VSR SDiK build n' ting

[proffrink]

So I'm attempting to do an in-stock regulator SDiK conversion for a BAR-10. So far I've got the power source working, now it's onto the rest. Generally I don't go in for these 'build progress' type threads, but I've been a lot of us already own the SDiK (it's a spring to CO2/HPA conversion kit for sniper rifles), and it seems a lot of people are looking to run them internally on the sniper forums so that they're as compact and well balanced as possible.

Base gat is a JG BAR-10. It's basically a clone of the TM VSR G-Spec.

Also, I won't be covering the painting as I've already done it and making you guys literally watching paint dry is probably not anyone's idea of fun.

I am going to try and cover both the hop and the SDiK conversion as those are the two most important things. Here's my parts and materials list:

Internals

• Mancraft SDiK for VSRs w/ 90o trigger Link
  
• Mancraft regulator Link
  
• Mancraft CO2 adapter Link
  
• Airsoft Pro V2 90o trigger for VSRs Link
  
• Action Army VSR hop up chamber Link
  
• Action army ~300mm 6.01* ORGA Magnus 433mm 6.13 Link
  
• Too many buckings
  Prometheus soft VSR bucking (that purple one everyone uses in pistols)
• Maple Leaf 50o VSR bucking
• Maple Leaf 75o VSR bucking
• Firefly hard VSR bucking

[*]HSA IR-Hops (it's an R-Hop patch) Link Some special lube-resistant R-Hop material
[*]Numerous less important things

• 
  PDI barrel spacers (standard G-Spec size) Link
  
• PDI rear trigger mech column/collar thingy Link
  
• PDI MRB (to replace the horrible red one below) Link
  
• Airsoft Pro nickel coated cylinder Link
  
• Airsoft Pro magazine catch Link* Replaced with PDI MRB due to it looking goddamn awful in the dumb bright red they used for it Link
  

Externals

• Krylon grey primer Link
  
• Krylon flat olive Link
  
• PDI type R trigger guard Link
  
• PDI light outer barrel Link
  
• PDI silencer adapter Link
  
• Marui receiver (thanks for the link, sp00n) Link
  
• Action Army top rail Link
  
• Action Army replacement cocking handle Link
  
• Big Dragon 5.56 foam-filled suppressor Link
  

Misc

• Plasic padding Gel Coat filler Link
  
• ABRO silicone RTV Link
  
• Some foam pipe insulator for 15mm pipes Link
  
• Truloc Superseal 937 Link
  
• 10mm x 1mm neodymium magnets Link
  
• 30mm film canisters Link
  

*This came with the gun and was sold as a PDI barrel. Sorted this with the seller as I intended to use a PDI one. I'll probably be ordering a new 6.05 later if this one doesn't work out, but allegedly the Action Army ones aren't all that bad despite some of the rep some of their other items get.

Fitting the Mancraft regulator into the stock for the SDiK

Thought I'd do the most potentially tricky bit first. So where I'm at so far is the stock has been basically divided horizontally with a 'shelf' to suspend the regulator and CO2 adapter. It's a tight fit (but I'll come onto that later):

Basically the regulator needed a lot of resizing to fit well, and even now it's a bit of a pain and - as you can see above - needs some further sanding and a significant clean from the Dremeling that took place to remove excess epoxy. Right now, it's fully functional, but I will go over how I managed to get the macro line into the stock reliably when I receiver the new trigger guard I've ordered (as I've modified the plastic one, but will be disassembling again to fit the PDI one).

The 'shelf' has two very strong neodymium magnets. They are impressively strong and together are rated to hold 1.1kg, which is enough to hold the regulator firmly in place. Both the shelf and the magnets were glued with JB Weld. I would really recommend JB Weld over most generic epoxies as it creates an incredibly strong bond provided that you sand and clean the surfaces (i.e. 'prep' them) first and given the small surface area this was necessary for a reliable fixture.

The actual line feeds underneath from the trigger mechanism and then loops up around the end of the stock into the regulator. There's a reason for this that I'll get into shortly.

