CO2 powered equipement

[louisvandalen]

Anyone ever seen CO2 cartridges used in models? They also use them in bb guns and these presure bottles to put cream on top of a cake. ( http://www.speedytoys.com/shop/item.asp?itemid=783 )

Now that would be the stuff to use for bomb/parachute hatches, ejection seats or even boardguns on your plane (imagine 60 plastic bb pelets being fired from your fighter while your pilote is being launched in his rescue seat :)). Relatively light I guess. But is it functional and what do you need?

Did someone ever try?

[Punkie]

All this adds weight. Not just the cartridge but the unit to hold it in and all the mechanism to get the things to work. Retracts are run on compressed air but that is at lower pressure than the CO2 cartridge so does not require high pressure hoses and connections. Added weight will make the plane harder to fly and make crashes do that much more damage. It’s a case of balancing the positive benefits of the extras you are fitting against the negative benefits. Don't forget the danger of a charged cartridge in a crashed plane, would you like to pick up a plane that has crashed and has a potentially damaged CO2 cartridge in it that might explode and take your hand off? Speaking from personal experience, a hand that has a high pressure injury takes a long time to heal and in my case will never be fully functional. But if you feel good about doing the job, go for it, just be careful.

[louisvandalen]

To bad but you are probably right. I don't want to call in the bombsquad everytime the plane crashes.

As for the weight, how much weight can a 4cc engine carry? It should be few kilo's I guess.