SpudFiles

I'm going to try to make a vortex bbmg and have the vortex block designed, but I don't know where I can get the right size piece of material. I checked McMaster, but I would have to buy a large chunk at a higher price. I need at least a 2.5in diameter rod that is 2in long. Something slightly bigger is ok, but I don't want to spend much more money on material that will just be machined away. Any suggestions on what kind of material would be appreciated too, but I would like to use plastic instead of wood, epoxy, or metal

For this one I used plastic, and wood, and epoxy

I can see the advantages to using multiple materials, but I like the simplicity of a single material, especially since I can cut it all out at once on one of the mills at my school

Just use wood, you can reinforce the inside with a piece of pipe, PVC or metal, whatever you want.

Do the air feed and barrel ports need to be flush with the vortex hole? I would think that if this were the case it would be easier to accomplish with one piece of material

aluminium? lightweight, strong, reliable

UHMWPE, HDPE, if you can get it PTFE. Try looking at a scrapyard, there would be steel to suit, mild would definitely be hard enough.

Have you thought about a 1" pvc tube like gun freak posted
If you take a good look around I ´m sure you will find a piece od it, for me 2cm of it is enough. Then you could use fiberglass to reinforce it or make a better shape for suiting.
here is this vortex in action

Also what should I use for a barrel? I found some actual airsoft barrels, but they're kinda expensive and I don't want to spend that much money if a cheap piece of tube from Home Depot works just as well

8mm OD aluminum tubes, they have a wall thickness of 0.5-1mm, so ID is around 6.5mm , i have found 6mm ID ones, great for bbs.

I took 20minutes of my life drilling a 3 cm hole in clear plexiglass ... worked great until i couldn't find the right thai pvc to hold the block in. but i tried it with just the block and it seemed to fire reliably. geez it sucks living here for a spudder like me... i have been limited to minis these past three months

1/4" brass/aluminum has an ID of 6.35mm.

Does that .35mm difference make much of a difference? This is my first vortex gun

Tests have shown that there is a significant power loss when using a barrel with that much of a difference in diameter, but it is the best I have found for the price. Couple bucks, as opposed to ~30 for an airsoft barrel. I use a 650mm (~25.5 in) tightbore barrel in one of my bbmgs and the accuracy is insanely better, and not to mention the increase in velocity. I haven't tested the difference but I know it's there. So, for just a simple bbmg the 1/4" tube will work fine, just take a bb or two with you to the shop so you know it will fit.