Cosmetic Modifications to Firearms

[PhilFromAccounting]

Heyo,

In the rules it says that Rifles embody any and all 'long arm' - assault rifles, battle rifles, and submachine guns - and that when using a Retaliator that you must have both the stock and barrel extension attached in order for it to be considered a Rifle. This makes sense, especially when considering that a stripped down Retaliator can be used as a pistol.

My question is this - can I modify/use a homemade barrel extension to shorten the length of the barrel, making it look more like a submachine gun? There wouldn't be any modifications to the internals, jut a purely cosmetic change for in-game purposes.

[Jacob]

That gets squiffy. It has to be very obviously recognizable as what it represents. Furthermore, while you can add to the length of the barrel, replacing the barrel can do undesirable things to projectile velocities. You can chance cutting down the barrel extension and seeing if that does it for you, but please don't just slap in a snub bit of PVC piping--that way madness lies.

[PhilFromAccounting]

If I attempt such a thing I'll make sure to test it out and that the performance isn't altered in any way. And, of course, I yield to any and all weapon checks! Safety and the spirit of the game always come before a neat looking weapon. Thanks for the response!

[illuminatisvie]

A friend of mine from another game had luck with snubbing down an existing barrel. He had better luck with that than with adding his own barrel. You have to get things lined up perfectly in order to not have the darts skim along the new barrel. Which would cause them to lose velocity or veer off awkwardly.

Before snubbing the barrel you'll want to make sure you lock the inner barrel down while it's channeled properly to make sure it stays aligned properly. You can do this by opening up the barrel extension and use a bit of epoxy putty to hold the inner barrel in place around where you'll be sawing the barrel extension.

[Jacob]

Do what this man says. <nodsnods>

[PhilFromAccounting]

I'll give it a shot and see how it turns out! Thanks for the pointers.

[Madrigus]

I discovered that if you put the Specter's barrel extension and stock onto the Retaliator it looks like an Uzi.

[PhilFromAccounting]

I was considering fiddling with other Nerf parts, like the Raider's telescoping stock to give a carbine feel. It'll take some experimentation!

[edseel]