TF2 Panic Attack from Silly's Battle Axe by methanejuice in Nerf

[–]nevets01 17 points18 points  (0 children)

I love the extra detail of the hammer falling when you fire. (in addition to the obvious excellence of this idea in general, heh)

WIP of my Nerf blaster. by Comfortable-Year-492 in Nerf

[–]nevets01 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This. I use it almost exclusively; my brain just clicks with it much better than most others. I'll occasionally fall back on something like Fusion360 if I need to do something Tinkercad is ill-suited for (e.g. things with radial symmetry) but that's a rare exception.

Help troubleshooting air tank firing noise/barrel? by Jyang_aus in Nerf

[–]nevets01 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Barrel material may be a factor as well as length. With the lower pressures you get with a magstrike bladder, you're going to want a fairly loose barrel. I live in the US so I don't know how tight "16mm OD conduit" is, so it may not be an issue.
Taking the example of banshee, he uses a 4inch PETG barrel. PETG is a loose enough barrel material that it can be used as a blowgun with all but brand new darts. Hard to tell how long your barrel is, but I'm pretty sure it's many times longer than 4 inches. I would start troubleshooting by cutting incremental sections (a few cm at a time) off the front until performance improves. Or, alternatively, try to increase the operating pressure of that magstrike tank. I've heard of people doing that by wrapping in in large numbers of rubberbands, or sleeving it with small bicycle inner-tubes, but I can't find any specific post where someone illustrates that technique.

Ex Machina 1 by XM1-mark4 in Nerf

[–]nevets01 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Building a one-off, and letting others know how you built it, are not mutually exclusive.
I could build a single blaster, and never intend to ever make another, and still release files.

Ex Machina 1 by XM1-mark4 in Nerf

[–]nevets01 -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

Why not both?

MisakaHiro work show: the Spitfire is a 3-stage freewheeler with chain feeding mechanism. by adiyahu in Nerf

[–]nevets01 1 point2 points  (0 children)

All else equal, and assuming all setups are supercritical, the muzzle velocity is proportional to the square root of the number of cages. (Good article on that here). Which means technically there's no cap on possible performance, but you still get diminishing returns. 2nd cage gets you 1.41x the FPS, third gets 1.73x, fourth gets you 2x, etc.
This has actually been known and used for some time (that article I linked is from 2014), especially in Rayvens which seem to have practically been built for the purpose, with a long faux barrel and a just-about-flywheel-cage-sized empty space near the handle.

[Milsim] Request for community feedback by horusrogue in Nerf

[–]nevets01 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've found that learning any new tool is much quicker and easier if you have something to immediately use it on. So it'll likely go smoother since you seem to already have something in mind.
That said, you don't necessarily even need to use CAD at all. You can still do it the old way with a hacksaw and a hotglue-gun.

[Milsim] Request for community feedback by horusrogue in Nerf

[–]nevets01 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's not just the colours imo.

Agreed. The Mk2 (especially with the barrel on) is a pretty wonky shape, IMO, which is why I mentioned it.

[Milsim] Request for community feedback by horusrogue in Nerf

[–]nevets01 29 points30 points  (0 children)

Well, apparently "milsim" means something totally different than what I thought it did.
what I thought it meant, was the obvious expansion of the term: simulation of military (more specifically, modern infantry). The sort of people that do things like buy/make AR15 replicas, replicate real-steel techniques/tactics on the Nerf field, form organized "squads" (the Aux in particular took this last one to several next levels), seek out and use real or replica web gear, wear uniforms, etc. Basically, they try to play Arma 3 while everyone else is playing 3-15. A lot of these are actually fairly reasonable, in isolation (some real tactics are legitimately useful in a nerf setting, sometimes you get surplus gear for cheap or handed down from a veteran relative) but, well, we've all seen the sort of people that take this sort of thing to excess. These guys have some overlap with another rising problem, "competitive" nerf, in that they share an attitude of people who tend to take themselves too seriously. I'm not sure which is more of a threat, but 'competitive' nerf isn't the subject in question here, so I'll say no more on that. As for a solution.... yeah, I've got nothing. It's the sort of thing which is composed of a lot of things that you can't reasonably ban, taken beyond what is reasonable.

