vm questions from a new owner

pball-abe · 07-31-2010, 03:01 PM

Hi all. I'm a long time lurker and infrequent poster who has recently gotten himself a vm68 magnum in the mail. Great little thing to tinker on for the summer but I have some questions about parts. What kind of adapter do I need to mount an asa onto the m16 style grip? I have a pps female stab I'm going to use. Also I have heard that some people have aluminum side panels for their vms. Is there anywhere that sells these still? Mine are cracked and I can only find plastic replacements. Finally rumour has it that the vm is a wicked gas hog so any words of wisdom on efficiency would be appreciated. I'm really looking forward to getting out on the field with this. After getting back into paintball 2 years ago I've exclusively used my light as a feather phantom so seeing as the vm weighs slightly less than a million pounds my arms should be huge by the fall!

HP_Lovecraft · 08-01-2010, 07:10 PM

There is a number of ways to mount an ASA.
Generally, they are inserts that go into the grip, with are either threaded on the bottom so you can attach a standard duckbill ASA, or some have a ASA built in.

They used to be very common, found at every proshop. But are no longer made. Not hard to find if you poke around here, or on the spyder or Phantom forums. The old Mokals you see on Ebay for $10 are often bought and stripped just to use the bottomline ASA.

Actually, I think CCI still sells the Lonestar ASA, but they want $50. Far too much. You might be better off just picking up a cheap 45-grip for that price. Plus, I assume you intend to use the PPS STAB as the ASA? Then the built-in one that CCI sells would not work anyway.

A common trick people used to do was drill holes into the handguard (near the bottom), and use that as an ASA mount. Looks a bit silly today, though the "forward mount" was trendy in the late 90s.

I think Chris at vm68.com might still have metal side panels? Maybe PTP does?
The plastic ones are fine. The reason they crack is that people overtighten the screws. The screws did not need to be tight, as they were only holding the plastic panels on. Nothing "structural".

A simple, old school expansion chamber can almost double the effeciency. Mine was terrible and maybe got 400 shots per 20oz. 500 was more typical, but I've read of 700-1000 with good expansion units.

Honestly, don't worry about the weight. It will seem heavy at first, and your arm might be cramping up at the end of the day.... but its an experience in itself. At one point, I made a harness so I could clip my VM to it when my arm was tired! (using those "quick release" rifle sling mounts).

pball-abe · 08-02-2010, 01:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HP_Lovecraft

A simple, old school expansion chamber can almost double the effeciency. Mine was terrible and maybe got 400 shots per 20oz. 500 was more typical, but I've read of 700-1000 with good expansion units.

Thanks for all the info! I do have another question. Since I'll be using the stab wouldn't an expansion chamber be redundant? Would an expansion chamber be preferable on an old marker like this? As I understand it you aren't supposed to use both at the same time.

Thanks again!

p.s. At the Mountains of Madness is my favourite.

HP_Lovecraft · 08-02-2010, 06:06 PM

As odd as it sounds, I've never really owned a regulator, so I'm not the person to ask.
Around 1992 or so, I switched to running siphon tanks, and never looked back. Though using a siphon on a VM gives you horrific effeciency. I would just refill that 20oz with every game!

Gullermo Del Toro (Hellboy Director) has for many years said he would make a good film adaptation as soon as he has the time and money. He was just recently greenlighted to start pre-production. SO hopefully in our lifetime we will see it on screen.

Though I'm not sure how it would look. In the book, the lost city was visible from the sky. It seems silly now that you consider you can view Antartica right on google maps!

He might take the alternate approach, like with "The Thing", or "Alien vs Predator" and have it be completely buried? That might be the only way. Even then, I'm not sure the audience will really get it.

pball-abe · 08-02-2010, 06:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HP_Lovecraft

As odd as it sounds, I've never really owned a regulator, so I'm not the person to ask.
Around 1992 or so, I switched to running siphon tanks, and never looked back. Though using a siphon on a VM gives you horrific effeciency. I would just refill that 20oz with every game!

Gullermo Del Toro (Hellboy Director) has for many years said he would make a good film adaptation as soon as he has the time and money. He was just recently greenlighted to start pre-production. SO hopefully in our lifetime we will see it on screen.

Though I'm not sure how it would look. In the book, the lost city was visible from the sky. It seems silly now that you consider you can view Antartica right on google maps!

He might take the alternate approach, like with "The Thing", or "Alien vs Predator" and have it be completely buried? That might be the only way. Even then, I'm not sure the audience will really get it.

Well I'll try out the regulator and see what i get for consistency/efficiency. I work at a fire suppression/testing company so I can always strap a 10lb (yes pound!) syphon tank to my back on the cheap!

As for at the Mountains of Madness I didn't know they were even thinking of an adaptation! Del Toro gives me some hope but I'm always concerned when my favourite things are adapted for the screen. Will hopefully be good. Have you seen the Call of Cthulhu silent film? It's fantastic and follows the story exceptionally. I think it came out in 2005.

Gas mask · 08-02-2010, 06:27 PM

How would one go about running a 20 oz siphon on a VM?

HP_Lovecraft · 08-03-2010, 05:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gas mask

How would one go about running a 20 oz siphon on a VM?

