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Contents:Timing the Autococker
Coping with Autococker Leaks
Every Other Autococker Problem You Coud
Ever Hate to Have
Timing an Autococker is seen by many as being a black art, known and
practiced by only a select few who have the "touch" to get an Autococker
running properly. In fact, timing an Autococker is pretty simple, but
there are a lot of little things to pay attention to when you're doing
it to get it right. It's most often these little details and a
fundamental misunderstanding as to how the Autococker works that trips
people up.
I'll start by saying that the most effective way to make sure that
your Autococker works well for the long term is to NOT fiddle around
with it. If you're Autococker is in good time and is working properly,
you should stop reading this article now. This guide is only for those
who's 'guns are hopelessly out of time, and who don't have an
experienced Autococker tech to help them out. I promise you that if
you're 'gun is working now and you try to use this article to make it
"even better," it will almost certainly come out worse. It is not a
guide on how to do a trigger-job. It is not a comprehensive
trouble-shooting guide (I'll be writing one later). This is a very basic
guide to tell you how to get an Autococker (or Minicocker) properly
timed. The first time you try it, it probably won't work very well. But
with time and practice you should eventually become quite proficient at
timing Autocockers using these basic principals as your guide.
Before I begin, you should know that I'm making some assumptions
about the 'gun that is being timed. I'm assuming that the autococking
system regulator (on the front of the 'gun) is properly set and is
feeding sufficient pressure to the autococking system to cycle the 'gun.
I'm assuming that the trigger and sear are sprung properly such that
there is enough tension to close the 4-way valve when the trigger is
released, and enough tension to keep the sear-lug from slipping over the
sear. I'm assuming that your sear lug and sear are not worn out to the
point where they will no longer catch. If any of these things are
pre-existing problems, you will not be able to time your Autococker.
-
- The block is the part at the back of the 'gun that is screwed
onto the pump rod, connecting it to the ram. The bolt and cocking
rod go through the block and are drawn back by it when the 'gun is
cycled. Positioning the block properly is probably the single most
neglected setting on Autocockers. The block position is very
important to ensure that there is enough backward movement of the
block to cock the 'gun and allow another paintball to drop into the
breech.
Having the block screwed in too far can lead to several
problems. Obviously if it's in way too far, it could not move back
far enough to cock the 'gun or allow a paintball to drop into the
breech. In less extreme cases, the ram has to push all the way to
the back of it's stroke (where it is weakest) to draw the hammer
back far enough to catch the sear. In this case, any reduction in
pressure through the autococking system will lead to the block not
being pushed back far enough to cock the 'gun or completely feed the
next paintball. During slow-fire, this isn't a problem. But during
rapid fire, when the regulator may not be fast enough to provide a
steady flow of pressure it leads to stumbling, double-firing, and
chopped paintballs.
You want to screw on the block such that, when the ram is all the
way forward, the block just touches the back of the body. This
accomplishes a few things. First, it ensures that the block can
definately be pushed back far enough to cock the 'gun and that ram
is in the middle of it's stroke (where it's strongest) when the
hammer has been drawn back far enough to catch the sear. Second, it
ensures that the block will definately be able to draw the bolt back
far enough to allow a paintball to drop into the breech. Finally,
with some work, you can actually position the block such that the
block comes right up to the body, but doesn't actually meet it. This
eliminates much of the clacking sound characteristic of an
Autococker cycling.
-
- The cocking rod is the rod that goes through the block and
velocity adjuster below the bolt and screws into the back of the
hammer in the lower half of the 'gun body. It has a knob at it's end
and must be removed to set the velocity on most Autocockers. Oddly,
this is also a commonly neglected aspect of timing the Autococker.
Setting the rod's length properly is absolutely crucial to ensuring
that the bolt can move back far enough to allow paint to feed, and
to ensuring that the hammer is drawn back far enough to catch the
sear.
Rod length problems manifest in two ways. If the rod is set
too short, the block's backward travel will be limited such that
paint will chop during rapid fire, or not feed at all in extreme
cases. If the rod is set too long, you run into the same problem you
have when the block is screwed in too far; during rapid fire, the
'gun will sometimes stumble and double fire (the hammer doesn't
catch the sear and stay back).
The rod's length is set by it's knob, which screws onto the rod.
To lengthen the rod, unscrew the knob from the rod. To shorten it,
screw the knob on further. The knob is locked in place with loc-tite
on older knobs, and with a small allen screw through the back of the
knob on newer stock and aftermarket rods. I'll admit that these can
be a total pain in the ass. Shocktech has a
new rod that makes life much easier. I highly recommend it.
You want to set the rod's length such that, when the hammer
catches the sear, the bolt has completely cleared the breech. This
is most easily done with the 'gun degassed. When you pull the block
back it will catch the rod and draw it back, pulling the hammer with
it. When the hammer catches the sear, you'll hear a light click and
the rod won't try to pull the block forward anymore. You can pull
the block back further, but spring tension will return it to that
point. This point, with the block as far back as it will rest with
the 'gun cocked (ie. the hammer caught), is where you want the bolt
to be completely clear of the breech. Look into the feed tube and
see where the tip of the bolt is positioned. You want it to be
completely clear of the breech, but not drawn too far back beyond
the back of the breech. Ideally, you want the bolt to just clear the
breech when the hammer catches. This ensures that every time the
'gun cocks, the bolt is drawn back far enough to feed another
paintball.
If the bolt is partially occluding the breech, it may still be
drawn back far enough to clear the breech, but any decrease in
cocking pressure through the reg could result in a small reduction
in the distance the block is drawn back. If this is the case, it
could still be drawn back far enough to cock the 'gun, but not far
enough for the bolt to clear the breech, resulting in incomplete
feeding and possibly a chopped ball. Lengthen the rod by unscrewing
the knob until the bolt is completely clear of the breech with the
'gun cocked.
