Hello. I thought I would update the review for the eLCD. The first version of the review was based on the 2.0 release at the time of this writing. It is now up to 3.1. I will try and bring out the updated material at the end of each appropriate paragraph. I may get wordy, blame it my engineer type personality.

When I received the box, I was suprised of the size of the box given the fact that inside is just a frame, the instructions (full size 8.5x11 papers), and a charger that plugs into a cigarette lighter for a vehicle. The packaging material is less than what I thought for an electronic piece of hardware, but more than what you get with some other mechanical trigger frames. What I mean by this is that there is no cushioning incase of dropping the box. Both inside the flap and outside, there is alot of eye candy.

The instructions are complete and explain everything from installation all the way to firing modes and trouble shooting. The only thing that troubles me is that there is no direct line to call with concerns with the frame except for snail mail address and an email address to the sales department. There is a comment to contact the dealer that you purchased from to settle any dissatisfaction or other troubleshooting. *As an update, customer service is exceptional from what I have heard. Boo-Yaah will help in what ever way that they can. Even to the point of exchanging with no hassle except for shipping time. Proper numbers and addresses have been added. But is still suggested to contact the dealer with problems as the first route.

Looking at the frame, I noticed some imperfections. But is not a major concern since it is made out of one piece of aluminum stock milled out. I did notice scratches on the right side. Nothing major. These scratches appear to be from assembly of the various pins. I also noticed some rust and oxidization appearing on the sear. A little steal wool will help clean that up and lightly oiling it. Also, I noticed the top of the trigger has a sharp edge. You will not feel this since it will be resting sandwiched between the marker body and the frame. I do find it interesting that the eLCD display is very different compared to the display pictured on the http://www.SpydereLCD.com web site. Also, in cold temperatures, the eLCD will not function properly. The LCD crystals are very sensitive to temperatures below 45. The frame will still function. The display will show some random characters, if displaying at all. *Update: The site has been changed to reflect the display accordingly. I believe the pics on the site was a prototype to get the "ooo's" and "ahh's" from potential consumers. As far as the sear, that has been improved with better material. The oxidation and rust appears seems to be resolved. Machining of the sear is much better compared to the r2.0 eLCD. Also, the side-to-side play has been corrected with better tolerances.

Holding the frame was nice. It is a .45 style of frame with rubber grips similar to the Hogue rubber grips. It would be big feeling for those that have small hands. The one thing I would need to get use to is the rear portion of the grip. It is not very rounded and kinda digs into the fleshy part of your hand. Other than that, it feels like a solid piece of equipment. You may try and install a different .45 grip. But time and effort would be needed to get them to fit. There are 3 holes, compared to the standard 2 holes on regular .45's. *Update: since its initial release, Boo-Yaah has come out with anodized frames of a wide assortment of colors as well as chromed. Along with the colored frames, there are also colored rubber grips that will fit the eLCD. The sharp edge that I commented about seemed to have been fixed. Also, if I understand correctly, a single trigger is available to replace the existing double trigger.

Opening up the frame to look at the internals was easy. The removal of 3 screws using a 5/64 hex wrench from one side of the frame was enough to take a look at the internals. Although, the complete removal of the rubber grip requires the removal of the remaining 3 screws on the other side (6 total) and the trigger guard (one screw from inside of the frame using a 9/64 hex wrench). Inside of the frame are the circuit board, back lit LCD display, battery, trigger contact and sear housing mechanism. On the board, just above the display, is the switch for tournament mode. A simple flip of this switch disables all modes except semi-auto. The battery is a very inexpensive rechargeable 9v battery that simply snaps into place. You are able to take this battery out and replace it with a commercial non-rechargeable battery if you desire. I installed a non-rechargeable battery, as I did not want to wait the suggested 8 hours of charging time. But take note, the battery display will not show a full charge with a non-rechargeable battery. According to Boo-Yaah, the rechargeable charges to 12v. 3v more juice than a standard battery. *Update: Charger is the same. Picture a cigarette adapter with 2 wires coming out. About 5 to 6 inches up the wire is a cylinder. This is an electric muffler, acting like a surge protector from your cars electrical system. Then more wire to a plug in end. The charging time has increased. It is now suggested that a full charge be 14 to 16 hours. *Update: I know that the biggest complaint of the eLCD is the battery issue. And I can say this has thankfully been resolved. Off frame firing on a new non-rechargeable battery yielded about 4-5 days with intermittent firing up to 30k shots (not on gun or gassed up). The drain was pretty severe and didn't seem to be a problem. Like I said, this was off marker. Results will be drastic when actually firing the marker. Boo-Yaah estimates an on-gun firing up to 6,500 shots. Boo-Yaah also mentions that the frame will still consume a small amount of power when off. Boo-Yaah also has available (or soon will) a wall adapter.

Putting back together the frame is a little tricky. It is best to install one side of the rubber grip first, then stretching the other side into place. The screws should not be screwed in ALL the way as you my go through the rubber grip. Lastly, install the trigger guard.

