Description
The Nerf Blaster Modification Guide has all you need to know to create a cooler-looking Nerf Blaster with increased range, projectile speed, and firing capacity. Luke Goodman—better known on YouTube as “Out of Darts”—guides readers through the basics of Nerf’s two main propulsion systems and provides simple mods that kids and their parents can make to their foam blasters.
Nerf Blasters, first introduced in the 1980s, are experiencing a Renaissance! Nerf Blasters are back to being one of the hottest toys on the market and have spawned a YouTube phenomenon of DIYers showing off the modifications and tweaks they’ve made to their blasters.
With the modifications detailed in this guide, your Nerf Blaster will not only perform better, but look cooler, too. The guide includes sci-fi, history-, and steampunk-inspired paint jobs.
Every project comes with easy-to-follow instructions, which are completely illustrated with step-by-step studio photography; so you’ll never get confused. So what are you waiting for? Transform your off-the-rack Nerf Blaster into something awesome!
From the Publisher
Contents of The Nerf Blaster Modification Guide: The Unofficial Handbook for Making Your Foam Arsenal Even More Awesome
Welcome to the World of Nerf Modding!
Nerf blasters are more popular than ever! In 2016, Hasbro sold $1.1 billion in Nerf toys. There is a large, growing community of Nerf players and modding fans. Also, more and more organized games are popping up across the United States and around the world. Humans vs. Zombies (known as ‘HvZ’) is one such popular game. All players start as humans, but once tagged by a zombie, they join the horde. Played mostly on college campuses, HvZ games can last up to a week. ‘Endwar’ attracted almost 400 HvZ players to Athens, Ohio, in 2017.
Getting s tarted:The basics
You’ll need a range of tools for your Nerf workshop. Each mod in this book begins with a list of required tools and supplies. On pages 12 to 17 are the main ones I use every day to mod Nerf blasters. You don’t need all of these, especially when building your first toolkit. A tidy workshop will help you complete mods faster and with fewer mistakes. Every tool in my shop has a place. Unless I’m in the middle of a project, it stays there. Adam Savage from MythBusters said, “Drawers are where tools go to die.” I couldn’t agree more.
Blaster safety
Safety isn’t the most exciting topic to discuss when it comes to Nerf blasters. However, safety is more important in this growing hobby than ever before. More people are involved today, and the blasters have way better performance specs. Besides, nothing can ruin a fun competition or Nerf get-together than an injury to yourself or a fellow player. This is especially true if that injury is caused by reckless play. Plus, good safety practices can even save you from ruining a battery or a blaster.
The Nerf Blaster Modification Guide: The Unofficial Handbook for Making Your Foam Arsenal Even More Awesome
Types of blasters and how they work
Nerf uses four primary sources of propulsion in current blasters: springs, electricity, air, and elastic. Each has its own advantages in gameplay. Each also has its own challenges when it comes to modding. For example, spring powered blasters (called ‘springers’) require no electrical knowledge and can be very simple to mod. Electric blasters have the highest fire rates but require soldering and basic electrical skills.
Springer basics
A spring is a metal coil that returns to its original form after compression (squeezing), extension (stretching), torsion (twisting), or constant force (stretching).Replacing springs is fairly simple. First, we open the blaster, being careful to keep track of where all the parts came from. Then we remove the stock spring. If we want, we can lubricate the plunger tube with Super Lube or white lithium grease.
Step-by-step mods: Springers
Springers are the best introduction to Nerf modding. With a $4 spring and a screwdriver, you can easily increase your range and fps by 40 to 80 percent! In this chapter, we learn three complete springer mods: the Nerf Triad, the Nerf Rival Kronos, and the Nerf Recon MKII. The trickiest part of springer modification usually involves taking the blaster apart.
Electrical and soldering basics
Understanding the basics of electricity is helpful in Nerf modding. It lets you do more than just copy a tutorial (though there is nothing wrong with that). Learning these ideas and skills will help you fix problems, create your own circuits, and work more easily. In this book we discuss DC (direct current) circuits only. DC is the constant flow of electricity through a circuit.
Step-by-step mod: Nerf elite stryfe
Electric-powered flywheel blasters are king when it comes to high rates of fire. Battery power is also generally needed for full-auto blasters. The Nerf Stryfe is easily the most popular flywheel blaster ever produced. Since its introduction in 2013, three versions have been released. It’s also extremely versatile, with a wide range of accessories available.
3D Printing
Three-dimensional (3D) printing has taken Nerf mods by storm. It opens a whole world of possibilities. In just ten years, prices of 3D printers have dropped from tens of thousands of dollars to just hundreds.
Painting
Painting is the ultimate step in personalizing a blaster. Many modders paint their blasters to match props from movies, TV shows, and video games. Others come up with something completely unique. Tom from Foam Data Services says, ‘Preparation is the most important part of painting. Paint won’t hide anything.’ What Tom means is that paint won’t cover up mistakes.
Advanced mods and inspiration
There is a whole world of potential beyond the basic Nerf mods we’ve covered in this book. As YouTuber Lord Draconical says, ‘Blasters are like days—they all have room for improvement.’ Studying the work of others heavily inspires my own mods and designs. I tend to look for things that people haven’t done yet. But I often incorporate concepts from others for the best possible design.
Publisher : Young Voyageur; New edition (October 16, 2018)
Language : English
Flexibound : 120 pages
ISBN-10 : 076035782X
ISBN-13 : 978-0760357828
Reading age : 8 – 13 years
Grade level : 3 – 8
Item Weight : 2.31 pounds
Dimensions : 8.25 x 0.6 x 9.2 inches