If the rod is too long, the ram may have to go all the way to the
back of it's throw to cock the 'gun. This can lead to the same
problems as with the block screwed on too far. If you see the bolt
going more than 2 mm past the breech, shorten the rod by screwing
the knob further on.
I should note here that others do this differently. They are
happy if the bolt clears the breech completely with the 'gun gassed
up and the trigger pulled. This is fine as well if you absolutely
know that your low pressure reg is perfectly reliable in recharging
quickly or you have the pressure turned up higher than necessary (an
extra 1/2 turn or more on an adjustable reg).
After adjusting the rod, always remember to lock it back in place
with the locking screw or with loc-tite.
-
- The third step is setting the point where the 'gun fires in the
trigger-pull. This is set by setting the sear-lug length. The sear
lug is a screw that goes through the hammer, and is the part of the
hammer that catches the sear in the grip frame when the 'gun is
cocked. If you have a stock Autococker, you have to remove the grip
frame to adjust the sear-lug. If you have a 'cocker with an external
sear access hole, you can drop a wrench through the top of the'gun
to adjust the sear lug without having to remove the frame.
When setting the length of the sear-lug, there are a couple of
things to keep in mind. First, you want to make sure that there is
enough lug catching the sear for the two to hold reliably with each
fire of the 'gun. Setting the lug too short (a common mistake made
by people trying to shorten their trigger pulls) can allow the
sear-lug to slip over the sear once the parts get worn in some so
the 'gun won't stay cocked on every shot. Second, you want to make
sure that the 'gun fires early enough in the pull for you to set the
cocking point (step 4) past it.
Screwing the lug back into the hammer such that less of it
protrudes below the hammer moves the firing point forward in the
pull (makes it fire earlier). Screwing the lug further out of the
hammer so more of it sticks out below the hammer moves the firing
point back in the trigger pull (makes it fire later).
In my time with the Autococker, I've found that the lug has to be
set to allow the 'gun to fire at least half-way through the trigger
pull for reliable operation. Though you can set it to fire earlier
than that, I've found that eventually sear and lug-wear lead to the
hammer slipping over the sear. A good marker I use to set the firing
point is the alignment of the holes in the trigger-plate and grip
frame that the timing rod goes through. The trigger is about
half-way back when the hole in the trigger-plate is centered in the
hole in the grip frame. I typically set the 'gun to fire at that
point. You can set it to fire further back in the trigger-pull, but
I haven't found any real tangible benefit from that.
-
- The final step to bringing your Autococker into proper time is
to set the point in the trigger-pull where the autococking system is
triggered to cock the 'gun. This is set by adjusting the length of
the timing rod. This is the only step in timing the Autococker where
the 'gun actually needs to be gassed up.
The timing rod is the
bent rod on the right side of the 'gun that attaches to the 4-way
valve at it's front and bends to go through the trigger frame and
plate at its back. You'll note a small collar that the front end of
the rod goes into. This collar couples the rod to the 4-way. There
are two screws in this collar. The front screw attaches the collar
to the 4-way. DO NOT REMOVE OR LOOSEN THIS SCREW! The back screw is
the one that holds the rod in place. This is the screw that you have
to loosen to adjust rod length. If you have a stock timing rod, the
rod simply slides into the collar. It can be adjusted by loosening
the back screw and sliding the rod in or out as needed. If you have
a threaded timing rod, the rod screws into the collar, requiring you
to rotate the collar around the rod to shorten or lengthen the rod
after loosening the screw. Shortening the timing rod moves the
cocking point of the trigger pull forward. Lengthening the rod moves
the point where the 'gun cocks back in the pull.
Since the way an Autococker works is to fire with the first part
of the trigger pull, and to cock with the second part, obviously you
want to set the point in the trigger pull where the 'gun cycles
behind where it releases the hammer and fires the 'gun. To minimize
blow-back (gas blown up the feed-tube), you want to set the
trigger-up such that when the 'gun fires the bolt is still being
held firmly forward, and only after that does it cock. I check this
by slowly pulling the trigger back until it fires. When it fires, I
watch the block. If the block starts to move back before, or jumps
back when the 'gun fires, I lengthen the rod slightly and try it
again. I repeat this procedure until when the 'gun fires, the block
stays firmly forward, and doesn't start to move back until I slide
the trigger further back. This ensures that the 'gun has fired
before it starts to cock, and reduces blow-back to a minimum.
A too-long timing rod can result in several problems. If the rod
is extremely long, the block will always stay forward no matter how
far you pull the trigger since it can't pull the 4-way piston back
far enough. In less extreme cases the 'gun will cock close to the
back of the trigger pull and will start to move forward on
trigger-release before the sear has come forward far enough for the
sear to catch the lug. In this case, the block will cycle without
the 'gun firing and the cocking rod slips forward on each return of
the block. In the least extreme cases, the sear-lug will only
sometimes slip over the sear, resulting in occasional double fires
followed by dropped shots.
A too-short timing rod has several consequences as well. If the
rod is far too short, the block will always stay back, even with the
trigger completely released. In less extreme cases, the block will
begin to cycle before the sear can release the hammer and the 'gun
will cycle without firing. It differs from a the too-long rod
instance in that the 'gun stays cocked with the cocking rod staying
back in the cocked position between cycles rather than returning all
the way forward. In the least severe cases, the 'gun will appear to
function normally, but excessive blow-back will result in poor
velocity consistency and occasional chopped balls during rapid fire
and when your hopper runs low on paint.
Addendum for 2000 and later Autocockers, 1999
and later STOs, and ANS Autococker users: In all STOs
since 1999, Autocockers after model year 2000 and all ANS
Autocockers, the trigger plates have been modified to have a hole
for the timing rod rather than a slot. The result of this is that
you can not time in that ideal gap between firing and cycling that I
describe above. The reason for this is that there is no longer a lag
between forward movement of the trigger (and thus raising the sear)
and switching the 4-way valve back. As a result, since you time the
sear to drop first then switch the 4-way, when you release the
trigger the events reverse and the 4-way switches back before the
sear can ride up high enough to catch the lug.
