Not sure how I ended up on that attendance list, as the first I've heard of it was a few minutes ago, but I'm coincidentally pretty likely to go. Carpool with teh bspo! Maybe Darkshrimp or Gears is interested?

Whoops, I saw a name on the Facebook attendance list that I thought was yours.

Just a quick bump. I actually need to pull out of attending due to a friend's wedding, but I'm still tracking the thread to field any questions.
The FB event is getting huge, this is going to be an exciting war.

Date corrected.

T Dog is right, be careful with your blasters. No standard blasters are banned outright, but you might want to pack a Longshot or something for game balance.

As for the ridiculous waiting times, the UMD guys are trying to cut them down this year. The main problem was that they had to make sure no one was still playing the finished game. More efficient match-ending, combined with a stopwatch, should increase the nerfing-to-bullshitting ratio.

On behalf of the UMD Nerf Activity Society, I'm proud to invite you to the king of all indoor wars, Dart of War IV: Home is Where the Dart Is! It's an all-day all-out nerf war in the craziest building at UMD. Bring your blasters, bring your friends and get ready for the most amazing day of your life.

The guys running this war are not NH members. In addition to RSVP'ing here, please do the same at the Facebook event: http://www.facebook....23008168&ref=ts

IN A NUTSHELL: An intense indoor war in the sprawling Art/Soc building at UMD. Venue features 4+ stories of narrow corridors, wide halls, doors to barricade, a working freight elevator, ambush-ready stairs, and enough chest-high walls to get Marcus Fenix hard.

DATE AND TIME: Sunday, July 10, 9:30 AM - 7:30 PM.

LOCATION: University of Maryland Art-Sociology (Art/Soc) Building. GPS [38.985250, -76.947588]. Travel north on Adelphi and take a right onto Campus Drive. Free parking available.

ATTENDENCE:

• 50+ UMD students
• Dizzy
• Split
• bpso (mebbe)
• DX (mebbe)

GAMES:

• 2-Team 3:15
• 4-Man-Team 3:15
• Flash HvZ
• VIP and Double VIP
• CTF

BRING:

• At least one blaster (READ THE RULES FIRST!)
• Streamlines, Slugs, or missiles. Leave the slingshot darts at home.
• A BuzzBee sword or soft boffer for melee
• Lunch and dinner. Restaurants on campus are far from the building.
• Eye protection. If you're thinking sunglasses, remember this is an indoor war.
• Flagging tape and/or bandanna if you have them
• Deodorant

RULES:

• Blasters MUST be eye-rapingly colored or have an orange tip. This is strictly enforced srs bsns.
• Sign the waiver when you get there. Again, srs bsns.
• Barrel tapping is not permitted.
• Melee may not be used on staircases.
• Non-padded darts are not permitted. Gumdrop darts will be tested on site if you have them.
• Koosh balls and balled-up CLEAN socks are legal projectiles.
• Trash cans, doors, and other objects may not be moved without express permission from the organizers!
• Participate in dart sweeps! Return darts to the pit in the atrium.
• Do not enter classrooms or offices. These are off-limits to all players at all times.
• Flashlights are allowed, but don't shine them in people's eyes.

BLASTER GUIDELINES:

• Range limit is 100ft. If you feel you're being hit too hard, tell a moderator.
• Anything over 65ft is overkill.
• High-ROF blasters and blowguns are highly recommended - you'll clean house with an AR-removed Recon.
• Melee weapons and sheaths are HIGHLY recommended, especially for HvZ.
• The majority of darts are salvaged. If you mark yours, you'll get many of them back.

BANNED EQUIPMENT:

• Fists, feet, elbows, knees, or any other part of your body used as a means of attack
• Unpadded swords
• Paintball blasters and airsoft blasters
• Bayonets (any kind of foam melee taped to a blaster)
• Foam swords fixed to one's arm or body (for example, no Wolverine claws)
• Armor and shields of any kind
• Darts designed or modified to inflict pain (complaints will be investigated)
• The Nerf Big Bad Titan, and unmodified Nerf swords, such as the Nerf N-Strike Sword, the Nerf Axe, or the Nerf Longsword.
• Unwashed socks (we're serious)
• Any blaster without a bright orange tip
• Dark or metallic painted blasters
• Artificial propulsion - Skateboards, heelys, horses, jetpacks, etc.