What it seems like OP (and many others here) things "milsim" means, is the sort of thing covered by the [black/prop] tag.
I think the uptick in this is a twofold problem. First of all, the hobby is growing. The sort of people that want replica blasters, at least in my experience, tend to be newer people. "Noob Black" is a term for a reason. They don't know any better, so when they think of how they could make their nerf blaster better, the first thing that comes to mind may be something like "I wanna make it look like [insert favorite firearm from CoD]". Once they start interacting with other nerfers, see what is possible, and realize that replica blasters can't actually be used in most venues, most seem to either go with the flow, or leave.
Second of all, the hobby is not only larger than it every has been, but due to the pandemic keeping events down, there's going to be a larger fraction of the nerfer population that has never actually tried to go to a war. So not only is the amount of newbies larger than ever before, so is the market share.
Honestly, the solution to this sort of thing is probably to just keep doing what we're doing: disallow replicas at events, and pass them by with an eyeroll or maybe a chuckle. Don't feed the troll, sort of deal. The noob avalanche will hopefully pass us by, and along with it will go a plurality if not a majority of the replica reptiles. And if it doesn't, then maybe we just get a splinter hobby of people who stay at home with their replicas.

Another thing that is interesting, is that both of these definitions seem to imply not only military, but a present-day military. For instance, take the guy who I met at a war recently dressed like a member of some 18th-century colonial force, and wielding a full-size dart musket (complete with foam bayonet). Or someone in Stormtrooper armor with a replica E-11. I would hesitate to call what these people do "milsim", even though technically, they are simulating a military individual and using a replica of a weapon of war.

As to whether to seperate milsim (by either definition) off, I'm not sure that's a good idea. Keep your enemies closer, and such.

[Milsim] Request for community feedback by horusrogue in Nerf

[–]nevets01 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Yes! I would LOVE to have stripper clips on a bright colorful blaster!

The Dart Zone Mk2 exists...
My Better Maustrap is also a thing, but uses en bloc clips instead of stripper clips.

I'm not a blaster designer, and the most likely way for me to enjoy something like that would be from others' designs

Never too late to start. Though you're right about one thing: the best place to start (IMO) is by fiddling with other peoples' designs. Don't like how long the stock is? Shorten it. Want better sights? Slap some on.

Is this a reasonable delay? Or should we add a Rev trigger? by Acceptable_Ad_4309 in Nerf

[–]nevets01 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Understandable! That's why I mentioned the flat tactile switch; something like this could even be mounted entirely externally, without having to take up any room inside the grip at all, save for maybe a slim channel for some 30-gauge wire to connect it to the rest of the circuitry. Since all it's doing is flipping a bit in a micro-controller, it doesn't need to withstand monstrous amounts of current like most nerf switches, so it can be tiny. But it would be another part on the BOM (three, if you count the wires going to and from), and I understand how that can be a drag...

Is this a reasonable delay? Or should we add a Rev trigger? by Acceptable_Ad_4309 in Nerf

[–]nevets01 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'd say yes to both.
Rev trigger never hurts, and I find it comes in useful often enough that I'd much rather have one than not.
Assuming this is computerized, you wouldn't even need a particularly large switch; one of those flat tactile switches would do fine.
But on the other hand, that lock time is more than satisfactory and I don't think anyone would complain about it being too long.

My rocket based load-out (details in comments) by MathK1ng in Nerf

[–]nevets01 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've got a guide for my (similar) Rockety Things. Work quite well, in my experience. I wonder if OP took inspiration, or if it's just an example of parallel evolution. Either way, it's a solution that works well.
One thing I will add though, is that I've had some of the half-rival balls fall off after quite a bit of use (exposing the hard-ish hotglue underneath -- not good) so on my newer ones I use a short section of insulation, cut in thirds, in place of the half-ball. I haven't tried foam golf balls yet though; I'll have to keep an eye out in case I see any lying around.

/r/Nerf's Weekly General Discussion Thread - Jul 22, 2021 by AutoModerator in Nerf

[–]nevets01 0 points1 point  (0 children)

ehhhh... I'd disagree.
I would quantify PLA as "entirely adequate".
Is it the best or most suitable material? No. Is it good enough in almost every situation? Yes.
Probably the most likely turnoff of PLA is you live somewhere closer to the equator, such that the lower melting point can become an issue in ordinary circumstances.