Because of this change caused by the new trigger plates, you have
to set the cocking point of the trigger pull very close to, if not
directly coinciding with the point where the sear is released and
the paintgun fires. The advantage of this is that your trigger pull
is made much shorter and the trigger is much harder to short-stroke.
There is some delay in the buildup of pressure as the 4-way switches
allowing this to work without massive blowback. None the less, you
should expect more blowback and the need to replace your sear/lug
more frequently since this new system slips out of time with much
less wear.
By the way, if you have one of these new plates and do not like
this new arrangement, you can get old-style slotted plates for both
pre-1998 and post-1998 trigger frames. Both
RAGE Sports and P&P
carry them.
That's it! Assuming that nothing is wrong with the rest of the 'gun,
these four steps should get your 'gun back in time and working properly.
Since I gave a lot of detail above, I'll just summarize the four steps
one more time.
- Set the block such that it just touches the back of the 'gun
body with the ram all the way forward.
- Set the cocking rod length such that the bolt completely clears
the breech when the sear catches.
- Set the sear lug such that the 'gun fires at or past the
half-way point of the trigger pull.
- If you have a slotted trigger plate, set the timing rod such
that the block stays firmly forward when the 'gun fires, and such
that the 'gun cocks after it fires. If you have a new Autococker
with the slotless plate, set the cocking point right at the point
where the paintgun fires.
The leaky paintgun has to be one of the most frustrating things in
the sport. They can be an irritating hiss that nags you through a game,
or a full-blown gale that forces you to sit out a game tearing down your
paintgun or air system to replace a small seal. Let’s face it, though:
most leaks are pretty easy to fix. At a hose joint, a little teflon tape
or loc-tite seals things up nicely. A tank that leaks when screwed in
usually calls for a new tank O-ring. Rarely, a barrel leak requires a
new cup seal. With most paintguns, these are obvious and easy fixes.
The Autococker, though, is an entirely different beast. Due to it’s
more complex pneumatic design, large number of parts, and comparatively
easy access to operating settings, the Autococker offers a much wider
variety of leaks and causes than most other paintguns on the market.
While with most paintguns the cause of a leak is nothing more than a bad
seal, the Autococker as often has some setting or adjustment at the root
of the problem. As a result, inexperienced players give up in
frustration. Some people just learn to live with air leaks. Others
switch ’guns entirely just to escape a persistent leak. You don’t have
to resort to either of these options if you know just a little bit about
how the Autococker works. My goal here is to tell you how to diagnose
and fix the most common (and some of the very rare) leaks that can
present in the Autococker. I’ve broken this down into sections
corresponding to the source of the leak — barrel leaks, 3-way valve
leaks, and miscellaneous other leaks.
- Cock the paintgun before gassing up: Probably the most
common cause of barrel leaks is nothing more than the hammer resting
against the valve and holding it open when the paintgun is first
gassed up. This isn’t really a problem, just the new
Autococker-user’s misunderstanding. If your Autococker starts to
vent air down the barrel when you first gas it up, it’s probably
because you haven’t cocked the hammer back first. Just make sure to
pull back the cocking rod or the back block until the hammer locks
back before attaching or turning on your air source.
- Dry cup
seal: If you notice a slow leak down your barrel, you may just
have a dry cup seal. Put a few drops of oil in your ASA before
gassing the ’gun up and cycle the oil through the paintgun. This
will often help seal up very minor leaks. Tip: take your barrel off
or turn your bolt upside-down before doing this to avoid spraying
the inside of your barrel with oil.
- Blown/damaged cup-seal:
If a little oil doesn’t clear up your leak, or you have a more
vigorous leak, it may be that the cup seal in your valve is damaged
or blown out completely. If this is the case, you’ll need to buy a
new cup seal (remember to buy the right one if you have an
aftermarket valve!) and replace it. Replacing the cup seal is rather
involved and requires a special tool to pull the valve. If you don’t
know what you’re doing, you may want to send your Autococker back to
the shop (WGP or custom shop of your choice) to have the cup seal
replaced.
- Blown/damaged valve-guide O-ring: If you pull
your valve out and find that your cup seal is perfectly fine, check
the O-ring that sits around the front edge of the valve guide (the
main body of the valve) and replace it if damaged. As this is not a
moving O-ring, it doesn’t commonly get damaged during normal use.
Look to it as the problem if you have recently had the valve
replaced or repaired as it is commonly damaged when the valve is
pulled out or installed.
- Blown shaft O-ring on RAT valve or
other custom valve: If you have a custom valve that has an extra
O-ring on the shaft of the cup-seal stem (the Shocktech RAT valve
was the first valve to include this feature), check it for wear or
damage as well if you are having barrel leaks.
- New cup-seal:
If you have a new Autococker, or you’ve just had the valve or
cup-seal replaced, you may find that you have a slow leak down the
barrel when you first gas the paintgun up. This problem is
particularly prevalent with some aftermarket valves with very hard
cup-seal materials (the Tornado valve is notorious for this). The
problem here is usually that the new cup seal material has not yet
broken in to perfectly seal against the front edge of the valve
guide. This will go away in time as the face of the cup-seal wears
in. To seal things up and hasten the valve’s breaking in, turn up
your input pressure until the valve seals, then cycle the ’gun a few
hundred times. You should then be able to turn the pressure back
down and keep a good seal.
- Improperly-installed
valve/valve-spring: If you’ve just had your valve replaced or
repaired and you are now getting a vigorous leak down the barrel,
another possibility is simply human error. If the valve isn’t in
straight, or the valve spring is kinked or at a funny angle, the cup
seal may not seat flush against the front of the valve guide. Pull
the valve and reinstall it taking care to ensure everything goes in
straight.