I'm back, and I'll be there! If anyone can sell me 500 Slugs with airgun fit in PETG, hit me up.
Anyone in central NJ, Essex County area need a ride, say the word.
For the record, Benbo, I'll be bringing a Stampede with stock ammo. Stampede strike force!

If you're looking to make an entire hopper out of CPVC, it ain't gonna happen. 1/2" CPVC wyes are rare (if they even exist), and an dart wouldn't be able to turn in it anyways. The closest you can get is the normal PVC design Langley pointed out with a 1/2" blue copper hopper to save some dead space.

Tear the turret off and mount it to your shoulder, and you can be War Machine.
I want one!

I'm taking the train in. Can anyone pick me up at Mamaroneck station at 9:15?

Are gun hits really that common? I think we're all gentlemen here, and we can trust each other not to abuse a gun-hits-don't-count rule.

Right?

So I unearthed an ancient cache of slingshot darts. What do you guys think, are they unsafe coming out of the Super Soaker?

Bear in mind that a hopper, like an RSCB or all other tube-feeding repeaters, incurs some dead space. Your blaster's air output must exceed the volume of that dead space, plus the volume of the barrel, in order to fire a dart. In addition, some air will be lost as the next dart seats itself in the barrel. This is why hoppers don't work well with smaller blasters like pistols.

I've never seen a hopper work with a NF, PistolSplat, 2K, or L+L. I have used an LpL with a three-round hopper successfully, so if you really need that hoppy goodness, there's still hope.

It doesn't matter if I'm in a wheelchair, if there is another war at UMD, I will be there.

For the goobers: Don't make a war decision based on whether or not you have the right blaster. Even if you don't, someone will be able to lend you one.

Thanks for all the helpful replies, guys. I figured I'd have to run it parallel with the motor. I'm in the process of getting my hands on a stampede, and I can't wait to to get this project going!

Chewy.

I'm waiting on it. I'm hashing out a mysterious project with electronics that are sensitive to fluctuations in voltage and current, and I'm still not 100% sure on the Stampede's characteristics.

The key here is to wire the resistor-LED circuit in parallel with the motor at the switch, or the LED will only illuminate when the blaster is being fired.

Your gearbox might be misaligned. Try reopening the blaster, removing the plunger assembly, manually turning the main gear until the non-toothed part is exposed, and reassembling.

NLKM asked me to RSVP for him as a strong tentative yes.

Does your Stampede go up to 11?

Unfortunately, this one only goes to about 8.5. I'm working on another addition that will bring it up there.

I never would have thought to use a patch cord as an electrical cable! Great mod.

Thanks bra. I wouldn't recommend it, since it's not designed to solder. In retrospect, a 1/8" cord would have been a better choice, since both wires are sheathed.

Once again nice job Zack. I love the use of the foam stuff in the front to cover up all the gaps.

It's not foam, it's 1/8" styrene plastic. It's flexible, really cheap, easy to cut, and holds adhesives well. You can get it at hobby stores. Popatachi clued me in to this material, although he prefers the thinner 1/16".

GREAT JOB MAN! I like the power pack idea. Note: do NOT try to brass your stampede! Learned that the hard way today.

What went wrong? I was thinking of doing an Angel-Breech-like design in the future.

Maybe I misunderstood a few other threads, but concerning the voltage: Weren't people having problems with the blaster just continually shooting above a certain voltage? What is that 'ceiling voltage' where the blaster is maxed out per say?

That's caused by the plunger assembly not returning fast enough. It's happened as low as 14 volts for me.
I solved this problem by upgrading the spring (hence the BBB spring), which slows the mechanism.
You could also upgrade the thin black return spring by stretching it, annealing it in an oven, or replacing it, but this will put a lot more stress on the blaster.

Old and busted.


New hotness.


I'll start with the basics and move on to the good stuff.
Disassemble your blaster and remove the plunger assembly.
Let's fuck shit up.

Mod 0: Air restrictors. There's a knack to killing this blaster's notoriously difficult floating restrictor.
To get this thing out, you need to enlarge the hole in the ridge between the plunger tube and barrel and push it out through the plunger tube. I used a long, thin screwdriver to scramble the ridge and knock it out. A thin needle file could work too.

Here's the hole, post-enlargement.


Mod 1: Basic upgrades.
Two wraps of tape is OK, but you want to keep it loose. It's more important for the plunger to move quickly than make a perfect seal.
Padding the plunger head is critical if you removed the AR's, since this blaster will dry-fire at high speed.
Upgrading the spring is a must, especially if you up the voltage. A BBB spring fits perfectly if you cut off one coil.


