5 replies to this topic

[Carbon]

I've been working on a way to try and improve what I've seen as shortcomings in the SNAP trigger catch system. It works well, but as I see it, it has a few drawbacks:

1) It's a pain to round off the back of the rear catcface. It's my least favorite part of making a SNAP.
2) Drilling the large hole in the catchface is also a pain.
3) The rear catchface, being plastic, is a wear part which will eventually fail.
4) Having the catchface by the plunger head increases plunger length and weight.

That, and I've been wanting to make a trigger catch which is a little more "Nerf-like". Here's the first result (which is currently in the "ugly but functional" stage).



The larger section just houses the plunger, with the thinner tubing being for the catch. The plunger lost weight for this experiment:



I'm using a 1.5" compression nut, fortified with a touch of hot glue to make sure it stays in place. Yes, it stays in against the spring.

Here's the catch:



It's a .25" hole in the aluminum. I wanted something large enough so that it wouldn't be a pain for the pin to engage, but not so large so that the strength of the shaft is compromised.

Here's the business end of it:



And a view of the firing pin:



It's a standard clothespin trigger, with the pin sliding on the aluminum rod (the pin has had its end rounded off, so it's not much of a wear point). Pull it back far enough, and the pin pops into the hole. Simple enough. Since the hole is dependant on orientation to make sure it catches, I just make sure that the pull ring is horizontal. That aligns the holes. Anyway, the catch hole is large enough that it allows for a great deal of slop.

Problems: Currently, my problem is that the surface area of my catch point is too small: because of that, the trigger pull is way too hard. That, and the pin pull is currently a little long (half inch tubing is pretty loose in .5" PVC, so I had to make sure my pin was long...although I could probably trim some more off). Since it's longer, and attached to the clothespin, it accentuates the arc motion...so my pin is pushing against the plunger, partially...not good. I have plans of trying to replace my roofing nail with a finishing nut (round headed) to increase surface area, and possibly adding some manner of ferrule to the catch hole to increase the surface area between the pin and the plunger.

More updates as they come.

[sniper25]

damn you stole my idea!
I was just working on something like this.

Edited by sniper25, 09 June 2006 - 09:23 PM.

[davidbowie]

I like it a lot, although I have my doubts about keeping the pin up constantly. From my experience, that usually means the nail will pop out eventually. Maybe some sort of cone could be mounted around the shaft to lift up and then catch the pin?

There's always a much simpler way to solve all the problems you mentioned. This is what I always do. Use a flat washer for the catchface, and get used to pressing the trigger while priming. It actually makes priming a bit easier, because pressing down the trigger allows you to get a firmer grip on the handle.

I've also been looking recently at this one particular piece of hardware. I am completely drawing a blank on what it's called, but it has a hole in the center for a bolt to pass through, and has a sort of arm/wedge/block coming off on either side. Both of these are hinged and have a return spring, so that something can pass over one way by folding the arm down, but the arm will then pop back up and prevent it from returning. I know it's got potential, but I still don't know how to use it.

I have also been doing some trigger experiments. I bought a box of beefy roofing nails, planning on trying out something like your reinforced clothespin trigger, but I cracked the clothespin while drilling a hole. Right after I cut the old one off, inspiration hit me and I grabbed a mini spring clamp. Instead of cutting the end, I chucked one end into the vice and yanked the whole clamp off to the side, creating a perfect, rubber-coated trigger. I ended up also reinforcing the trigger with a 1" angle bracket. This is the sturdiest trigger I have ever handled. The clamping end also happens to come with pre-drilled holes, to prevent clutzes like me from misaligning the whole thing. I'll post something more detailed tomorrow when I can post the new blaster it's mounted on as well.

[Carbon]

So far, the pin isn't misbehaving in the hole, partially because it's held up by a zip tie as well as some glue. But I intend to replace it a screw and a finishing nut, so it'll be a bit more sturdy, attached, and able to move....

You're definitely right, a washer and keeping the trigger pulled is simpler...and I'm all about The Simple...I just don't like having to keep the trigger pulled. Also another reason is because I don't want to have to explain how to prime my gun when someone else picks it up. I've almost lost firing pins from that before, so I guess that's why I'm more leery of it.

You're thinking of toggle bolts. Yeah, I've thought about those, too. You're right, they're good for something....just not sure what, yet, either.

You mean those little nylon spring clamps? Okay, you got me interested...looking forward to seeing those pics.

[Carbon]

Sorry for the double post, but I had a few pics that I thought were worthwhile, so I thought I'd post rather than edit.

I made a couple of improvements to the catch. First, I added a small piece of quarter inch aluminum to the hole to spread out the force of the plunger. Cut to size, sanded smooth, and superglued in place (after wedging it in with some hot glue).



The second change involved the pin. The pin wasn't getting a straight pull since it was glued to the clothespin...but, I needed some way to keep it in place. So, here's a quick-and-dirty method; I removed all the glue, and ziptied another trigger over the top of the nail.



The space between the angle irons allows the nail to wiggle, so it can have a straight pull. Result: a much easier trigger pull. I still think I could make the pin smoother and smaller, though. That's next.

[davidbowie]

Nice. I like it a lot.

OOH OOH I got it! If you didn't glue the nail to the clothespin OR the angle iron, but just used them as guides, then had a return spring of some sort with one end attached to the clothespin and one end pushing down directly on the nail, the clothespin would remain closed when the gun was uncocked, but the nail would pop up. Then, when the catch hole was lined up, the nail would be pushed down into it, with the head resting against the angle iron, ready to be lifted out when you pull the trigger. The only thing left to figure out is what to use as a return spring, and how to attach it. maybe a simple rubber band would do the trick, and the sides of the nail head could be bent up to hold it in place?

The spring clamps I'm talking about are steel, but the nylon ones you're talking about are probably the same type of thing. The nice thing about these steel clamps is that they're extremely sturdy, and they can be bent to create a built-in trigger lever.