We were pretty happy with our newfangled Propane Hammer postdriver. Our big steel drill-pipe fenceposts were going in well, but then we ran into a bit of a problem.
You see, the pressure of the propane determines the fuel/air ratio in the propane hammer. So if the pressure isn’t in it’s optimal range (around 55psi) then it gets all wonky, meaning that is usually won’t fire more than 1-2 strokes at a time.
So you can imagine our concern when we pulled it out to drive our third post, and it wouldn’t fire. The pressure was completely off. After switching the cylinder for good measure, we checked the pressure, and cranked the regulator wayyy up to get it into the optimal range.
Once adjusted, it worked fine to pound in 2 more posts. Except for the liquid propane that, as we noticed, was spewing from the center of the pressure regulator dial. Not good.
A call to Tippman got us the explanation that “something gets off-center in the regulator” and we could pull it apart to fix it.
After voicing objections to having to “fix” a brand new expensive tool, they promptly sent us a whole new regulator assembly.
With the new regulator, it works like a champ. We’ll keep an eye on it and make sure it behaves itself. But now at least we have a spare regulator to “fix” in the event that this little problem recurs.
