Launchers, Grips, and Accessories

I'll be starting again properly doing the plastics and HMS ones tonight and hopefully have a first draft of everything at sometime next week.

Snipe Launcher

This launcher is designed to be easily use by both left and right handed people. It also uses the same ripcord system as the Light Launcher 2. The part of the launcher in which the ripcord is inserted rotates left and right to make it easier to left handed people to use it. However the rotating bit can't be locked in place. This makes the launcher unpractical and hard to use. As such few use it opting for Beylaunchers or Light Launcher 2's instead.
Isn't Carabiner spelled with a "K"?

Also, will anyone do a draft of the Rev Up Launcher from Hasbro? I'm not a good writer so I'm not confident enough to do it..

(:
Figure it's relevant to post this here.

You may all be surprised to discover that a plastics EZ Shooter, the normal launcher, is around the same strength, if not slightly stronger than a Beyshooter (MFB String Launcher). I tested this with some prong swaps both ways (I had to mutilate a plastic launcher to do so), and the movement of a B tip produced by a plastic launcher is slightly greater than that of a string launcher.

I also tested with a Light Launcher 2: It is significantly weaker than an EZ Shooter, and the MFB Light Launcher is just a joke.

Here's gear tooth numbers:

EZ Shooter (Plastics): 10 Teeth (The EZ Shooter Power Custom should have 9)
Dual Shooter (HMS): 10 Teeth. Identically spaced to the plastics one, as are the ripcord teeth, so the power should be roughly identical. It also has the spring thing like the spring ez shooter.
Light Launcher (MFB): 16 Teeth (LOOOOOL) Same spacing on ripcords.
LL2: 12 Teeth, closer packed than EZ Shooter (closer teeth on ripcords) Work out what that means in terms of power, but it is certainly weaker.

The string shooter is very different, and has a lot more teeth, but functions very differently, so it's not an valid comparison. But by swapping prongs, I can tell you it is ever so slightly less powerful than an EZ Shooter.

Everything here is done with dragon winders and beyshooters launched as fast as I can:

I used a fake EZ Shooter as I didn't want to mutilate a real one, however I checked all the internals first to ensure that they were identical. I had to shave down the edges of the column where the plastic part that sits under the prongs sit to fit the MFB one on. I then did that, and put on some LL2 Prongs.

I have a fully functional right-spin string launcher to compare to. The modified EZ Shooter causes slightly more aggression in Earth Sagittario DF145B than the Beylauncher, and the steadiness is equal.

The next test was MF-H Diablo Kerbecs BD145MB, the heaviest legal combination as of the time this was posted. The Beylauncher launches it more easily (there aren't really any launching issues for me with Diablo unless I'm using it on R2F, where the extra weight does cause issues with the launch). However, the EZ shooter isn't too uncomfortable, though I do worry about my ripcord. The EZ shooter again gives it slightly more aggressive movement, indicating a higher RPM launcher.

Also, when using plastic prongs on a Beyshooter, it launches plastics noticeably slower. That's a much easier setup to try, too, you just swap the prongs, the plastic part underneath and the screw and you can try it yourself. Benjohadi mentioned doing this and having the same result, IIRC.


So yeah, power wise, I'd say

EZ Shooter Power Custom*>EZ Shooter/Dual Shooter>Beylauncher (MFB)>LL2/L3/L3R>Light Launcher>Hand (only just).

*don't actually have one, apparently there are sometimes skipping issues.
Oh thanks for reminding me your meteor highness (or whatever spelling is used) :

I think that on the weekend I'll just write the darn snipe launcher section or whatever one is left, and just use only factual stuff that you don't even need to own (Oprah Winfrey?) the launcher for.
Hah.

Though, there are still a whole load of early plastics launchers not here, I guess that's gonna be covered by Ultra's thread. I've got some info on those in the plastics spin up guides I have that I need to scan/get translated.


