Airgun Designs General Info Thread

Zoo · #1 (**permalink**) 03-25-2008, 04:52 PM

The Comprehensive Airgun Designs (AGD)
Info Thread

I've seen a lot of new Automag owners here lately, and thought it would a great to have a thread dedicated to general information, maintenance, and repair of Automags. Sure, there are other forums out there that are AGD specific, but c'mon.....they're just not the A5OG

First, let me say that I am by no means an “expert” when it comes to Automags. But I have gathered information from various sources and added my own knowledge to the mix to try to help answer most common questions and problems associated with this brand of marker.
*** Note - The information in this thread will be constantly updated to fix any errors and critical omissions. If you see anything that needs changed or updated, please let me know. Thanks***

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I. Valves, bolts, related parts
II. Bodies
III. Rails
IV. Frames
V. Valve operation basics
VI. Basic troubleshooting & tuning
VII. ETC
VIII. Parts sources

I. Valves, bolts, related parts
Many different Automag valves are out there, with many different names etched onto them. Same goes for bolts, but to a lesser degree. I’ll try to help eliminate some of the confusion.

A. Valves:

> “Classic” valve (or “AIR” valve): Regulator body and valve are made from stainless steel. Can handle either HPA or CO2, but must use some means (ie stabilizer, anti-siphon tank, expansion chamber, etc) to keep liquid CO2 out of the valve, as it causes internal o-rings to freeze and leak.

Variants: “68 Classic”, “Minimag”

> "Rental" valve: Pretty much same as the Classic valve except that the powertube has not been drilled out fully, therefore restricting airflow. This restriction keeps velocity below 300 fps. It also makes it impossible to install the level 10 bolt on a Rental valve without drilling out the powertube.

> “RT” valve: Regulator body is made from aluminum; valve body is made from stainless steel. Is the only valve that uses a gas-thru rail and a special banjo bolt for air input into the valve. Due to the high rate of recharge, is for HPA use only. First valve to use AGD’s “reactive trigger” technology. (Think Tippmann’s response trigger: using gas to reset the trigger.) Normal operating psi is 800-850psi. Higher input pressure = more reactive trigger.

Variants: None

> “Retro” valve: Regulator body is made from aluminum; valve body is made from stainless steel. Gas-thru rail design discontinued (uses inlet thru the regulator body just as the Classic valve uses). Also has the “reactive trigger”.

Variants: “RT Pro”, “E Mag”, “Micromag”,
“Micro E Mag”

> “X” valve: Both the regulator and valve bodies are made from high-strength aluminum, therefore reducing overall weight. Keeps the same “reactive trigger”.

Variants: “X valve”, “E Max”, “X Mag”

> Aftermarket valves: Many companies made regulators or “upgraded” valves. Most common modification was the “8 hole mod”, where the regulator half was drilled to allow better airflow to the valve. This helped on the pre-level 7 valves, as the air passages did not always line up together, but this design problem was fixed on later valves, therefore eliminating the need to drill for more airflow.

B. Bolts:

> Level 5 bolt: Came installed on very early Automags, and not widely used today.

> Level 7 bolt: Most common bolt that came installed on Automags.
This bolt can be installed on every valve.

> Level 10 bolt (or level X bolt): AGD’s anti-chop bolt, which reroutes the air exiting the powertube so that it does not apply full forward force onto the bolt until it gets past the point where a paintball could not be wedged in the chamber. A combination of a carrier and shims are used to adjust these actions. If a ball is caught, the bolt “chuffs” (i.e. vents) the air blast, and resets. The ball then falls in the correct position, and the bolt fires normally upon the next trigger pull. Such little force is applied to the ball, one could stick their tongue in front of the bolt and it would not even leave a mark after making contact and resetting. The face of this bolt also contains a “foamie” (a soft, rubbery insert) that lessens the impact force of the bolt directly onto the surface of the paintball. This bolt can be installed on every valve except the Rental valve.

