cheapest of your upgrades that you buy it may be the most important. The spring kit is used for more tuning your spyder with the LP parts. What it is used for is putting different strength springs in your valve and on your striker. Without this upgrade you may not be able to get your velocity down low enough. Which means without this you will be shooting at a consistent FPS rate of about 350 or more. There is no common setup to this, just try out different valve setups in your gun until you find the one that works best.
The conclusion
As I stated before having an LP setup is an investment. If you choose to follow this guide and make all the upgrades and fine tune your spyder you will most likely have the best spyder on the field. Most of the parts mentioned above can be found at your local proshop. If not there they can be found on the internet. Well I hope you have found this guide helpful and are now informed about how to take your spyder LP. Good luck with your gun and keep paintballing. Post any further questions you may have in the ND$ forums.