Popped the cherry on my Omega Air Charger

marcella69

Member
Oct 31, 2016
1,676
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CA
Well, I finally got to use my new 4,500 psi Omega Air Charger! I guess that's really a testament to the capacity of my Omega 75 cu-ft 4,500 psi tank and the air efficiency of my FX Impact .30 :).

Overall, I am extremely pleased with her performance. It took only 36 minutes to charge my tank from 3,200 psi / 220 bar to 4,250 psi / 293 bar! The compressor shut off at exactly the set 4,500 psi / 310 bar. The only issue I have is that my tank did not charge to the full 4,500 psi before the compressor shut off, but I can live with that. I am open to suggestions as to how to fully charge my tank without blowing the pop-off valve on the compressor.

The next step is to see exactly how many gun bottle fills I get off my 75 cu-ft tank. At the rate I shoot, that should be sometime in the second Trump term!
 
Yeah, jlc; I've been dealing with gauges being out of calibration since I started this whole air gunning thang! As Sheriff Tom Bell said, "Now, that's aggravatin'!" You'd think that as how expensive these weapons and accessories are, the gauges would be accurate.

The owners manual of the compressor states that the burst disc is set to blow at 4,800 psi, so I guess I have a little wiggle room there. I'll try your suggestion to see if raising the shut-off pressure 100 psi higher results in the tank pressure increasing by 100 psi. Thanks :)
 
My paintball shop uses nitrogen, which is better even than breathable air, but that's beside the point. 

The cold old water idea during fill could be an excellent tip. Gasses heat up and expand (ironically) during compression. That warm gas in your tank, as it cools, will be under less and less pressure than when it entered the tank, so I'm wondering if your tank showed less than 4500 for that reason once all was said and done. A simple test would be to hook it back up to your compressor after a few hours and see if it accepts more air. 

If it does, then you have your answer. An easy future solution (and an alternative to immersing the tank in cold water) therefore would be to fill your tank, let it sit and cool off for a few hours, then top it off. 
 
Thanks for that, Mousefart. I have set the Omega Air Charger shut-off pressure a little higher in that gray area between 4,500 psi and the factory-set burst disc pressure of 4,800 psi. I will see what happens the next time I fill my tank.

Your reply sparked a thought, though. Upon the advice of a member here on AGN (it might have been you), I have been keeping my tank hooked up to my gun after I charge the bottle (after I close the tank valve). After a few minutes to allow the bottle to cool and the residual air in the hose to seep into the bottle, I top the bottle off. This has allowed my bottle to fully fill. I'm wondering if I can't do the similar thing with my compressor and tank. That is, keep the tank connected to the compressor after the compressor has shut off for five minutes or so to allow the tank to cool; then fire-up the compressor again to top it off. Any thoughts?