Like everybody else, I needed onboard air, and for a number of reasons, a belt-driven/electric compressor just won't work. Enter the Powertank. At nearly $400, it just doesn't fit the college budget. I get crafty and call the local gas folks. Botco hires mental midgets with little or no social skills, so they were jackasses to me on the phone. No business for them. Finally, I arrived at Praxair.

I told Larry about what I wanted to do with CO2 (air tools, inflate tires, etc.), and he suggested the less corrosive alternative, nitrogen; I bought it. I got a 40 cu. ft. bottle of nitrogen at 2000psi and a 200psi Victor regulator all for just under $200. I get home, and unwrap my present to myself, and after assembly, I go to test it out. It took 1000psi of tank pressure to fill only TWO of my BFGs from 10psi to 40psi! Back to Praxair I go.

I told Larry about how nitrogen just wouldn't cut it, and that I wanted to get store credit for a 20lb CO2 tank, and a new regulator. His response was classic. He said, "Uh, we can, like, swap the bottles, and uh, I guess swap you another regulator." By God, that's service.

I'll keep y'all updated on prices and part numbers.