- Make sure ’gun cocks with each shot: Similar to
#1 above, if your hammer doesn’t catch the sear with each shot, it
can end up staying forward holding the valve open and allowing air
to vent down the barrel. If you find that your Autococker
occasionally skips a shot and vents down the barrel until you pull
the trigger or pull the block back by hand, you’re probably
experiencing hammer slip-over. This is the case where the hammer
slips over or doesn’t catch the sear, allowing it to stay pressed
forward against the valve. This is usually be caused by the
Autococker being mistimed (for timing directions, read my previous
article from PGI June 1998, No. 111, or at my web page:
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~rchopra. If you find that your
Autococker is properly timed but are still experiencing this
problem, your sear and/or lug is worn so much that there is no
longer enough friction for them to catch when the hammer is cocked.
Replace your lug first — it’s cheaper and more commonly is the
culprit. If changing the lug doesn’t correct the problem, you’ll
need to get a new sear.
- Operating pressure too low: If you
find that your Autococker initially seals up properly, but the first
time you pull the trigger it fires and vents vigorously down the
barrel without cocking, your input pressure may be set too low. With
a low input pressure, the free rush of air through the valve may be
such that not enough is left to operate your autococking system. Try
turning up your input pressure (using the regulator in your vertical
ASA) to assist in closing the valve and allowing more pressure to
run the ram. If this problem presents only after a few shots during
rapid fire, you may have a problem with your air system. Check the
regulator in your vertical ASA or your nitrogen system for bad
O-rings or seals that may not be allowing it to recharge quickly.
-
Paintgun is not cocking: If you’re having problems like in #9
above, but increasing the input pressure has not lternately, you may
have a flaw in your autococking system (eg. blown regulator, blown
ram, etc.) or a serious problem with your timing such that the ram
is not being activated to cock the hammer back. Check your front-end
components and timing for problems.
- Frozen O-rings: If you shoot CO2, your
Autococker has been working just fine, and you’ve just developed a
new leak from the front, back, or both ends of your 3-way, there’s a
very good chance you’ve gotten some liquid CO2 into the
valve and frozen up the O-rings. This is a temporary state and it
should seal back up once the liquid is cleared and the O-rings warm
back up. To prevent this from happening in the future, you should
take measures to prevent CO2 from entering your
Autococker using such things as remote systems, expansion chambers,
pressure regulators, and anti-siphon tanks. Keep in mind that when
liquid CO2 comes in contact with the O-rings in most
3-way valves, the seals swell and stiffen the valve’s action as well
as making it much more prone to failure in the future.
- Dry
O-rings: Another possibility when you get a new leak,
particularly if it starts slowly and gradually gets worse, is that
the valve’s O-rings are dry. You can run a little oil through the
paintgun via the ASA or you can just put a drop or two in the front
of the valve with the ’gun degassed and pull the trigger a few times
to work the oil through.
- Pressure too low: With the
preponderance of super-smooth aftermarket 3-way valves on the
market, this has become a very common problem. Aftermarket valves
often have looser fitting O-rings to allow for smoother action. As a
result, they don’t make very tight contact with the inner walls of
the valve. The ironic result is that you actually need a higher
pressure in the valve to allow the O-rings to seal properly. In some
cases, this pressure can be so high, that it’s actually quite a bit
higher than required to run the ram and cock the paintgun. If your
Autococker is properly timed and shooting well apart from a
persistent leak from the 3-way regardless of trigger position, try
turning up your front-end regulator (Sledgehammer, Rock, Jackhammer,
etc.). That will often seat the O-rings more tightly and stop the
leak.
- Timing rod too short: Another very common cause of
3-way front-end leaks results from everyone trying to time their own
triggers as short as humanly possible. Commonly people will set
their timing rods very short to get the 3-way to switch early in the
trigger pull. The result is that they don’t allow the 3-way piston
to move far enough forward to seal reliably and a slow, intermittent
leak from the front of the valve. This usually presents as a slow
leak from the front of the 3-way that goes away when the trigger is
pulled and held back (assuming you don’t have other timing problems
or bad O-rings in the valve). Some will also find that they can make
the leak go away by tapping the side of the timing rod (this can
nudge the O-ring in just tight enough to create a good seal). The
fix is very simple. Lengthen the timing rod until the piston is far
enough forward to seal reliably when the trigger is all the way
forward. Note: this problem can be more prevalent in valves that
have been overpolished and in some poorly-designed aftermarket
3-ways. Palmer’s QuickSwitch is one valve that is notably and
impressively resistant to this problem.
- Bent or kinked timing
rod: Not only does the timing rod have to be long enough to
allow the 3-way to seal forward, it also must be perfectly straight
and in-line with the 3-way to work properly. If the timing rod is
bent off to the side it will bend the 3-way piston to the side as
well. This increases friction (making for a stiffer trigger pull and
causing the 3-way to stick) and pulls one side of the piston O-rings
away from the valve inner wall, allowing it to leak. This most
commonly occurrs with Autocockers that have aftermarket timing rods
with aluminum couplers. The aluminum coupler does not fit the
stainless steel rod very well, so when you tighten the set screw
down after adjusting the rod length the coupler kinks off to the
side. If the Autococker is gassed up while you’re doing this, you
can actually hear the leak start and stop as you tighten and loosen
the set screw. There are a couple fixes for this. First, you can
just lengthen the timing rod further to force the O-ring further
forward to seal more tightly. If you’re trying to get the shortest
possible trigger pull, you’ll probably want to get a tight-fitting,
all stainless steel threaded timing rod that does not kink when
tightened in place. Both LAPCO and P&P make excellent aftermarket
stainless timing rods. The new stock threaded rods on Autocockers
and STO’s are superb as well.
