40MAX Cylinders: Leaks, Concerns and Reflections - Part 1

The theory: compressed gas cylinders in a utility side arm able to fire a range of options

In practice: Less reliable with lots of leaks and unreliablity.

A side arm cannot be unreliable, particularly in HvZ. To that end, if I can't find a fix for these issues then the Mayday will be relegated to a utility secondary to be replaced by a Nightingale or similar.

Testing

Cylinders were numbered 1 to 5 and then loaded with gas. Tests were then under taken with fires and misfires recorded. Testing was stopped after 18 shots after only 4 successful fires the cylinders. Testing is restricted by the nature of the compressed being used. Green Gas comes in bottles and can cost up to £20 a tin so there's not a bottomless well of gas for testing.

A single cylinder was then selected as test cylinder and disassembled for lubrication of the seals. After reassembly, the cylinder was tested again as per previous tesitng. Was stopped again after 4 successive failures to fire with a view to investigating further.

Next steps:

 

The next steps will be seeing if it's possible to determine where the leaks are coming from in a given cylinder by using a submersion test. After that, I'll have a look at replacing the seals and seeing if there other steps I can take to try and improve the seals.

Reflections:

It's an interesting reflection on acquisition processes and a lesson learned that further research ought to have been conducted. Speaking to some airsofters that have drifted over into the hobby, it seems that 40MAX shells have a bit of reputation for being a bit leaky. I did not think to ask before I took the plunge. Instead, I opted only to see the positive and didn't really ask around. That's on me but it's a curious example of a blind spot. Hopefully I can get these working so I don't lose a couple of £100 that have been invested in the Mayday, it's shells, gas and shells. Failing that, I'll take it as a lesson learned and grab a Nightingale with a couple of magazines.