This animation helps show how the Level 10 bolt works:

> Aftermarket bolts: A few aftermarket bolts have been made. Most common is the ANS Venturi bolt. It used a small foamie on the tip to reduce the impact force from the bolt onto the paintball. Using many smaller holes evenly spaced around the tip of the bolt, ANS also claimed it created the Venturi effect, and gave more precise charge of air onto the ball. However, little or no improvement on accuracy was noticed when using this bolt. Also, this bolt is made from much softer metal, and tends to wear more quickly than the bolts made by AGD.

C. Related parts:

> ULE Trigger Pull Kit (or Ultra Light Trigger, ULT): This redesigned on/off drops the force needed to trip the sear from around 2 lbs. down to 15 oz. It is a drop-in replacement for most valves, and uses shims to either increase (adding shims) or decrease (removing shims) the length of the assembly. Thereby “lengthening” or “shortening” the on/off pin.
ULT Applications:

> It will fit and is recommended for the following:
“X” valves and variants
All aluminum “RT Pro” Valves

> It can fit but is NOT recommended for the following:
“E-Mag” valve w/ double o-ring top “Micro E-Mag”
“MiniMag” valves
"68Automag" Valves
"Classic" Valves

> This on/off assembly will NOT fit the following:
Stainless Steel “RT Pro” valves
“Retro” valves
“E-Mag” valves w/ single o-ring top
“RT” valves (w/ banjo bolt)

> Bolt Springs: The bolt spring slides down around the bolt body and returns it back to the sear after each firing cycle. There are several springs available, each of varying lengths, and they are color-coded to allow for easy identification. (Gold being the shortest, Red being the middle, and grey being the longest.) The shorter the spring, the less force is needed to compress it. Therefore, a shorter spring will cause the bolt to impact the ball with more force than a longer one. (Shorter springs are generally used with less fragile paint, longer springs are used with more fragile paint.) Earlier springs used round wire for the coils, and tended to bunch up and overlap when compressed. All newer springs are made from square wire, which will stack on top of itself and prevent overlapping.

Zoo · #2 (**permalink**) 03-25-2008, 04:53 PM

II. Bodies

There are many variations of bodies available for the Automag, both from AGD and also from aftermarket manufacturers. I’ll cover the most common from AGD. The main difference among all the different types and styles of bodies is the type of barrel that is accepted by the body. The two most common types are twist-lock and Autococker-threaded.

A. Twist-lock style bodies:

Early Automag bodies use a twist-lock design, where the barrel slips into the body and is held in place by a guide pin. Two o-rings slip over the outside of the barrel to help keep a snug fit. The early barrels also use a nubbin to act as a ball detent. Wire nubbins were used in earlier models, but have been replaced for updated plastic ones, which are less prone to bending and failing.

Some common types of twist-lock bodies:

1. Standard feed right: The feedneck comes out of the body at a perpendicular 45 degree angle to the right. Usually made from stainless steel.

2. Standard feed left: The feedneck comes out of the body at a perpendicular 45 degree angle to the left. Usually made from stainless steel.

3. Powerfeed, Hopper Right: The feedneck is angled 45 degrees across the body, tangent-like. The feedneck opening is along the left side of the body, making the hopper sit on the right hand side. Usually made from stainless steel. Uses an angled plug at the bottom opening to route the incoming paintball into the chamber.

Example of a powerfeed, hopper right body:

4. Powerfeed, Hopper Left: The feedneck is angled 45 degrees across the body, tangent-like. The feedneck opening is along the right side of the body, making the hopper sit on the left hand side. Usually made from stainless steel. Uses an angled plug at the bottom opening to route the incoming paintball into the chamber.

* A note about the powerfeed design: This unique design was introduced to eliminate paintballs from "bobbling" back up into the feedneck. In the early designs of the bodies (when standard feednecks were used), when the marker would shoot, the paintballs in the feedneck would be pushed back by a small blast of air. The powerfeed corrected this by using a parabolic-faced plug. When the next paintball would be pushed back, the ball would actually bounce off the plug and be redirected into the chamber.

