In this article I will guide you through the installation procedures for the Lucky Spitfire board into a marker that has already been milled and routed for eyes. If the marker is not already milled and routed for eyes, you'll need to have that arranged before proceeding with the eye and board installation. Since it is basically the exact same board as a Virtue Spyder board, you can use this installation guide for that board. Though the Tadao board has a slightly different configuration, the basic procedure of installing the board and eyes are the same as well.
Tools
Since this is a very light technical installation, you'll need very few tools. Depending on whether you're exchanging eyes or not, the need for an array of tools could be even lesser.
For the most part, you'll need a few screwdrivers and some allen wrenches to tear the marker apart if you're installing alternate eyes. Preferably a philips head screwdriver for the board screws and a small jewelers screwdriver for removal of the harness plastic connector housings from the board outlet receptacles.
Let's Get It On
Board Removal....
It's best to remove anything such as a drop forward, rail mounted bottom line ASA or trigger frame mounted regulator first to get that out of the way before even starting to install the board if you are installing alternate eyes. If you are using the existing eyes, there's no need for removing these components since you will not be separating the trigger frame from the body.
1. Remove both grips from the trigger frame.
2. Unplug the battery from the battery harness.
3. If you're exchanging eyes, you'll need to first remove both the eye covers, pop the eyes from their receptacles, then carefully remove the trigger frame from the marker body.
4. Remove the 2 screws holding the board in place.
5. Once that's loosened, carefully remove all the plastic harness plugs from the corresponding board outlet receptacles. I suggest wedging a small flat head jewelers screwdriver between the plug and board receptacle as shown in the photograph below just to loosen the bond between the two then pull them apart carefully with your fingers. If you at any time pull on the wires you're just asking for big time trouble. There's a great chance of pulling the wire from the encased crimped connectors inside the plugs. To fix that you'll need a $300 crimping tool and the correct tin connector.
6. If you are installing alternate eyes, you'll need to remove the existing eye harness from the trigger frame at this time. Before you do, make a mental picture of this routing as you will need to use the same routing when installing the new harness.
Board Installation....
1. Using the 2 screws, attach the replacement board back onto the trigger frame. If you torque the screws down excessively, there's a chance that you can crack the board material so just snug the screws down slightly.
2. If you are installing alternate eyes, reroute the eye harness through the trigger frame in the same manner as you previously removed it.
3. Using the guide below, connect the eye, microswitch, battery and coil set harness plugs back into their corresponding board receptacle outlets.
If the plastic harness plug doesn't seem to fit the outlet, it may just be you're attempting to plug it in the incorrect orientation. Simply turn the plug around and try it again. If you'll notice, there's a raised locator on all the plugs that fit into the corresponding slots of the board outlet receptacles. Whatever you do, don't force it in. There's a chance the outlet barbs aren't matching up with the plug connectors. If you force it you can bend and snap off the barbs which would render the connection and board useless.
4. If you are adding new laser eyes this may be the tricky part of the installation. If you are using the existing eyes, you may omit steps 4 & 5 and advance to step 6. At this point, place the eyes back into the body eye receptacles then slowly bend the harness portion towards the path of the eye wire grooves that will lay underneath the eye covers. The laser eye ends do not come pre bent to fit the milled channel.
5. String the eye wires into the milled channels then attach the grip frame to the body as well if you are adding new eyes. I can't stress enough to be very cautious not to pinch the eye wires when doing this. If you do pinch the wires you'll most likely need to buy a new set of eyes. You'll find you have plenty of excess wire with these laser eyes. You can just bundle the excess up into the board area of the trigger frame.
6. At this point you're pretty much done with the installation. All you need to do now is attach the battery and grips onto the trigger frame.
Well That's It
Everything's back in place and now it's time to unleash the electronic monster you've just created. Time to tinker with the endless modes and settings that this wonderful board has been equipped with. Further information on that subject may be attained in the Manuals & Exploded Diagrams area of the SPPS tech section. Simply download the Lucky Spitfire Circuit Board pdf file and all the info you should ever need will be supplied to you in that guide.