Mod 2: Minimization! AKA, how to shove your Stampede into the wall!
Cut your Stampede directly in front of the side rails. The best way to do this is in two passes - start at the inside and cut out. Here's the post-cut Stampede:

Patch the holes. I'll post some measurements soon.

Cut it down and add a segment of the faux barrel for the ladies.


Mod 3: External power pack.
The objective here was to divert the ludicrous weight of the batteries off the blaster and onto the belt. I took a belt pouch from an old Palm Pilot and loaded it with two RadioShack 7.2V NiCd batteries:

Oddly, this produces 16.7V when read with a multimeter. Maybe an electrical engineer here can explain why. I soldered two battery pack connectors in series (black to red) and soldered it to a coiled guitar cable.

In retrospect, this was not a good choice, since the ground is just wrapped around the other wire, not sheathed. Remember to use lots of heatshrink.

Now, desolder the wire and capacitor from the battery terminals and solder them to a panel-mount jack.

Cut a hole in the bottom of the grip, cut a piece of styrene large enough to cover it, drill a hole for the jack, and glue to ONE SIDE OF THE SHELL.

Finally, mount that shit.


And there you go!



Ranges: 50-75 (It still uses CS darts, after all)
Cyclic Rate: 3.1 darts per second
HvZ diddle Rating: 9001

I need darts, BTW. I'll bring a bunch of barrels so nearly any fit will work, but I'd prefer MrCrouse's thick beige foam.

ZAck you on campus? If you help me make some darts I'll give you some. I just have to find materials...

Yeah, I'm on campus. We should do a dartmaking/modding/drinking party.

I need darts, BTW. I'll bring a bunch of barrels so nearly any fit will work, but I'd prefer MrCrouse's thick beige foam.

Well, shit. If DX, Lucian, Z80, and all the rest are coming, I can't say no. Count me in.

DX, bring an airgun!

People definitely don't honor the "Barrel Tap = Expended Shot Rule". Too many people try and run through a crowd and yell "taptaptap!" Even disregarding those schmucks, I have never seen anyone discharge a dart after tapping.

I've never been a fan of tapping. It gets abused and creates arguments and injuries. If Nerfers are going to be wimpy and ban short-range shots, which people take anyways, tapping should be made more like a melee, and shouldn't be done with a blaster. I saw Chops right after he got smacked in the head, and that tap was NOT safer than being hit point-blank.

Were was that mod posted? Link?

Here you go: http://lmgtfy.com/?q...ent raider drum

1. Glue a 1/2" PVC cross on your NF plunger tube as if it were a normal coupler.
2. Use epoxy putty to plug up two equal-length 1/2" PVC segments for bow arms.
3. Goop or cement the bow arms onto the cross.
4. Add string.
5. Cut a 3/4" or so segment of 1/2" PVC. Shove a 3" length of 1/2" CPVC into the PVC so about 1-1/2" protrudes from the end.
6. Goop or cement the PVC into the cross.

QED

Also has anyone attempted to mod the alpha trooper drum for stefans? Is it possible?

The Alpha Trooper drum is mechanically identical to the Raider drum, so K9Turrent's Stefan mod should work. Wouldn't be a bad first Mod and PJ post.

I've fixed the problem!

I replaced the stock spring with one from a Big Bad Bow. I had to cut off about two coils to make it fit, but it works fine.
The increased spring strength requires more force to compress and thus the gearbox turns more slowly. Less momentum on the main gear means that it has more time to reset!

The blaster fires hard and fast, and I haven't noticed any heat or damage in my postmortem.

Long story short: If your Stampede is firing uncontrollably and your catch spring is fine, upgrade the spring.

lolwut

Fun fact: You can hold both extra mags under your Stampede's top rail. Not really a mod...

There's NiteFinder in my Barrel Break! There's Barrel Break in my NiteFinder! It's the NiteBarrel BreakFinder!


Opens and closes one-handed!


Brass breech!


Prime both at the same time!


Fire barrels independently, just like the original!


Ranges are 25-45 (I'm using the original springs for now and can't find a good dart-barrel fit)
I'll make a write-up soon - making one of these is easier than you'd think.

I just finished a Stampede with 14.5v battery pack, and when I pull the trigger, the blaster fires uncontrollably. Unlike the common catch-spring problem that SGNerf identified and troubleshot, this is caused by a "race" condition between the plunger tube and the actuator gear.

