What is the name of the white tip coming out of the top of the black clippard air tanks?
One of them bursted on our robot while practicing, and we need to buy a new one as the air tank cant hold air with the broken tip. Also, any comments or tips as to how to keep this from happening again would be very much appreciated.
Thanks!
I think it’s supposed to be a plug, and maybe only a temporary one (to keep dust out of the tank)? You can buy 1/4" plugs from Andymark, Automation Direct or McMaster Carr, or you can make one (with some practice) from pneumatic tubing and a soldering iron.
Not able to help with a part ID, but I usually just fill a 1-2” piece of regular tubing full of hot glue and it’s worked well for me on competition bots for the past few years.
If your gunna DIY please just use a T or Y fitting and make a closed loop these both seem like much more work and way less reliable.
Is this legal for competition use? Surely a piece of pneumatic tubing filled with hot glue isn’t pressure rated.
Echoing @jjsessa. Either use a T with a loop of tubing, or buy a pack or two of the plugs linked above. Literally like $0.70 each from automation direct and they’re the proper tool for the job.
This is not legal. Hot glue is not listed as a legal pneumatic part.
R801 *Only use explicitly permitted pneumatic parts.
This is also not legal. Pneumatic parts may not be modified.
R803 *Don’t modify pneumatics.
If you are looking for a quick fix with parts you have on hand that is certainly legal, a T- fitting and two short pieces of pneumatic tubing will do it. Just plug one piece into two of the ports, and the other piece from the third port to the tank.
If you are looking for the right part to fix the problem, you can buy the plugs above.
Kind of surprised you made through inspection (and a competition) with that.
Like everyone said the plastic plug is the best solution but if you are in a pinch a piece of tubing folded over with a zip tie works pretty well.
No and no, but for perspective, at 125 psi, that (~1/16" diameter) glue plug is holding back a grand total of 0.5 lbf.
Automation Direct seems to be cheapest, but SMC also makes 1/4" tube plugs - the relevant part number is KQ2P-07. One example - https://www.grainger.com/product/SMC-Plug-PBT-5NRY3
But if you are talking about the 1/4" tube “Grabber” part, you are out of luck. They don’t sell that replacement part. 
We have a few tanks like that at the bottom of the bin…
It’d be a real shame if somebody bought new tanks, took those pieces off, and then returned them claiming that those pieces were missing
this is what you get when you refuse to supply obvious replacement parts, Clippard
Yes, I’ve emailed and asked. They told me to buy another tank.
More concerned that I’ve had 12 official competitions worth of inspections that this hasn’t come up at than anything else. Wish the rules could be a bit less vague if anything when it comes to pneumatics and what’s allowed
Rules are simple: If it is not on the list, it is Not Allowed. If it is modified, even if it is on the list, it is Not Allowed unless the modification is on the Allowed Modification list.
And basically everything on the list is COTS pneumatic parts. Using hot glue to make a plug makes that part not COTS…
The “not come up” means that the inspectors–for whatever reason–didn’t spot it. If they did, it would have been gone after the first one.
[Editing because apparently there are questions] I’m going to number and paraphrase the rules to hopefully make things clearer. The post was originally responding to:
FRC pneumatics rules covering allowed parts:
R801: If it isn’t allowed by this section, it’s not allowed.
R802: If it isn’t both COTS and properly rated, it’s not allowed.
R803: You can’t modify pneumatic parts, except by [list of allowed modifications which is basically cut tubing, connect to control system, assemble, and label].
R804: The list of parts that are allowed. [Note: Interestingly enough, the plugs aren’t specifically listed–I believe they’d land in R804E, connecting fittings, though].
The part a home-made plug piece violates is a combination of 801, 802, and 803. It’s not rated, it’s not COTS, and it’s modified if you want to argue that the tubing is COTS. Therefore, it’s not allowed by 802 or 803, and because that one disallows it, it’s disallowed by 801.
The fact it got through inspection multiple times simply means that the inspectors didn’t catch it, for whatever reason. It happens. If you happen to run across @Andy_Baker at an event, ask him about “purple air tanks”…
Manufacturers aren’t good about describing disposable packing materials and non-professional installers are often fooled.
Notice that all the images and drawings on the Clippard web site do not have that plug on the tank. They do sell functional plugs and they don’t look like that.
Once my landlady visited and exclaimed “there’s a big scratch on the kitchen stove!” I reached over and pulled off the plastic wrap on it. (And the stove now looked better than new.)
A year after I installed several fluorescent light fixtures, thousands of little plastic strips were shedding and hanging down. The unsightly portion that remained was sort of baked on the reflective surface and wouldn’t come off. There was no hint in the installation instructions that I was supposed to remove that packing material and it looked like part of the fixture - I could not tell it was there until too late - like the air tank bursting.
not saying i support melting pneumatic tubing as a plug, but by that logic everyone should have a 25 ft spool of pneumatic tubing between every connection since cutting is also a modification. there has to be a better rule we can apply here.
See Eric’s post 2 above yours.
R803-A specifically says cutting tubing is an acceptable modification of COTS pneumatics parts.
I guess reading rules from quotes is a bad idea 
. I did not catch that.
Another reply to “complete” the best practice story.
I agree with others that it is a temporary shipping dust plug which means it’s called trash when you see it. Replace it with a legal plug if you aren’t using that port or are storing the tank. If you don’t do that immediately upon receiving the tank you have what is called “ELS” - Errors Likely Situation - when the students won’t know or remember to put in the proper plug because there is already one there that looks good.
A solid plug to prevent a leak is obvious and also install filters to keep out swarf on all ports that are always open or valve operated open. That includes the pneumatic pressure vent plug valves and ports on the solenoids. [they are legal: R804 L. debris or coalescing (water) filters, and]
There are a variety of filters and get the ones that go with your equipment. They resemble this:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MCWV9WK/ref=sspa_dk_detail_3
You of all people… 