Board Thread:General Nerf discussion/@comment-27306930-20181029081908

I finally finished a long overdue series of mods on a nearly pristine Stampede I found on eBay last year. For the longest time I've wanted to figure out how this beast works and build a really decent blaster I would be happy taking to a Nerf war.

So I actually started with several used Stampedes that I picked up from various places on the web, and cherry picked the best parts while cataloging others for spare parts.

Mod #1 - AR Removal (aka Air Restrictectomy): All Stampedes benefit from an AR removal. Unlike modern era blasters, the AR in these classic N-Strikes is not designed to enhance longevity or performance. Out it goes.

The Stampede has at least a couple variants of the  plunger/breech action. The last AR removal I did was a piece of cake. All it took was two seconds with a wood chisel. This latest one, not so much. I needed a couple of spade bits and a forstner bit. I chose to leave the dart post in place as it's a good mechanism to stop darts from sliding too far down the barrel, and frankly I only ever use stock ammo when I'm shooting at people.

Mod #2 - 9kg Worker Stampede Kit: This kit includes a 9kg spring, a nice rubber pad for the plunger, a thicker O-ring, lube, and a gasket for the plunger tube. TBH, I did not use the gasket. The stock spring is 2-3kg, so this is a major improvement.

I read about Nerfers who claim they use 14kg springs. I think that's a recipe for disaster considering the age of these blasters. OMW makes an 8kg spring, and Worker makes a 9kg. The Worker is a whole kit, the OMW is just the spring. They're both excellent quality.

Mod #3 - Metal #2 Gear:  With a much improved spring, you have to deal with much increased torque in the gearbox. It's a five gear system, the last gear being part of a rack and pinion that slides the plunger tube forward and pulls the plunger back. The #2 gear (or #4 if you're counting from the power source) takes much of the load. This #2 gear from Shapeways is a very nice metal replacement that's plug 'n play compatible with the Stampede. A gear like this is the proper long-term solution for the torque problem. (Incidentally, I also bought a #3 gear, but it wasn't as nicely made, and frankly I don't think it's necessary)

Mod #4 - Lock Removal: Aye Caramba ! I've never seen so many locks. There are three Clip locks alone. For some reason, Hasbro does not want you to fire your Stampede without a clip in place. Probably a "safety thing". Whatever 😉

Bottom line, I removed three electronic switch locks, a mechanical trigger lock, and a Thermistor. There are two chokes (ferrite beads with wires wrapped around them) that should stay in place. They deal with high frequency motor noise that interferes with cell phones 'n stuff. Just leave them alone. Trust me, they don't reduce performance.

Mod #5 - More Batteries: Look, I'll admit it, I don't want to get into the RC LiPo thing. There are special batteries, special connectors, special chargers, different battery chemistries, max&min voltage issues, and physical size limitations. I just don't want to deal with all that crap. Not if I don't have to anyway.

IMRs are cheap, compatible, safe, have high energy density, and low weight. And did I mention they're cheap ? Bottom line, I wanted to design an IMR version of the Stampede that's reliable and cheap, with batteries that are compatible with most of my other blasters. In the end I found that two IMR packs of 4 batteries is perfect for the 9kg spring.

Essentially, I removed the D battery springs and wired two 4-AA battery holders in parallel, soldering them directly to the leads of the Stampede battery tray. And voilà, a transportable, variable voltage/amperage battery tray that's compatible with all my Stampedes.

And there you have it. An affordable, serviceable Stampede that can compete with virtually any combatant on the Nerf battleground. I don't have chrono results yet, but I can already tell it shoots hard and fast. Booyah Nerf brethren ! 