AgeOfStrife

Ah, didn't realise that the DD version was based on the plastic one. In that case I should full that raised area back in and also paint over again to lose the brass weathering. That pic you've posted also doesn't have the screw on the top of the rear half, but the DD cast does have a screw there. Dan

On that last photo, see the straight raised part across the side from top to bottom so it looks like two T shapes joined as one? The middle of that needs removing so the two Ts are separate with a gap the size of the side of the recessed square area between them. I haven't found screws small enough for the two on the front so I'll be leaving then out for now on my own build, but I'll come back to refer to your photos when I do. Dan

Thanks to Thrawn's Guard's blaster build topic, and a post from Sith Lord in that topic, I've added the electrical contacts to the counter and filed out the undercut below these on the front of the counter. At some point I need to stop adjusting the blaster and leave it be Dan

The contacts on the counter are a mod I haven't done on mine, will have to do it sometime. Looks like I've got female spade connectors in my toolbox but not the male ones needed for this so I'll have to pop out and get a couple. Did you also shave off the extra bit of resin on the side of the counter (left hand side when mounted on the blaster, facing outwards) where the two T pieces are joined next to the recessed square area? Dan

The counter is finally done. I've adjusted the inside to allow for a thicker reset button, got the wheels closer together, and if I ever find a strong spring thin enough to fit (needs to be about 2mm diameter, the ball point ones I have are too wide to fit) I can take it apart and have the reset button sprung - it does move, but needs to be pulled out manually. The small screw on top is from a UK mains plug, was a perfect size match yo the one on the DD resin cast. This screw fits into the internal structure and keeps it in place. On the bracket side a hole goes through the cover and into the resin, so it's firmly mounted. It's had a few coats of black paint, the front half had an undercoat of brass and a little sanding prior to satin varnish to give it a weathered look. At this point I think I'm done. I'm happy with the result, and I don't want to risk ruining it by trying to do anything else. Even managed to get it on display in the living room, I think my wife is warming to it I'll try to get some good pictures of the finished blaster later this week, it's got dark here in the UK now and the pics I took earlier are a little blurry. Dan

The mechanical counter finally arrived from China It's a bit larger than the resin counter half, so I needed to dismantle it, shorten the numbers overall width from 40mm to 35mm, and rebuild enough of it in a new frame so that it looks close enough to a Hengstler at a Haldane at a glance. I made an outer casing from 5 pieces of plasticard 1.5mm thick, and cut a slot in the face. The clear window piece from the counter was trimmed to fit, including sanding down 5mm the curved part. An inner frame was made from some more plasticard, and holes drilled to allow the for the wheels and the cogs to fit. The cogs will prevent the wheels from moving on their own, but allow the numbers to be changed later if required. The numbers were set to 181408 (I don't have a 501st ID, this is made up from important dates to my family), and inserted into the casing. This left a 12mm recess, and the resin counter was sawn and then trimmed to allow the casing to fit snugly, and the screw to mount to the scope rail bracket will hold the casing in place, allowing it to be removed and adjusted as needed. The reset button is just a small piece if plasticard, it doesn't move as the inner frame is in the way, although I may be able to get it to move later. I need to tidy up the resin edges and then get it painted, but I think this is as close as I can get to the real thing with £2.29 of parts and some scrap plasticard. Dan

I'm aware of the bolt heads, it allows me to remove the stock if needed. I may well fill with green stuff and paint, if I did need to remove it in the future I should be able to dig it out and get a hex bit in.

And now the paint is dry I've got a way to display the blaster. Still need to find a spot to put it on the living room, might need move a few of my figures and DVDs around. My wife has already said that the middle of the dining table is not a suitable place for it Dan

I'm still waiting for the counter parts to arrive, so this weekend I've decided to make a stand from some scrap wood I had in the garage. It's really simple but should do the job for now. The DD counter has been undercoated and given a coat of black, but will be removed and drilled out when the parts arrive, so will look a little different when it's finished. Also used some more wood to make a simple helmet stand, it's just two discs cut with a hole saw and a piece of dowel. Dan

Thanks to using a really good epoxy resin glue there was no way to remove the rear sight in one piece. Instead I used green stuff to smooth the front edges, bulk out the rear edge to add ridges to, and add the sight ring into the base. Hopefully it'll look OK when painted. Dan

Post the video to YouTube, then copy the link to it and paste it into your post it here on the forum and it'll automatically turn it into and embedded video. That's how I did the video clip of the rear lock in my own blaster build thread. Dan

I'll add paint to the grip screw and nut when I get the counter mounted. I'll probably have a few little touchups to do around the blaster to finish it off. As to the rear sight, yes it's the wrong way round. Doh! I guess I could file smooth the front half, file ridges into the rear half, and then use GS to add the ring onto the base. I don't think I've got much chance of removing it in one piece to be able to turn it around. Dan

