My heavily modified hybrid blaster - 2016 updates.

[BeastMaster]

looking good! Though a key thing to change is the grips/frame/buttplate. you might be able to get the metal versions from michele. do you still need those button heads btw?

that bindpost is looking sweet! don't suppose you got another andy?
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"F*ck it, it's just a movie. Let him worry about it" Harrison Ford

[joberg]

Never use acetone/thinner on plastic or resin I would use therpentine (térébentine in french) and yes, it's probably better to use a mix of an off-white latex paint to achieve ''the look''.

[kurtyboy]

Anyone got a good idea to create convincing rust?

[kurtyboy]

I hear ya Ed, but if I did that I'm Verging on a complete upgrade of the whole blaster LOL!

I'll probably replace the butt plate but I can live with the grips/frame... for now.

[kurtyboy]

Tried the polish method. Looks okay but I need to add more. I did try white paint but I just couldn't get the right amount to be left behind in the grooves. with both methods I just can't seem to get an even amount left all over so it looks a bit patchy.


Also re-pained and weathered my grip frame. Notice the 'kidney' shaped hole has been filled in.

[The Loyalizer]

[kurtyboy]

The polish residue wears away too easily even in the grooves believe it or not. No way it would still be there today.

Maybe the chequered part of the grips was painted white and its worn off the high spots. I don't suppose there are any photos from filming that show white there?

[andy]

I tried the scratch method, by scratching the inner part of the pattern with an X-acto blade to simulate the checkering tool and it actually seemed to emulate the look pretty well. I think it is very likely that these are the master grips that were checkered into colored plastic/acrylic, and then ground and polished. if you combine the texture of the cutting tool, with any possible leftover polish, and a bit of drywall dust stuck into that I think you have exactly the right mixture for this look.

Andy

[nostromo20]

I realise this is an old thread, but Im doing similar upgrade of sidtkit and looking for complete set of screws (including the large slotted one where weaver knob goes) & LED holders. Any idea how I go about getting them? Have also seen some folks had a stamp for the 5223 on steyr - are these available anywhere?

Thanks
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Jim

[DeckB26354]

Fab work. Well done.

I particularly like the paint job on the grip frame. 1st class.

[kurtyboy]

How time flies! Five years on and some more upgrades. New Coyle Steyr receiver, ammo holder and clip, side plates and sight rod plus Mspaw machined butt plate and barrel. Also stamped the receiver with the serial number and finally wired up the green LEDs.





And my little BR collection (the vinyl album on the right is from Shawshank Redemption).

[Bwood]

The ammo assembly doesn't appear to be parallel to the barrel. Is this just a photographic anomaly?

[kurtyboy]

Unfortunately it's the only way I could get it attached to the barrel. The hex bolt isn't long enough for some reason even though it's the one I got with the parts.

[kurtyboy]

It's refurbishment time again!

Here's how it looked in 2013. I got the ammo box to sit parallel but the mag plate/ammo mag is too tall and uneven so sticks out too far at the back. The right side cover sat too high up and I was never happy with the fit of the rear cap in the receiver and the un-sanded or blued parts weren't very pretty.





So I deceided to work on it some more. Unfortunately with all the handling I suffered the dreaded receiver break...

First attempt at fixing it using an old Sidkit round. I took Rich's advice and also added a brass pin between the two parts.


Since this has been a constantly evolving blaster now made up of parts from no less than four different models, modifications were sometimes required to get the parts to fit together. That's why I ended up with two holes in the bulldog receiver right side so I decided to fill them so I can drill a new hole in the right place.


Also filled the hole for the front of the ride side cover. Will drill a new one in the right place later.


Drilled a separate hole for a countersunk screw to hold the Steyr reciver down. Makes it more secure and easier to work on.


Added a small hidden screw to the front.


Rear cap fits the receiver a bit better but needs improvement, so taking inspiration from Beast Master I will work on that later...


Unfortunately the receiver broke at the other weak spot. So I decided to re-break the repair and put a thicker brass pin through the entire area this time.




Filled some bad holes near the front of the receiver. I hope to eventually fill nearly all the imperfections although this process could take months...


Some more work on the rear cap/receiver fit.


Filing and reshaping...


At this point I realized the corners of the receiver are supposed to be rounded to match the rear cap. Also notice I've filled the surplus second holes in the Sidkit Bulldog receiver where the top of the grip frame attaches.


More filling and reshaping...




Still some fine tuning and clean up to do but a big improvement.


I'm going to wait until I get a spare metal part from Rich before I do more filling as I can still make out some of the edges of some of the areas I've filled so far.

[hirohawa]

Wow. That is some serious dedication and bravery to reshape those metal parts.

That's what I love about the blaster is how modular all the parts are.

[Bwood]

kurtyboy, you have some skills!
Also, did the additional links I posted help you in your quest for pewter black?

[joberg]

Yo! Major surgery on that gun mate Well, it's looking good so far.
Keep us posted!

[Buch]

How did you go about adding metal to the different parts?
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Monsieur, azonnal kövessen engem bitte

[kurtyboy]

Bwood: Still no pewter black. There's lead black but I'm worried it doesn't give the same finish since the pewter is lead free. This is the final step anyway and Rich is going to try sending me some.

Buch: Melt the pewter with a solder iron, pick some up on the tip of the iron and press it onto the area to be repaired. It's tricky as it solidifies instantly and very hard to re-melt and move around once it's on. You end up putting on a lot more than needed then spend ages grinding/filing it down.

It seems to be impossible to make it 100% seamless so I'm hoping that's due to a difference between the Sidkit metal and Rich's metal.

Also tried lead free solder but while filing it down it sometimes comes off, especially when filling a very small hole or shallow area.

[Buch]