Thom's Content

#316987 Video from UBCon 23

Posted by Thom on 14 June 2012 - 10:10 PM in Nerf Wars

UBCon just freaked me out! Why were so many people wearing dog collars?

I'm afraid that modern fashion often eludes me.

Why did that one girl get a table in the art room for making video game key chains, but the guy that was hand making leather "wares" was stuck in the vendor room? Is his leather working not on the same level as key chains?

Personal preference. There's a lot of handmade stuff in the dealer's room; it's just a matter of where they decided to rent a table. I believe it's even the same contract to sell handmade stuff in either location, you just pick which one you want. Sometimes space can be a factor – we'll probably have next year's vendor's room at least half full by the end of the summer.

Why did the lady that ran the con remind me of uin13?

They do look a bit alike, and from the one video of uin13 I checked, their voices and speech patterns are similar. Interesting coincidence.

Why was Santa Claus handing out luggage?

If he was handing out packed luggage to people in staff shirts on the last day of the convention, it's because he fit a truly unbelievable amount of games in his car and we were carrying it out. Seriously, Toledo Santa has a metric boatload of games, and I do not say that lightly.

#316963 Video from UBCon 23

Posted by Thom on 13 June 2012 - 06:05 PM in Nerf Wars

We ran capture-the-flag, attack/defend, VIP, medic, zombies, and (once most of them had gone home) team and individual deathmatch. Everyone had team-colored colored armbands. Come to think of it, since I made 128 armbands the second night, and we ran out and needed at least two dozen more, we must have broken 150 participants that night, which I think makes UBCon just about the largest war in the US.

The second night, we repurposed the entries from the corrugated cardboard castle competition for a couple of the rounds. That was fun until we had to clean up the cardboard. It got pretty chaotic at times – I remember one round in which a player captured the flag by slowly and calmly walking up to it. We had a minute-long conversation right next to the flag, inside that team's fortifications, on whether it was legal; I told him if they hadn't noticed him in that time, he'd earned it. Good times.

#316943 Video from UBCon 23

Posted by Thom on 12 June 2012 - 10:29 PM in Nerf Wars

It helps more than one might think if your gun isn't modded. I know people who can reliably get another 5–10 feet doing that. Obviously, the technique does not do much for one's accuracy. I wouldn't try it with a modded gun, though.

#316937 Video from UBCon 23

Posted by Thom on 12 June 2012 - 07:34 PM in Nerf Wars

It's been a while since I posted much around here, but I still Nerf when I can. We held our yearly Nerf war at UB in April, and evidently a film student put up some video of the convention. I thought I'd throw it up here. Nerf stuff at 6:16.

We had pretty good attendance this year. One night, we were running with about 110, the other between 130 and 140. We're thinking about restricting it to 100 in the future so that our referees don't kill us. Gun mods are allowed, but it stock darts only, so I haven't put up a thread here for a few years.

We hold the wars Friday and Saturday night during UBCon, which is generally around the beginning of April. If this is something that people here would be interested in, I'll make sure to post more info on Nerfhaven in plenty of time for next year's wars.

#314465 Rochester Area Nerf War?

Posted by Thom on 17 April 2012 - 12:59 AM in Nerf Wars

I live near the University at Buffalo, and we have quite a few Nerf enthusiasts here. If you run something in Rochester, we could probably send a few people over. I wish I'd read this last week; UBCon was last weekend, and as best we can tell, we have the biggest Nerf war around.

If you do hold anything in Rochester, please post it here or PM me and I'll see if I can get some people together. Given some notice, we should be able to scare up a couple dozen Nerfers.

#261892 Longstrike Cs-6 Revealed

Posted by Thom on 15 January 2010 - 02:42 AM in General Nerf

I wonder if you could take the shell and stick in the internals from an air gun? It seems iffy, given the limited width available, but you could perhaps make a respectable "luzer" rifle out of this.

