User blog:Death By Foam/My Longshot "Blackshot" (completed)

I was lucky enought to get a Longshot for free!!!!!!!!! It wasn't in the best of shape though. The darts were stored in the clip so they're squashed and useless now, the pistol grip for the fore-gun is missing and the spring has been weakened (maybe from being left cocked for too long).

But It was free so I didn't complain.

To start with, performance.

I wanted to get the Longshot back to (or better than) it's standard range. I was able to not only bet it back but improve on it's standard range by taking a blow-torch to the spring and  stretching it back to it's original length (plus a centimeter or two). By heating the metal I didn't wrek the tempering of the steel any more than it was already. Then I added a Firestrike spring. I removed the air-restrictor and taped up the air hole. Then I filled up the dead space inside the plunger and padded the plunger head. I now get 80-85 feet with it, I am happy with that.

Next, cosmetics.

The barrel extension for the Longshot doesn't look too good (in my opinion) and the fore-gun is more of a gimmick than an actual thing so I was never going to use it, but it would've been a waste of parts to just not use it (never dump old blasters, even if broken!). So I decided to use the pump-action fore grip and integrate that into the main blaster, making the Longshot pump-action. I took my time doing this because Longshots (especially free ones) are hard to find and I didn't fancy hunting down another one because I derped up. I was going to mount the rails (that connect the fore-grip to the bolt-sled) internally using strips of aluminium, but, I liked the beefyness added to the Longshot by using the plastic rails from the barrell extension. Usually these are mounted up-side-down, I did mine right-side-up because I wanted the Nerf logo the right way around. I attached the rails to the fore-grip using 1/8" screws (two each side) because I wanted a strong connection. I used the screw hole in the other end of the rail to insert the bolt through. I removed the "cones" from the bolt to allow this.

Once it was all fitted I took the fore-grip off and lengthened the slots in which the fore-grip slides along to allow a full prime. Then I put the fore-grip back on and test fired... YAY, it works!

Now comfort.

Because I had to cut the front end off the rails off so they would fit onto the fore-grip, they now have some sharp angles and some awkward angles for my hands to fit around. I was going to use epoxy putty for this, but, when cured epoxy putty is rigid and might crack or chip if the two parts were to move too much. So I used silicon sealant (the stuff you'd use in a bathroom). It takes 2-3 days to cure, but is pliable, strong and flexible. It'll be easier to cut it down to my desired shape too.

I was never a fan of the limited range of sizes the stock could be adjusted to (short and long), so I drilled an extra hole between the two. Now I havwe three sizes for the stock, small, medium and large :)

On to practicality.

As far as scopes go the one that comes with the long shot is pretty rubbish. So I deduced a way to turn the scope into a tactical light without destroying the torch I used for the mod. Instruction to appear on another page.

And lastly, awesomeness!

I was left with the barrell hole in the front of what used to be the fore-gun. So I filled the hole with a bayonet made from one of my son's broken toy swords.

Here is the result so far (still a work in progress)...



UPDATE (28/5/2013)
I decided on a different style of bayonet and am pleased with the results:



And the priming indicator on the Longshot is nice but I like mine better :)





It was originally a red LED but I forgot what voltage it was and the battery pack I used fried it. Oh, and FYI, fried LEDs smell like burnt hair :(

I still have some holes to plug up, I want to install a sound-chip with a "charging" sound recorded in it (something like a defibrulator or the machine guns from Heros Duty in Wrek-it-Ralph), so I'd get a nice sound effect when using it :)

I did away with the silicon sealant on the fore-grip, for some reason it wasn't curing. I used sand paper to rough up the surface (after removing the silicon) and then used some acetone (nail-polish remover) to remove any remaining silicon. I then used hot-glue to build up the fore-grip so It was comfortable. I used a driking straw to make sure I didn't hot-glue over one of the screw holes.

Still some time to go, and I haven't decided on a colour scheme yet. But, it's coming along nicely

UPDATE (29/5/2013)


All it needs now is a paint job. As you can see I've added a hand-guard. I sourced the hand guard from the same doner toy as the bayonet.



I've also added an extra hole for the stock, now there is a medium setting.



I've already uploaded some photos of this, but I though some HQ photos were needed.





Night time shot.



There is still some extra friction on the fore-grip when priming that I'm unable to resolve. I've tried sanding various parts but still nothing. I can prime the blaster easily enough and I can pop off 2 rounds per second. For standard internals I'm happy with how the blaster performs. My kids and I have our little Nerf battles and I don't want to shoot them with anything too powerful.

Project Complete! (03/06/2013)
So after considering several colour schemes I decided to go with classic silver on matte black and the results are good.



...and another with the light on,



I've decided to call it The Blackshot. Because of the matte black finish, there is a little friction on the fore-grip when priming, but other than that, I'm happy with the end result :)