General Cycling Discussion - Were do you guys get your CO2 carts?

I am having a heck of a time trying to get 16g threaded CO2 cartridges for my inflator. I thought that I'd be able to walk into any store that sold paintball stuff and pick up a whole box for like $20, but all I can find are 12g unthreaded ones. I can use them in my inflator, but I won't get enough pressure in my road tires unless I use 16g.

My LBS has them, but I am of the mind that it's rediculous to pay what they want ($5 for a single cart there!!)

exactly haha. You should have gotten an inflator that doesn't need threaded cartridges.

can you use a small tank? Alot of paintball places sell small 4oz refillable co2 tanks.

Jesus, everywhere I look online is like $6.50/$8 for two cartridges. Aren't there pumps that use the non-threaded ones?

my inflator has an emergency pump on it, but it's pretty crappy. I can use unthreaded carts, but they HAVE to be 12g. I know that if I empty a 16g, I'll have the right amount of pressure in my tire. 12g is not enough, and I'd be afraid of putting too much air in with those larger tanks they sell for paintball guns.

I got the inflator because it is small and will fit in my wedge pack. I don't really have a good place to mount a frame pump, but if I can't find cheap cans of air anywhere, I may end up having to buy a frame pump anyway.

I *really* like the crank bro Mini Pump. The road morph by topeak gets rave reviews too.

I bought a container of 20 16g threaded cartridges for about $25 several years ago when I saw them on sale at a LBS. I have used three of those cartridges in as many years. I don't get many flats and one of those cartridges was used on a friend's bike when he got a flat.

I was told not to use the paintball or BB gun type cartridges due to the fact they have oil in themto lube the parts and it kills the o-rings on your attachment which you wont find out until its too late.

oil? Shouldn't have oil in them. Bad o-rings on a paintball gun is very bad. Especially when you have a couple hundred psi going through the gun.

might have been BB gun cartridges and not paintball...

I doubt there is any difference till you get into the food grade carts.
I get them at walmart about 8.00 for 25 12g. if your careful you can use part of one.

I was told not to use the paintball or BB gun type cartridges due to the fact they have oil in themto lube the parts and it kills the o-rings on your attachment which you wont find out until its too late.

Nonsense. Even if there is a bit of oil, which I doubt, it is very unlikely to damage the inflator. I use paintball gun cartridges and none of my inflators have yet to have a problem.

Just bring your hand pump and use the 12g cartridges from Walmart. I never have issues with my wheels as long as I use both.

Pump in about 30- 40 psi, then fill the rest with your CO2 cartridge.

Koffee

I got a bulk pack of 12g unthreaded carts from Walmart. I carry three of them in my seat wedge. A 12g cartridge should get you to 90psi, which will be enough to make it home, although I won't be riding nearly as aggressively as if I had a fully pumped 110psi tire.

I was told not to use the paintball or BB gun type cartridges due to the fact they have oil in themto lube the parts and it kills the o-rings on your attachment which you wont find out until its too late.

Total BS. Pellet, BB, and paint guns have zillions of little O-rings in them and cost way more than a bicycle tube or pump. If the oil in these cartridges was bad for rubber, they wouldn't use them either.

Do a google or froogle search. You can find packs of 16g's if you want. Innovations makes a 10-pack, and I found it for $20 at one retailer very quickly:

http://64.224.10.246/product_info.php?pName=innovations-16g-threaded-10-pack

That's $2/fill, but less than half of the price of your LBS's 16's.

If you want to buy 50, you can get down to $1.39/fill:

http://store.botachtactical.com/in16gth.html

I was told not to use the paintball or BB gun type cartridges due to the fact they have oil in themto lube the parts and it kills the o-rings on your attachment which you wont find out until its too late.

Urban myth, there is no oil in the cartridges. It's simply a ploy used by bike shops to entice you to buy their cartridges...

Do a google or froogle search. You can find packs of 16g's if you want. Innovations makes a 10-pack, and I found it for $20 at one retailer very quickly:

http://64.224.10.246/product_info.php?pName=innovations-16g-threaded-10-pack

That's $2/fill, but less than half of the price of your LBS's 16's.

If you want to buy 50, you can get down to $1.39/fill:

http://store.botachtactical.com/in16gth.html


Good post, dude. Might help other's to find the 16's at reasonable cost. For example, I had a flat Sunday and used a 12g on my rear road bike tire. It barely had 85 lbs. when I checked it after returning home. Decided I didn't want to deal with that anymore, so I went to the LBS for a 16g - almost $9. each!! :eek: No way I was going to pay that much.

Eff that crap. I should have ordered a box of the 16's a long time ago, but I've been putting it off because I rarely get flats.

BTW - Speedgoat has 16g threaded for $2.50/ea. I think that includes shipping, but call to make sure. http://www.speedgoat.com/product.asp?part=40659

I *really* like the crank bro Mini Pump. The road morph by topeak gets rave reviews too.

Good point, also....

I can fit the Crank Bro mini Pump, the full size non threaded cartridge inflator, 3 cartridges and plenty of tools into a small seat pack on my mtb. If you fill the tire part way with the hand pump first you can put whatever pressure you want in a tire with a 12g non thread cartridge. Plus you have a plan "B" if something goes wrong. Like it's below freezing and the carts don't work.

Good point, also....

I can fit the Crank Bro mini Pump, the full size non threaded cartridge inflator, 3 cartridges and plenty of tools into a small seat pack on my mtb. If you fill the tire part way with the hand pump first you can put whatever pressure you want in a tire with a 12g non thread cartridge. Plus you have a plan "B" if something goes wrong. Like it's below freezing and the carts don't work.


Good advice :)

I was told not to use the paintball or BB gun type cartridges due to the fact they have oil in themto lube the parts and it kills the o-rings on your attachment which you wont find out until its too late.

If the O-Rings are made of nitile and not of rubber oil will have absoloutley no effect on them. I imagine the O-rings in paint ball gun would be nitrile. To look at them nitrile O-rings look the same as rubber.

If the O-Rings are made of nitile and not of rubber oil will have absoloutley no effect on them. I imagine the O-rings in paint ball gun would be nitrile. To look at them nitrile O-rings look the same as rubber.

Take a supposedly bb gun cartridge and spray it out onto a white paper towel and tell me if you see any oil. if there's oil in my tubes from ten years age when I used the cartridges nothing has happened yet.
I don't believe there is any printed material claiming oil in the BB gun cartridges. I'm not sure. But if you put some oil in your tubes it takes a heck of a long time to do something to a tube any way.

Good advice :)

I found out on the road that when it is in the 20 degree range the cartridges don't work. However if you get the tire all read to fill, put the cartridge under your clothes for a few minutes, until it reaches close to 98.6, then very quickly fill the tire and try to keep the inflator covered with your gloves it's ok. But keep the pump with you any way.

That's why I replace my inflator with a Crank Bro power pump. The way I see it if you pinch a lot you want a pump in case you run out of cartridges, if you pinch once in a while you will not mind the extra exercise of inflating a tire with a mini pump. If you need to inflate fast then you really want an Ultraflate with unthreaded cartridges.

I doubt there is any difference till you get into the food grade carts.
I get them at walmart about 8.00 for 25 12g. if your careful you can use part of one.
Can't seem to find these at Walmart.com. Maybe they're just not listed on the site?

Got these on ebay -- 20 pack for around 23.00 shipped

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1QQfrppZ50QQsassZslickum01

They've got 'em, serpico, at least in the stores, and that price sounds about like what I saw. I think the ones I got are under the Crosman brand, but not sure.