- Timing rod bumping
trigger-frame: The timing rod can also be forced to the side by
bumping against the trigger frame. Some aftermarket timing rods are
not bent sufficiently sharply where they turn to go through the hole
in the frame and trigger. When the trigger is all the way forward,
the bend of the rod may press against the front edge of the hole in
the trigger frame and be pushed out to the side, causing the same
kind of leak as found with a kinked timing rod. There are quite a
few ways to correct this problem. Obviously, you can buy a timing
rod that is bent sharply enough not to bump the trigger frame in
that way. You can grind away either the rod or the trigger-frame
where the parts are bumping together. Finally, if a short trigger
pull is not a priority, you can just lengthen the timing rod to the
point where the 3-way bottoms-out against its forward-most position
before the rod moves far enough forward to bump the frame. This
final option is only possible in 3-ways that have a forward stop
(the stock valve, Palmer’s QuickSwitch, KAPP’s 3-way).
- Too
soft trigger-return spring/trigger-binding: As with the
too-short timing-rod, any time the piston doesn’t go far enough
forward to seal in the front of the valve, the 3-way will leak from
it’s front end. If your trigger-return spring isn’t strong enough or
something else is causing your trigger to stick back, you will have
3-way leaks that go away when you pull and hold the trigger back,
and when you actively push the trigger all the way forward. To fix
these leaks, install a stiffer trigger-return spring or correct the
cause of the binding.
- Blown/damaged piston O-rings: The
thing that everyone thinks of first is actually probably the least
common cause of 3-way leaks. 3-way piston O-rings actually only very
rarely go bad. If you have a bothersome 3-way leak that just doesn’t
go away no matter what you do, try replacing the piston O-rings to
see if that clears up your leak.
- Blown/damaged ram O-ring:
Now we’re getting to the real zebra. You can have a persistent 3-way
leak as the result of a blown piston O-ring in your ram. What
you’ll find is that your 3-way will leak from the back at rest, but
switches to a front-leak when the trigger is pulled and held back.
If you have that funky leak pattern and you’ve tried everything else
to eliminate the leak to no avail, try swapping rams to see if that
clears it up.
- Low Pressure hose leaks: If you are having a slow leak
around the small, low pressure hoses at the front of your
Autococker, they’re probably just too stretched out to seal
properly. You can usually correct this by pulling the hose off of
the barb, trimming the loose end with a knife or scissors, and
shoving the clean end back onto the hose barb. You can sometimes run
into a situation where the hose you’re using it actually too big for
the hose barb on one of your front-end pneumatic components. If this
is the case, you can get new, smaller ID hoses that fit more
tightly, or your can get a set of hose clamps. Hose clamps are the
small metal (brass and aluminum are most common) rings that fit over
the hose and are shoved down over the barb after the hose is in
place. These result in a tighter fit and a better seal.
- Blown
low pressure hose: If one of your low pressures hose pops off
just once, it’s probably not a big deal. Just trim the end of the
hose as described above and put it back in place. If you find that
your low pressure hoses pop off very frequently, it may be because
you have loose hoses that require hose clamps to stay in place (see
above), or it may be that you have your pressure set too high. Try
resetting your front-end regulator (Sledgehammer, Rock, Jackhammer,
etc.) pressure to the lowest point that still allows your Autococker
to cycle properly. If you find that your hoses blow off frequently
regardless of where you set your pressure, you may have a blown
regulator that is allowing full pressure to pass through. Replace or
service your front-end reg to correct this problem. Finally, if you
shoot CO2, your hoses can blow off if any liquid makes it
past your front-end regulator. I strongly recommend the use of
hose-clamps if you shoot CO2.
- Front-block screw
leak: Though this is very uncommon, you can have slow leaks
around the edge of the front-block screw or the front block where it
meets the ’gun body. You’ll really only run into this if someone has
recently worked on your front block, taking it off or replacing it.
There are O-rings on the front and back face of the front block that
seal around the front-block screw. If one of these O-rings is
damaged, you can get leaks around the edge of this screw or at the
junction of the front-block and body. Unscrew the front-block and
replace the damaged O-ring to correct the leak.
- Leak at the
ASA: These leaks can occurr at any ASA — vertical, bottom-line,
or remote system. Most commonly they’re the result of a bad O-ring
on the fitting or tank you have screwed into the ASA. Try replacing
that O-ring first. Some aftermarket fittings actually don’t screw
into the ASA far enough to seal up properly. If this is the case,
you’ll either need a new ASA or a new fitting that screws in far
enough for the O-ring to seal. Keep in mind that some tanks have pin
valves that can start to open before the O-ring seals completely.
Even if air starts to vent, screw the tank in the rest of the way
quickly to see if it eventually seals up.
- Bolt upside-down: If your ‘gun seems to be working
properly but isn’t firing paintballs, check your bolt. One of the
most common, simple problems is people installing the bolt
upside-down.
- Out of air: Sometimes people don’t check
their HPA or CO2 tank. If you can’t get enough velocity,
check to make sure your tank isn’t empty.
- Improper velocity
adjuster setting: First things first. If your velocity is too
low or too high, give the velocity adjuster a twist. Take out the
cocking rod under the bolt at the back of the ‘gun. Insert a 3/16"
allen wrench through the lower hole in the back-block and turn the
screw in front of it. Clockwise increases tension on the main spring
and increases velocity. Counterclockwise does the opposite.
-
Mainspring too stiff/soft: If your velocity adjuster doesn’t
allow you to get the velocity high enough or low enough, you may
have a mainspring that is too soft or too stiff. This is most likely
if you have a custom valve, or aftermarket hammer kit. Take out your
bolt, cocking rod, back-block, and velocity adjuster to get to the
mainspring. Replace the spring with a stiffer one to get higher
velocity or a softer one to get a lower velocity. Many companies
sell custom spring kits for the Autococker so they shouldn’t be too
hard to find.
