How long can air cylinder remain charged

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DanS510
Posts: 3
Joined: Sat Dec 04, 2021 4:02 pm

How long can air cylinder remain charged

Thu Dec 09, 2021 1:58 am

I have recently purchased an Air Arms S510xs Xtra FAC. How long can this gun remain stored at full charge ? Is it best to store it fully charged or partially charged ?

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peterlnic
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Jun 04, 2017 3:21 pm
Location: Skelmersdale, Lancashire.

Re: How long can air cylinder remain charged

Wed Dec 29, 2021 12:24 pm

Hi,
Well it’s a bit like how long is a bit of string, but a PCP in good condition should hold its charge for several months, indeed it could be years! I currently have a few PCP rifles, I use my S400 on a regular basis, but if I were lay it up full, (in my case 200Bar) I would be very disappointed if it had lost its air after say six months, I do have a Daystate Mk3, that I have not used in a year and it is still full, as a rule of thumb, your rifle either holds air, or it does not, but like everything there are exceptions to the rule, and some have rifles that have a slow leak of some sort and will loose their air over a couple of weeks, this type of leak can be hard to find and fix, so many live with the leak, personally it would drive me mad!
If you have a rifle with a leak, or a slow leak, it can be a sign to say it needs a service, a good service comprises of a full strip down, a full scrupulous clean of all internal parts, (dirt is death to PCP’s), reassembled with New seals (of good quality), a full check of its performance and if required a full setup. After such a service you should be able to expect at least two years trouble free shooting, frequently a lot longer! I have heard many folk say they have used their PCP rifles for five or even seven years with out any problems, personally I like to service mine every two years or there about’s.

To answer your second question it’s again how long is I bit of string, and if you ask ten PCP owners you will most likely get ten different answers, and they will probably all be right, I should point out Air rifles are like cars, they do not like to be sat around doing nothing for long periods of time, an air rifle is is a high pressure pneumatic device and as such the seals like to have air pressure on them, in some cases it is essential! Like the firing valve in some rifles require a certain amount of pressure to keep it closed and sealed, or all the air will leak out, for this reason if your rifle is empty you may need to cock the rifle (WITH NO PELLET IN of course) to take the hammer pressure off the firing valve so you can fill it successfully, If you do need to lay a rifle up for a long period, my thoughts would be to leave about 100 Bar in it, but it really is one of those, “in my opinion” things. However, if you do lay it up for a very long time, you may find it needs a service or at least a re-seal to work well, or you may find it fails shortly after starting to re use it again. The reason for this is usually the seals go hard and brittle and then split which usually results in all the air leaking.

I hope some of the above may help you, I am sure others will have ideas on this subject and I recommend you ask plenty of experienced PCP users and ask their opinion so you can get a balanced knowledge, sharing information and discussion is how we all learn, so Never be afraid to ask.

I hope you enjoy your shooting hobby, there are some Really Great chaps in this hobby of ours who are happy to chat, share and help.
Happy New Year and Good Health to You and Yours,
Pete.
Heavily Modified 'AA S400' Konus 12-60x56 scope,
'Dayststae Mk3' 10-40x50 scope,
Home made PCP 8-32x44 scope,
AA 'TM-100' (now restored and shooting well),
AA 'FTP900' 10-40x56 Nikko-Diamond scope,
'Rohm Pistol' Reflex sight.

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peterlnic
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Jun 04, 2017 3:21 pm
Location: Skelmersdale, Lancashire.

Re: How long can air cylinder remain charged

Wed Dec 29, 2021 12:32 pm

To add a foot note to this, I store my rifle (AA S400) for short periods, say a few weeks at its full pressure of 200Bar before locking it away, then when I come to use it again I check the gage to see if it still has the 200Bar, this importantly, if it is still full it tells me that most if not all is well with the rifle.
Pete.
Heavily Modified 'AA S400' Konus 12-60x56 scope,
'Dayststae Mk3' 10-40x50 scope,
Home made PCP 8-32x44 scope,
AA 'TM-100' (now restored and shooting well),
AA 'FTP900' 10-40x56 Nikko-Diamond scope,
'Rohm Pistol' Reflex sight.

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Roger5
Posts: 1071
Joined: Sat Jul 25, 2015 8:04 am
Location: Hampton middlesex

Re: How long can air cylinder remain charged

Wed Jan 05, 2022 9:48 am

I never leave mine fully charged, I just leave at 100bar, my reasoning is that less pressure on the firing valve, might make it last longer, seems to work for me. Rog

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Pete2
Posts: 46
Joined: Sun Nov 11, 2018 9:15 pm

Re: How long can air cylinder remain charged

Sun Jan 09, 2022 2:43 pm

I tend to store with 100 - 120 with unregulated rifles. As Roger says, less pressure should reduce the risk of firing valve deformation if stored for longer periods.
Some will put away with high pressure but every week or two, dry fire 5-6 shots.

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gary martin
Posts: 815
Joined: Thu Feb 19, 2015 8:21 pm

Re: How long can air cylinder remain charged

Mon Jan 10, 2022 2:37 pm

i would not leave one at full pressure. although it has been designed to work at that pressure, with a built in factor of safety, it is still in a higher stress state than if it were left at half pressure.

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Zed.
Posts: 74
Joined: Sat Aug 31, 2019 10:32 pm
Location: Swansea, WALES. UK (maybe NSW in a few years...)

Re: How long can air cylinder remain charged

Mon Mar 21, 2022 7:31 pm

think I've an S400c that's been ignored for ~12 years, is this a record?

:oops:

Rich.
Bleugh!

it is my firm belief that people who declare they have a 'bigger signature than' someone are trying to make up for something else :lol:

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