#259276 Ubcon Xxi

Posted by Thom on 17 December 2009 - 09:40 PM in Nerf Wars

On behalf of the University at Buffalo Strategists and Role-Player's Association, I'm pleased to announce our fifth annual all-night indoor nerf war. The war will begin around midnight on Friday and Saturday nights and last until about 5 AM or everyone goes home.

We haven't set all the details yet, but we'll definitely be playing some CTF. Other formats and specific rules will be forthcoming.

Generally speaking, mods are okay within reason (probably no singled Titans), but no homemade air guns. Homemade darts will be permitted, but will probably have to be soft-tipped. We MAY restrict mods to Saturday night, and if we do, we MAY permit regular glue-tipped stefans.

The nerf wars are part of UBCon XXI, our annual gaming and anime convention. Con admission is $20 for all three days or $15 with pre-registration starting January. Confirmed convention guests include Voltaire (the musician, not the dead author), Keith Baker, creator of the Eberron setting for Dungeons and Dragons, and Zombie Buddy Productions, who run awesome LARP events featuring Nerf weapons. Events include all manner of games, from RPGs to classic video games to LARPs, an open gaming area to rival cons ten times our size, and twenty-four-hour anime showings.

In the next few days, I'll be filling in some of the details and hopefully adding some pictures of our Student Union building, which I am convinced is the most awesomely perfect nerfing venue known to man. I'll also add more information on pre-registration as it becomes available; the nerf wars are our most popular events, and we have to cap attendance at around 100 per night, so we recommend pre-registering to make sure you get a slot.

#241768 Bolt Cracked In Half? I Have Another Solution.

Posted by Thom on 13 July 2009 - 05:55 PM in Homemades

One of these days I have to do a write-up on my bolt sled replacement. It's made of Delrin, slides very nicely, and should be far stronger than the old crappy bolt. It's fully Angel-breach-compatible. I actually planned to submit my LS to the mod contest, but after two weeks in the machine shop, I figured that the practicality score would actually be negative.

#241767 Ea Announces Next Nert Wii Game

Posted by Thom on 13 July 2009 - 05:50 PM in General Nerf

So now we can combine the dirty Wii jokes with the dirty Nerf gun jokes!

#241765 Largest Nerf War?

Posted by Thom on 13 July 2009 - 05:48 PM in Nerf Wars

I was wondering if anyone knew what the largest nerf war on record was. I thought it might have been our very own UBCon war, which consistently brings in over 100 attendees, but then I noticed that the projected attendence for Apoc was in the same range if most of the "maybes" go. I tried the Google (as well as a site search), but to no avail; it's hard to find real figures. Does anyone have any idea?

#223759 Lock 'n Load Coupler Mod

Posted by Thom on 15 April 2009 - 03:35 AM in Modifications

This thread is over a year old. Please check dates before posting.

#223530 Quick Question On Angel Breach

Posted by Thom on 14 April 2009 - 01:06 AM in Modifications

Lathed the back of the bolt. Took about two hours longer than I thought. Did y'all know that the plunger tube tapers at the front? I didn't. Still need to machine bolt block. Shouldn't take long.

#222931 Quick Question On Angel Breach

Posted by Thom on 10 April 2009 - 10:47 PM in Modifications

I'll definitely finish the machining on Monday. I haven't had a chance thus far because I've never used the lathe and at this time in the semester, the shop staff is busy assisting students with actual work to do.

Thankfully, the president of the UB chapter of ASME happens to be my roommate, and he's willing to help for sponsorship.

Brass for the block is probably a no-go. That leaves aluminum and delrin. Would JB-Weld on brass/aluminum be stronger than Zap-a-Gap on brass/delrin?

#222784 Quick Question On Angel Breach

Posted by Thom on 09 April 2009 - 11:17 PM in Modifications

Well, the sides of the bolt sled are done. It slides nicely. The only parts I still need to machine are the bolt block and the back part of the bolt that slides in the plunger tube. I'm hoping to bum a bit of scrap brass from the machine shop for the block, as I could solder that in place. If not, It'll be Delrin and superglue. If I solder the block, the weakest point will probably be the bolt sled itself. I should really get a Mechie to figure out how much force it'll take.

