Thrawns Guard's ANH E11 blaster build

[Thrawn's guard]

Next I moved on to adding some further details to the folding stock. I cut some short sections of hollow plastic tube, (3.7mm outer diameter), and glued these in to position at the fork intersection. These hollow plastic tubes sections were taken from the inside of a ball point pen.

 

 

 

Though this next modification isn't easily visible, unless you look for it, I decided to add something a little extra, I drilled out an additional 2 holes in the folding stock which can them be seen from the side of the stock.

 

 

 

As I say this may be a little over the top but just gives me that little extra added realism and personally I think that it is worth it for the limited amount of additional work required.

[I'm Batman[501st]]

Looking good Chris. If you want to go that one extra step, which I know you do, you could do a bit more filing on the Hengstler, as got pointed out to me during my build. See post 221 below.

 

http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/29089-dvh-pipe-build-with-extras/page-12

 

There's also some good images in TK-50101 Blue Snaggletooths for sale thread at the moment.

 

Back to the scope screw discussion - that one you have securing the rail looks pretty good! Can't tell what the diameter is, but must be close...

[Thrawn's guard]

Ian thanks for the info on the Hengstler I'll have a good look through this.

 

EDIT I have just looked at this and this is a great additional piece of detailing which I will definitely incorporate later today. Also looking at Blue Snaggletooth's page referred to there is some further detailing that I will try to tidy up.

 

With regard to the screws I used to fix the rear of the scope rail with I have just measured them with some digital callipers and the dimensions are as follows:-

Screw head diameter = 5.8mm.

Thread diameter = 2.9mm.
Head thickness = 1.8mm.

Edited August 20, 2015 by Thrawn's guard

[Thrawn's guard]

Another quick update.

 

I marked out the position of the centre of the bayonet lug and the fixing position on the receiver then drilled small holes in each about 5mm deep.

 

 

I then pinned them with a short section of the 2mm diameter steel rod from the counter shown on the first page of this thread.

 

 

[Thrawn's guard]

Looking good Chris. If you want to go that one extra step, which I know you do, you could do a bit more filing on the Hengstler, as got pointed out to me during my build. See post 221 below.

 

http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/29089-dvh-pipe-build-with-extras/page-12

 

There's also some good images in TK-50101 Blue Snaggletooths for sale thread at the moment.

 

Back to the scope screw discussion - that one you have securing the rail looks pretty good! Can't tell what the diameter is, but must be close...

 

Further to Ian’s suggestion above and having reviewed the additional reference material referred to I decided to carry out a number of upgradesto my DD resin part to make it more accurate. So this is what I started with.

 

 

Firstly I marked out in pencil the area of resin that I needed to remove (using a small modelling file).

 

 

 

It isn’t until you start looking at the finer details that you realise how inaccurate this section of the kit is in particular the details to the front panel.

 

Therefore I decided to see what I could do to make it look more accurate. I measured the diameter of the cast resin concave recesses and then selected a wood drill bit of the same diameter (5mm). This was used to drill out a neat hole at each end of the 3 slots (Apologies for one of the photos as I seem to have had my finger obscuring part of the lens when I took it).

 

 

 

For the longer slots I drilled a further central hole and then used a mixture of a Dremel with a small sanding bit and files to smooth out the newly formed recesses. I also drilled holes for the two different sized circular concave recesses at the bottom of the front panel.

 

 

 

Once I had tidied up the new recesses I filled in the small guide holes formed by the wood drill bit with green stuff and installed the screws.

 

[AgeOfStrife]

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

Edited August 20, 2015 by AgeOfStrife

[I'm Batman[501st]]

Very nice 

[Twnbrother]

I really like what you did to the counter. It makes me want to take mine off and rework it... GREAT JOB!!!

[I'm Batman[501st]]

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 square area between them.

 

Dan

 

Ahh, thanks for adding the picture in a quote. Painful when it goes over to the next page.....