So close, but not quite finished yet. Still waiting for parts for the counter, but I've put the rest of the blaster together. The power cylinders got a simple mod, adding threads and nuts to both ends and some wire into the gap at the back. The D ring was replaced with a 4mm thick steel chain link which looks far better than the one in the DD kit. It's been painted with primer, then pewter spray (darker than silver), satin black, gloss clear coat, and then satin clear coat (leaving the grip with just the gloss clear coat) Next I'll look at making a stand from clear acrylic while I'm waiting for the laat package from China. Dan

Got the rear stock lock modded too. Cut the outer casing away with a dremel saw blade, then made a new one out of PVC U channel. Cut a ballpoint spring down, drilled a 1mm hole and used some 1mm carbon fibre rod I've had kicking around for years (used some of this for the trigger on the blaster too). Only took a few minutes, should hold the rear cap in place nicely and allow it to be removed if necessary. Added a video on Youtube here: Dan

The recess in the receiver is just under 1 inch deep now. The mag has about 1 1/4 inch to fit inside, so I sawed about 1/3 inch off the mag to get it to sit snug. I have managed to trail resin flakes into the house a few times after routing or drilling, at least my wife is understanding I'd also recommend doing this before painting the blaster, I'd already put on a primer, metal base, and black top coat. I'll now paint up the mag separately, then add one more black top coat to bring it all together. Dan

Got a magazine from gazmosis today, the detail on it is amazing. Took a little while to open up the receiver, used my Dremel with a couple of different sizes routing bits. I'm really happy with how this has come out, much better than the plain mag that comes with the DD kit. Made a bit of a mess in the garage though .... Dan

I thought they were originals, but I could be wrong. I'll try and find them again at the weekend. I think I've got a small choc block kicking around in my tool shed with the right size and colour screws, so might be able to get away without having to try to paint them. Dan

I did find some photos a few weeks ago with brass screws for those, but i can't find them now. I'll look at painting them when I've got everything else done. Dan

I think I've finished with the scope. The painting is done, with a brass undercoat, and black top coat with the underside of the feet masked with tape and the tiny screw heads with blutac. A few areas got a quick rub with fine sandpaper, and the lettering with some white acrylic paint. Finally a satin clear coat sealed it all to help prevent chipping. http://www.ageofstrife.com/download/file.php?id=3050&mode=view http://www.ageofstrife.com/download/file.php?id=3051&mode=view Finally the front screws and lenses were put in. No glue was used, the screws have cut their own threads, and the lenses were a very tight fit - I didn't think they were going to go all the way in. Also now have a magazine from gazmosis ordered, so can't finish the blaster till it arrives. Got a few details to sort out yet though. Hopefully another couple of weeks and I'll have it finished. Dan

Lots of progress today, but didn't get chance to take many pics. Scope rail, inner barrel (made from a metal tube from wind chime, with bits if PVC pipe glued to each end so it fits snugly into the DD barrel), and stock are painted black and hanging to dry. Bolt pieces have been glued together, and ejector port bolt strip has been added using green stuff, and a matching piece added to the bolt. Scope has been undercoated, need to get some brass paint before continuing with it. Not sure whether to spray it brass, then black, and use a little sandpaper to weather it, or paint it black and then drybrush with brass. The counter is going to wait for a bit as I've just ordered a D-94 6 digit counter from from China for £2.30 (about $3.50), when it arrives I'll hollow out the resin counter and figure out how to fit the parts. Until it arrives I can still get the parts glued to the outer barrel, and get the power cylinders prepped and pinned. I can also get everything painted ready for the final assembly. Dan

Picked up some T plates from the local DIY store, and with a bend, a cut, and a hole drilled the counter is shifted forward so it's back edge I'd lined up with the rear of the scope mount. It's more rigid too as its now held by both scope screws rather than just the back one. Got a small (55mm x 65mm) piece of 3mm perspex for 99p today, enough to make 4 or 5 counter displays. Will have a go at one over the weekend, hopefully I can shape and polish it without to much trouble. I've got a box of spare stuff building up, should be almost enough to detail a pipe build in the future Dan

Thanks T-Jay. I'll try and adjust it tomorrow and post up new pics. Dan

Got the scope mounted to the rail, and a small steel bracket cut to fit the counter. I've tried placing the counter to match most of the photos I found online, with the rear of the counter aligned with the rear of the scope and the top of the counter aligned with the middle of the scope height. Does the counter look to be in the right position? Lots of little bits still to do, looking forward to the final dismantle to wash all the parts, glue where required, and get some paint on it. Dan

Worked on shaping the front sight, used the Dremel to take out most of the resin, and then shaped the end of a screw using a metal cutting disc into a sight pin. Also made a scope rail, and drilled the rear sight to fit a screw. Also sanded of the strip on the ejector but didn't take a photo, will add a new strip of thin plastic in the correct position. So far everything is screwed on, nothing glued yet. Dan

Got a little more done today. Drilled out the screws in the grip, and pinned the trigger so it works, although haven't glued and trimmed the pin yet. There's also a small spring on the back of the trigger. Also used a cut nail for the ARS selector switch, with a hole that it fits tightly into so won't fall out. Dan