You know, I was really quite surprised to find out that MFB launchers are so weak, I guess the rev-up is stronger, though that really makes me want to get the EZ Shooter Power Custom to compare that.
Oh wait, what the heckadeckadoo, I completely missed Ultra's post for all this time! Ah well looking at Kei's last post in here, you are the missing link, King of the galaxy's indigestion!
Mad Bey-Science is the best Bey-Science, my friend.

There are plenty of complaints to be had about the Light Launcher though: It's probably the weakest launcher ever released (though I've never owned a Duotron). And the LL2 has a lot of resistance (perhaps due to the smaller gear? Get someone with mechanical/physics knowledge to check that), and is still pretty weak, and they're pretty unreliable with skipping.

The Rev Up should be stronger than an EZ Shooter, I'd check for sure but mine is out of commission and in lots of parts. It's almost certainly been mentioned but it also has a much longer string than a beylauncher.
Anyway, the RUL is significantly more powerful than the beylauncher, and the EZ Shooter is only slightly stronger so yeah, RUL should be noticeably stronger than an EZ Shooter. Don't know about the EZ Power Custom though. They're darned impossible to find now :c

I did some edits, but in general these should be ready to be added.

Quote:Grip Rubber Black/White/Red
Grip Rubber is a cylindrical piece of PVC rubber that slides over the handle of the Launcher Grip from the bottom. The purpose of the Grip Rubber is to allow for a firmer hold on the Launcher Grip, due to the increased friction of the rubber. Additionally, it makes the handle slightly thicker, which may make it more comfortable to grip for some Bladers.

Takara Tomy Grip Rubber is divided into three segments, while Hasbro released the Grip Rubber as a single red piece.

I cannot remember if Hasbro released a Grip Rubber of another colour though.


Quote:Grip Support
The Grip Support is a cylindrical piece of plastic that extends the length of the handle on the Launcher Grip. It is added by removing the built-in Tool on the Launcher Grip and attaching the Grip Support in its place. The Tool is then attached to the bottom of the Grip Support.

The Grip Support adds approximately 50 mm to the length of the handle, and has the same diameter as the Grip Rubber. The extra length added by the Grip Support creates more space for the hand, which is appreciated by some Bladers for the improved comfort.

Quote:Launcher Rubber
Launcher Rubber is essentially a T-shaped fold of rubber that is attached to the handle of the BeyLauncher. While the intended purpose of the Launcher Rubber is to add a better grip, it also helps to slow breakages of the handle. The extra weight from the Launcher Rubber slows down the handle as it retracts and, also thanks to the softer plastic and rubber used for the Launcher Rubber, reduces the impact of the handle hitting the BeyLauncher and prolongs the longevity of the handle.

Quote:BeyLauncher LR
The BeyLauncher LR was originally released with Gravity Perseus AD145WD in a dark grey colour, and later came out individually in red. It has the same handle as the BeyLauncher L and similar notches on the indents of the shooter to assist in gripping it. The most notable feature of the BeyLauncher LR is the capability to launch Beyblades in either left or right spin without changing launchers. The BeyLauncher LR has two sets of prongs on the top and bottom of the launcher that determine the spin direction. The prongs that are not being used are covered by a cap that can be removed and placed on each set of prongs to change the spin direction. The string cannot be pulled if the cap is not properly screwed on one of the sides. A mobile white slot can be pushed or pull on either side at the extremity of the BeyLauncher LR to replicate the protrusion on the regular Beylauncher that allows it to be attached to a Launcher Grip.

Many BeyLaunchers LR have experienced internal breaks, especially from the South Korean manufacturer SonoKong. Fortunately, such flaws can often be repaired with some dextrous reparations.


Quote:Metal Assist
The Metal Assist is a U-shaped piece of plastic-covered metal that attaches to the Launcher Grip at the approximate location of a Blader's index finger. The purpose of the Metal Assist is two-fold: Firstly, it may act as a "trigger guard" by allowing the Blader's index finger to slide under the Metal Assist. Secondly, there are two grooves on the top surface of the Metal Assist on which a Blader may place their index and middle fingers if a wider grip is desired. This accessory can provide extra comfort as well as added weight.