Oh, and I still need to finish up the connecting pieces for the internal foregrip, but I might trade for a new front gun shell first.

I'll try to get some pictures up for y'all when it's done.

#222573 Quick Question On Angel Breach

Posted by Thom on 09 April 2009 - 01:10 AM in Modifications

Actually, I'm making my own block out of some leftover delrin – I'm taking measurements of my breach to make sure the contact surface is as large as possible. Should be ~ 1.5 in^2.

Come to think of it, I'm replacing every working part except the plunger shaft and tube, trigger, and magazines. :lol:

Should be interesting to see how much power I can shove into it before it explodes.

#222323 Quick Question On Angel Breach

Posted by Thom on 07 April 2009 - 10:27 PM in Modifications

Ah, that makes sense. I guess I can't really cut down the wings any; my darts would fall out. I'm actually doubling my 19/32 with an otherwise identical layer of 5/8 brass, so I'll have a bit more strain on my clips than y'all. Perhaps to compensate, I'll give the mag walls a tad more flex by cutting through the topmost attachment point.

Awesome LS BTW, hereticorp. I've been using that thread as a reference; I just didn't get the part about the clip wings bending over the bolt.

On a related note, does anyone have suggestions for additional ways to reinforce the bolt/small plastic block bond? I'm already machining my own block from delrin, which of course won't solder to the brass. Is Zap-a-Gap really stronger than, say, JB-Weld? I'm reinforcing EVERYTHING that's bearing a load (hell, I'm machining my own bolt sled from scratch tomorrow morning); I expect this bond to be the weakest point. It occurred to me to try to get a bolt through both layers of brass there, with the caveat that I'd have to make sure it still slid over the barrel.

Would it be possible to make that block out of aluminum and solder it to the brass, or would the different thermal properties make that impossible?

#222232 Quick Question On Angel Breach

Posted by Thom on 07 April 2009 - 05:44 PM in Modifications

I have a mostly completed Angel breach. The brass is all cut and slides nicely. My understanding of the breach's working was that the half-pipe should be in line with the clip, settling between the "wings" so that the darts are pressed immediately into it. The trouble is that a half-pipe of 9/16 brass, being no narrower in its orientation than a full pipe does not fit between the "wings" on top of the magazine, which would seem to make inserting a clip impossible. Yet the pictures in Angel's thread make it quite clear that the half-pipe is, indeed, fully half the circumference, and much of the half-pipe appears to be directly above the wings of the magazine.

My question is simply: what the hell am I missing? There is no physical way that I can make the parts I have operate in the way I understand. I've never heard of this issue before, which leads me to believe that I'm doing something silly.

Thanks for any help, and apologies in advance if it's something obvious.

#220106 Possible Nerf War In Rochester, Ny

Posted by Thom on 27 March 2009 - 12:49 AM in Nerf Wars

The UBCon war is on April 17th and 18th, so it might be best not to try to schedule them simultaneously.

#185989 Air Propelled Grenade

Posted by Thom on 28 October 2008 - 03:34 AM in Modifications

I don't exactly understand how this works, can you explain a little bit more?

The darts are loosely attached. When the thing hits, the darts fly off.

#184598 Hell Before Halloween. #2

Posted by Thom on 20 October 2008 - 02:27 AM in Nerf Wars

I hate to bail at the last minute, but my friends and I can't come. Professors decided that since midterms are over, we'll have plenty of time for major projects. We just can't take a day off.

Sorry.

#178216 Nerf In Space

Posted by Thom on 19 September 2008 - 01:53 AM in Off Topic

Um, you could clear out the ISS with a single magstrike and no reloading. It's not exactly spacious.

#177355 Ls Jam Door Mod.

Posted by Thom on 14 September 2008 - 02:21 PM in Modifications

Surely there's nothing wrong with removing the door if your internals look decent. If you have an Angel breech and a dyed bolt sled, why not?

