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Marshmallow Mazooka

Fire darts and stuff!

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#1 Buffdaddy

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Posted 02 February 2011 - 09:42 PM

Ok guys, this is the last of my current lot of Marshmallow mods.This is Part 1 that I posted on the Canadian forums; I'll ut the mod up in the second post.

This evenings's presentation:
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The Mazooka is a 22 inch monstrosity, powered by 6 AA batteries. Normally $35-$40 dollars, but I got it for $25. It's at just about the perfect size for me; while I can't sling it over the shoulder like a real bazooka, it sits in front of my shoulder just fine.

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The front "warhead" piece is a sliding breech, operated by the yellow latch on the bottom. A rubber o-ring seals everything off, and on orange ring with ridges in the front spin the marshmallow as it blasts out.

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There's a nearly useless sight on the side. But only nearly. It lights up red while the air tank is filling, then turns green when you're fully primed.

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Only takes 6 AA batteries. Nice and convenient, as we don't have a giant sled like the Vulcan or Stampede, but I question how many shots you can get with that size battery, especially if you change the operating pressure (more on THAT later). The power switch is above the battery compartment.

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Disassembled breech. Nice and easy to operate, the way it should be. Also has to come off first so you can unscrew the rest of the gun.

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Here's the main body, with the side disassembled. You can see the battery space in the back, the air compressor/motor in front of that, the tubing/pressure mech, then the tank and tube. A VERY LARGE TUBE. So much deadspace that will need to be removed.

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Here's the air restrictor piece that keeps the giant marshmallow from sliding back. There's also what appears to be a spring-powered, hinged door at he front of the tank - different from pins and back-pressure, to be sure.

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Ok, here's the trgger mech. How it appears to work, the top yellow piece keeps the tank door in place while it charges. Pulling the trigger releases the catch, the air blasts out, then the hinge spring pushes the door back in place. The contacts at the bottom? That's an extra switch on the compressor circuit; makes it so that you aren't pumping air while the trigger is pulled.

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Here's the motor/compressor/everything else. Main thing of notice for modding is the yellow cap over the pressure sensor. There's a spring-loaded sensor that, once it reaches pressure, hits the contact and shuts off the compressor. Just like some OP valves on our pumpheads, there's a screw you can tighten to force a higher pressure. I'm about 1 revolution from being completely tight, and the Mazooka seems to be fine.

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Finally, tank dimensions.

So that's the blaster for you. Stock, it takes about 12-13 seconds to charge the tank, and the giant marshmallows easily do 35 feet flat. With the pressure switch changed, it takes 23 seconds to fill the tank, with only a few feet gain (granted, we have lots of dead space behind the breech, and we're using giant marshmallows.) Mod to come shortly.
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#2 Buffdaddy

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Posted 02 February 2011 - 09:45 PM

After doing several Marshmallow-type mods on our snow day today, I grabbed this thing out and had my way with it. Sadly, I don't have fresh batteries for testing ranges, but that can be rectified later, when I can actually get to a store without my car getting stranded.

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Lift out the tank and tube a little bit; it tilts up enough to allow you to do some work. Cut down the extremely long tube that sits behind the marshmallow; this is all dead space. Grind down the internal ridges so that you have a regular tube. Take a 1/2" wye, put on 1 wrap of electrical tape, and stuff it in there. Secure with epoxy or something. Be sure to dremel out slots in the hell for the top of the wye to extend out. Note that I could have put it back a bit farther without interfering with the trigger.
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In a stunning miracle of engineering, a 1 1/4" PVC coupler sits perfectly inside the shell. Put about an inch of said pipe on one side, dremel out a notch to let it sit flush with the wye. Wrap a bunch of e-tape around that end of the wye, then slide on the pipe/coupler combo. Not only is everything stabilized and straight, you will be able to shotgun the sucker (provided you put a cap in the top of the wye). After all, you can stuff 3 1/2" CPVC pipes beside each other in 1 1/4" PVC.

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Finally, take the front sliding piece, and remove the orange "barrel" and blue-colored breech. Dremel out the very front screw pillars. Now you can slide that 1 1/4" PVC directly into the front!

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And there is your Mazooka, ready for war. Or at least until I get fresh batteries for testing.

Edited by Buffdaddy, 02 February 2011 - 09:47 PM.

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#3 badger

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Posted 02 February 2011 - 10:04 PM

How loud is the compressor on that baby? This may be the blaster I need for this year. I'm all for taking my time for each shot. Never been good at the multi-shot blasters or the extra rounds on-the-ready like a AT2k.
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#4 Kid Flash

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Posted 02 February 2011 - 10:24 PM

I traded mine away to nerfmafia, but I'm glad to see that these are useful. Badger, it's pretty loud. Or at least on mine it was.
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#5 Buffdaddy

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Posted 02 February 2011 - 11:51 PM

It's definitely loud, so this is obviously something you use when stealth is not an issue. But for a large war, sure it's ideal. Assuming you replace the batteries. With the 6 x AA , I got 2-3 dozen shots off.