5. Center feed or Vertical feed: Just like most center feed bodies that are common today, the feedneck sits vertically, across the center of the body.

B. Autococker-threaded bodies:

Many of the later bodies were designed to accept the widely-used Autococker style barrel threading. Most came in the following configurations:

1. Ultra Light Engineering (ULE), vertical feed: The feedneck sits vertically, across the center of the body. Made from aluminum, these bodies are much lighter than stainless steel bodies. All ULE bodies use an Angel-threaded removeable feedneck and ball detent.

2. ULE, warp right: The feedneck is at a 90 angle to the body, coming out of the right hand side. Due to the angle of the feed neck, a force-fed hopper must be used with this body to get paintballs into the breech.

3. ULE, warp left: The feedneck is at a 90 angle to the body, coming out of the left hand side. Due to the angle of the feed neck, a force-fed hopper must be used with this body to get paintballs into the breech.

* Note - the warp bodies were developed to use with AGD's Warp Feed loader system, described in detail further down this page.

Example of a ULE warp left body:

4. Tac-One body: Has several Weaver-style rails to allow items to be mounted onto the body. Comes in vertical, warp right and warp left configurations. These bodies are machined from an aluminum slug. All Tac-One bodies use a removeable Angel-threaded feedneck and ball detent.

Example of a vertical Tac-One body:

Zoo · #3 (**permalink**) 03-25-2008, 04:54 PM

III. Rails

All bodies made by AGD must attach to a rail in order to then fit onto a frame. The rail also serves as the pivot point for the sear and rod assembly. Just as with bodies, there are many different types of rails, both made by AGD and also aftermarket companies, that are available for Automags. I’ll try to break them down into main categories and types.

> Classic: This rail is notched on the edges, creating a “V” shape on the bottom. (Many frames that were made to fit this rail are commonly said to have "wings" to fit the grooves on each side of the rail.) It is used on the Automag Classic and the Minimag. Comes standard with the twist lock barrel pin installed, but it can be pressed out to use the rail with newer body styles. * Note - whether intentional or unintentional, both sides of the Classic rail are notched, and are able to fit a dovetail style mount.

> RT: This is the only rail that uses an air-thru design, with air ports along both sides of the rear portion. It also has a larger opening for the field strip screw, due to it using the special banjo bolt to get air into the valve. Unlike the Classic rail, the RT rail is flat on the bottom and is longer in overall length.

> RT Pro: Similar in length and shape to the RT rail, but without the air ports. Has 6 tapped holes on each side to allow for mounting a foregrip bracket at the front, and a sight rail at the middle.

> E mag: Similar in length and shape to the RT Pro rail, but instead of tapped screw holes at the front sides, it has jewel stickers that read “E MAG”.

> Tac-One: Slightly shorter in length that the E mag and RT Pro. Doesn’t have any tapped screw holes in the sides. There are two versions of the rail, which vary slightly.

IV. Frames

The frame mounts to the bottom of the rail, and positions the trigger rod to rest behind the trigger. As previously stated in the other sections, a few manufacturers also produce frames to fit the different rails. I’m going to stick with describing those that are/were available through AGD.

A. Classic: Is a standard single-trigger style frame. Made from carbon fiber, and has a single screw in the middle of each side to hold the grips in place. Common modification is to cut the trigger guard to allow a double-trigger to be installed. Uses "Sheridan-style" grips.

B. Intelliframe: A double-trigger setup, this is probably the most popular upgrade for frames. It is milled out of aluminum, making it very light. It also has a bracket inside the open area of the grip to allow the user to mount something inside, including but not limited to a Warp Feed/Revvy activating switch or pneumatic parts. Uses standard 45 grip panels.

Chrome intelliframe:

Wiring the Intelliframe to a Revvy (pdf)

C. E-mag: This (and the X-mag) is the only electronic frame that was made by AGD. Commonly found together with the battery, battery pack, solenoid, and board, these parts collectively are referred to as the “lowers”. Come in the stock "humpback" style, or the ULE (lightened, non-hump) style.

Zoo · #4 (**permalink**) 03-25-2008, 04:55 PM

V. Valve operation basics

AGD valves use a blow-forward design, where the force of air exiting the valve pushes the bolt forward and relies on a spring to return the bolt back to the sear. The valve assembly is broken down into 3 basic parts: The regulator (very back of the assembly), the on/off (middle part), and the powertube (front of the assembly).

A. Regulator

One of the unique characteristics of AGD's valve design is that it incorporates its own regulator assembly on the back end of the valve. AGD's markers do not need an additional inline regulator (and performance is usually hampered by adding one). The regulator (and thus velocity) is adjusted by turning the regulator nut on the very back of the assembly. Turning it clockwise increases velocity, and turning it counterclockwise decreases velocity. Each 1/8 turn equals roughly a 10fps change in velocity. After each adjustment to velocity, firing the marker about 10 times will allow the regulator to seat and give a more accurate fps reading.

B. On/Off

The on/off assembly essentially "separates" the valve into two halves. There are many variations of this part of the valve, but all of them use a center pin that is pushed upward by the back part of the sear, allowing the pressurized air from the regulator to enter the dump chamber.

Example of a an RT Pro on/off assembly:

C. Powertube

The powertube is pretty much like most other markers of this type: it controls the flow of air onto the paintball, and guides the bolt as it slides forward and back.

Firing cycle

Okay, now that we've covered the basic parts of the valve, let's put them all together and go through a firing cycle.

1. Air leaves the regulator, passes the open on/off, and fills the dump chamber.

2. Trigger is pulled. This does two things:
a. First, the rear part of the sear pushes the on/off pin up, closing the on/off and thus also closing the passageway from the regulator to the dump chamber.

b. Next, the front part of the sear moves downward, releasing the bolt.

3. The bolt pushes forward against the powertube spring, compressing it. Once the end of the bolt goes past the powertube o-ring, air is allowed to pass through the bolt and onto the paintball. Ball is propelled out of the barrel.

4. Powertube spring expands to push the bolt back to the sear.

5. Trigger is released. this does two things:
a. The front of the sear rocks up, allowing the bolt to catch and hold.

b. The rear of the sear rocks down, opening the on/off and allowing regulated air to again fill the dump chamber.

This animation shows the process of airflow through the valve with the Level 7 bolt installed:

VI. Basic troubleshooting & tuning

These markers are very reliable, but as with anything man-made, sometimes need some TLC to get back in operating form. The most common issues involve leaking o-rings, and can be fixed in mere minutes. I'll list some of the most common symptoms and their related repairs.

1. Regulator leaks:
Symptom - Constant air leak out of the center hole of the adjuster nut.

Cause #1 - Adjuster nut is screwed in too far, and the valve is venting to relieve excess pressure.

Fix #1 - This venting is normal, and is resolved by unscrewing the adjuster nut to get the pressure back to a normal range. After every adjustment, fire about 10 shots to allow the regulator to seat. Check velocity and make sure it is within normal specs.

Cause #2 – The piston assembly inside the regulator is faulty and not allowing proper pressure regulation. (Usually accompanied by very high velocity.)

Fix #2 – Replace the piston assembly.

2. Level 10 tuning:
Once the Level 10 bolt is set up, it rarely needs anything but occasional oiling. However, sometimes more in-depth work might be needed.

A. Initial setup of the bolt - The kit consists of a new bolt, powertube tip, backing washer, 5 carriers, and a few shims. The hardest part of setup is choosing the right carrier and then determining if shims are needed, and if so, how many.

If possible, use a powertube o-ring that has already been broken-in. If you use a brand new one, it must be broken in by firing a few hundred times and then rechecked for carrier sizing.
1. Choosing the right carrier: Start with the largest size carrier and work your way down. Place the o-ring in it and slide it over the powertube shaft. The carrier must fit snug, but not too tight. An easy way to tell the correct fit is to hold the bolt vertically, with the carrier facing down. If the carrier slides off the shaft with no force, it is too large. Take the next size smaller and repeat the steps, always using the same powertube o-ring. When the carrier easily slides on the shaft but doesn't fall off when turned over, you've found the right size.

