12 replies to this topic

[Phoenix66]

Pretty much, I love having/going to Nerf wars. Even if it's just a backyard battle, or a actual Organized NIC war, I love them altogether.
I have two Younger kids that live across the street from me that love having nerf wars too. They are too young to attend a actual war, but hopefully some day they will.
I have always wanted to build them a decent homemade, but no matter what I have built, they can't seem to use it because of there strength/size. Pumpsnaps are too long, and hard to prime when using a [k26], Bow's are easy to pull back, but just too long, and hard for littler kids. Same situation with Hamps.
I want your opinion on the best homemade to use for smaller kids. These kids are 10 and 12, and aren't wimps. (They are lightweight wrestlers)
I would ask for opinions from people that have experience in this, and not from people that think that "This gun might be good"
The homemade I have in mind is a Pump Action Rainbow, using a [k25], and has 5 or so inches of draw, and uses a 5-7 dart hopper. A large priming foregrip similar to Ryan's super rainbow pump, but using a standard 1 1/4 plunger tube, and 1 1/2 thinwall grip.
I want it to be cheap too, I would be willing to do clear PVC through Mcmaster, but not the polyester stuff Ryan uses for pump grips, or clear face guards.
I don't consider this to be a "Which gun is best" Thread, but if the Admins feel this is in the incorrect place, move it where you feel necessary.

[erich76]

Pretty much, I love having/going to Nerf wars. Even if it's just a backyard battle, or a actual Organized NIC war, I love them altogether.
I have two Younger kids that live across the street from me that love having nerf wars too. They are too young to attend a actual war, but hopefully some day they will.
I have always wanted to build them a decent homemade, but no matter what I have built, they can't seem to use it because of there strength/size. Pumpsnaps are too long, and hard to prime when using a [k26], Bow's are easy to pull back, but just too long, and hard for littler kids. Same situation with Hamps.
I want your opinion on the best homemade to use for smaller kids. These kids are 10 and 12, and aren't wimps. (They are lightweight wrestlers)
I would ask for opinions from people that have experience in this, and not from people that think that "This gun might be good"
The homemade I have in mind is a Pump Action Rainbow, using a [k25], and has 5 or so inches of draw, and uses a 5-7 dart hopper. A large priming foregrip similar to Ryan's super rainbow pump, but using a standard 1 1/4 plunger tube, and 1 1/2 thinwall grip.
I want it to be cheap too, I would be willing to do clear PVC through Mcmaster, but not the polyester stuff Ryan uses for pump grips, or clear face guards.
I don't consider this to be a "Which gun is best" Thread, but if the Admins feel this is in the incorrect place, move it where you feel necessary.

Does it need to be pump action? Would a simple Snapbow with a [k25] in it work? As a 13 year old I was fully capable of using one with a [k26]

Edited by erich76, 23 September 2012 - 04:43 PM.

[Xellah]

For children I would stick with airguns. They're simple, compact and require little strength to use. The Ultimate Missile Blast is plenty powerful enough, relatively cheap and easy to mod. Solvent weld a wye to the tank. Add a hopper. Done. 100 ft+ ranges with minimal time/effort. Airtech 2000s, 3000s and any of the Supermaxx line are also excellent.

You could also look up homemade airgun designs, namely the JSPB line by 3DBBQ or the WNTS. Having built a WNTS, I can tell you that it is cheap, powerful and incredibly simple to build. The Mad Ghost (and others) are quite efficient but a lot of 3DBBQ's pictures are no longer working, making construction of said blasters difficult.

[therealnerfjunkies]

I would suggest this: http://nerfhaven.com...1&#entry301854. It's very simple to make. I am not strong by any standards and I can prime it easily. You could also use a 7 dart hopper for this one. It is about $15-20.

EDIT: Now that I think about it, carbines are pretty dumb. They have a retarded stick sticking out the side and most aren't even hopper-able. So, I suggest a SNAPbow, the one that is pinned in homemades. These are hopper-able. I use a full size [k26], but a [k25] will still have it hitting 90' by the last dart. They are incredibly easy to make.
Pumpsnaps will also work...

Edited by therealnerfjunkies, 26 September 2012 - 03:35 PM.