The Metal Assist is attached by inserting the ends of the "U" into the corresponding notches on the side of the Launcher Grip, then sliding the Metal Assist's bolt through the bolt holes on the grip, and rotating the locking knob on the bolt clockwise until it locks in place.

It is important to note that the Metal Assist interferes with the removal of the "head" of the Launcher Grip, and must be detached in order to do so. Additionally, accessories that may be connected to the launcher grip head in the same plane as the Metal Assist also cannot be attached or removed while the Metal Assist is in place.

Quote:Light Launcher 2

The Light Launcher 2, abbreviated as LL2, is quite different from the standard MFB Launcher, the Light Launcher. The Winder is inserted vertically, unlike the Light Launcher Winder which is put in horizontally. Additionally, this Winder does not work with the Light Launcher, however it is compatible with the Light Launcher LR, the Light Launcher 2 as well as the Sniper Launcher. A textured area and indented finger grips are included for comfort. The Light Launcher 2 is generally preferred over the Light Launcher for its more powerful launch, but it remains overshadowed by the BeyLauncher and its variants.

This Launcher suffers from high Recoil which makes it difficult to perform a steady launch. Another one of its major flaws is that it gets rougher after usage, resulting in frequent and unwanted weak launches at times.

The Light Launcher 2 was first released seperately in BB-87, and was consecutively included with nearly every Starter in the rest of the Metal Fight Beyblade BB- line, especially in SonoKong products. The Left-Spin counterpart of the Light Launcher 2 was released with L Drago Destroy and has the same features as the original.

Even though the Light Launcher 2 provides a more powerful launch, the Recoil issues and roughness over time are some reasons to avoid it. This should be used only when BeyLaunchers are unavailable.

Quote:Angle Compass
The Angle Compass is an accessory intended to help Bladers straighten their launch. It is essentially a clear dome encased in grey plastic which has a freely rotating ball inside it, that attaches to the head of the Launcher Grip. On the rotating ball is a red dot that will always point upward regardless of how the Angle Compass is angled, due to the weight inside the ball on the opposite side. The idea is to use the red dot and the crosshair engraved on the clear dome to determine the angle of the launch. When, from directly above, the red dot is centered with the crosshair, it means the Launcher Grip is directly parallel to the ground.

While helpful in theory, the Angle Compass can be fairly inconsistent. Because the ball rotates on the horizontal and vertical axes by two seperate rods, there are times when friction will prevent it from rotating as it should, and it then must be jostled to correct it.

Quote:
3 Segment Launcher Grip
The 3 Segment Launcher Grip, the 2nd version of the MFB Launcher Grips, is very different to its predecessor in several ways. In this design the BB-16 Beypointer compatibility has been dropped and replaced with a rectangle slot above the launcher itself to hold the BeyPoint Card. The BeyPoint Card itself is included with either BB-70 Galaxy Pegasis W105R2F, BB-71 Ray Unicorno D125CS, BB-76 Galaxy Pegasis Deluxe Set, or BB-107 Big Bang Pegasis DX Set. Some notable differences can be noticed within the decals and overall shape of the Launcher as well. Unlike the first Launcher Grip that could only be re-attached in two different ways since it only had two slots to connect the top of the launcher to the handle itself, the 3 Segment Launcher Grip has three slots so it can be re-positioned in three different ways. It therefore accomodates left-handed Bladers more than the first Launcher Grip. This grip can also hold two of the gimmicked accessories, the BB-49 Angle Compass and the BB-90 LED Sight, so that the player can fully customize their launcher grip with all of the available accessorises unlike the 1st MFB Launcher Grip, where you could only have either one accessory on the top of the Launcher Grip.
Another notable difference is that, on the handle of the 3 Segment Launcher Grip, it says "Lg3s", which stands for "Launcher Grip 3 Segment". The first MFB Launcher Grip only read "Launcher Grip". The assembly Tool on the bottom of the 3 Segment Launcher Grip is also considerably smaller than the Tool on the first MFB Launcher Grip but it still serves its purpose well.
This Launcher Grip can hold all types of launchers besides the Digital Power Launchers.