 

Yes and No - 90% of counters are as you say - the ones with a metal case. However the plastic case ones which the Doopy appears to be molded off has a solid section there. A bit hard to tell from Dennis' picture here:

 

 

But quite clear here:

 

 

You can even see the same number on this pic where the eagle logo is on other counters.

[Thrawn's guard]

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

Hey Dan I'm not 100% sure what you mean here. Do you photos above answer your query ?

 

I see what you mean now......Well now that I have read the past few posts. I think that I will keep it the way it is though if this proves to be not screen accurate it is a quick fix to alter if needed.

Edited August 20, 2015 by Thrawn's guard

[charlesnarles]

Some great ideas and execution here. Keep it up!

[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

Edited August 21, 2015 by AgeOfStrife

[Thrawn's guard]

The next job was to turn my attention to the folding stock.

 

I carefully sanded off the resin domes on the end of the folding stock arms and then marked out the centre position on both the stock arm and folding stock connection on the receiver.

 

 

Using a 3mm diameter wood drill bit I then drilled out the hols for the fixing screws. I also had to very slightly increase the diameter of these holes using a Dremel bit as I needed the hole to be just larger than 3mm diameter but a 4mm diameter bit would have made the connection too loose). I never thought when I started this build I would intentionally start working to tolerances of less than 1mm.

 

 

Taking a pointed Dremel sanding bit I then created a countersink recess to allow the screws once installed to sit flush with the folding stock arm.

 

 

Taking two upholstery nails, which provide me with a nice dome of the correct diameter, I measured the depth of the cross recess in the screw heads and then cut the pin section of the nail off with a cutting disk bit to leave a small projection just less than the depth of the cross depth.

 

 

 

This was done so that once I install the dome heads I will have a small amount of mechanical key i.e. pin effect in addition to the glued joint to make it more durable.

 

This is what it looked like when i had done.

 

 

 

I will fill the head of the screw with green stuff and then glue the domes in to position later (I want to be able to remove the folding stock for now).

[Thrawn's guard]

I've started work on the end cap clip and will aim to post some update pictures tomorrow.

In the meantime can I ask what peoples experiences have been with regard to the endcap ?

The Doopy kit endcap is very loose and will need some work to stabilise it. So far Bulldog's solution of incorporating rubber packs seems a good solution.

I may need to go seekering some suitable rubber sheet.

Edited August 22, 2015 by Thrawn's guard

[Twnbrother]

Chrs I wrapped some electrical tape around the D ring and then put in some green stuff.  It made it quite stiff and does not clank at all.

[Twnbrother]

Chris are both to the screws on the bottom of the counter slotted?  Looking at some pics it looks like the top screw is a phillips.  I could be wrong... just looking at photos online.

[Thrawn's guard]

Chris are both to the screws on the bottom of the counter slotted? Looking at some pics it looks like the top screw is a Phillips. I could be wrong... just looking at photos online.

Mike having double checked some reference pictures myself you are correct in that the screw located between the 2 electrical connector is a Phillips rather than single slotted type screw.

 

From what I can see it is a Phillips dome headed, rather than countersunk, screw head of about 4mm diameter.

 

Edited August 22, 2015 by Thrawn's guard

[Thrawn's guard]

I thought that I would post a quick video showing the end cap release clip that I have been working on.

 

I will show the steps involved later today.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-lgte-Uj0g

[T-Jay[TK]]

That video looks promising. Can't wait to see, if you used a spring from a pen or a stripe of spring steel...

 

Good work on the counter and the other mods so far. About the screw (Philips or slotted), this depends on the type of counter and when it was made. Meaning both screws are correct.

[Thrawn's guard]

As promised in my earlier post here are a few shots of how I created the end cap clip.

 

This was another one of those little jobs that turned out taking longer than expected..............Though one that I have really enjoyed.

 

Firstly I collected together the parts that I intended to use.

 

In order to have a functioning end cap clip I needed to remove the cast resin ‘tilt switch’ from the Doopydoos kit and install it in to the aluminium channel provided in TJ’s completion set.

 

 

I decided to use some spring steel, as was used on the original Sterlings, to provide the spring action. Therefore I also took one of the springs from the counter shown on the first page of this thread and bent it in to the correct shape (The spring from the counter is shown below).

