Toast

Thanks everyone. I'm convinced my next project is a homemade, over a custom paint job. Sure I could do both with enough time, but I think there's a lot of satisfaction for putting one of these fella together and -- eventually -- seeing it work.

I did have a question about the SNAP bow and also the pumpSNAP (re: Dartslinger), namely.... uh, where does the ammo go? Are they just single feeds through the muzzle? Obviously having some attachment that provides a loading mechanism adds more engineering, but that would be helpful to know. I'd still like the possibility of practicality, so I'm just not sure where the loading is achieved.

Your first homemade is probably going to cost $60 and might not function. If you are looking for a one-time blaster that is going to be more powerful than off-the-shelf mods, then just purchase one from one of many sellers on the NIC. However, if you're enthusiastic and ready for hands on learning, then I definitely recommend starting with a SNAP (a great writeup is linked).

Depending on what tools you have lying around, you'll probably still end up sinking a decent chunk of change into parts (one reason being that PVC is sold in 10' lengths). But if you've ever put together IKEA furniture or played with Legos, you have the basic procedural capacity to follow directions an put together a SNAP. You'll probably goof up a lot on the way, but by the end you should have a working blaster. If you were paying attention and had any critical reasoning ability, you'll also be able to just pick up the scraps and leftover materials and build 4-5 more to give to your friends.

To give some perspective, I've been making homemades for 4 years and I still can't get a design to function on the first try. Given that my spare time is limited, I would probably be better off paying someone else to make them for me, but a lot of the satisfaction is in the process and not the result.

I'm definitely after the satisfaction of creating my own. Over the past 2 months I've probably spent about $250 on Blasters, Springs from OMW, Kane's AMIORS kit, miscellaneous and some misc supporting stuff from Lowes. I'm almost out of stuff to mod on my stocks and I want to keep busy. Not that I have another $250 to spend at the moment, but I don't mind putting some cash down for some fun. Was the SNAP article your referenced the one Langley originally linked to? http://nerfhaven.com...showtopic=20296

I installed the 5kg spring and the stefans are getting almost the same distance as the stock Elites, plus they're significantly more accurate. So that's a huge plus. I have other dart and barrel questions, but that's for another thread.

Regarding safety and Kane's foam, I noticed he only states he intends of them to be used with non-dangerous materials; so I think everything mentioned thus far fits will within the spirit of his request.

Thanks Guys!

So far all my blasters, save my Maverick, are stock internals with the AR removed. I have some 5kg springs I plan to install. I'll probably mod a 2nd Retal so I can compare side by side performance: AR removed and AR + 5kg spring. Maybe that's the main issue, like you guys have suggested.

But as is, my 3" stefans perform noticeably better than the 2" and 1.5" stefans. Equal in every way except length. I seems like the nature of the weight shouldn't be a huge contributor to my scenario. But I could be wrong. Assuming the #6 washer, a BB, or Kane's included weather stripping putty contribute an equal amount of weight, they should be more or less equal in performance. Although maybe I'm wrong and the vertical weight distribution of the washer is significant enough when compared to the spherical distribution of a BB or sphere/ellipse of the putty.

Could the distribution be it, or more likely the spring and stock internals?

Thanks for all the tips everyone, this is a great help!

I'd heard conflicting opinions between some of the N-Strike and Elites in the past, but I wasn't aware of such a gap between the Recon and Retal. I was able to get my hands on the Retal after all, so now I feel even better about it.

If this strays to far off-topic, then never mind: Are there any non-Elites that are considered better than their Elite counterparts?