Very good, Kai-V! For the Beylauncher LR, you might want to describe the colors of the original (Gravity Perseus Ver.) and the Mars Red Ver. , in contrast.
I added that and made some other small edits too.


I also hesitate : should those really be only sections in a general Shooter & Grip article ? Especially when "shooter" is not a term used in Metal Fight Beyblade, and that we discuss grip and launcher accessories too ? Perhaps all of these should get individual articles, and we could create a category instead ?
I think that an "Accessories" article could list all of the Accessories you can get, with links for individual articles for each accessory. The main Accessories article should have a brief explanation of what the item is, and what it's purpose is. Then it should say"For further info on the"3 Segment Launcher Grip, click here: link would be right here for the official article. Just a suggestion. Great work Kai-V!
(Jun. 10, 2012  2:32 PM)Kai-V Wrote: I also hesitate : should those really be only sections in a general Shooter & Grip article ? Especially when "shooter" is not a term used in Metal Fight Beyblade, and that we discuss grip and launcher accessories too ? Perhaps all of these should get individual articles, and we could create a category instead ?

Shabalabadoo explains what the original plan was in the OP, but essentially, rather than have everything crammed into the Shooters & Grips article as they are now, the plan was to separate everything into six articles:

Shabalabadoo Wrote:-Plastic Launchers & Accessories
-Plastic Grips & Accessories

-HMS Launchers & Accessories
-HMS Grips & Accessories

-MFB Launchers & Accessories
-MFB Grips & Accessories

I'm not sure what my original thinking was behind this, but it may have been because I didn't feel that items like, say, the Launcher Rubber deserved a separate article. However, now that I think about it, having categories rather than articles would probably be best. It would work like this:

- Launchers/Grips/Accessories Category

All articles would be listed within this category, and then, to further break everything down there would be "sub-categories" for "Plastic Launchers/Grips/Accessories", "HMS Launchers/Grips/Accessories", and "MFB Launchers/Grips/Accessories". In this way, it would be similar to what we've done for the individual Beyblade articles with the "Beyblades" category which lists everything, and then the "Plastic Beyblade", "HMS Beyblade", and "Metal Fight Beyblade" categories.
The article for Plastics and HMS is nearly complete. I'll finish it once I have time to.
(Jun. 10, 2012  8:27 PM)Kei Wrote: I'm not sure what my original thinking was behind this, but it may have been because I didn't feel that items like, say, the Launcher Rubber deserved a separate article. However, now that I think about it, having categories rather than articles would probably be best. It would work like this:

- Launchers/Grips/Accessories Category

All articles would be listed within this category, and then, to further break everything down there would be "sub-categories" for "Plastic Launchers/Grips/Accessories", "HMS Launchers/Grips/Accessories", and "MFB Launchers/Grips/Accessories". In this way, it would be similar to what we've done for the individual Beyblade articles with the "Beyblades" category which lists everything, and then the "Plastic Beyblade", "HMS Beyblade", and "Metal Fight Beyblade" categories.

That is what I think we should do. Perhaps I am just in a search optimisation mindset though.
I'll take a more solid look through the discussion here tomorrow and respond to it then, as this article(s) seemed to be making good progress and then just stalled. Given a quick skim though, personally I still don't think minor accessories like grip rubbers really deserve individual articles, and I really don't know if there are really that many accessories that do...

Just thought I'd mention in case anyone was wondering, seeing as I have an EZ Shooter Power Custom now, I can confirm it is more powerful. Still not sure on whether it has actual skipping issues, it just seems to me like the launch is "rougher". Oiling helps a little - and I'd recommend it as there's obviously going to be more stress on its internals, but overall the power boost is quite noticeable, though I could understand if someone missed it if they were only using a tip that isn't that visibly affected by that increased launch power, which is fairly common.

