Question for IR battlers

[tankme]

For those of you that IR battle at Danville in the US or other places with organized club battles, I have a question about LED placements.  I know the rules vary from club to club, but it seems the consensus is that the clubs with the most rules dictate that the IR LED is supposed to be installed 9mm from the end of a tube no more than 6mm inside.  All light scatters and spreads some after being transmitted - I understand that concept.  From my understanding the tube rule limits the firing arc of the UV LED to make the "shots" more precise and less of a fan effect.  I know that most clubs also have a requirement for a barrel flash or barrel recoil. 

????So my question is, how many people put the UV emitter and the barrel flash in the actual barrel together?  I know it's not doable in smaller caliber guns, but a lot of my tanks have large bore guns (SU-152, KV-2, and a bunch of modern tanks).  Would the high intensity flash interfere with the UV LED emitter pulse?  The barrel flash is typically installed at the very tip of the gun and even slightly sticking out of the gun to be seen from all angles.  I would think that a UV LED emitter mounted in a tube next to the barrel flash wouldn't be affected by the flash especially since the emitter does have a pulse cycle and not just a single flash like the flash LED. 

I just think having both in the barrel is a cleaner look than having to drill additional holes in the mantlet or mounting the emitter on the outside of the barrel.

Is my logic faulty?

[Tiger6]

If you put the IR tube at the end of the barrel, and the flash is still visible behind, you should be good - seen that done on tanks like the Pershing where the muzzle break is quite large.
The basic philosophy is that a) the opponent must be able to see the flash so that they can time their actions accordingly, and b) the audience can tell who fired at who... (kind of important to the museum when they invite the public to come and watch)

The tube size is based on the stock Tamiya spec (because that's where the hobby started, its the accepted baseline that anyone building a stock Tamiya can comply with) - it not only focuses the IR beam to an extant, it also narrows it so that you don't hit out your team mates next to you.

Unfortunately I have lost touch over the years with a lot of my friends who attend there regularly, so I would suggest reaching out on RCUniverse if you need further guidance

[tankme]

It's cross posted at RCU also. Thanks.

[Exhibitedbrute]

The few battlers I have operate different systems but on the tamiya/Taigen systems I have a 6-8mm length of brass tubing behind the mg port in the mantlet for the ir emitter and the Taigen flash unit and recoil on the maingun. This set up is on my firefly, Pershing Sherman 105, t34 and su100.

In my Sherman iii I have a piranha system which is all built in to the apple, on that I have a 9mm brass tube around the emitter on top of the apple and a flash and recoil in the main gun.

The su85 just has a muzzle flash and recoil but no battle system
The su76 and early Sherman under construction will also have a flash and recoil
The Cromwell will have a tamiya battle system with the clip on emitter set up but a permanent internal recoil and flash

[quitcherbitchen]

Does anyone have an opinion if I mount the IR Emitter Led here? The Mantlet can be modded but is this where most Panzer III, IV guys put it?

[Tiger6]

Most of us take out the existing airsoft red led and mount the emitter tube in its place. The airsoft mechanism is redundant anyway as a muzzle flash is usually required, and in many cases gets replaced with a recoil system. 6.4mm OD Evergreen tube is perfect for mounting the emitter inside, equally you can use 5mm ID brass tube if you need something a little thinner.

If you don't have the tube then the emitter acts like a giant shot gun - poor range and sprays IR everywhere, taking out your own team as well as the other guys. This is frowned upon by pretty much everyone in the US club scene.

[Exhibitedbrute]

When we converted to ir we placed the emitters on all tanks that were converted in the mantlet where the shot warning light is. This was done on tiger 1 panzer iii Sherman and Pershing. They all had 9mm brass tube fixed and the emitter at the end this way we kept the elevation for the emitter aswell allowing us to shoot targets on higher or lower ground

[quitcherbitchen]

Any pictures? Just wonder how far out the tube sticks out.

[Tiger6]

Not sure why you think the tube should stick out? - Sure its a little more tricky to get the tube the correct length if it doesn't poke out, but a little patience pays off...

IMG_20210101_180109.jpg (89.35 KiB) Viewed 2508 times

[Exhibitedbrute]

The tube is on the inside. I will take some photos later