Which reminds me: any recommendations on battery replacement? My current plan after testing this out is just hooking up 6 D-batteries (wire to a stampede tray, for example), but if anyone has recommendations on the rechargeable front, I'm all ears. I assume it's a fairly constant draw running the air compressor to pressure, so I'm not sure if that requires something different that what people have been using in the Stampedes.

Sorry, I have no multimeter for info.
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#6 Boot

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Posted 03 February 2011 - 12:33 AM

Which reminds me: any recommendations on battery replacement? My current plan after testing this out is just hooking up 6 D-batteries (wire to a stampede tray, for example), but if anyone has recommendations on the rechargeable front, I'm all ears.


I'm not sure how well this idea will be received, but I always try to keep things human powered. From how everything is connected it seems like a hand pump could easily be added (without you having to remove the electric compressor), making it still a force to be reckoned with even once the batteries die.
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#7 Buffdaddy

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Posted 03 February 2011 - 01:08 AM

No offense taken! I considered that; you'd have to have the pump external, since there's no room in there :lol:

I think I'm gonna keep it battery powered, though. In my mind, this isn't any different than pulling the trigger on a Stampede (well, it takes longer to charge, and shoots farther...). So I'll just mess with batteries, and see where to go from there.

Actually, I think I'll pull out the Stampede battery sled tonight, see if I have extra wire to run, just so I can do a few test shots.
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#8 QUADSHOT

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Posted 03 February 2011 - 01:28 AM

If you are woried about battery switches. I would recommend you attempt to integrate he charger and battery, from one of those manual charge flashlights. you know, the ones with the hand-crank that recharges the battery. I have a lego flashlight that uses one and it gets very good battery life, with about a minute of cranking. But i am unaware of its voltage, and I dont want to take it apart. however if it were to work I believe it could make this much more reliable.
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#9 knexpert66

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Posted 03 February 2011 - 08:10 AM

I've been eyeing one of these for a while. What are the ranges?
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#10 Nate45

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Posted 03 February 2011 - 01:22 PM

Whats the point of the giant coupler around the wye?
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#11 badger

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Posted 03 February 2011 - 01:35 PM

Buffdaddy, talk to Split about using rechargeable batteries. I believe he has done some work along those lines and he may have the information you are looking for.

I figured it would be loud, so that won;t be an issue for me. I probably would only pull that thing out for Apoc.
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#12 iDrag0m1r

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Posted 03 February 2011 - 01:35 PM

Whats the point of the giant coupler around the wye?

For teh shotgun effect.

Anywyays, great mod!
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#13 Buffdaddy

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Posted 03 February 2011 - 06:20 PM

I've been eyeing one of these for a while. What are the ranges?


Again, I'm picking up batteries in a bit to do actual tests. Gimme a few hours! :lol:

Buffdaddy, talk to Split about using rechargeable batteries. I believe he has done some work along those lines and he may have the information you are looking for.

I figured it would be loud, so that won;t be an issue for me. I probably would only pull that thing out for Apoc.


Ok, thanks!

Whats the point of the giant coupler around the wye?

For teh shotgun effect.

Anywyays, great mod!

'
Exactly. I have an extra PVC plug to stick in the top of the wye, and I can slide 1 1/4" PVC shells in for use as a shotgun. Plus where the coupler currently sits, it's right against one of the plastic ridges of the shell, so it's keeping the whole thing stable and aligned perfectly.
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#14 Buffdaddy

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Posted 04 February 2011 - 12:46 AM

Got fresh batteries to test the sucker. Right now, if you let it run 12-13 seconds, I'm getting 4B ranges with a 12" CPVC barrel. I'll have to add a longer barrel and let it go the full amount of time, see how far that blasts. Shotgun results will be edited in later.
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#15 Inferno Falcon

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Posted 06 February 2011 - 07:02 PM

Wait, so it uses batteries to pump the air tank? could you possibly replace that with a normal pump?
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#16 Buffdaddy

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Posted 06 February 2011 - 07:11 PM

You could certainly replace with a hand pump, or attach one on the side. But that kinda defeats the point of this blaster, IMO.

Also on that note: I have rechargeable batteries en route.
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#17 Buffdaddy

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Posted 27 February 2011 - 08:04 PM

Late update; I've found almost all of my stuff from moving, so I've decided to take a break and post the pics I have organized so far.

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Used 1 sheet of cardstock and duct tape to make pouches for two 9.6V Rechargeable batteries. Sticks to the back of the blaster, and you can switch between batteries once they run low.

Also have the OPV turned back down, so it takes 15 seconds or so to fill up. Between having more air for an extra shot and making more shots, I chose more shots. Also, I'm not sure how it would hold up over time, with the pressure turned up.
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#18 mysterio

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Posted 27 February 2011 - 08:10 PM

Did you get any ranges yet? [With the new batteries and turned-down OPV]

Edited by mysterio, 27 February 2011 - 08:11 PM.

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If two powerful is a problem then just go with one powerful. I guess this style of hopper will work even beyond three powerful..


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#19 Inferno Falcon

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Posted 28 February 2011 - 10:12 AM

Did you get any ranges yet? [With the new batteries and turned-down OPV]

He said 4b ranges, so 100 feet +
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