Put a 20oz siphon on the gun. Just make sure you remove any ec, reg, lpc, or remote.

Remember, the VM came out in 1990, and back in the early 90s nearly all blowbacks were designed well enough to run siphon tanks.

But like I said, because of the valve design its just not effecient. You do however get all the benefits of a siphon (no shootdown, no spikes, great consistency, all weather, etc). So if you can tolerate the effeciency issue.

Quote:

Will hopefully be good. Have you seen the Call of Cthulhu silent film? It's fantastic and follows the story exceptionally. I think it came out in 2005.

Yes, it was a great adaptation. It think I have it on one of my HPL Film Festival compilations. Must improved over the recent Dunwich Horror adaptation that I saw. Oddly it had Jeffrey Combs, and even Dean Stockwill (who was in the earlier adaptation), but it was just horrible.

But its hard stuff to adapt.

07-31-2010, 03:01 PM	#1 (permalink)
pball-abe Active Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Toronto	vm questions from a new owner Hi all. I'm a long time lurker and infrequent poster who has recently gotten himself a vm68 magnum in the mail. Great little thing to tinker on for the summer but I have some questions about parts. What kind of adapter do I need to mount an asa onto the m16 style grip? I have a pps female stab I'm going to use. Also I have heard that some people have aluminum side panels for their vms. Is there anywhere that sells these still? Mine are cracked and I can only find plastic replacements. Finally rumour has it that the vm is a wicked gas hog so any words of wisdom on efficiency would be appreciated. I'm really looking forward to getting out on the field with this. After getting back into paintball 2 years ago I've exclusively used my light as a feather phantom so seeing as the vm weighs slightly less than a million pounds my arms should be huge by the fall!

08-01-2010, 07:10 PM	#2 (permalink)
HP_Lovecraft MCB Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Southern Maine	There is a number of ways to mount an ASA. Generally, they are inserts that go into the grip, with are either threaded on the bottom so you can attach a standard duckbill ASA, or some have a ASA built in. They used to be very common, found at every proshop. But are no longer made. Not hard to find if you poke around here, or on the spyder or Phantom forums. The old Mokals you see on Ebay for $10 are often bought and stripped just to use the bottomline ASA. Actually, I think CCI still sells the Lonestar ASA, but they want $50. Far too much. You might be better off just picking up a cheap 45-grip for that price. Plus, I assume you intend to use the PPS STAB as the ASA? Then the built-in one that CCI sells would not work anyway. A common trick people used to do was drill holes into the handguard (near the bottom), and use that as an ASA mount. Looks a bit silly today, though the "forward mount" was trendy in the late 90s. I think Chris at vm68.com might still have metal side panels? Maybe PTP does? The plastic ones are fine. The reason they crack is that people overtighten the screws. The screws did not need to be tight, as they were only holding the plastic panels on. Nothing "structural". A simple, old school expansion chamber can almost double the effeciency. Mine was terrible and maybe got 400 shots per 20oz. 500 was more typical, but I've read of 700-1000 with good expansion units. Honestly, don't worry about the weight. It will seem heavy at first, and your arm might be cramping up at the end of the day.... but its an experience in itself. At one point, I made a harness so I could clip my VM to it when my arm was tired! (using those "quick release" rifle sling mounts). __________________ www.montneel.com "the evidence strongly suggests that neither Billy nor Adam (Smart Parts) could have invented the electronic paintgun" -Garr M. King, U.S. Judge

08-02-2010, 06:06 PM	#4 (permalink)
HP_Lovecraft MCB Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Southern Maine	As odd as it sounds, I've never really owned a regulator, so I'm not the person to ask. Around 1992 or so, I switched to running siphon tanks, and never looked back. Though using a siphon on a VM gives you horrific effeciency. I would just refill that 20oz with every game! Gullermo Del Toro (Hellboy Director) has for many years said he would make a good film adaptation as soon as he has the time and money. He was just recently greenlighted to start pre-production. SO hopefully in our lifetime we will see it on screen. Though I'm not sure how it would look. In the book, the lost city was visible from the sky. It seems silly now that you consider you can view Antartica right on google maps! He might take the alternate approach, like with "The Thing", or "Alien vs Predator" and have it be completely buried? That might be the only way. Even then, I'm not sure the audience will really get it. __________________ www.montneel.com "the evidence strongly suggests that neither Billy nor Adam (Smart Parts) could have invented the electronic paintgun" -Garr M. King, U.S. Judge

08-02-2010, 06:27 PM	#6 (permalink)
Gas mask Just falconing' around. Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Cambridge, Ontario, Canada.	How would one go about running a 20 oz siphon on a VM? __________________ "Hey, you know how people drive cross-country in their Corollas? And then need to get their oil changed, after a straight 1200 mile drive? Yes? Now take a good look at your blueprints. See that 'cage' in front of the oil filter? Yeah, that's the exhaust manifold. Go die. " - Deus Machina My Spec-ops Feedback. http://forum.specialopspaintball.com...27&hl=Gas+mask MCB feedback (Thanks Longbeard) http://www.mcarterbrown.com/forums/f...-feedback.html Wants thread. http://www.mcarterbrown.com/forums/w...ted-often.html DO NOT SHIP A PACKAGE TO ME VIA UPS.

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