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Trifinder


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#1 Mepain

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 06:45 PM

The Trifinder is basically a Nitefinder with oodalumps' SS1 modification. It has 3 barrels, each barrel able to shoot a dart independently of each other via the barrel selector. It works on the same basic principles of the SS1; it has a rotating plunger tube that selects the barrel when rotated. This modification can be a little tricky because some of the parts need to be shaped from scratch plastic or sheet plastic.

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Let's make up a list of materials and tools needed for this modification, shall we?

Materials:
-Nitefinder
-Barrel material of choice (I used CPVC)
-Hot glue (I would recommend using a stronger glue like epoxy or plumbers goop)
-Super glue
-Scrap plastic or plastic sheeting of some kind
-Craft foam
-Other materials needed for a standard Nitefinder modification

Tools:
-Dremel
-Hot glue gun
-Screwdriver
-Power drill with bits



Alright, now that we have gotten all materials and tools needed, we can begin the modification. Start by taking apart the Nitefinder. This is standard procedure, not very hard.

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Next, take the AR out and drill only the inner cylinder out on this part:

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In the picture above, do you see that gap in between the supports for the inner cylinder and the top of the outer cylinder? It's length should be about 1/16''. Grab a piece of scrap plastic that is about 1/16'' thick and cut a circle out of it. This circle should have a diameter of about 7/8'' and fit snugly into the AR piece like so:

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I used a water bottle cap for this writeup just to show what it looks like. The plastic I used in the Trifinder is scrap Nerf plastic. I'm sure the water bottle cap would work fine.

Next we need to super glue the scrap plastic into the AR piece. Do this, and then super glue the end cap of the barrel onto the end of the AR piece. It should now be one solid piece.

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The end cap needs to be nice and flat. There is a bit coming out the top of it as seen in this picture:

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Go ahead and flatten that out. You should be left with a "hole" in the end of the tube. I filled the hole with hot glue, but I'm sure epoxy or sheet plastic would work to fill it.

Now drill a hole in the end of it. The hole is 3/16'' in diameter and 3/16'' away from the edge of the end cap. This means that the center of the circle is about 9/32'' away from the edge of the end cap. Take a look (Notice that I have worn FBR surrounding it to seal it. I really should be using craft foam, but the FBR works good enough for now. Go ahead and do this as well.):

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(another picture if you need it: http://i271.photobuc...8246Resized.png )

Next we need to super glue the end piece onto the plunger tube like in the above picture. Do this, and then cut/dremel off the tabs off of the tube like so:

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Now that that's done, we'll move to the barrels. Cut 3 4'' pieces of your barrel material of choice. I used CPVC. Glue them together in a triangular fashion, and make sure one end is completely flat when set on a flat surface.

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Now we need something to put the barrels on, so we'll get som more scrap/sheet plastic and cut out the "triangular piece".

Get a sheet of paper and your barrels. Trace around the flat end of the barrels and complete the shape. Cut it out.

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Go ahead and tape/glue/whatever the piece of paper onto your scrap plastic. Cut out the shape.

IMPORTANT: The shape is to be roughly 1/16'' LARGER than the template. It's one of those measure twice, cut once things.


Alright, here's where it gets tricky. The three holes that are needed to be cut out of the piece need to be in specific locations to produce optimum airflow when the end of the plunger tube and this piece come together. It may be a bit hard for me to explain this.

This is what the piece is supposed to look like when completed:

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I've made a quick paint picture to explain what's going on:
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Basically, the plus signs are the centers of the pieces. The circle is the plunger tube with a hole in it, the triangle is the triangle piece. You can see how the barrels are placed on top of the triangle piece, and how the red holes are inside the barrels. The red holes must be in this position, yet be in the same spot as the hole on the plunger tube no matter what position it is in when rotated. The plus sign on the plunger tube is the axis it rotates on.

Through trial and error with measurements you need to find the perfect places for these holes, and drill them. Once again, I used a 3/16'' bit.

The next thing to do is cut the shell. We first need to cut it to accommodate the new barrels, so cut off the front piece and the part where the barrels will come out to fit them in the gun. Make small cuts at a time to ensure that it fits tightly and correctly.

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(Picture limit)

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Now we will continue to cut the shell, Decide where you want the barrel selector to be at and then cut a larghe slot in the side of the shell where you decide you want to put it. My slot is about an inch long. You can choose to leave the dart holders or get rid of them. I trashed them.