What I did to the regulator:

• Attached two of the small magnets (just visible)
• Removed pressure gauge/manometer
• Replaced pressure gauge with grub screw (sealed with pneumatic sealant)
• Ground down both grub screws until flush with the body of the regulator and then smoothed them a little

*This is the important bit as it gives you about 0.5mm clearance with the stock. Skipping this step leaves the regulator about 3-4mm wider than the stock.
I also enlarged the hole at the bottom of the CO2 adapter, allowing the bulb to sit lower that it usually would. This means that the whole design is about 5mm shorter than when it has a bulb in. This step was - in hindsight - probably not necessary as I do think the stock has the length to fit this if you place it in there correctly.

So about threading the macro underneath and having it loop around rather than directly plugging into the regulator: Well, this was what I was really worried about from the start as I need to be able to access the regulator freely to replace the bulb when it's out of gas. Thing is, looping the macro line wasn't viable as it would mean that I'd have to carefully loop it up in the middle of a game otherwise - I suspect - the line would kink and that's not good at all.

Looping the line underneath adds about 10cm more material than is required, without it getting in the way or needing to be rolled up. There is also ample room for the butt pad to fit on - about 5mm clearance when all is said and done (though this can be increased by not allowing the line to lay across the top of the adjustment knob on the regulator, but instead being to one side).

The benefit is also that I would have quick access to the adjustment knob so that I can turn it up to 870fps in the middle of a game adjust the output when cronoing (as there's no longer a pressure gauge to go from).

 

[sp00n]

that's quite a tight bore mate (with all whats being going on in the bb world, most notably most/all bb's over 0.36, being hygroscopic)

i have a pdi 6.05 when i finally rebuild my vsr.

interestingly before i broke my gun, i was running with almost the same setup (i was using an external HPA tank), except a standard TM hop rubber and barrel, which worked really well.

what i do need to work on is sorting my mancraft regulator out and fitting it in my tail stock. Any idea how many shots you are likly to get out of a CO2 bulb?

 

[proffrink]

Agree on the bore size. I've put wider bores in everything I own where fps doesn't matter - it does make a difference to hop. Like I said, it was sold as a PDI 6.05 but was actually an Action Army 6.01 so I got a partial refund. Will probably replace it if it's screwing with the BB or getting jammed. I will say that I ran above 0.36s in my L96 for years with a 6.01 that I never swapped and didn't have a single jam, but never skirmished it and probably only ever put around 800-1000 shots through it.

Not sure exactly on CO2 longevity as I've only fired a handful of shots with it, but allegedly some people are getting up to 90-100 shots. The website says 50-70.

 

[sp00n]

i am lead to believe the heavy weight being hygroscopic is a fairly recent thing, i don't know if its a change in material/chemical used etc, but it dose explain why ASPUK's bb's have a use in 2 month warning on them (i think they have pulled there bb's due to quality issues atm)

while i do want to get my regulator in the stock, i do tend to go through around 3 30rd mags a game (long games, loads of targets) ... i dunno, ill give it a try ... but ill take 13ci tank out with me :lol:

 

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Just today I received some BB King 0.43s from that retailer we bought our Marui receivers from - like you say, they must be hygroscopic as they come in airtight bags and say 'try to use within 2 months' on the back. I used Madbull 0.36s in my L96, but like I say those are bought a long time ago and really I never even managed to get through two whole pots of them.

Just got the QD as well. I'm going to see how that could fit in there, but in theory it should make switching bulbs much more straight forward. I know Shizbazki said in that video he made that he gets around 90 shots(?). I'll be using the G&P 55rd mags I bought and I'll see what it's like. I'm not expecting to field this too seriously because sniping isn't much for me - I just enjoyed making it. Right now I can do a bulb change in about 20 seconds. With the QD I don't expect that time to reduce, but I do think it will be much more easy given that I'd be wearing gloves and also that there's no magic table I can lay it on and fiddle about with the stock.

Frankly, removing the butt pad is the hardest bit.

 

[sp00n]

Yeah I am going to start separating my bags into 500rd bags and adding a silica gel packet to keep them good I hope that works

How are the 55rd mags?