[Phoenix66]

Eric: I would like it to be pump action, so they feel like they at least have a blaster on Par against me and my brother. Both of us use pumpsnaps and hoppers.
Xellah: I normally end up just handing them stuff exactly like that, Panthers might be a option, becuase with a pump handle replacement, they are very easy to pump.
NerfJunkies: I hate the Snap Carbine, this isn't airsoft, and blasters like that are more Tatci cool rather than effective. (Most n00bs love the carbine for that very reason)
I want to know what the smoothest catch system you guys have used is. I don't like the rainbow catch,(I really haven't gotten one to work properly) because it constantly pushes down on the plunger rod, and makes the prime very rough, and not like the snap which only applies pressure at the end of the priming stroke.

[Xellah]

Yeah, the Snap Carbine design is garbage and I honestly don't know why anyone builds them. On topic though, if you insist on using springers that can hopper you could try regular PumpSNAPs that use k25s instead of a the [k26]. They're easier to compress and still maintain similar performance. Or go with bow power. Bows are fairly easy to prime as well, being relatively cheap and easy to make as an added bonus.

Edited by Xellah, 23 September 2012 - 07:28 PM.

[bhajj94]

Try to make a shortened pump snap with something like a [k25]. It uses a epoxy putty catch ramp, which I like. Also, if you do it right, it can get about 6 inches of draw, which is still hopperable, but not too tough to prime. With the addition of a [k25] instead of the usual [k26], it should be a snap, literally!

[Carbon]

Not that I'm biased or anything, but take a look at the SNAP/revolution. A lot of the difficulty in priming more powerful blasters is from the friction inherent in compression spring designs. The Revolution eliminates that friction, so it can use a weaker spring and get the same power. Most anyone who's tried mine has commented on how easy the priming action is. It's also very easy to make a custom draw length, since you're not as limited by the compression of the spring. It also has a very smooth catch, as the nail can be in constant contact with the plunger: there's no "bump" when the nail comes into contact with the ramp.

Also, you had mentioned bows as being too big: not necessarily. Check out the SNAP-7 microbow, which uses 1/2" CPVC as the bow arms (it's what my 11 year old daughter has used at several wars). It's not a 110' diddle cannon, but it gets a good 70' with an RSCB, and is a lot of fun to use.

And yeah, don't get me started about SNAP Carbines....

Edited by Carbon, 23 September 2012 - 11:00 PM.

[MrMonster925]

Well, my suggestion would go with either some like this but throw a stock on it.

[Zorns Lemma]

For kids, I would actually recommend bows although you said they're long and hard to pull back. You can definitely shorten one and use longer arms or a different material so that the draw is not as intense. I know Carbon has made one for a (his?) child and maybe he could elaborate further. But they seem satisfy the "fun to use" "easy to make" and "hard to break" categories very well.

The advantage to bows is that there are no locking pieces that might cause safety issues, as it is a lot more obvious what is moving and what you shouldn't put your face next to. The alternative is to have a completely enveloped catch and priming mechanism, but that requires a lot more construction.

[ferball]

For kids, I would actually recommend bows although you said they're long and hard to pull back. You can definitely shorten one and use longer arms or a different material so that the draw is not as intense. I know Carbon has made one for a (his?) child and maybe he could elaborate further. But they seem satisfy the "fun to use" "easy to make" and "hard to break" categories very well.

The advantage to bows is that there are no locking pieces that might cause safety issues, as it is a lot more obvious what is moving and what you shouldn't put your face next to. The alternative is to have a completely enveloped catch and priming mechanism, but that requires a lot more construction.

I just want to second Zorn's opinion. My 10 year old kid and his friends play with bows that I have made for them. Definitely easy to make, and loads of fun to use. The biggest problem I had with the kids using them is that you have to teach them to take the full draw before firing. They tend to want to half draw with a hopper on it to fire faster. It will fire just not nearly as far. Every kid that sees one in action wants one, and with the "Hunger Games" making girls with bows cool, my 12 year old daughter likes to get in on the action.

[KaneTheMediocre]

I think that almost any of the homemade designs that you'll find in the NIC can be scaled to whatever length you want, and that's all you need to change. In many cases, this will mean not having the volume to operate a hopper reliably, so an RSCB is probably the way to go. Bows and HAMPs are usually made with plenty of extra volume, so downsized versions of these and other high-volume designs will operate a hopper just fine.

[Buffdaddy]

As long as you build a stock to completely cover the steel bar coming out the back, a caulk gun based homemade would work, especially considering the mechanical advantage. I know my writeup was big, but there are plenty of smaller models that could also work.

You know you want the kiddies using Ultimators...