I could probably take mine apart and get some pictures of the gear, but I've oiled mine already so I'd probably have to clear it out and stuff, and I'm not sure if it's really that important - though that could be me being a huge wuss, so let me know if you think a picture should be included of the internals. As for the externals, the previous owner crossed out the logo on the spin gear... Tired Also, from what I can tell, it was released in a special zeus set as well as that separate release, mine has the zeus emblem and everything on it, and BS5 bought the actual set as far as I know, though I do not recall the name (or even if it was stated). I don't know if that warrants mentioning here, of course.
(Jul. 25, 2012  5:55 PM)th!nk Wrote: I'll take a more solid look through the discussion here tomorrow and respond to it then, as this article(s) seemed to be making good progress and then just stalled. Given a quick skim though, personally I still don't think minor accessories like grip rubbers really deserve individual articles, and I really don't know if there are really that many accessories that do...

Just thought I'd mention in case anyone was wondering, seeing as I have an EZ Shooter Power Custom now, I can confirm it is more powerful. Still not sure on whether it has actual skipping issues, it just seems to me like the launch is "rougher". Oiling helps a little - and I'd recommend it as there's obviously going to be more stress on its internals, but overall the power boost is quite noticeable, though I could understand if someone missed it if they were only using a tip that isn't that visibly affected by that increased launch power, which is fairly common.

I could probably take mine apart and get some pictures of the gear, but I've oiled mine already so I'd probably have to clear it out and stuff, and I'm not sure if it's really that important - though that could be me being a huge wuss, so let me know if you think a picture should be included of the internals. As for the externals, the previous owner crossed out the logo on the spin gear... Tired Also, from what I can tell, it was released in a special zeus set as well as that separate release, mine has the zeus emblem and everything on it, and BS5 bought the actual set as far as I know, though I do not recall the name (or even if it was stated). I don't know if that warrants mentioning here, of course.

The way I thought we were doing it was having all the accessories on one page with a page for each generation. Also there is a seperate thread for plastics and HMS which I made.
I suppose we could put everything on one page, but if there are descriptions that are too big, we can simply add a redirect to a single page, like on Wikipedia.
What you guys are talking about was the original idea. In my last post I explained that I wanted to change it to be this:

(Jun. 10, 2012  8:27 PM)Kei Wrote: I'm not sure what my original thinking was behind this, but it may have been because I didn't feel that items like, say, the Launcher Rubber deserved a separate article. However, now that I think about it, having categories rather than articles would probably be best. It would work like this:

- Launchers/Grips/Accessories Category

All articles would be listed within this category, and then, to further break everything down there would be "sub-categories" for "Plastic Launchers/Grips/Accessories", "HMS Launchers/Grips/Accessories", and "MFB Launchers/Grips/Accessories". In this way, it would be similar to what we've done for the individual Beyblade articles with the "Beyblades" category which lists everything, and then the "Plastic Beyblade", "HMS Beyblade", and "Metal Fight Beyblade" categories.

Rather than one article for each generation listing/describing all of the grips/accessories, each item would be given its own article, but would be listed alongside everything else on the appropriate category page.
I don't mind doing it like that. But are we going to have to write summaries for each accessory because most of them are really only useful for comfort or not actually useful at all (I'm looking at you sniper scope!)?
Ultra, of course every accessory would get a description ... We cannot just attach a picture of a Grip Rubber and move on to the next accessory. That would be stupid and unprofessional.
That's not what I meant. Especially as i've descriptions for more than half of the plastic and HMS ones. What I meant is will I have to do a summary for each like in a normal article because most of them will be me saying in an elegant way that they're pretty useless.
And I still say : "Yes, of course."
The sniper scope could kinda be used for decieving opponents into thinking that's where you'll launch or something, I guess, but if it's the same as the grip version of it (with the whole "limited to moving in only one plane) then even that is a stretch.

To be honest I still think a page for each accessory is excessive for things like the sniper scope and a number of other completely bland-and-useless accessories, but I'm not going to oppose it if someone wants (and is able) to do the work. Smile


EDIT: Also thought I'd mention, the "marksman grip" or w/e should be called Sniper Grip, as that's the original name.