Generously oil it and install the bolt and valve. Air it up and check for leaks. Fire it a few dozen times and check for leaks. If it does leak, use your finger or a squeegee to push the front face of the bolt around while its leaking. If the leak changes tone, then it’s most likely the wrong o-ring carrier, and you have to go to the next one tighter. If it still leaks even after swapping to the smallest carrier, replace the powertube o-ring and then restart with the largest carrier.

2. Determining the number of shims needed: Now that we've got the the carrier installed with no leaks, the next step is to get the right point where the bolt will reset after a prevented chop.

Unscrew the powertube tip and drop in 2 shims, making sure they sit FLAT against each other and the top of the carrier. (If a shim gets bent, it is useless and must be replaced.) Reinstall the powertube tip and valve and air up the marker. Take a squeegee or other long solid object and place it in front of the bolt face.

Fire the marker and see if the bolt resets without having to push back against the face of the it. If it does, you are all set and ready to go to the next step. If not, drop in one additional shim and repeat. Repeat this until the bolt resets every time and there are no leaks down the barrel. If it starts leaking, remove one shim at a time until the leaks stops.

3. Using the correct powertube mainspring: The right main spring will depend on many things such as what velocity you are shooting, what barrel you are using, the size of your paint etc.

Start with the longest mainspring (silver one) from the Level 10 kit. Assemble the valve with it and gas the marker up. Try firing, if it doesn’t fire, turn up the velocity until it does. Turning up the velocity is normal for Level 10 tuning, and it does not mean anything is wrong. If the marker starts venting out the back or the velocity is too high when it does start firing, then the main spring is too long. Switch to the next shorter main spring (red one). The only reason to use the original spring (gold one) with the Level 10 bolt is to get lower velocities (usually around 250 fps for indoor use).

VIII. ETC

I'll cover X-Mags, Pnuemags and other odds and ends in this section.
A. X-Mags

When the speedball tournament scene started to really take off, the demand for light, flashy markers increased. So AGD came out with the X-Mag (also known as the "Extreme Automag" and "Extreme CNC Automag"). The entire mainbody and frame are milled out of aluminum, making it very light.

The X-Mag is essentially an E-Mag with fancy milling, but it does introduce a few features that previous Automags did not have:
1. A.C.E., or "Anti-Chop Eye": Unlike most other eyes, which tend to use two sensors in a break-beam arrangement, AGD's setup uses only one infrared reflective eye mounted vertically, aimed up through the feedneck. This provides a more reliable way to tell if a ball is fully loaded into the breach, and detects multi-colored balls much better.

The ACE board also includes an on/off switch, therefore eliminating the need for the awkward (and often lost) battery interrupt pin used on the E-Mag.

2. Changeable breach: The breach can be changed to vertical, warp left, or warp right. Changing the breach is simple: remove the barrel, swap out the breach, then reinstall the barrel to hold the breach secure. This feature allows the user to set up the marker to feed however they would like, without having to switch to a different marker.

3. Integrated rail: The rail is built into the body, making for a simpler design and ease of disassembly/reassembly.

B. Pnuemags

"Pnuemag" is a blend of "pnuematic" and "Automag". Just as the name implies, Pnuemags use pnuematic assist in the firing cycle. These marker are all mechanical.

Basically, instead of the trigger rod manually pushing against the sear to release the bolt, a pnuematic valve system is used to push the sear. This allows for a light trigger and very smooth firing cycle. Many Pnuemag users have said that it is almost as smooth as an electro marker's trigger.

Here is a typical Pnuemag setup, with the valve system mounted inside the frame:

(Thanks to FiXeL for use of this photo)

A low pressure regulator must be used in order to lower the psi of the air going into the valve system.