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Do this to both halves.



Next we'll make the actual barrel selector. You can use anything you want for this, but I used a part of the old barrel for it. I super glued it into place, then put hot glue over it:

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It should fit nicely.

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All that's left to do is glue it together. Use above pictures to see where the barrels are to be glued onto the gun. I would recommend not using hot glue as I did, but instead using epoxy or a stronger alternative.

The internals should look like this when completed:

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Now you can finish the gun by doing any other standard modifications to it (another o-ring, e-tape on plunger head, add a spring, etc.).

If you're planning on banding it, be sure to band it like I have in the first picture, so that the bands are not in the way of the barrel selector. Do not add to many bands, we do not want our plunger to bend downward.

Time for ranges and all that bullshit. I don't think I need to do extensive tests and whatnot to tell you that the ranges are in the mid 40's. I've only banded it as far as power goes, so there is definitely room for improvement. Here's a video.

Finally, I'd like to apologize if any of the write up is unclear. I was working with a stock Nitefinder and the already modded Trifinder here. Hopefully that was enough.



Lastly, Enjoy!
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#2 UpperHand

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 06:49 PM

Thats dope. I would advise trying to get a tad more power out of it though, or else it's a little too similar to the maverick. Easily one of my favorite NF mods, other than a NF rifle on here a few weeks ago.
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#3 jackster57

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 06:57 PM

I really like it. What type of scrap plastic are you using? Polycarbonate? What? Overall I really like it. Maybe do a combination of oodalumps plunger draw mod and this. I think we should be able to get 60' out of this thing. Nice job.
Nerfer9 - You are an overposting idiot. After this amazing mod and you stupidity ask what the knex are for.. If you looked you would have noticed that they are super noticeably ram rods and a holder. Use your freaking head. Please.

EDIT- Explaining Nerfer9's idiotness.

Edited by jackster57, 27 October 2008 - 07:13 PM.

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#4 rork

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 06:57 PM

-_- Now that's what I'm talking about! I was really looking forward to this. Nice. Extraordinarily nice, actually. As far as ranges, I daresay that 40s (way to be honest, by the way) would work fine. And as far as Maverick comparisons, I don't really agree; this should be compact enough to achieve true sidearm status, which eludes the rather bulky, under-achieving Mav.
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#5 nerfer9

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 07:03 PM

What are the K'nex peices for?
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#6 mrcrouse1

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 07:03 PM

You could probably get the ranges up by sealing those gaps with small o-rings.
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#7 Poseidon

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 07:05 PM

Is it just me, or in the past few days, have we been getting a lot of cool ideas? Nice work, maybe you could try some spring replacement. Easy way of getting some extra range out of NF's.
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#8 TantumBull

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 07:16 PM

That's really nicely done, but I have one question. With the screws gone that hold the PT in place, have you had problems with the plunger slamming too hard on the barrel piece and breaking it off? I mod all my NF's with a spring that I can't compress with my hands. I always have to cushion my plunger and fill the shell with hot glue before closing up or else my PT pops out. Hell, once I even had to reinforce those little nubs that the screws go through with metal. I'm guessing this mod wouldn't work out with my standard NF replacement spring. :(
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#9 rork

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 07:19 PM

I for one do not understand the compulsion to stuff a spring into a NF that threatens to reduce it to shards in short order. It's a NF, for the love of all that's holy! If your goal is extreme power, you have already made a bad choice (i.e., that's what primaries are for).
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#10 TantumBull

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 07:30 PM

I for one do not understand the compulsion to stuff a spring into a NF that threatens to reduce it to shards in short order. It's a NF, for the love of all that's holy! If your goal is extreme power, you have already made a bad choice (i.e., that's what primaries are for).


I've been using my NF's for quite a while and they've held up just find. One just needs to reinforce it correctly. Furthermore, they are kind of my primaries, because I nerf with my friends who don't have any modded guns, and I'm not about to buy 4 of something primary worthy. However I'm working on one real primary for next year's W@M.

Edited by TantumBull, 27 October 2008 - 07:30 PM.

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#11 Poseidon

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 07:45 PM

I for one do not understand the compulsion to stuff a spring into a NF that threatens to reduce it to shards in short order. It's a NF, for the love of all that's holy! If your goal is extreme power, you have already made a bad choice (i.e., that's what primaries are for).