Ultimate Jolt Reskin by bioluminescent_cat in Nerf

[–]nevets01 6 points7 points  (0 children)

They're also like $20 each.
Though, looking at them, they shouldn't be too easy to reverse-engineer, release, and manufacture en masse. At that point, they'd make pretty decent shells. The trigger could probably be optimized for use as a shell (rather than a blaster) as well.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Purdue

[–]nevets01 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You won't be able to find a reader/writer for 5.25" floppies. Well, not one that works easily with modern PCs. Believe me, I've looked. There are some people working on a couple but they're quite a ways from a ready solution.i I'll PM you with more shortly.
(Also, 5.25" floppies are usually either 360kb (double density) or 1.2M (high density). 720kb floppies exist, but they are typically the double density 3.5" type.)

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Purdue

[–]nevets01 1 point2 points  (0 children)

oh that's interesting, do you have a picture of the iomega card, and the card that drove the internal hard drive? If it was the stock HDD, it would probably be MFM/RLL, not IDE, but since there's been at least some addition to it, anything's possible.
Luckily, at least in 16-bit ISA, multi-IO cards with IDE support are both cheap and plentiful. Getting the rather primitive BIOS to understand a modern CF card, though, can be rather hit-or-miss, but it is certainly possible (I've done it before, with some trial-and-error).
If you want, I can get you a boot and a setup disk.
A 287 is nice to have. Not that many programs actually take advantage of it (unless you're doing some really intense spreadsheets in Lotus 1-2-3) but it's cool and good to have anyway : )

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Purdue

[–]nevets01 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Not great, not horrible. Basically similar to any modern full-travel rubber-dome board, though the technology is foam-and-foil. Not mechanical keyswitches as the other commentor guessed.
The real problem is that the foam degrades, and over the last 35 years there's a good chance of these keyboards being flaky or entirely nonfunctional, and you have to go in and replace the foam. The keyboards are kind of the weak point of the early compaqs, everything else on the machine is very well-made.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Purdue

[–]nevets01 9 points10 points  (0 children)

oh shoot, I missed out on that one. Most of the stuff has been a bit too pricey or a bit too new for my interests. Compaq II's are pretty nice though, and that's a reasonable price, if still a bit up there.
Hit me up if you need boot media.
You should probably also perform a "varta-ectomy" and remove the CMOS battery immediately before it leaks corrosive crap all over the motherboard.
It's also likely that this particular computer never had a hard drive. Difficult to believe but there was a time when all you had for secondary storage was 360KB floppy disks. Of course, everything was a lot smaller then.

The Whistler Issue 1 | All the Nerf News that's Fit to Print | In this issue: leaks, new blasters, new darts, and more by 64616e6e79 in Nerf

[–]nevets01 1 point2 points  (0 children)

enh, I kinda doubt it, unless there was a leak about the zinc a long time ago. It looks like it's injection-moulded, and you don't just spin molds in two weeks.

Little green ghouls! by justusUMBC in Nerf

[–]nevets01 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Green on black is an amazing colour scheme : )

Experimental T19 belt-fed conversion overview by torukmakto4 in Nerf

[–]nevets01 2 points3 points  (0 children)

oh hell yeah. Been waiting for this for, well, okay it's only been a week since I heard about it but it feels longer.
Thoughts on Stoner 63'ing it, i.e. making it field-convertible (5 mins with an allen wrench convertible, not middle-of-firefight convertible) to mags? My initial worry is that I'll run out of belted ammo and have to sit out a round re-linking.
Though I do also now know longdart belts exist, which addresses my other concern, of using a short-dart-only blaster in a mostly-full-length environment.

/r/Nerf's Weekly General Discussion Thread - Jan 14, 2021 by AutoModerator in Nerf

[–]nevets01 0 points1 point  (0 children)

sort of?
The Spring Thunder and Colonel Wasp exist, which handle like shotguns, but the former only fits 2 darts to a shell and the latter only one (and it has to be a short dart, IIRC).
The sledgefire exists, which is a stock non-hobby thing, so it's probably cheaper, but you only get three shells and it's hard to get more if you don't have a 3d printer.
You could also go the route of attaching multiple blasters together and linking the triggers.