yes a small buffer would be a good idea, but I fail to see the sharp pressure rise and risk of blowing an endcap.

I suppose that if you put 10bar on the extend side and blank the retract side at atmospheric press, the result would be that the piston will extend until the pressure on the blanked side balances at 10bar, the ram is built to withstand this pressure so I can't see the endcap being blown off
Loss of stroke and speed would be an issue tho Anyway I'm no expert and not having tried this out yet, I'd go by what maddox is telling you, Chris.

And the weight of the arm doesn't do anything when the machine lays on the side.
Ah, our machine is built in a way it won't stand on its side, it's either on its feet or on its back :wink: