Newbie 3D print build for Newbies - finished!

[Big Deal]

Great job!

[wook1138[TK]]

I was going to do a big "lessons learned" post, but things are busy and I'm old and tired.  So, I will comment on a few of the issues I had with getting the kit together.

 

The two tough parts of the build for me were the folding stock and the trigger/grip assembly.  First the folding stock:

I had a problem with the little spring loaded lock pin (or whatever it is called) that catches the underside of the barrel and keeps the folding stock in place when folded up (like it usually is).

 

Once I painted the pieces and finally glued the catch pin in place, it did not slide very easily.  Because of this, it had trouble properly locking the stock in place.  It is handing a little low in the picture and does flop around a bit (unless I give it a proper nudge).

 

This is a worst case scenario.

 

Folding and unfolding the stock put pressure on the butt and it cracked along a print line.

I will glue and reinforce with some plastic on the backside.

To fix things, I had to shave some plastic from the opening for the pin so it would slide better.

 

 

 

[wook1138[TK]]

The action does cycle.  Here is the bolt - however, I didn't do a very good job of sanding the inside of the out barrel, so the bolt gets scratched every time I try to cycle it.  this happened because I got ahead of myself with the build.  Ah yes, patience.  The one material I keep running out of and the local hobby store does not carry.

 

Ok, it is hard to see in the picture, but it is there.

[wook1138[TK]]

Then there is the grip/trigger.  I really struggled with this.  I don't have any pics of this process, but the main pieces of the trigger assembly didn't seat very well into the grip.  I tried to file things down to make it sit but it was still a bit off.  Because of this, I then had a hard time getting the grip/trigger to seat properly on the barrel.  I can't glue anything straight, so it was a real struggle

 

Oh, at this point I will mention that Raymond recommends thick CA glue.  I used a medium CA glue. 

Use thick. 

Raymond knows what he is talking about.

[wook1138[TK]]

One last thing is the magazine and port.  I'm pretty sure I placed it according to the instructions but I got a funny angle.  It is almost as if the magazine is slightly pointing down.  I drew emphasized lines in the pic to illustrate 

Is this normal?

[wook1138[TK]]

So... when you get the kit...

Download the instructions – there is a detailed list (with pictures) of all parts but from an earlier version of the kit (some small differences).  Lay all the parts out and take inventory.  I was missing a couple parts (no problem is getting them sent to me – Raymond is great to deal with). 

While taking inventory note that some parts are printed together and may not appear as they do in the instructions.  Also, some parts have been updated slightly, so they may look different.  There is a part that has Blaster Master’s info on it – this is not just a promo piece – this is actually part of the butt – I missed it in the parts list and assumed it was just an extra piece.  I figured it out when I watched the youtube videos.

Oh yeah, watch the youtube videos that Raymond (Blaster Master) has made up for the E-11.  Great tips in there. I didn’t see them until half way through the build – would have saved me a little grief.