8 replies to this topic

[Carbon]

I've been trying to decide how I wanted to mod my Big Salvo ever since I repaired it, but I wasn't sure what I wanted to do. My foam works very well in 17/32" brass, but it's quite tight; I can get a dart halfway in, but then I need a ramrod. Because of that, i haven't wanted to do fixed brass barrels like my AT2k. LIkewise, I'd still have a problem even if I went with a standard removable barrel, because my dart would be hanging out of the end.

I like the setups where a removable barrel is staggered with another; just flip it around and fire. But that solution wasn't the best...I didn't really want to think about buying twice as much brass.

So, here's my solution: I call 'em Dogbone barrels.


The idea is that you can load a dart in either end. After firing, you can shove a dart in the front, as the ends are made of wider brass, Then, just flip them around. The ends are then nested in PVC for easy use with couplers. The wider brass also works to eliminate fishtailing, by allowing excess pressure to escape around the dart, rather than behind it.

The idea came in part from the barrel on my pump action breech. With that, I took advantage of the curved end that a pipe cutter tends to make on brass. 19/32" (which fits 1/2" PVC) and 17/32" brass can be made to form a solid union using a flared and curved end. So, I used the one end of my breech, and made an identical end on the other side. I used a turn or two of e-tape on the brass junction (not really necessary, but it doesn't hurt). Before sliding on the PVC, I put a few lines of hot glue on the 19/32" brass, and then smoothed over the extra at the top to keep everythign in place. It's not moving.



The flaring I put on the end of the 17/32" brass makes a smooth junction between the 19/32" and the 17/32".


Installing them on the Salvo was a pretty simple matter; cutting down the barrels, wrapping about a foot of e-tape around them, putting a bead of glue on the case, and then shoving couplers onto them.

EDIT: Don't glue down the couplers. If you do, you'll have a very hard time opening up the gun again. Damn leaks...



Here's the Salvo with three Dogbones installed:


I've only made three of them so far...I ran out of 19/32". They're quick to make, though..five minutes or so per barrel. Time to hit the hardware store...

Edited by Carbon, 23 June 2007 - 07:17 PM.

[bored kid93]

Wow I've never thought of that before, nice idea, Carbon.

[sourskttles772]

Looks good. Your saving a little more time. Then instead removing the barrels and sticking them in the bottom.

[PointBlank]

Nice, looks verry clean. Great job!

[zaphodB]

I'm not sure i understand how this works. do you load two darts back to back inside the barrel? What stops them both from firing, and one of the two just flipping around and only going a short distance. (that sentence was a tense nightmare)

[Carbon]

DarkIndfection got it right. The idea isn't new, but it's a different way to approach it. It's like dual removable barrels that are glued staggered to each other, end to end; you can have the other one already loaded and just flip around the barrel. I can't preload the barrel, but the double-ended style lets me load, then flip the barrel. The flared end is an anti-fishtail benefit: 6" barrels on a Big Salvo are sort of short, so I needed something to bleed the power. It's still plenty powerful.

[Kuhlschrank]

That is an interesting idea, however, I think there is a much more practical solution, which allows you to have a second shot ready to go almost immediately after the first is fired.


By simply taping two barrels together facing opposite directions, you gain that quick second shot without worrying about immediately reloading. This way you are also sure of which way the dart is facing so it doesnt spin out if fired backward from a gun.

Ask OMC in particular, when I use this on a Maxshot, it is pretty much impossible to catch me in a reload.

EDIT: Of course, right after Carbon says the same thing, I'm great with timing

Edited by Kuhlschrank, 24 June 2007 - 08:32 PM.

[Carbon]

Yeah, that's definitely the easier way to do it. These barrels came about just because of how much of my dart hangs outside the barrel when I shove one in. I'd imagine there's a weight/length benefit as well...it's all trade-offs.

I hope to actually test these in a couple of weeks in a war and see if they're worth it. But at any rate, they're way better than ramrodding.