25 replies to this topic

[moosa]

What's your perception of how the dedicated modding community has changed over the past year or so? Has it grown? Has it shrunk? Stayed about the same? How else has it seemed to change to you?

I disappeared from here and stopped thinking about nerf in general a while ago, feels like maybe a year, but I haven't been keeping track. I still have a giant stash of nerf stuff piled in my cellar, so it's not as if I threw a fit and got rid of everything, just put interest aside for a while. In any case, I decided to come back and see what's been up in the world of nerf.

Back when I was here before, it felt as though the community and popularity of nerf beyond the standard stock use and for those of us "older kids" was on a steady rise. I can't say I really knew that for sure but it's certainly how it seemed to me.

Coming back here now, it all seems very... slow. People are still here and still at it, for sure, but where's all the hoopla? I haven't even seen any recent noob bans yet (maybe the moderators are keeping things cleaner?). I wonder if as many people are even interested in the old rare blasters anymore, or if it's just the newer blasters that are getting the focus these days.

I noticed that NerfHaven was apparently down for a little while, so that could certainly have something to do with it. But really, I'm curious; how far off is my perception here? I've only started kicking around here again the past few days so I'm interested in your opinions.

[TantumBull]

I think its a combination of you not being active and that a lot of emphasis has been put on homemades lately. Go through the past 6 or 7 pages of the homemades section.

[moosa]

To be honest I never had much interest in the homemades section in the first place. =P

Edited by moosa, 28 August 2011 - 03:57 AM.

[Archangel45]

What's your perception of how the dedicated modding community has changed over the past year or so? Has it grown? Has it shrunk? Stayed about the same? How else has it seemed to change to you?

I disappeared from here and stopped thinking about nerf in general a while ago, feels like maybe a year, but I haven't been keeping track. I still have a giant stash of nerf stuff piled in my cellar, so it's not as if I threw a fit and got rid of everything, just put interest aside for a while. In any case, I decided to come back and see what's been up in the world of nerf.

Back when I was here before, it felt as though the community and popularity of nerf beyond the standard stock use and for those of us "older kids" was on a steady rise. I can't say I really knew that for sure but it's certainly how it seemed to me.

Coming back here now, it all seems very... slow. People are still here and still at it, for sure, but where's all the hoopla? I haven't even seen any recent noob bans yet (maybe the moderators are keeping things cleaner?). I wonder if as many people are even interested in the old rare blasters anymore, or if it's just the newer blasters that are getting the focus these days.

I noticed that NerfHaven was apparently down for a little while, so that could certainly have something to do with it. But really, I'm curious; how far off is my perception here? I've only started kicking around here again the past few days so I'm interested in your opinions.

I have seen plenty of people putting out new mods for old guns or old mods for new guns- so its not dead. Also while people love homemades- they do not allways rule the battle field.

Also since this isn't a mod post- this really should be in the general nerf section.

[moosa]

Also since this isn't a mod post- this really should be in the general nerf section.

Well I posted here because it's mod related. I couldn't remember whether or not this forum was supposed to be only for posting actual mods, and I couldn't find any rule about it written somewhere, so I went ahead with it. If it's wrong then I hope a moderator will kindly move it. Sorry!

[HasreadCoC]

Also, more and more people seem to be heading to NRev with active posts, I personally duplicate my Homemades/Mods picture posts across both sites, but not everyone, and for day-to-day posting I know a lot of people who prefer NRev, just because it's easy to get banned here. They figure the rule is "if you don't have something to say, don't post" so they only post here if it's really important, things like mod questions, mod ideas, progress pics, etc, end up on NRev. Things like final version writeups, sales threads, and war threads end up duplicated across both sites. Eventually, some people just end up posting on only NRev unless they're trying to sell something and want a larger group of people to see it.

[sparklefish123]

In my opinion, The NIC has started to use more Homemades than modified blasters. It is a little disappointing because more people buy them made and the fun part of Nerf is the modding. Tweaking it the way you want it, not buying a polycarb one from someone else.

[TED]

It is a little disappointing because more people buy them made and the fun part of Nerf is the modding.

The fun part of nerf is nerfing.

There have always been contracts in nerf. How is buying a homemade from Ryan any worse than buying a 2k from roboman? For me I modded my guns to nerf. I now have more fun nerfing with a homemade which I built myself and made my own.

[andtheherois]

That's debatable. I know a few people who mod but don't actually nerf. Take Jey from Nerf Mods and Reviews. I personally enjoy both aspects of the sport. And while I'm sure there are many people who feel the same way, there are probably just as many who don't have the skill/time/will to make homemades or do mods.

But to keep this on topic, you came back at a time when everyone is getting ready to go back to school, so that could account for the slower boards.

[Curly]

I started lurking about a year ago, so I can fill you in.

With keystone guns like the Longshot and BBBB out of production, modding has slowed slightly. When a new blaster comes out there is still a rush to mod them, but most new guns suck. Nerf brand guns have been all reverse plungers, making modding to primary-worthy standards difficult. An awesome bunch of guys called Orange Mod Workz have jumped in, mass producing metal internals for reverse-plunger guns. They include hella strong springs, getting 65 without a PT replacement from a Recon.

