Protective "Blast Cage"?

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SCBAs by design will not fail catastrophically. Rescue personnel wear these on their backs. I don't believe you can blow up an SCBA with any compressor available to home users. Some other fitting would fail first...
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Exactly.

I would not even worry if the tank is past date although I am not recommending the use of them.... Scott sells the same tanks over seas and their lifespan is 30 years, truth is nobody knows the real life span on these tanks but the tests they go through.... well lets just say no yong heng compressor can ever fill fast enough to make one of these fail.
 
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SCBAs by design will not fail catastrophically. Rescue personnel wear these on their backs. I don't believe you can blow up an SCBA with any compressor available to home users. Some other fitting would fail first...
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This guy gets it....
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Yep. Firefighters wear these into burning buildings, then throw them around on steel decks and concrete, and they still pass hydro.

I think a blast cage is going to be a waste of time if not done right, and may be prohibitive to the home user if done properly. Needs to be thick steel and anchored to concrete. So an extra safe like Michael is talking about or similar. 

I completely agree with fittings and hoses being the common (and easiest to deal with) failure points, as well as protecting the valve. The tanks themselves are probably one of the safest things we deal with. I'm way more scared of cheap fittings.
 
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This is what happened to me a couple of weeks ago. I bought a new .25 Avenger and a chinese 4 stage hand pump on ebay. On the second use, at 3500psi, it sounded like a grenade. It took a solid week for my hearing to recover. I don't know what failed first, but the female QD was broken and still attached to the male fitting on the rifle. The male fitting was bent. The filter canister threads had pulled out. The hose had a hole in it and the hose ripped the fitting at the pump apart. Then something hit my leg. It took 14 stitches to close. So this was not a bottle or pump. The hose failed. I am now buying an electric compressor and will either build a cage or stand behind something substantial during operation. And use a steel foster fitting, not the brass used on the chinese hand pump.
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Wow.

Would you be willing to share a photo looking toward the inside of the blue "filter."? I'm curious of the wall thickness. 

It looks like it failed in multiple places, the female foster on the blue filter, as well as the threads holding the cap on the filter. 

I use a similar oil/water separator type filter downstream from my Shoebox compressor, so you've got me concerned. 
 
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Wow.

Would you be willing to share a photo looking toward the inside of the blue "filter."? I'm curious of the wall thickness. 

It looks like it failed in multiple places, the female foster on the blue filter, as well as the threads holding the cap on the filter. 

I use a similar oil/water separator type filter downstream from my Shoebox compressor, so you've got me concerned.
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Sadly there has been more than a few reports of near misses and catastrophic failure like this, I'm glad you're ok dholder. Sadly the common theme in these reports is inexpensive no-name or knock-off equipment sourced from Chinese sellers such as Alibaba or E-Bay. Your story is another great example of a skewed risk rating between expensive trusted name equipment and inexpensive no-name equipment.

I hope your story and shared images serve as a warning to others who may lose life or limb in saving money on quality safe equipment. These pressures are not a joke.
 
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@dholder

Hoping you heal up well. That's nuts!!! If no one here has said it yet, I'm sure they thought out loud in their heads saying...

I TOLD YOU SO!!!

(I'm not referring to you directly but to the general public)

I've been shooting tethered a lot lately testing ammo and after seeing this, the wheels are turning in my head thinking about a barrier between my tank, fill assembly, and myself.
 
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Sadly the common theme in these reports is inexpensive no-name or knock-off equipment sourced from Chinese sellers such as Alibaba or E-Bay. Your story is another great example of a skewed risk rating between expensive trusted name equipment and inexpensive no-name equipment.

I hope your story and shared images serve as a warning to others who may lose life or limb in saving money on quality safe equipment. These pressures are not a joke.
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Okay. Healthy dose of concern here, BUT in today's global economy, just cuz someone in the US "contracted" to have an Asian company manufacture something and then subsequently slapped their (the US company's) name on it, does not a safe product make. Yeah, products sold by a US retailer cost more, but that doesn't necessarily make them higher quality, ESPECIALLY if they're coming from the same plant as the cheap stuff. SCBA tanks for example.....

The problem in this particular example and many others (SCOPES are my biggest pet peeve) is that there are intentional layers of concealment regarding the true source/manufacturer of lots of the products in the airgun industry. 

Frustrating. 

Back to the original topic though.....yes, a blast cage/containment system would be great, but much easier said than done realistically. Would you put the tank/fill station into the blast cage every time you fill the gun? cuz you're pressurizing that whole system every time you top off the gun. What if you're out hunting? Gotta run back home to stick everything in the blast cage for a fill from the tank to the gun? And how bout guns? Where do you think that Avenger was manufactured, and it's literally going to be inches from your face, and under constant pressure. 




 
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I guess "Blast Cage" conjures up different mental images of what I originally mentioned. Me personally, I'm going to build a wire mesh "screen" on a wooden frame that will be between me & all the pressurized stuff while I'm working with it. It should deflect any "shrapnel" should something give. Just have to reach around it to bleed moisture trap every few minutes, bleed pressure before shutting down & then shutting down. Safer, I'm sure, than nothing at all.
 
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I think we all have felt uneasy at times regarding the filling of high pressure vessels! Sometimes we need to listen to enter- self, I know it has kept me safe / alive in my profession. With that being said I will take a heavy movers blanket and place over my fill station, not idea for a catastrophe situation but does protect from premature hose disconnect. There is always a little concern with body and face close to filling apparatus.

Cheers
 
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I wish for the healing to be fast. That doesn't look so pleasant to have to deal with.

I couldn't image using an eBay or clearly china made fitting or hose, especially a brass fitting with HPA. I don't like can filters either, too spooky for me. I have an AV 4500 compressor and have filled two large Scott tanks quite frequently over the last five years. I use good stainless steel fittings and remove all the extra connections I can when filling the tanks. I also secure the hose just in case.

I have had a few burst disks pop over the years while filling. The first time was exciting, but after that no big deal. I do use a check valve, but it is built into the Stikman fill assembly that I use, so no extra connections with an in-line check valve to worry with failing. I always fill to 4500 psi, but I don't stand around while doing so. I set a stop watch and leave the room, coming back every 7 to 10 minutes to bleed off water and check temperature. I also use the auto shut off, but don't fully trust it, even though it has always worked.

I do have a safe I am not using sitting right next to where I fill, but never thought about using it while filling. Not a bad idea, but I will still be exposed to the hose, fittings and tank while filling my guns and traveling with the tanks. So, I don't know about the safe thing and using it. I don't worry too much about the tanks exploding, except while traveling in the summer heat or in an accident. I take precautions there, too.

Be safe out there and plan ahead...
 
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