- Incorrect input pressure: Your velocity
problem can also be due to your input pressure. All Autocockers come
with the WGP inline regulator, that should be properly set at the
factory to allow you to get good velocity by just setting the
velocity screw at the back of the ‘gun. If you’ve had custom work
done to the ‘gun that involves the regulator, hammer, spring, valve,
or timing, this can change. Unfortunately, there is no simple
equation for setting your input pressure as valves have a
bell-shaped velocity profile where velocity will increase with
increasing pressure, but only up to a point. After that point,
further pressure increases actually close the valve faster causing a
decrease in velocity. My personal favorite way to set the input
pressure for most ‘guns (the Tornado valve is a major exception) is
to set the velocity adjuster to the mid point, then adjust your
pressure regulator to the point where you get the highest velocity.
In other words, start with a low pressure and adjust it up until
your velocity maxes out and starts to drop again. At this point you
are getting the highest possible flow through your valve. Now use
your velocity adjuster to turn your velocity back to field-legal
limits.
- Valve spring too stiff: Another possibility when
you’re having a hard time getting sufficient velocity is that your
valve spring is too stiff. Installing a softer spring allows the
valve to stay open longer and allows lower pressure operation and
higher velocities. Conversely, if your efficiency is terrible your
valve may be staying open way too long and might be improved with a
slightly stiffer valve spring. Changing this spring requires taking
the valve out, and thus requires a special tool, a lot of work, and
retiming the ‘gun. I only recommend this for those experienced with
the inner workings of the Autococker.
- Improperly installed
valve: If you’ve just had a new valve installed or had to
replace your cup seal, new velocity problems can be caused by an
incorrectly installed valve. The most obvious error is if the valve
is installed upside-down. Another possibility is if the valve is a
bit out of alignment, not allowing completely free flow. Try
reinstalling the valve to see if that helps.
- Loose valve jam nut: This is one of the rarest causes of
velocity problems, but it’s probably the most serious so I mention
it first. If you are experiencing wide velocity fluctuations (+/- 30
fps or more) no matter what you do, find a quiet place and tip your
‘gun back and forth and listed for a clicking sound like something
falling back and forth between the hammer and valve. If you do, you
may have a loose jam nut. The valve is held in by two screws; one
from below, and the jam nut which screws in behind it. If the jam
nut comes loose, it can bang around in the space between the valve
and hammer, destroying the threads it is supposed to be screwed
into. If these threads are damaged, it can mean a very expensive fix
or complete loss of your Autococker body.
- Poor paint quality:
One of the most common causes of poor velocity consistency is not
the paintgun at all, but rather the consistency of your paint. If
you have a case of paint where the paintballs are not all the same
size, they aren’t all going to fit the barrel the same, so each shot
will get a different amount of push. This also happens if your paint
is out-of-round — velocity will depend on the paintball’s
orientation when it drops into the barrel. You can check this by
seeing how several different paintballs from your case fit your
barrel.
- Poor paint-barrel match (roll-out): If your barrel
is much bigger than the paint you are shooting, the paint can roll
part-way down the barrel before you pull the trigger. Velocity will
depend on how far the ball has rolled out before you pull the
trigger. The best way to fix this is to use a tighter barrel or
larger paint so the paint can’t roll out. If you’re stuck for the
game or the day, just make sure to keep your paintgun level or
tilted up when chronoing.
- Leaking regulator seat: If your
paintgun shoots low on the first shot, but climbs when your rapid
fire, or if you have an older Autococker (1996 or earlier) and you
find the velocity gets higher the longer you wait between shots, you
may have a bad seat in one of the regulators handling input pressure
to the ‘gun. What happens is that the regulator quickly recharges to
the set output pressure, but slowly leaks full tank pressure through
to the gun. In new guns, this high pressure in the large valve
chamber closes the valve too quickly, resulting in low velocities.
When you rapid fire, the regulator's slow leak doesn't allow it to
climb much past set pressure between shots. In older guns with their
small valve chambers, the higher pressures associated with longer
waits between shots result in higher velocities. To check this,
gauge your in-line regulators and air system to see if they’re
holding a consistent pressure. If the pressure creeps up past the
set-point, replace the regulator seat.
- Dirty regulator: If
you find your velocity dropping off when you rapid fire
(shoot-down), your problem may be a dirty input pressure regulator.
A dirty reg seat or piston can cause the reg to refill very slowly.
Gauge your regulators to make sure they’re recharging quickly and
have them serviced if they aren’t.
- Restricted flow:
Another common cause of shoot-down is if there is a restriction in
your gas path to the ‘gun. Check your hoses and connections to make
sure there aren’t any kinks or crimped ends on your Micro-line.
Replace any filters in your gas path as those can get clogged over
time. Check your on-off valves to make sure they’re clear of debris
and have intact O-rings. Finally, some remote systems with on-off
knobs can actually be screwed down so far that they occlude the gas
flow out of your CO2 tank. Make sure not to turn them in
too far.
- Improper timing - too much overlap: If your
Autococker is timed with the cocking point in the trigger pull right
on top of or in front of the point where it fires you can get some
velocity inconsistency (as well as blow-back) if you pull the
trigger slowly. See my previous article on timing the Autococker to
correct this.
These troubleshooting tips cover all the problems you could have
getting your Autococker properly timed that weren’t covered in the
original "4 easy steps to a properly timed Autococker" article.
This is the problem you have when the lug in the hammer slips over
the sear rather than catching it when you release the trigger. This can
result in a number of symptoms. The ‘gun could cycle but not fire a
paintball. The ‘gun could be cycling but only fire sporadically. It
could be firing (at a very low velocity) when the trigger is released
rather than when it’s pulled. You could experience the "double shot"
syndrome where it fires once on the trigger pull and once on the
release, followed by a trigger pull where the ‘gun doesn’t fire at all.
In all cases, you’ll notice that the cocking rod at the back of the ‘gun
will often not stay cocked back when the trigger is released. There are
several occurrences that can lead to this problem.