C. Alternative software for E-Mags and X-Mags

Several different software versions were released by AGD, but all were very limited when it came to rate of fire and firing modes in general. So, for a senior project, a young engineer decided to take on the task of developing software that would address those issues. He named it X-Mod, and made it available to download for no charge. The only fees involved were for the programmer that connected the marker's board to a computer.

The site for X-Mod is currently down, but here's the link:
www.neidtech.com

D. Warp Feed

AGD introduced one of the first force-feed loader systems: the Warp Feed. It is basically two motor-driven, flexible wheels that spin, stacking the paintballs and forcing them into the chamber. And if a jam occurs, the wheels slip over the surface of the paintballs, preventing any breaking. It has no capacity to store paintballs, so it requires the use of a hopper on top of the Warp Feed to keep it supplied. At least an agitated hopper, such as a Revvy, is recommended to keep the Warp from being starved of paintballs.

Internal view of the Warp Feed:

The most innovative thing about it is that it relocates the hopper to either the left or right side of the marker, sidecar style, thus eliminating a huge target on top. It is a bit quirky, and does take some getting used to it. But once set up properly, it can be very effective in limiting your opponent's ability to eliminate you with a gun hit.

This pic shows the significant profile difference from a regular marker and one set up with a Warp Feed:

The standard unit uses one 9 volt battery, and can feed around 10 bps. However, if you need more firepower, it can be modified to use two 9 volts and feed well over 20 bps.

The Warp Feed can be set to activate by two ways:
1.) Internal sensor: The Warp Feed comes standard with a vibration sensor, which can be adjusted for sensitivity. Most blowback markers will generate enough vibration to activate the Warp Feed when set this way.

2.) Switch-activated: The Warp Feed has a plug port which allows it to be connected to an external switch. When the switch circuit is closed, the Warp Feed activates. (Most commonly used with the Intelliframe and the switch mounted inside it.)

Warp Feed Instruction Manual (.pdf)

Pro Team Products also sells Warp Feed kits, which can be supplemented with their own products that were specifically developed for Warp Feed use on most any marker. Some of the items include a custom mounting bracket, vertical adapter, and 12 volt mod harness.

Pro Team Products - Warp Feed page

Zoo · #5 (**permalink**) 03-25-2008, 04:55 PM

E. Flatline regulator
In order to keep the RT valve supplied with air, AGD designed a revolutionary adjustable regulator. The Flatline reg is capable of very high pressure output, and also an extremely fast recharge rate. Plus, it retains the quality and consistency that comes with the AGD brand. The reg comes in two versions: a 3000psi and 4500psi model. It uses standard tank threads, so can be installed on most HPA tanks.

I really don't have much knowledge of this reg, so I've posted a link to an excellent tutorial on how to rebuild a 3K Flatline: AGD Flatline Rebuild Guide. Thanks to Captainneeda on MCB for the Flatline guide!

VIII. Parts Sources

Since Automags are not widely available like Tippmanns or Smart Parts, upgrades and spare parts are more difficult to find. Unless one has a very dedicated pro shop, the easiest way to get such parts is via the internet. I will list the places that I know of to buy quality Automag parts and upgrades.

Welcome to Airgun Designs - Can't go wrong with OEM.

Tunamart - Tunaman produces some of the finest upgrade parts for 'mags. He also carries many common OEM replacement parts.

The Mag Smith - Sells Rogue Paintball Gear (RPG); quality frames, rails and bodies & more.

Luke's Customs - Offers milling services and has some custom parts available.

Zoo · #6 (**permalink**) 03-25-2008, 04:56 PM

Again, this guide definitely does not contain every bit of information regarding AGD markers, and is under constant changing and tweaking. If you know of any part that may be wrong, added to, or whatever, feel free to PM me here. Thanks!

Sources:
airgundesignusa.com
Automags.Org:
Automags.Org Online Forums - FAQ thread for newbs and old members alike
[ ZDSPB.com ] - ZDS Paintball
FiXeL (of MCB, AO, PBL) for use of photo.