surgical tubing paint mine

this is a paint mine that uses surgical tubing as a propelant to shoot paint up to about 16 feet. it is very cheap and easy to build. there are some mines like these on the market but go for about $50 each. you can make 6 for less than that. heres how!

Step 1 Materials

2feet of 2inch abs pipe (you can make about 6 of them 4inches tall)
12- 2inch abs end caps ( if you want to make 6 mines)
A few feet of 1/4inch surgical tubing (hardware store, need about a foot per mine)
Some thin sheet metal or plastic
1/2inch pvc pipe (only need an inch per mine)
2inch cotter pins and key rings(enough for how many you make)
Epoxy
Wood to make a 1inch tall x1inch wide x1inch long 45degree angle wedge (1 per mine)
Some tent stakes (1 per mine)
Large hose clamps (to go around the 2inch pipe and the tent stake)
Small zip ties
Gasket seal

Comments

[dp mac]

Is the wooden block neccisary for good operation?
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[tobster9103]

Well, the wood block does two things.

1: it holds the tubing at an angle so the fluid as a 45 degree path instead of a vertical or horizantal path.

2: it is part of the safety and trigger system. The aluminum parts that ar on the side of the wood block hold the tubing and trigger straight when the trip wire is pulled and they also have a hole drilled for a cotter pin to keep the trigger from being accidentally pulled off. You can make this however you see fit. This is just how I did it.

[vwsinner]

I'm making a sack of these for a game on Sunday! Pure genius! I am going to put a mini garden sprayer on the end of the surgical tubing to get some coverage. I'll post how it works. I'm going to use amotorised squirt gun for the fill. Sweet.

[tobster9103]

Right on! Just a sugesstion though, before the game, make sure that the sprayers arent too heavy or the pressure in the tubing might not be able to flip it up to a good spray position. Cant wait to hear how they work for you!

[blackboarder77]

How effective is this? Do you think it has a good use in a large scenario game?

[tobster9103]

its pretty effective. it has a narrow spray pattern though so if you can figure out a way to put a wide nosil on it, it would take out a few people in one shot. as is it just shoots a large stream of paint in one direction but if it hits they will DEFINATALLY be marked. you can always just buy the surgical tubing and see how it sprays and see if it would be worth building. they are pretty quick to deploy. I would work out a good way to attach the line to a stationary odject so you can limit the set up time. to make 6 of them is about $20, so if someone decides to steal them your not out much money. I would also figure out a way to put some kind of a noise maker on it like a party popper so you can hear it go off. i see a slight problem with large games with friendly fire but its great for covering a reatreat or covering a flank. if you make some and use them in a scenario let me know how they worked and what improvments can be made.

[linden wulfe]

the stippling sponges you get in those halloween make up kits work great for making it a wide spray i don't know if it will change how far it will shoot but its worth a try

[camoguy1]

Pretty sweet. I've seen and used designs kinda like this, but after awhile, the tubing ripped. Iike this, Because it's simple, and you've made a housing to keep it all together ffor easy carry and deployment. I'm using mine as grenades. (you can also use airsoft bb's and water instead of paint for airsoft games)

[tobster9103]

try making a nozzle out of Sugru

[john209]

you could do somthing like this

[thatoneguy112233]

i read some of the comments and if you really wanted you could take a smaller bit or pvc with some holes drilled in it and somehow attach it to the end of the tubing you could get a much wider coverage

[mr_goodbytes]

i still dont really get how it works... post a video?

[sabre]

The wire rips the pvc trigger off when someone steps on it. Without the pcv trigger keeping the hose crimped the pressurized tubing squirts all of its paint out through the top. It's pretty much a paint grenade with a tripwire. Pretty ingeniously simple really, im sure it is pretty effective too.

[tobster9103]

couldn't have explained it better my self! It works pretty well. It only shoots in a narrow stream so it's accuracy could be better but if it hits they will definitely be marked. I wish I could find a nozzle that will spray in a fan pattern like my other mine.

[kusichkid]

im not saying anything bad about this set of instryctions but i dont like how it shows the triger set up assembeled beforthe steps to assemble. and i think you should give a diagram for constructing the trigger hold. just a couple things i think you should take into consideration if and when you make a new direction page. not trying to be mean, just a couple things i didnt like with the setup  but i did manage to find these instructions helpful!

[tobster9103]

not offended at all. I can't make them better without input. I made this after I made the mine so the pictures suck. If I ever make another one I will break down the trigger assembly better.

[duckythescientist]

 

[duckythescientist]

 

[tobster9103]

I found a great way to fill these up that wont kill your hands by pumping a spray bottle. I found a big 5 oz. syringe for filling up fuel tanks in radio controled planes at a hobby shop. You just need to buy an adapter from a hardware store to convert the tube from the syringe (about 1/16 inch) to the size of the surgical tubing (1/4 inch).

[Undermig]

do you use little co2 bottles? and plz make a vid of this.

[tobster9103]

There are no co2 cartridges for this. The latex tubing provides the pressure aftre you fill it to squirt the liquid.

[Lance Mt.]

 Hows bout a cork system? Pull the cork. 

Actually i'll try it but now i'm thinking it'll require too much force to remove where are this system hold little to no pressure behind that cap. 

[tobster9103]

you could try it but i dont think it will work. you would be suprised how much pressure the surgical tubing can make. the cork will probly just shoot out.

[Lance Mt.]

 after some experimentation I see what you mean. Although not impossible in the end i had to put more effort and advance triggering systems into place just to keep the simple cork.

[switchpaw]

would pvc work instead of the abs?

[tobster9103]

Yes they are the same size. The only differance between the two is that ABS is for sewage and has a lower pressure rating and PVC if for fresh water and can handle higher pressures. I suggest ABS due to the fact at the store I get my materials I can buy ABS in a 2foot length but I have to buy PVC in longer lengths. That and if I remember right ABS is a little cheaper than PVC. Dont worry about the pressure within the mine if you use ABS, there is practically no pressue aganst the pipe. And since you bo not need to glue anything you can use a mix of PVC end caps( in case they are cheaper than the ABS ones) and ABS body.