- Lug set too short: This is a plain and simple timing
problem. If your lug is set very short to allow the Autococker to
fire very early in the trigger pull, there is not a lot of lug metal
catching the sear. If there is only a tiny amount of lug catching
the sear, it’s very easy for the lug to slip over. Screw the lug
down further to push the fire point of your trigger pull back and
give the sear more lug to catch when you release the trigger. Note,
this changes the timing, so you may need to adjust your timing rod
to get the cocking point of the trigger pull back into the correct
relationship with the fire point. Read my timing article for more
information on this.
- Sear/lug worn out: With some custom
triggers that are set for a very soft release, the friction between
the sear and lug is crucial for them to catch, sometimes even more
so than the overlap between the lug and sear. If your ‘gun is
properly timed and the springs don’t seem to be the problem, check
your lug and sear to see if the contact surfaces have been polished
out to a mirror-like surface. If so, install a new sear or lug as
needed.
- Sear return spring too soft: If the spring in your
grip that pushes the sear up is too soft, it can allow the sear to
be bumped down too easily by the lug. Either stretch the existing
spring or install a stiffer spring to correct the problem.
-
Main spring too stiff: The mainspring behind the hammer is what
is pushing the hammer forward, and thus is the spring that
determines how hard the lug presses against the sear when they’re
trying to catch. If you have a very heavy mainspring it can push the
lug right past the sear (overcoming the sear return spring. Install
a softer mainspring to correct this problem. Note: installing a
softer mainspring may require you to change your input pressure to
get sufficient velocity.
- Block too short/cocking rod too long:
Here’s a simple one. Check to make sure your back-block can
physically move far enough back to cock the ‘gun by pulling the
back-block all the way back to see if the ‘gun will cock. If not,
either shorten the cocking rod or unscrew the back block a turn or
two until the ‘gun can cock properly. See my timing article for more
information on how to do this properly.
- Front regulator set
too-low/starving out: You can also run into this problem if your
Sledgehammer (Rock, Jackhammer, or whatever you have) regulator
isn’t providing enough pressure to cock the ‘gun. Try turning the
pressure up.
- Blown regulator: If your Sledgehammer (or
other front-end reg) is damaged and not recharging fast enough, you
can run into this problem when rapid-firing. If this is the case,
have the regulator repaired or replaced.
If your Autococker is not properly timed, you can have a situation
where it is activated to cock the back-block before the hammer is
released. There are two ways to fix this, both covered in more detail in
the Autococker timing article.
- Lengthen timing rod: By lengthening the timing rod, you
push the cocking point further back in the trigger pull.
-
Shorten lug: By screwing the lug further up into the hammer, you
cause the Autococker to fire earlier in the trigger pull.
- Trigger-return spring too soft: Probably the most common
cause when your back-block doesn’t come back forward all the way is
that your trigger is not returning all the way to switch the 4-way
valve back. This usually happens because someone has done a trigger
job in which they’ve installed a softer trigger-return spring. If
you install a spring that is too soft, it won’t provide enough force
to switch the 4-way when under pressure. Install a stiffer
trigger-return spring to correct this problem.
- Trigger-stop
set in too far: Autocockers with aftermarket .45 frames and
trigger jobs can have an extra screw installed called a
trigger-stop. The trigger-stop is used to limit backward travel of
the trigger when the pull is shortened. If the trigger stop is
turned in too far, it can stop the trigger’s backward movement
before it has the chance to switch the 4-way and cock the ‘gun. If
someone has just been working on your trigger and it suddenly
doesn’t seem to be cocking the back block, try backing your
trigger-stop out a turn or two to see if that frees things up. Note:
this is also a strong possibility if the ‘gun sometimes seems to
cock properly, but other times the back block hardly moves at all.
This is because the momentum of the trigger pulling the timing rod
back can sometimes be enough to carry the rod back just far enough
to switch the 4-way on some shots. Make sure that the ‘gun fires and
cocks properly when the trigger is pulled very slowly to ensure your
trigger stop is allowing enough travel.
- Timing rod slipped
loose/backed out: If your trigger seems to be moving freely, but
your ram is stuck in one position, check your timing rod. Old-style
stock timing rods didn’t screw into the coupler, so if the retaining
screw came loose the rod would just slide back and forth in the
coupler without activating the 4-way valve. Reset the timing rod
position and tighten the retaining screw back down. Also consider
getting a new, threaded timing rod.
- Timing rod way too long:
If your timing rod is set far too long, the point where it would
switch the 4-way valve may be beyond the point to which the trigger
plate is physically capable of moving back. This is similar to when
the trigger stop is set in too far. To fix it, shorten the timing
rod. See my timing article for more information on how to properly
set the timing rod length.
- Regulator set too low: If your
Sledgehammer is set too low, it may not provide sufficient pressure
to cock the ‘gun so the back block only comes part-way back. Turn
the pressure in the front-end reg up until the ‘gun cocks properly
with each pull of the trigger.
- Blown regulator: Just like
if your Sledge is set too low, if the front-end reg is blown out and
not passing enough/any air the ram won’t be able to cock the ‘gun.
The difference is that turning the pressure up won’t correct the
problem. Have your reg serviced or replaced.
- Swollen 4-way
O-ring: This is mostly a problem for people who shoot CO2
through their Autocockers. If some liquid CO2 gets into
the ‘gun, it can cause the O-rings in your 4-way valve to swell.
These swollen O-rings cause the 4-way’s action to stiffen up
significantly and can result in your trigger return spring no longer
providing enough force to switch the valve. Replace the tiny O-rings
on the valve’s piston to correct this problem.
- Damaged ram:
If your ram has a blown out seal or is jammed up with crud it can
have trouble cocking the ‘gun. With the ‘gun degassed, manually pull
the back-block back and forth to see how stiff the ram’s action is.
If it is very stiff and sticky, consider having your ram repaired or
replaced.