 

 

The first task was to remove the resin cast channel which was achieved by use of a cutting disk on a Dremel and also some fine nail files. Once this had been done I marked out the remaining area of the resin that needed to be removed so that I would be left with just the tilt switch.

 

 

The tilt switch was test fit in the aluminium channel to ensure that it fit correctly.

 

 

The holes in the 2 walls of the channel which locate the pivot pin were then drilled using a 3.2mm diameter drill bit. I held the channel in a plumbers spanner, (wrench), as I drilled the holes as the channel tends to get hot when the holes are drilled.

 

 

 

Once drilled I found a nail that fit tightly in to the holes in the channel walls. This nail was then marked up to be cut to length, (slightly shorter than the overall width of the channel), and would form the actual pivot pin. The spring reshaped in to the correct shape for the clip is shown below.

 

 

The most difficult part was actually forming a hole in the spring steel for the fixing screw to pass through (I didn’t have a suitably small drill bit for use on metal). However once cut the spring was located in the correct position and used as a template to drill through in to the resin tilt switch.

 

 

 

The locating screw had to be cut to length as it was too long. Glue was then applied to the spring and resin tilt switch and the screw installed.

 

 

Once assembled this is what it looks like.

 

 

I will add the key on the end of the Tee section of the tilt switch once I have sorted out the end cap to ensure that all is located in the correct position.

Edited August 22, 2015 by Thrawn's guard

[T-Jay[TK]]

Chris, its simply fun to watch you building that thing

 

Noticed just one thing: your resin part is parallel to the aluminum part, while the real thing is higher on the side with the pattern and lower on the T-side. Is that something you can still recreate?

[Thrawn's guard]

Tino - I should be able to recreate the sloping tilt switch.

 

The reason that it is currently sits horizontally is because the head of the screw touches the base of the channel. Once I find an alternative screw with a shallower head, which will allow the sloped position, I can push out the pivot pin, take the end cap clip apart and replace the screw.

 

It will be an easy fix but finding the correct screw may take some time unless I get lucky.

[Thrawn's guard]

I will be starting to look at the end cap either later today or tomorrow and just want to check a minor detail before I start cutting and calving.

 

My aim is to recreate something like MOD B shown in Chapter 21 of the FISD E-11 BLASTER REFERENCE i.e. to cut a recess for the ring holder to fit in to the main end cap. As I understand it the ring holder should project very slightly from the end cap rather than being flush.

 

Is this correct and if so how much projection should there be ?

 

Also if anyone has any photos of the end cap from a real Sterling that they could post it would be very helpful.

[Twnbrother]

With both screws being correct I like the looks of all slotted screws.

[charlesnarles]

I like how simple your catch action is. Kudos <br><br>

I'd post it here if I could figure out how to on the new server...&amp;lt;br&amp;gt;&lt;br&gt;<br><br>

But the pic at the bottom of my airsoft thread:&amp;lt;br&amp;gt;&lt;br&gt;<br><br>

&amp;lt;a data-ipb='nomediaparse' href='&lt;a class="bbc_url" href="<a class="bbc_url" href="<a class="bbc_url" href="http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/31522-stairsoft-sterling-l2a1-to-e11-build-thread/page-2#entry422877%27">http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/31522-stairsoft-sterling-l2a1-to-e11-build-thread/page-2#entry422877%27">http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/31522-stairsoft-sterling-l2a1-to-e11-build-thread/page-2#entry422877%27"&gt;http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/31522-stairsoft-sterling-l2a1-to-e11-build-thread/page-2#entry422877'&amp;gt;http://www.whitearmor.net/forum/topic/31522-stairsoft-sterling-l2a1-to-e11-build-thread/page-2#entry422877&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;&amp;lt;br&amp;gt;&amp;lt;br&amp;gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;</a><br></a><br>

You can see its resting just barely above the rest of the cap, the oil helping to catch the tiny glint. Hope that helps

Edited August 22, 2015 by charlesnarles