Canadian responses please!

Discussion about Compressors, hose, pipes, fittings, launchers, release mechanisms, and launch tubes.
Luigino
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Canadian responses please!

Post by Luigino »

Hi all....

Has anyone had any luck finding the 3/8 inch pvc in Canada? This is the pvc section shown sliding into the 1/2 inch pvc on the the addition of an o ring for the launch tube. I have been to the local Home Depots, Lowes and plumbing stores and no one has ever heard of it!
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WRA2
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Re: Canadian responses please!

Post by WRA2 »

Luigino wrote:Hi all....

Has anyone had any luck finding the 3/8 inch pvc in Canada? This is the pvc section shown sliding into the 1/2 inch pvc on the the addition of an o ring for the launch tube. I have been to the local Home Depots, Lowes and plumbing stores and no one has ever heard of it!
Try this place. It looks like they would ship to Canada as long as you fill out the customs documentation.

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?sku=26301

They are located in Ohio so you might also be able to drive there (Not sure where in Canada you are from).

Welcome to the forum :W
Lisa Walker,
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U.S. Water Rockets1
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Re: Canadian responses please!

Post by U.S. Water Rockets1 »

WRA2 wrote:
Luigino wrote:Hi all....

Has anyone had any luck finding the 3/8 inch pvc in Canada? This is the pvc section shown sliding into the 1/2 inch pvc on the the addition of an o ring for the launch tube. I have been to the local Home Depots, Lowes and plumbing stores and no one has ever heard of it!
Try this place. It looks like they would ship to Canada as long as you fill out the customs documentation.

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.aspx?sku=26301

They are located in Ohio so you might also be able to drive there (Not sure where in Canada you are from).

Welcome to the forum :W

Don't forget that the pipe requirement isn't strictly for PVC pipe. It's very likely you can find a 3/8" tube made from ABS or even fiberglass and substitute it for the 3/8" pvc. The narrow tube isn't really under a lot of pressure because it is inside the 1/2" PVC and the o-ring, so it does not need to be incredibly strong. A 3/8" tube of any material that you can glue to PVC should work.
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stang66
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Re: Canadian responses please!

Post by stang66 »

Hi all, I thought I'd go ahead and mention something that I found out on my own several years ago. When I built my first launcher I looked all over the internet for ideas and I did come come across the o-ring set-up using the 1/2" pvc and the other, lets call it 3/8" pvc (because the original posters/authors do). Luckily, I worked at an Ace hardware store and I was able to recognize the pieces being used so I just blew off the fact that the webpages mis-labeled the pipes being used (Pipes made of plastics come in different colors and diameters for specific uses).

So finally to the point...white pipe is called PVC, and is primarily used for cold water. The smaller pipe being used is a light beige which makes it CPVC and it is primarily used for hot water. The pipe you are looking for is 1/2" CPVC which is small enough to be forced into 1/2" PVC. I say this with certainty because I've used this method for sealing my launcher for years. It may not sound right that both pipes are 1/2" but to make a long story short they are measured in different ways...PVC is measured by inside diameter while CPVC is measured by outside diameter.

Good luck in your search for the pipe, I bet it will be easier to find locally now that you know what it is called.
Happy rocketing!
Stang66
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Re: Canadian responses please!

Post by WRA2 »

stang66 wrote:Hi all, I thought I'd go ahead and mention something that I found out on my own several years ago. When I built my first launcher I looked all over the internet for ideas and I did come come across the o-ring set-up using the 1/2" pvc and the other, lets call it 3/8" pvc (because the original posters/authors do). Luckily, I worked at an Ace hardware store and I was able to recognize the pieces being used so I just blew off the fact that the webpages mis-labeled the pipes being used (Pipes made of plastics come in different colors and diameters for specific uses).

So finally to the point...white pipe is called PVC, and is primarily used for cold water. The smaller pipe being used is a light beige which makes it CPVC and it is primarily used for hot water. The pipe you are looking for is 1/2" CPVC which is small enough to be forced into 1/2" PVC. I say this with certainty because I've used this method for sealing my launcher for years. It may not sound right that both pipes are 1/2" but to make a long story short they are measured in different ways...PVC is measured by inside diameter while CPVC is measured by outside diameter.

Good luck in your search for the pipe, I bet it will be easier to find locally now that you know what it is called.
Happy rocketing!
Stang66
Here is a source for the CPVC pipe:

http://www.usplastic.com/catalog/item.a ... &catid=521

Thanks for the clarification and welcome to the forum! :W
Lisa Walker,
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Freezy
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Re: Canadian responses please!

Post by Freezy »

Wait... 3/8 PVC??? EK: Don't you mean 3/4 PVC? :?