Point taken, but it is also not that difficult to simply reinforce the internals of a NF. Plus, it's not like I'm talking about adding a +bow spring or anything. That would be overkill my friends. :(
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#12 Mepain

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 07:53 PM

Upperhand- More power can be easily achieved with this. I haven't done a spring replacement or most of the regular mods just yet, so those ranges aren't really the most you're going to get out of it. If anything, they'll be the least.

rork- Thank you! (Again.)

nerfer9- Ramrod.

mrcrouse1- Yes, I thought about doing that. I think foam works just fine for now though.

Poseidon- Thanks!

TantumBull- I really don't think there's a need to stuff a spring into it, as rork said. It really doesn't need to shoot any farther than 60 feet.
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#13 Norther of Heaven

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 09:12 PM

Doncha just love NFs? Cool mod.
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#14 Renegade

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 09:38 PM

This is an awesome mod. Really.
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#15 TantumBull

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Posted 27 October 2008 - 10:04 PM

TantumBull- I really don't think there's a need to stuff a spring into it, as rork said. It really doesn't need to shoot any farther than 60 feet.


When I was talking about adding a spring I was referring to MY Nite Finder. In that same post I asked, and I pose the question once again: with your current set up, has the bashing of the plunger on the top of the plunger tube cause any damage to the triangular piece that the barrels are glued to?

Also, I talked about my NF replacement spring because if I chose to do this mod, for my uses, it would need to be shooting in the 70's. The reason I posed the original question was to find out if it was worth my while to perform this modification, because I really like how the three shots can be gotten off pretty quickly.

Edited by TantumBull, 27 October 2008 - 10:04 PM.

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#16 jwasko

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Posted 28 October 2008 - 09:01 AM

Awesome/Sick/Radical/<insert exclamation of choice>

More people (myself included) should be working on using the blasters of today to recreate the functionality of the blasters of the past.

The ranges could certainly be improved, but not necessarily significantly...and not without risk, as others have stated.

I've personally never gotten over 60 feet with a reliable, spring-replaced NF; if you really need a sidearm that gets 70 feet or more, get yourself a PS-800. The goal here was to take a NF and increase the amount of shots it can fire without reloading, and without drastically increasing the size (see, for comparison: Bobafan's turreted NF).

The nice thing about this is that it can easily be operated while holding a primary; the barrel selector can be moved easily, and anyone can cock a NF with a spare finger or two from their primary hand; the hard part is loading darts, which is unnecessary for three whole shots with a Trifinder.

Summarizing the rambling: Great job Mepain. Shut up, haters/whiners (no offense).

Edited by jwasko, 28 October 2008 - 09:03 AM.

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#17 Guest_fadinglight4_*

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Posted 28 October 2008 - 02:21 PM

Ok... that is so sexy. Very cool. I really like how you made the three air outputs. That is the most intricate nitefinder I have ever seen. Nice.
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#18 Mepain

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Posted 28 October 2008 - 03:09 PM

Just Some Bob- I could probably try that sometime.

Norther_of_Heaven, Renegade, jwasko, fadinglight4- Thanks.

TantumBull- Sorry about that, I forgot to answer. No problems with the front coming off as of yet. Like I said, there isn't really enough power to do any damage on mine. You could probably do this with yours, but you will need to use something stronger than hot glue for sure.
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#19 najmodder0424

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Posted 22 November 2008 - 11:30 PM

I know this might be insanely old but I love your mod. It's clean and fairly SIMPLE but not EASY to do. If i get another nite finder I will definitly try to do this mod.
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#20 Accord

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Posted 23 November 2008 - 01:19 AM

Nice mod dude! Speaking of Secret Shot 1's, I just found a NIB one in my closet last week. I never knew I had it in the first place.

#21 Banshee

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Posted 23 November 2008 - 01:50 AM

Nice mod dude! Speaking of Secret Shot 1's, I just found a NIB one in my closet last week. I never knew I had it in the first place.

Can't you see this is freaking old dude? Read dates!!! An as for najmodder0424, next time PM him or something. Only necro when you have something to add.
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#22 Mepain

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Posted 23 November 2008 - 02:00 AM

A necro is generally posting in a topic that is older than a month. The last post was 25 days before najmodder0424 posted. Not really a necro.

Thanks for the comments otherwise.
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