The Howler, Scorpion Bow + SM1.5K + paint Options

[dizzyduck]

I've done a lot of mods and write-ups on secondaries (Warthog, TTG, NF), and indoor primaries (Star Wars RTB, Firefly), but no primaries. I wanted to remedy that, and to get the whole "dizzyduck only does re-writes of old mods" monkey off my back.

I think the Scorpion Bow is one of the most underrated blasters out there. Many people disregard it as a knockoff clone of the Big Bad Bow, but that is not the case. Although the Scorpion Bow has a nearly identical plunger chamber and stock spring to the BBB, the Scorpion Bow has a different priming mechanism which I prefer to the Big Bad Bow.

Before any of you ask, you can buy these at Toys R' Us for $20 US.



Stock, right out of the box:



I'll begin with Part One of my mod writeup now; replacing the barrel and reinforcing the plunger head. I've included pics and instructions for those of you who want to follow along.

Part 1: What You Will Need
------------
- Scorpion Bow
- 1/2" CPVC coupler
- 8-10" length of 1/2" CPVC (depending on barrel length)
- Hot glue gun (low or high temp)
- Hacksaw or Dremel rotary tool
- Epoxy or super glue

I started by opening up the main shell of the blaster. Note that the priming handle and plunger sled move independently from the rest of the shell, and have their own set of screws.

The trigger mech is pretty straightforward.


The larger orange piece stabilizes the plunger sled, while the smaller one is the catch. The trigger spring works double duty as the catch spring; as the trigger returns to position, it pushes the catch back into place. If you are planning to do a spring addition or replacement, I would recommend replacing that spring with a stronger one.

The sled comes out on its own.


I opened the sled, but it was tricky to find the hidden screw underneath the "Air Zone" sticker.


Air restrictor:


Once I had the plunger assembly out, I reinforced the plunger head with a steel washer. The pics explain it all. I first got the idea from coop and his plunger head reinforcement mod. Just so happens that it works on the Scorpion Bow too.





After I finished the plunger head reinforcement, I moved on to the barrel replacement.





That's the end of Part 1. You can now put the sled back together, put in the firing mech and reassemble the blaster. With a 7" barrel I was consistently getting ranges of 85' or more with 1-3/4" copper BB stefans. Please keep in mind, though, that I am rather tall (6'4") and so my height may affect ranges.

Part 2 will be coming shortly.

(Quick edit for pics)

This post has been edited by dizzyduck: Mar 16 2009, 08:06 PM

[Banshee]

Let me be the first to say nice work man! How does it prime compared to a BBB?

[dizzyduck]

Part 2 of my Scorpion Bow Mod.

Part 2: What you will need:
----------
SuperMaxx 1500 (Or AirTech 2000*) tank
Secret Strike Pocket Blaster
Dremel rotary tool
circular needle file
Super glue or plastic adhesive
Plumber's Goop or similar plumbing sealant
High strength fishing line
1/8" diameter tubing coupler
Hot glue gun (low or high temp)
Keyring or similar (to pull the trigger)
1/2" CPVC coupler
3-4" length 1/2" CPVC (depending on barrel length)

*if you use an AT2K tank, you'll need 1/8" ID vinyl tubing and another tubing coupler to attach to the tank.

The second part of the mod involved putting the dopey-looking scope to use. I had an old SSPB which I wrecked trying to saw the stock barrel off (in the days before I had my trusty Dremel rotary tool, but that's another story).



I sawed off the pump, cleaned it off, and attatched a 1/8" ID tubing coupler* to the end after widening the hole with a circular needle file. First I used super glue to adhere the two together, then used Plumber's Goop to ensure an air-tight seal.

*you may also find them listed as "barbed splicer" or "connector"; they come in brass or plastic.




I took the tank out of a SuperMaxx 1500 (with the tubing still attached to the tank) and fit it into the sanded-down scope.



I then filled in the right side of dead space in with hot glue to reduce errant motion and to keep the tank in place. While the glue was drying, I pulled the firing pin open and blew through the tubing attached to the tank to keep cool air flowing through so the O-ring wouldn't fry.

Everything fit into place pretty cleanly. I had to drill a couple holes through the scope shell to fit the tubing through it.


I tied some fishing line to the firing pin and strung it through one of the holes in the shell from the bow attachments. I strung it to the right side, but if you're a southpaw you can string it through the left side. I tied the SSPB clip attachment to the end of the fishing line, sawed off the tip of the SM1.5k tank, and glued on a 1/2" CPVC coupler.



Part 2 is done. Ranges on the scope integration averaged 60 feet with 30 pumps. I'd predict higher ranges with more pumps, but I didn't have time to do as thorough a range test as I would have liked. It's worth noting that the SSPB has a built in overpressure release valve, so you'll max out ranges somewhere along the line.

Part 3 is a paint job, since I seem to have gone over the image limit (again).

This post has been edited by dizzyduck: Feb 7 2009, 11:20 PM

[dizzyduck]

Now for a paint job:



Painting this was a bit challenging since covering the blaster meant going over a few moving parts. I needed to sand some areas down, paint them. and seal them separately before painting other parts. I couldn't imagine trying to do all of that with spray paints. One of the advantages of painting by hand, I suppose.

The Scorpion Bow has a lot of open space for graphics, which I took advantage of:



Total painting time: 11 hours.



Lettering and graphic close-ups:



More detail shots:





Questions? Comments? Flames?

This post has been edited by dizzyduck: Feb 7 2009, 09:58 PM

[Magic]

I just shit my pants. INCREDIBLE! KEEP IT UP!

[Blue]

That's awesome. How awkward is it to pump such a tiny pump at that place?

[dizzyduck]

Banshee: The Scorpion Bow has a sled with a handle that you pull back to prime. You pull back the whole back end of the BBB to prime it.

Blue: Not particularly awkward, unless you're trying to aim while pumping, in which case it'll strain your wrist.

This post has been edited by dizzyduck: Feb 7 2009, 10:25 PM

[rork]

That's badass--especially so when the goofy looks of the stock bow are taken into account. And I frakking love your walrus.

[futureseal]

Damn, that's one cool ass wallrus! I love all of your paint jobs, an we better be seeing a walrus gun soon. Good job on the gun.

[thaygor]

Wow that gun is awsome!!! keep up the good work

[nerfer9]

Ah, it makes me so happy to see pictures of well done drawings of a walrus. Nice write-up.

[Just Some Bob]

Nice artwork, especially the "storyboards"

In general, though, I dislike for mods to have text in the pictures. As time goes by, the historical mods lose their pictures for various reasons, and at least if the text is complete, the reader can usually still figure out most of what's going on.

[bigred1rifleman]

You turned an ugly gun, into a good looking, well functioning gun. Keep up the good work and painting!

~Br1

[Daniel Beaver]

Very nice - I love the way you formatted this. I hope the Mod Walrus graces these boards again.

[slowguitarman]

I always get excited when I see that you have posted a mod. As I've said to everything else you've done, very nice work.