The biggest issue is the number of guns out there that make good primaries is dwindling. The Lanard Shotgun has got a decent boost in popularity thanks to makeitgo. He found that a cheap pistol turret replacement doubles the Quadshot's capacity, making it a force to be reckoned with. I wouldn't say modding has taken a huge dip, just the mods are to older guns that have been done before- that's why there are few writeups.

Homemades are becoming more prevalent, due to the lack of new guns. You can see why, have you ever heard of a properly made homemade breaking from a [k26]? Almost never. Have you heard of a Longshot break from a [k26]? Well, OMW plans to make a Longshot kit, so that may become a thing of the past.

[Daniel Beaver]

The lack of powerful new blasters from Hasbro or Buzzbee is severely blunting the creativity of modders. There isn't much new to be done with a 4B or a Longshot, and the toy companies keep releasing under-powered blasters. Also, we recently crossed a transition point where almost all homemades are "better" than modded nerf guns.

[Buffdaddy]

The lack of powerful new blasters from Hasbro or Buzzbee is severely blunting the creativity of modders. There isn't much new to be done with a 4B or a Longshot, and the toy companies keep releasing under-powered blasters. Also, we recently crossed a transition point where almost all homemades are "better" than modded nerf guns.

Agreed, it's relatively easy to make a high-powered homemade, springer, airgun, etc. (Although I'm not sure HAMPs are necessarily "better", just different and a lot of fun) Admittedly, there are some blasters that are decent primaries modded that I never actually see used at Nerf wars (and yes, it is possible to do well with just a speedloader, if you actually work together. Just because something can't be hoppered doesn't mean it's worthless).

If people really think that modding is dropping out, they could, you know, mod something and contribute.

[arfink]

I still continue to buy new guns and see what can be done to them. As far as modding goes, the newer offerings from Buzz Bee are actually pretty promising looking.

One other thing I'll mention- looking back in time on these forums, it's clear that early mods were not hitting even remotely close to what people consider "war worthy" these days. Crayola barrels anyone? In a war situation it's very clear there is one thing that drives blaster design and modding- ranges. And despite the constant draw of blasters hitting 100" I have seen many people using stock blasters effectively at wars.

I just haven't found anything really cheap on the shelves that I felt like modding lately, besides the Torrent.

[chavez guy]

I haven't been here too long, but I have been lurking for over a year. Most of the good modifications I would see while lurking, and even today are for blasters that are no longer sold in stores, and because of the increasing rarity, are more difficult and expensive to obtain. I am finding it harder to find nite finders in stores, my local target no longer stocks berserkers and UMBs, and the only thing that might have amazing potential that I can locally obtain is the swarmfire (which I have actually not obtained yet, ironically). The closest TRU to me is hella far away, but last time I was at a TRU the triple shot and nite finders and a couple other non-shit guns were still being sold.

The point I am trying to make is that since less and less amazing blasters are being sold in stores, the ability for people to make good mods out of them becomes less and less as well. As mentioned earlier, home-mades are becoming increasingly more prevalent. Did you notice Ryan made a home-made contest? And there hasn't been a mod contest in a long time. I do not want to speak for him, but I think it may have to do with less good modifications being done. My only hope is that Nerf or BuzzBee (or hell, Airzone for that matter) will release some new groundbreaking thing (the next LS, or 4B, or Airtech) that us modders can make use of. That, or once the Vortex line comes out people will convert to disk shooters and find out how to make home-made disks that fly straiter.

To answer the question, I think the modification community is declining, but not by any ammount anyone should be worried about. I just think people will have to hold out and just spend a little more for oldie guns on eBay or the trading forums.

[moosa]

Thanks for the input guys. It's interesting.

In my opinion, The NIC has started to use more Homemades than modified blasters. It is a little disappointing because more people buy them made and the fun part of Nerf is the modding. Tweaking it the way you want it, not buying a polycarb one from someone else.

The fun part of nerf is nerfing.

There have always been contracts in nerf. How is buying a homemade from Ryan any worse than buying a 2k from roboman? For me I modded my guns to nerf. I now have more fun nerfing with a homemade which I built myself and made my own.

The fun part of nerf is whatever you personally enjoy about it. I myself found mods to existing blasters much more fun and interesting than building homemades. I don't have any problem with people making homemades and enjoying themselves- I'm sure it's rewarding- but for me personally that feels less like playing with really cool toys and more like building guns. Some of my favorite blasters are those that are considered much less capable for war use simply because they're fun.

Anyways, I do have a pile of stock longshots, titans, etc. down in my basement right now...

[Ice Nine]

The fun part of nerf is whatever you personally enjoy about it.

No, it isn't. This is the list that uses statistical analysis to objectively show that some things are more fun than others. The list takes an ordering of most fun to least fun, and once again, I remind you that this is objective fact and not at all subjective.

