Dave, I have to agree with Geoff here, he is aiming is comments for a beginner (no offence Alex). As a result Geoff is quite right in quoting rules and saying that people should air on the side of caution. When we started playing with pneumatics we didnt have much of a clue, it was only with the help of roboteers such as Mike, Alan G etc that we learned. Many of us have been doing this for years and have a reasonable level of experience, people just starting with pneumatics should use caution and only use components at the pressure they are rated to(or sufficiently tested to pressure, by competent persons).

Dave im not having a go at you, just in case you think I am.

Alex - Using a compressor system may be a good place to start as it will give you practical skills needed to deal with more powerful systems (CO2). Having said that I agree with Dave our experience is that the compressors do tend to fall apart after a while, but Cutlet used them more successfully than us.