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Before the 49ers and Ravens experienced a 35 minute power-outage at the Superbowl, I was having a day of Nerf and Laser Tag with a bunch of friends! In the morning, we went to a friend's home and had an indoor Nerf Game for 3 hours. That afternoon, we moved outdoors with another 3 hour game of Laser Tag. Needless to say, it was an active day until the Superbowl started up at 5:30. Here's how it played out!
I got to try out my Elite Longshot Ver 2.0 for the first time in a game and had a great time with it! There were a LOT of folks with Elite blasters at the game, including 4 Stryfes that I removed safeties in while the first game was being played! It was kinda fun doing "field modifications" while both teams were in the heat of battle. I managed to get some grainy iPod photos and some video of gameplay (that I'll post later) but I really just loved the house we had the game in. Long hallways, plenty of twists and turns, and just enough cover in some larger rooms to hide behind.
Once we were done with the indoor Nerf game, we grabbed some quick lunch and headed over to the park were we held a 3 hour Laser Tag game. I sat out the first round to take some pictures with my Rebel T1i. Got some awesome shots that I posted on the Midwest Laser Tag Association's Facebook Page. It was also an excellent showcase of how effective Desert MARPAT camouflage is in this setting. In this photo, the player to the right made fantastic use of this pattern and he literally disappeared from sight sometimes during the game.
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| That's not supposed to happen! |
Much to my dismay, when I got to break out my LTX EF5 to determine if I could call it "complete" I had one problem that led to another. The main problem I'm still facing with this blaster is the reload function. It was glitchier and faultier than ever in this game. As a result of all the reloading I attempted, I ended up sending jolts through my blaster a little more than I should've, which wiggled my front lens free. I didn't notice this problem until the end of the game when I was frustrated that I couldn't really hit anybody. Well... without that lens, I had an effective range of about 20 feet, in which case someone with a Nerf blaster would've had more range than I! I'll be doing some major work on the reloading function of this blaster before I seal it up and call it good.
Cold weather has thwarted my previous attempts at planning the first laser tag game of 2013 for the MLTA, but I think we've finally got a good one coming up on February 3rd! Temperatures in the mid 40s should be just fine for our electronics and I'm itching to get out there and play a few rounds with my friends, friends of friends, and father's brother's nephew's cousin's former roommate (bonus points if you got that reference).
I suppose I can't complain completely, as I have hosted an indoor game for a local church recently that was quite a lot of fun. It's something I've been doing a little more frequently with churches and colleges in the area that I quite enjoy. It also gets quite a bit of exposure for the MLTA and for Laser Tag in general. Many folks are still under the idea that laser tag can only be played at Roller Rinks and Shopping Malls in a stuffy arena with big bulky chest sensors. With the LTAR on store shelves and with my group still rockin' the LTX, I'm always eager to keep this town tagging.
A fresh coat of snow has covered the area where I live. With a Nerf game and a Laser Tag game coming up this weekend, I hope at least SOME of this white stuff will stick around. While it won't effect the Nerf game (as we're playing indoors), it is fun to have some snow on the ground during outdoor Nerf Games. Especially when it's fresh, it can make tracking your opponent a bit more like a form of hunting. By the time we get to Sunday (when our game is scheduled), there should've been plenty of time for local kids to have run around in the snow and mess up that opportunity.
I've had about a month to mess around with the Longshot Fighter kit by Xplorer and I still can't believe the power of this blaster. With the high-load spring paired with the precision-crafted custom internals, these XDarts that I've been slinging around have been hitting hard and finding their targets with immense accuracy! 
The Elite Longshot Ver 2.0 will share many aspects of the original. It's still based off of a blue early-release Longshot CS-6 and will be firing normal Streamline or Elite darts. However, enhancements for the Elite Longshot Ver 2.0 are built around accessories built by Xplorer Dart Blaster Developments. At it's heart is a 14kg Spring that is commonly used in Xplorer's modified Longshots like the Trooper and Fighter versions. Because it is too difficult to single-hand prime the Longshot with a spring setup like this, I'll be using the Xplorer Shotgun Grip to prime this blaster. 
The Paintjob on the 2.0 will be similar to the original, which has made the rounds on the internet. Obviously I'll have to get a little more creative with the design thanks to the addition of the shotgun pump, but I have a few ideas on how to make this look "legit" and continue the Elite Longshot's tradition of confusing uninformed and misguided YouTube aficionados. I haven't decided yet if I will include the front gun attachment that I left out on the first one, but either way it should be a fun build!
Secondly, scrolling down the Baidu post allegedly shows some internals of this "pre-production" Alpha Trooper. I'm not into opening blasters myself, but apparently, it's actually NOT the same as what the traditional Alpha Trooper CS-18 has. Here's an internals pic of the AT from SGNerf:
