Toast

I'm starting to feel that modding stock Nerf Blasters isn't enough and I'm considering venturing into the realm of homemade blasters. As I look through the forum and absorb the wealth and variety of knowledge, I can't help but feel I may require a degree in physics or career in engineering before I have a hope in Hades of constructing something that rivals what $12.99 and a trip to Target would get me. I've read through several threads, including Carbon's "intro heads up", but I'm still left scratching my head. And with 87 pages is the homemade category, an ignorance of what to constructively search for for getting started, and the aversion for posting a "what's the best way to start homemaking a blaster?".

Yes a "where do I start?" would be great, but it would also be great to know if there's some engineering prerequisite I need to have. Which I have none.

So I've removed the ARs in all my blasters, yay!
And I've created stefan slugs from foam backing rods, washers for weight, and felt "thingies" for cushioned tips. I've field tested them against the elite darts and noticed they under-perform in distance by around 5 feet, on average. I assume this is due to the lack of aero dynamics. And that's what brings me here again.

Am I right the darts tips are what reduces it's distance? Regardless, how can I fix this.

My stefans are currently 3" long, the same as stock Elites. My 3" stefans shoot further than my 2" stefans by about 4 feet, on average.
I purchased one one Kane's kits for the FBR and felt tips. And using a #6 zinc washer for the weight.

My stefans have the kick and the accuracy, but their distance is lacking.
Looking for any tips from the veterans to improve their range.

I wish thread title didn't sounds so much like a "X vs. Y, which is betterz?" post. Because it isn't really.

I have an opportunity to purchase a stock Recon pretty cheap, or a Retaliator for not quite as cheap (I'd prefer not to get into the financial details why this matters). Neither comes with shoulder stock or barrel. I know the Retal has a direct plunger system which seems to be better than the reverse on the Recon. But I was curious how significant of a difference exists between either blaster. Regarding stock performance, but more importantly in basic mod-ability.

I'm asking because if I can't get the Retal, I'm going to get something else, and the Recon is a great deal, but I'm wondering if I should skip the Recon all together because it's "non-Elite", and I should limit my arsenal to only the "modern" blasters. I'm not sure how significant that is. Is it like, "Damn man, all the N-Strikes are totally deprecated because of the Elites, never buy that crap!" ??

I plan to create my own slug stefans, so you can ignore Elite darts in this equation. I also plan to mod any blaster I own, though I'm still a novice

Thanks!

I'm about to venture into homemade darts because I've read, and been told, that they're going to be more accurate than stock Elites. However I've been reading around and I'm a little confused because it sounds like if I'm making my own darts, then it's absolutely necessary to use a custom barrel in my blaster. Is it true that DIY darts require custom barrels? At the moment my main concern is accuracy, followed with maintaining a good distance. But I'm not ready to mod out the barrel of my blasters. I'm just getting into this stuff I'm only considering making darts because I was unpleasantly surprised at the 3' spread my Elite Alpha Trooper CS-12 was spitting at just 25-35 feet.

Currently I have a modded Maverick (AR, compressed spring [stock], barrel extension); EAT12 (planned: 5kg spring, AR, lock removal). I'm probably going to also get a Strongarm and Retaliator.

So will DIY darts help accuracy in stock-barrel blasters (including clips)? I've read through several DIY dart articles but none specifically say if the former requires the latter.

Thank you!

I'm wondering if there's a reliable and credible source for "replacement parts" for the guts of our blasters? I know some places like Orange Mod Works have steel replacements; but until I get to that point I'm just looking for a stock replacement for some innards; not to mention there aren't any kits for an Alpha Trooper CS-12. I removed the AR of my EAT12 and now the accuracy is shot to hell; it was a pretty clean removal too

My Googlefu has revealed nothing on the open market.