#177354 Plumbers Goop Vs. Epoxy

Posted by Thom on 14 September 2008 - 02:17 PM in Modifications

They're very different adhesives. Epoxy is for holding two surfaces rigidly together, and it's stronger than goop. Goop is better for sealing, which your epoxy may not do well.

#177353 Prices Of Nerf Crossbows

Posted by Thom on 14 September 2008 - 02:12 PM in General Nerf

You're only one state away from some of the larger wars. You're also a 4 hour drive from the Toronto/New Market contingent.
It's not the end of the world if your Buffalo group dissolves.

If you sold your crossbow you will have a very difficult time replacing it later.

There's a Buffalo group? I thought it was just me.

#176522 Munchkin

Posted by Thom on 10 September 2008 - 09:30 PM in Off Topic

Munchkin is fun, but I agree with oodalumps on the luck.

++Settlers of Catan.

Chrononauts is a great game as well; you try to achieve a secret goal by screwing with the timeline.

#176297 Eliminator Internals

Posted by Thom on 09 September 2008 - 09:46 PM in Modifications

I wonder if I could stick a SSPB in there. Looks borderline at best.

#176116 Nerf In Space

Posted by Thom on 09 September 2008 - 12:57 AM in Off Topic

Nerf guns fire darts via air pressure. The moon has no atmosphere to speak of. Ergo, nerf no worky.

#175094 New Nerf Video Game

Posted by Thom on 05 September 2008 - 12:37 AM in General Nerf

A nerf video game? Piss on that. The whole attraction of nerf is (or should be) that it's NOT a fucking video game. If you just want to shoot stuff on a screen, there are a plethora of FPS games that will satisfy your needs much better than this thing. Personally, I prefer the idea of making stuff with my hands, then using that stuff with people I like, a lot more than mindlessly staring at a screen. ~Rork

PS: I'm looking forward to seeing what horrible things happen to that wii blaster.

Might I humbly suggest that you just don't buy it?

#175069 Hell Before Halloween. #2

Posted by Thom on 04 September 2008 - 09:59 PM in Nerf Wars

I'm officially confirming myself and one, possibly two others.

#173994 Legality Of Melee Weaponry

Posted by Thom on 31 August 2008 - 08:39 PM in General Nerf

So a large, recurring war that does not draw many people from the NIC would be major?

#173959 Nerf Eliminator And Hyperfire

Posted by Thom on 31 August 2008 - 06:01 PM in General Nerf

is [sic] this what ur [sic] talking about ? http://www.freewebs....e/Blastfire.jpg

No. That is a blastfire.

#173958 The Vulcan

Posted by Thom on 31 August 2008 - 05:59 PM in General Nerf

silentsnipe: Please don't revive old topics, especially ones that are clearly obsolete. Also, capitalization is your friend.

Blue: How exactly did that help?

#173955 Legality Of Melee Weaponry

Posted by Thom on 31 August 2008 - 05:52 PM in General Nerf

What exactly constitutes a major war? Would a war with over 100 participants automatically count as major?

#173596 Legality Of Melee Weaponry

Posted by Thom on 30 August 2008 - 02:01 AM in General Nerf

UBCon allows foam swords, and they're surprisingly effective. If you charge a group of people, you're going to get hit, but you're probably taking some of them with you. This is compounded by the allowance of shields (18" diameter max) for those willing to eschew ranged weapons entirely. It really adds another dimension to the game.

Plus, there's nothing to break up a standoff like a dozen guys with swords charging the other team while screaming incoherently.

We allow people to deflect darts, but honestly, you're better off just dodging them.

#172877 Ecno - October 11 - Coplay, Pennsylvania

Posted by Thom on 27 August 2008 - 03:00 PM in Nerf Wars

I'll keep this in mind. It's sort of close to Hell, though.

#172520 Double Shot

Posted by Thom on 26 August 2008 - 10:26 AM in General Nerf

ROFL no posts yet.

Um, you waited less than four hours. You didn't need to post that.

Thom's Content

By content type

See this member's

Sign In