1.) Nerf wars
2.) Mod parties
3.) Making darts (a surprising third place, but it had a whopping VORA of +17.31)
4.) Making homemades
5.) Post-war drinking (should be higher subjectively, but its CPF+ stat was only 35, where activity average is 100)
6.) Modifying Nerf guns
7.) Buying Nerf guns
8.) Modifying Buzzbee guns
and, with a score of zero in everything,
9.) Collecting classic Nerf blasters

Since I am excellent in math there is no need to check these statistics and I feel that this thread can now end amicably and absolutely. As a reward for making it through that difficult statistical analysis, I leave you with a song that is objectively amazing but will be called bad by people who don't know anything.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mV2mxjlXv8

As a quick edit, I'd like to congratulate you on saying something without saying anything.

Edited by Ice Nine, 28 August 2011 - 10:50 PM.

[Curly]

1.) Nerf wars
2.) Mod parties
3.) Making darts (a surprising third place, but it had a whopping VORA of +17.31)
4.) Making homemades
5.) Post-war drinking (should be higher subjectively, but its CPF+ stat was only 35, where activity average is 100)
6.) Modifying Nerf guns
7.) Buying Nerf guns
8.) Modifying Buzzbee guns
and, with a score of zero in everything,
9.) Collecting classic Nerf blasters

Makes sense to me. That is except #5, I can't comment on that thriving aspect of Nerfing.

[atomatron]

Makes sense to me. That is except #5, I can't comment on that thriving aspect of Nerfing.

You're doing it wrong.

[makeitgo]

You're doing it wrong.

Haha! Curly is only 15 or 16 years old. He can't drink legally yet.

[Curly]

Haha! Curly is only 15 or 16 years old. He can't drink legally yet.

15 as of last week bitches! That and I'm cheap, so I'd be the buzzkill drinking Nestea at prom.

To anybody worried about the modding community, place your trust in the guy above. I fired over a dozen rounds at him in one day from a BBBB, and he was far away by the time they landed. I was lucky his darts sucked shit.

[Ice Nine]

Haha! Curly is only 15 or 16 years old. He can't drink legally yet.

MakeItGo: Master of missing all points, forever.

To anybody worried about the modding community, place your trust in the guy above. I fired over a dozen rounds at him in one day from a BBBB, and he was far away by the time they landed. I was lucky his darts sucked shit.

Oh, I'm sorry. Did you mis-post in this thread from "Nerf Running Away Community Dwindling?"

[Curly]

Oh, I'm sorry. Did you mis-post in this thread from "Nerf Running Away Community Dwindling?"

No, we're thriving thank you very much.

[Langley]

MakeItGo: Master of missing all points, forever.
Oh, I'm sorry. Did you mis-post in this thread from "Nerf Running Away Community Dwindling?"

No, we're thriving thank you very much.

If you're going to have a cheesy philosophical debate (that surely would've been shut down if noticed by some of my counterparts) at least try not to get too far off topic.

[moosa]

Staying on topic is nice. And the philosophical debate wasn't really even part of the topic. I just wanted to know how people perceived the nerf community has changed in the past year. I'm glad to know that NH members are able to derail topics as effortlessly as ever though!

[taerKitty]

As an attempt to put it back on target, I think the nature of NerfModding is changing, but the community, depending on how you define it, is actually growing.

HvZ seems to be quite popular at colleges, and seems only to grow. Yes, this isn't what NH caters to. We tend to go for century cannons, homemades, reshells, and just about everything that most HvZ rules seem to forbid. However, they do mod their blasters, and it's not a far stretch for them to go from modding a 20' piece-of-crap so it hits 50', to modding a 35' so it hits 100'.

Facebook is another avenue of growth. You can hold your nose all you want, you can take your refuge in feeling superior, but that doesn't change the fact that there are multiple FB pages devoted to modding. Yes, they may not be using polycarb or acrylic casts. Yes, they may be just kids. Yes, yes, yes. However, they are modding, which still counts, unless you wish to appoint yourself He That Decides Which Is a TRUE Mod.

Internationally, Nerf seems going strong. Especially with the legal and logistical challenges Ozzies face, I'm surprised down undah has gone all-in on this hobby. Inf0rm3r's blue tubular foam and silitip heads are the result of considerable capital outlay, as Kane and Ryan can tell you from their parallel ventures.

If you count PJs as modding, then the cosplay and fandom scene are also hives of modding activity. Yes, some of the blasters are not functional after being modded, but the act is still there: buy a Nerf gun, add crap to it, cut shit out of it, and make it your own.

Lastly, other sites. No, not just other forums, but blogs as well. They might not have the sense of collaboration (or perhaps more accurately "co-opetition") that NH has. They may be more a 'subscriber base' model were one person posts a mod as time allows and his fans applaud, but he is still modding, and getting the word out.

Also great for getting the word out are user-contributed content sites such as YouTube and Instructables.com. They're not forums. They are not geared for discussions and back-and-forth posts, quotes, etc. However, they are getting new people into modding, exposing them to the cool stuff, and, quite possibly getting them interested in trying it for themselves.

===

In summary, NH is a self-selecting subset. We are not representative of the hobby as a whole. NerfModding isn't just NH, nor is it just the core four forums. There are plenty of other forums, plenty of other non-forum sites that are devoted to NerfModding.