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First...realize that these things are toys with a bunch of parts moving around really quickly under stress
Secondly...realize that many of these parts are made pretty cheaply
Third...realize that even the best parts can catastrophically fail
*all this despite these things cost a good chunk of money...
What's happened, in essence, is that the sector (half gear) gear has chewed up and worn away at the piston teeth. Enough so that they're worn so much that the gear won't pick them up anymore and is basically skipping past them all. Probably sounded like a horrible screeching/grinding noise right?
Most often happens suddenly when you get a jam...or if you're running a mismatched spring/motor/battery combo. Also a overall piston/head length that's too short. Yours looks more like just lousy wear leading to a failure.
Anyways...doesn't really matter why it did it...what matters more now is getting it up and running again, and hedging your bets that it won't happen again.
1. Take all the bits and pieces out of your mechbox and really clean it out....clean out the plastic shavings, the grease (that'll trap plastic shavings), etc... Give everything a really good cleaning...pick out all the teeth of each gear to make sure nothing gets left behind.
2. While you're doing that...inspect each part for damage (obviously your piston is toast). Look for broken, cracked, bent pieces...inspect the inside of the cylinder for scratches/gouges/etc...
3. Research as much as you can on the following terms
- Shimming
- Angle of Engagement (sometimes refered to as AOE)
- Compression test / testing
4. Consider what, if anything else you might want to change now
- more/less powerful spring
- spring guides
- piston head (personally I don't care for the aluminum ones)
- nozzle
- etc...
5. Get all the parts you'll need
- don't mix brands with pistons/piston heads
- don't replace just one gear...replace the whole set at once
- don't forget to get grease and shims
6. Reassemble and test
- take your time with shimming...no hurries and it really does go better to test fit the mechbox all together without the compression parts in place
- pay close attention to the AOE in your setup....if the piston you buy doesn't have the 2nd tooth already removed, give strong consideration to removing it.
- take your time and go slow...no need to hurry/rush it
Best of luck
Tys
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