I'm posting this thread to get some help solving this problem and chronicle any solutions for future modders. I'll put up photos as soon as I can.

Here's the problem:
The Stampede's plunger tube is pushed forward by a large gear which is about 2/3 toothed and about 1/3 smooth (untoothed). When the motor rotates the smooth part in, the plunger-tube assembly can slide freely and is pushed backwards by that weak black spring you can see through the window, which resets the blaster.

Normally, the gear turns fairly slowly, exposing the smooth part long enough for the spring to fully reset the plunger assembly. This releases the white motor switch, cutting power to the motor.

However, when the voltage is increased, the toothed part of the gear might rotate back in before the plunger-tube assembly has fully reset. This means that the white motor switch is never released, and thus the blaster fires uncontrollably. This can also cause the gearbox to become misaligned, which creates further problems and can damage the mechanism.

This is the "race" - the plunger tube needs to fully reset before the untoothed part of the gear rotates out.

Even if you haven't upped the voltage on your Stampede, it's likely that this problem could happen anyways once the lubricant wears off and the plunger-tube assembly returns more slowly.

I tried replacing the black spring with a more powerful one, and it still didn't reset fast enough. Any ideas?

Can you smell what The Mack is cookin'?

The "join" form on your site doesn't work.

I saw the original non-clear NiteMav set at UMD Dart of War, and it's an excellent mod. Really well-done. I'm amazed that the NiteFinder piece doesn't snap off when you pull back the plunger rod.

On an illumination note, might I recommend some electroluminescent wire?

Sights can come in handy if you can't aim down the barrel. I can't aim my Super Soaker Iron Man without the optics:
http://nerfhaven.com...showtopic=20068


If you really want to be tacticool, airguns have less recoil and barrel climb than springers and will work better with scopes. You probably won't hit anything beyond 50 feet anyways, regardless of what's duct-taped to your gun.

Edit: GAH! Accidental necro!

Shield usage is steadily becoming an interesting addition to Nerf games that i've attended recently.

Of everyone who's posted an opinion in this thread, only SG has actually played a goddamn game with the shield, so he's the only one who knows what the hell he's talking about. For the record, the gun/shoelace/equipment hit rule is there to prevent arguments and keep the game moving.

Anyways, SG, does the presence of shields really disrupt the game enough to merit new rules? Does it create deadlocks and turtling? Most importantly, is there ever confusion/arguments about whether a shot hit the shield or the player?

Could high-velocity air speed up a dart in an extremely loose (blowgun-style) barrel, where the dart doesn't seal the barrel? Put another way, could we propel a dart using air velocity instead of air pressure, and prevent some of the dart-on-barrel friction?

DarthMaker from NRev says he'd prefer the 21st.

What the fuck is going on with this.

+1. I wouldn't have known about the date change if Ellen Rage didn't make this post, and I might have shown up this Saturday. Pull your shit together, dude.

I can't make the 28th. I'm moving back into college that week, and I'd rather drink than Nerf.

EDIT: I can still make the 21st.

• To what do you attribute this blaster's extraordinary power? Higher pressure or larger reservoir + longer barrel?
• Would adding some 'filler' in the tank reduce the number of pumps w/o costing (too much) range/speed/danger/damage?
• How is the barrel supported? I've found that long PVC barrels tend to put a lot of strain at the coupler.

It's got a big bladder made of thick rubber, so it stores a lot of air and releases it quickly. I vaguely remember hearing that bladders release air more evenly than hard tanks, which might help as well.

The bladder is solvent-welded into the tank-like cylinder. I'm not planning on cracking it open. I don't think reducing the capacity would help.

The barrel's just held in the coupler by friction. The valve's face is nice and flat, plenty of surface area for Zap-a-Gapping. Combined with the nozzle protector, it's pretty solid. The barrel sometimes loosens after a lot of vigorous pumping.

So, where'd you find one?

One question I have: Maybe I just read the write-up wrong, but can the bladder actually fill the 3K tank after you shoot it, if you aren't firing out of the main barrel at all? I know they're on the same pump, but I'm not sure if the check valves prevent that.

I bought it at Toys r Us. I still see them all over the place. Now's the time to get them, when they're being discounted.

The check valves keep air from flowing between the tank and bladder. I've never trusted the bladder-to-tank "semi-auto" thing...

I've received a ton of interest in my Apoc 2010 primary, a heavily-modified Iron Man Super Soaker with integrated AT3K tank. I didn't document the mod as I built the blaster, so I'll add better photos as soon as I can deconstruct the blaster.