 

[proffrink]

Apparently the BB king ones come with a desiccant already, so I should be good on that. Will still seal them in a much larger bag with a huge packet of silica in though, heh. I bulk bought about 20 big sachets of the stuff from eBay a while ago and put them inside every airsoft container I have. I'd heard horror stories of rusty WOCs, and for a fiver I thought why the hell not.

Haven't got them yet actually. They were ordered from Tiger111HK about a month ago and they said they were out of stock. I asked for a refund, there was a delay of about 3 days and then magically they were back in stock. will probably arrive this week I'd imagine.

 

[sp00n]

i am considering one of the cheapy 150g pingi thingy's as you just microwave them to reuse them, and they work really well (i use the biggest one in my car in winter) B)

 

[proffrink]

I'll have to check them out.

Also, I'll try to get another update out on Thursday with the hop assembly and barrel (as that was a bit of a pain to get right).

 

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Ok so I'm going to delay explanation of the hop and R-Hop bucking modification etc. until I get my 6.13 (probably two weeks). Grabbed one because I can actually fit a further 133mm of barrel into the new PDI outer, so I thought it worth doing now rather than later after all.

I'm going to re-do the patch on it anyway so can get more photos of the process.

 

[Shizbazki]

I'm going to see how that could fit in there, but in theory it should make switching bulbs much more straight forward. I know Shizbazki said in that video he made that he gets around 90 shots(?).

Yes i found that i got around 90 shots on one CO2 bulb, for that set up i was using a TM VSR-10 (non G-Spec) standard TM barrel, Hopup chamber and rubber on firing .20g ASG Blaster BBs with an FPS around 497FPS.

I know the parts, BBs and stuff does not sound great and very stock but my reason for that was to keep things as stock as possible so that anyone watching could gauge any improvement etc.

My VSR has had a few upgrades since then but what i am really aftr at the moment is the Action Army Hop Up chamber as it seems to be out of stock everywhere

 

[proffrink]

I grabbed mine from Airsoft World (put the WGC link as they're cheaper slightly). Do they have none left?

 

[sp00n]

Try Airsoft entrepot (French online retailer) they had some last week when I got a spare TM receiver from them

 

[proffrink]

Ok so I got a moment to do some of the re-routing of the line whilst I wait for the new barrel. I'm going to throw up proper pictures and stuff tomorrow because it's not quite as simple as running the hose through the back if you want to keep the bedding pillar like I did. Usually removing the bedding pillar isn't an issue, but as I'm using a metal trigger guard it needs to be held in place or could crush the line easily.

Like I say, pics and stuff coming tomorrow, but whilst something else dries, here's one I took a little while ago that shows the removed material (and the trial and error crimping marks on what will be the old line):

 

[sp00n]

Nice scope mount mate, where did you get it from?

 

[proffrink]

Ebairsoft if I recall correctly. Not the genuine article of course.

Edit

Here ya go: http://www.ebairsoft.com/qd26-extended-mount-30mm-scope-p-8353.html and this http://www.ebairsoft.com/qd25-mount-30mm-scope-p-8321.html

Be wary as I remember there being stock issues with this one. E-mail them first to check. Oh and it won't fit on a normal VSR rail (you need to buy one with the correct spacings).

 

[sp00n]

Yeah I was having issues with a scope mount myself, I was hoping this was a straight fit

 

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Fitting the air line to work with the stock

First off, props to Shizbazki (who's video prompted me to try this). Whilst his mod is for getting the airline to a cheek-rest, the principle for getting it past the trigger guard is very much the same though his trigger meant it wasn't quite as much of a hassle as it was for me (this shall become obvious in a second). Here's the link to his video if you want a decent tutorial and quick review on the SDiK.

Getting the line out of the trigger guard was probably the toughest thing to figure out given that I had a metal trigger guard and wider-than-usual bedding pillar (the silver bit). This meant removing a lot of material, but thankfully I was able to see how Shizbazki had done it without removing any material and also tried myself with the plastic trigger guard. My only bit of advice here would be that if you're using the stock, 45o trigger mechanism then it doesn't appear that you need to do any of what I'm about to do. The issues I had with re-routing the line appear to arise from the 90o trigger mechanisms and/or using a larger bedding pillar are not something that most people need to worry about.

I started off my removing material from the trigger mech itself. This in itself was an issue given the angle and finish, and I'm sure you can see the marks etc. around where I made the radius/chamfer so that the line wouldn't kink on the sharp edge of the trigger mechanism. For anyone wondering, the hole that the SDiK line passes through is the one usually used by the spring retention piece. Both the 45o and 90o trigger mechanisms have this hole though on the 45o this hole appears to be slightly larger and therefore the line has more space to make the curve without kinking.

I did this with a Dremel stone-bit and then sanded with 400 and 800 grit paper so it was nice and smooth.

An additional issue I ran into was that the brass 'collar' that take the place of the spring retention piece in the SDiK was misaligned slightly with my trigger mechanism an needed light sanding on one side to allow it to sit correctly. I am not sure if this is my particular build, but given the issues I've had with fitting the trigger mech (i.e. the JG BAR having an M4 screw hole and not an M3 - like on the TM VSR) I am not surprised that I had such an issue and would probably chalk it up to my setup being basically Frankenstein's monster at this point.

Next up I needed to make room in the trigger guard and pillar for the line to move through. The line is only 4mm in diameter, but the clearance is tight and you need to give the hose space to curve around the rear of the guard and enter the hole that's the entry to the void in the stock (you'll be able to see this later).

The cut at the top of the guard isn't anything to do with the SDiK, but is a modification that must be made to any trigger guard to fit the Airsoft Pro trigger.

I did this with a Dremel metal cutting wheel, then finished it with a diamond jewellers file and 400 grit wet and dry.

One issue I ran into on the plastic test piece is it just isn't strong enough for this kind of cutting a lot of the time. Take away too much material and it just won't have the strength to hold the tension of the screw that enters through the button of the guard and connects it to the rear of the receiver via the bedding pillar. I had to remove more material from the plastic one, so this may be worth taking note of if you do go down the 90o route. However, I'm sure a strong epoxy would be enough to re-enforce it in this case.

Here you can see the line assembled and passing out of the trigger mech, around the trigger and then out through the back. When in the body, it will sit inside the cuts made into the trigger guard and bedding pillar so that it is not squashed up against the side of the stock.

Here's the hole that the line bust enter through to reach the stock. Notice the flat shaped 'slot' on the far side near the larger cut-out that the trigger guard and trigger fall through (the image is essentially upside-down). This slot is where the rear of the trigger guard sits, and should stay that shape or you'll end up with a wobbly trigger guard if you've removed the rear bedding pillar as well. I say this because you may wish to enlarge the hole above it that the line itself enters through, but if you do then don't touch the slot shape itself.

Getting the whole unit to fit in was actually a bit harder for me. Usually during a VSR assembly you can remove the trigger guard screw and then reinsert it later once everything is in position (this allows you to move the parts around and fit the guard into that 'slot'). In my case, however, I needed the screw somewhat holding the thing together so the line stayed where it should be during assembly. If it slipped to one side then it would be crushed.

Here's the result though. All fits fine and the trigger guard is solid. I may even pad out the slot a little with some JB weld then reform it with a file to make sure it's absolutely snug in there.

Next I'll be doing the hop and barrel again when that arrives.

 

[Shizbazki]

I grabbed mine from Airsoft World (put the WGC link as they're cheaper slightly). Do they have none left?

I have just bought one from Ehobbyasia, its on it way from HK as we speak

 

[proffrink]

Still not re-R-hopped with the new material because I'm lazy and waiting for my new stock to arrive. Sorry. Will do a full post on how I cut my patches and glue, seal and finish them when I get around to it. Next couple of weeks probably.

In the mean time, I chemically blackened my Nickel plated cylinder. Still shiny, but much, much darker now. Pretty impressed by the results given that it was about £18-worth of chemicals bought off eBay so no way near as expensive as setting up stuff for electrolysis. Plating was only 30µm thick so it was never going to get as dark as something with thicker plating anyway:

Here's what tit used to look like (didn't take my own picture before because I'm an idiot):

0.5 g/l potassium thiocyanate

25 ml/l of 10% sulphuric acid

25 ml/l 20 Vol hydrogen peroxide

Room temperature for about 5-10 minutes.

If any of you were wondering