- Out of air: Your velocity should be more of a
clue to this problem, but if you’re just dry-firing the ‘gun and it
stops cocking properly, check your air supply to make sure you
haven’t emptied your tank.
- Short stroking: By far, the single biggest reason people
have chopping problems with their Autocockers is because they
short-stroke the trigger. That is to say, they pull the trigger far
enough to release the hammer, firing a paintball, but don’t carry
the trigger all the way back to complete the cycle. You usually get
the 4-way to start to switch, but don’t deliver enough air to the
ram to fully complete the cycle, partially feeding a paintball and
chopping it in half. The best fix for this is to learn proper
Autococker trigger hygiene. Pull the trigger ALL THE WAY back with
each pull. Don’t fan the trigger (no one should ever fan the trigger
on any paintgun - it’s stupid and pointless). In time, your finger
will learn to shoot fast without short-stroking. Trust me, it’s
worth it.
- Barrel too tight: It’s always worthwhile to
check how your paint fits in your barrel. If you find that your
paint is extremely tight in the barrel’s breech you’ll want to find
a looser barrel or smaller paint. A too-tight barrel is a sure
recipe for broken balls in the barrel.
- Bolt not back far
enough (timing): I touch on this in much more detail in my
timing article. If your bolt doesn’t come back far enough when the
‘gun cocks it can lead to chopped paintballs. Make sure that the
bolt completely clears the breech with each shot. If it doesn’t,
lengthen your cocking rod to allow more backward travel.
-
Trigger-stop set in too far: As mentioned above, if your trigger
stop is set in too far, it can stop the trigger from completely
cycling the 4-way valve. If it’s only slightly too short, it can
cause the ‘gun to appear to be working OK, but not allowing the ram
to open the breech completely or long enough. If your trigger stop
is set to stop the trigger at the exact point where the paintgun
cocks, try backing it out a bit to see if that helps correct your
problem.
- Cocking point way too far back: If there’s a huge
gap between the firing and cocking stages of your Autococker’s
timing, it makes it much easier to short-stroke the trigger. If you
find yourself short-stroking a lot, you can probably reduce it
somewhat by closing the gap in your timing. Either lengthen the lug
or shorten the timing rod to accomplish this.
- Not using
agitated hopper/dead batteries: An agitated hopper like the
Viewloader Revolution is an absolute necessity with high-end
paintguns that don’t shake very much and which can shoot very fast.
The Autococker is no exception. If you have an agitated hopper but
are suddenly getting a lot of breaks, make sure you have fresh
batteries. Near dead batteries will still run the hopper, but don’t
break jams quickly enough during rapid fire.
- Reg pressure set
too low/dead ram (lagging): A lot of chopped balls can be the
result of the ram lagging too far behind the trigger pull, not
allowing the breech to stay open long enough for a paintball to
reliably feed. Too low Sledgehammer pressure or a blown ram can be
the cause of this. If your ram seems to be moving slowly, try
turning up your reg pressure. If that doesn’t correct the problem,
check your trigger-stop position (see above). If that doesn’t do it,
repair or replace your ram.
Bolt jam is when the bolt actually jams up in place and can’t be
budged. This is different from when the ram or trigger is the problem
because the bolt can’t be moved at all. This usually occurs because a
piece of shell from a broken ball has gotten wedged between the edge of
the bolt and the inside of the body.
- Grab back block and pull: Most of the time the bolt can
be dislodged by just grabbing the back block and hauling back with
all your might. The bolt will usually break loose and the ‘gun will
function properly again. I highly recommend pulling the bolt out
immediately after getting it loose and running a pull-through
squeegee through the ‘gun from back to front to try to pull out any
loose shell that might wedge the bolt in again.
- Remove barrel
and try to knock it out from the front: If, no matter how hard
you pull, you can’t get the bolt loose by pulling the back-block,
take off the barrel and try to knock the bolt loose from the front
with a stick or squeegee. If it pops out, squeegee the area to
remove any shell fragments before reinstalling the bolt.
- Run
hot water: If you just can’t get the bolt loose by pulling or
pushing, you may have to wait until the end of the day and run hot
water into the front of the bolt. The hot water should soften the
gelatin of the shell and allow the bolt to come loose quickly.
- Clean & Polish: 4-way valves have ends open to the
environment and can get gummed up with crud both from the outside as
well as dirty air supplies. Cleaning the 4-way up can significantly
improve smoothness of action if it has become very stiff. After
removing the hoses and taking the valve off the front-block, you
just need to pull the C-clips out of each end to remove the
end-plugs and piston from the valve. If you have a brass 4-way, you
can use Brasso (or other brass-cleaning solution) on a cotton-tipped
swab to clean out the inside of the valve and end-caps. Make sure to
clean it out with mild, soapy water after doing so. After
reassembly, you should find that the valve’s action is much
smoother.
- Replace swollen 4-way O-rings: As mentioned in
another tip above, liquid CO2 can cause the O-rings in
some 4-way valves to swell and drag, causing much stiffer action.
Replacing these O-rings corrects the problem.
Can’t reassemble 4-way
- Replace swollen end-cap O-rings: So, you’ve taken your
4-way apart to clean and polish it, but now you find that you can’t
get the end-caps back in far enough to get the C-clips back in
place. Some people will give you very foolish advice like filing
down the end-caps. Don’t do that. The reason your valve isn’t going
back together is because your end-cap O-rings have swollen. You can
get these at any hardware store. Replace them and the valve should
go back together with no problems.
Well, that’s about it. I’ve really tried to cover everything I can
think of that can go wrong with the Autococker that you can easily fix
at home. If you come up with anything else I’ve missed, please feel free
to e-mail me. Always
remember the most important thing; the best way to keep an Autococker
working well is to not mess around with it when it’s working well.
People always run into the most trouble when they try to "tweak" the
trigger on an already perfectly functioning paintgun.
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