The core of this mod is the Iron Man Super Soaker, aka the Arctic Blast. Internal shots are located on iSoaker's page. This is a CPS derivative, meaning that it uses a Magstrike-like bladder, sealed in a solvent-welded cylinder, to store pressure. Basic mods to this blaster are easy - Jerm did it years ago - but some TLC is necessary to make it war-ready.

Below are my blaster's internals. The water tank's not necessary, so I removed it immediately.


Mod 1: Link the Top Valve

The bread and butter of this mod is linking the massive top valve to the trigger. If you're ballsy and/or want an integration, you can saw off that useless bottom valve altogether. Cut it off where it meets the top valve and securely attach a hose barb to the pipe. I embedded a brass mender with Goop and reinforced it with Zap-a-Gap, but solvent-welding a plastic barb would be a superior option.


Remove the spring from the bottom valve, then deconstruct the top valve's "snapping" mechanism. Glue a small bit of plastic to the valve to limit the lever's range of motion so it won't be open at rest. I don't have a pic of that yet. Replace the white bit over the lever, but don't include the black wire or the top handle. Use the bottom valve's extension spring instead of the original one for an easier trigger pull. Expand the hole on the top valve's lever and reinforce it with some scrap plastic or aluminum.


Connect the valve arm to the trigger using coat hanger or music wire. Note the 90-degree bend in the wire I used, which gets around the valve's screw posts. To make sure your trigger is stable, use pliers to make sharp bends and don't leave any wiggle room on the trigger.


Now, add a coupler on the top valve. If you're as neurotic as I am, fire up a Dremel or hole saw and expand the orange nozzle protector to fit. If you left the bottom nozzle intact, add a coupler and a new spring, and rig up a keyring trigger.

Mod 2: Pump Replacement

The stock pump takes 30 strokes to fill the bladder to a usable level, so replace that shit! You'll have an easier time getting everything in the shell if your pump valve is at a right angle. I used a Schwinn bike frame pump from K-mart with a Slime hose barb from Ace.


If you remove the tank and put a nice, big nut and bolt through the clip that comes with the pump, you can hold it in place without adhesives. I drilled a hole in the bottom of the blaster to lead the hose through. This locks the pump in place and makes setting up the internals easier.


Mod 3: Integration

Even with that bitchin' new pump, it still takes a while to pressurize a shot. Why not use that shell space for an integration and save your ass from rushing? An AT3K tank is perfect integration material for this blaster. Add a coupler and hose barb…


...then bend the firing pin, add a keyring trigger, and connect it all together.


The tee and check valves were bought at Petco. Lucian says the check valves are only rated to 5psi, so use them at your own risk. Jamming this all in is a little tricky, so cut notches in the ribs to hold the tubing in place.

Make sure everything fits, then use epoxy putty or hot glue to attach your integration. I put 2' PVC dummy barrels in both couplers to help line them up - this is much easier when someone helps you!

Finally, reassemble the blaster, let the glue dry, and test-fire.


Mod 4: Uber-1337 Tactical Rails!!

There's another problem left to fix - that weirdly-angled tank prevents you from aiming down the barrel. An easy fix*: Attach an N-Strike rail on top so you can use optics! Tacticool! You'll need to support one end of the rail with hot glue or epoxy putty, since none of the top panels are parallel with the barrels.


Why not add another rail on the side?

Appendix: Using the Blaster, Barrels, and the Risk of Personal Injury



The tank holds a LOT of air, and moves it quickly, so long barrels are a must. I use an 8" hopper and a 14" brass barrel. The top barrel fires Slugs 120', their maximum range. This blaster is unsafe when loaded with heavyweight Stefans - don't use them!

I pump the bladder 9-13 times, and the 3K gets two strokes. 10 strokes is enough for normal use, and 12 will make up for the extra dead-space if the hopper is almost empty. The bladder can probably withstand 20 or more pumps, but I doubt that the integration and tubing can.

A word about safety: This blaster is REALLY POWERFUL. It can fire Titan missiles. When using any strong blaster in a war, you need to be considerate and responsible. Limit your range by using an RSCB or hopper, and always use Slugs or stock darts. This blaster will fire on as little as 5 pumps, so under-pump when you can.



*OK, so the easiest way to aim down the barrel is to use a tall Chopper or RSCB. However, N-Strike accessories are more awesome. Your choice.