I did not install the frame onto my Spyder right away. Just wanted to "play" around with the frame first. I went through all the modes. Full auto, turbo, safety, semi-auto, and burst are the modes available. Right out of the box, the trigger pull was VERY short. Measuring the bottom trigger loop, it measured a whole 1/32" to fire the frame (and the marker). The full length of the pull is 3/32". There is an adjusting screw (using the 5/64 hex wrench) that will adjust the length of the pull to a mere tap to the side of the trigger to about 1/4" to fire the paint marker. But having it this small of a pull did not work correctly. The trigger kinda got stuck. I replaced the pull back to the "factory" setting. Good enough for me. The trigger pull is much like a mouse click. There is some side-to-side play in the trigger.

There are 2 buttons on the back marked "F1" and "F2", the charging port above them, and then the serial number. These buttons are recessed to prevent accidentally changing the setting. The firing modes are easily chosen using the "F1" button. For each press of the button will change the selection. Whenever you change the firing modes, the name of the mode is displayed, along with battery level, shot count, timer (when programmed), and the frame safety is "LIVE" or "SAFE".

Pressing the "F2" button changes set-up screens. The "F1" adjusts the parameters of each screen. In full auto set-up selection is as follows:

• "ROF": can be adjusted from 5 to 15.

In turbo fire, the set-up selections are as follows:

• "ROF": from 5 to 15
• "Turbo Engage": 4 to 7 shots:
• "Turbo Multiplier": 1.1 to 1.9
• "Pulse Length": from 6 to 15

Safety selections are as follows:

• "Gun Locked". If you press buttons or the trigger, nothing will happen. Basically, the gun is locked of all inputs. To unlock the frame, press both the F1 and F2 at the same time.

Semi auto selections are as follows:

• "ROF": 5 to 15.

Burst fire:

• "ROF": 5 to 15
• "Burst Length": 2 to 12

For each of the firing modes, there are common set-up parameters that you can adjust. These parameters are as follows (using the "F2" button to select):

• "Timer start": The available selection is either off, start with the first shot, or manually start with the press of the "F2" button.
• "Timer": This will not be displayed if the timer start is set to off. Otherwise, you can adjust the minutes only. The range is 1 thru 20, then jumps to 30, 40, 50, and finally 60 minutes. Unfortunately, when the timer runs out, there is no signal of any sorts (vibration or audible). The timer is capable of counting up or down, whichever you prefer.
• "Shot Count": Selections are either CLEAR/ON, and OFF

In tournament mode, there is no safety selection. Only semi auto. You can adjust the BPS (set from 5 to 15), timer on or off, set time for timer, and shot count CLEAR/ON and OFF

I decided to finally mount the frame to my Spyder. It takes the same screws that holds the original Spyder frame. Me, having a BL frame, the rear screw is a bit long and will not fit properly. Awhile back, I had purchased the field strip screws. They worked out fine with no problem mounting the eLCD frame on the body. I thought that I would dry fire my marker before I gassed it up. To my suprise, the marker would not fire. I heard clicking. So I knew it was not the frame. Turning to my instructions, there is a small section that mentions adjustments. Not all markers are made the same way. Tolerances are a bit different. I took off my frame and followed the instructions. According to the instructions, there are 2 small setscrews, one on each side of the sear. I also had to take out the 6 screws that held the rubber grip in place (I am sure you can take out one side of the rubber grip. I did both just to see what needed to be done). After loosening the 2 set screws, this enables you to move the metal frame inside the grip that adjusts the position of the sear. I moved it forward 1/32 of an inch (according to the directions) and tightened the setscrews. I replaced the grip and dry fired once again. It fired.

I decided to add my Benchmark on/off drop forward. On the bottom of the trigger frame, there are a total of 4 holes. 2 being offset of the centerline of the grip. The other 2 are on center. This gives the user the ability to used either the Kingman standard ASA (holes being off set) or use the regular commercial ASA/drop forward (holes being on center). Boo-Yaah also provides 2 screws for your ASA. It is a good idea to use these screws. There is a possibility the existing screws are too long. They could screw into the internals and cause damage to them.

Gassed up the marker and loaded up balls in the hopper, I was ready to fire. Tried out the full auto. Set it to 10 BPS. Pulled the trigger. WOW!!! A 3-second burst yielded 29 balls (I could have been off on my timing). Not bad and no breaks. Next I tried turbo. This is MTDreams favorite mode. Set up the BPS to 8 and the engage to 4. Started to fan the trigger and the turbo started up when I started pulling the trigger 4 times per second. Did that for 5 seconds. The semi mode was heavenly with the very short trigger pull. Burst mode was also a nice feature that could prove useful. With all the modes that I tried, not one ball break.

My final thoughts. The workmanship could be better (Update: MFG process has been cleaned up). The scratches could have been avoided. The grip is a little blocky and sharp, but fits nicely in large hands. And the sear not treated properly (Update: another fix). The firing modes all worked without a problem. The lack of a mechanical safety should be addressed by Boo-Yaah/Mako strictly for safety reasons. The display is user friendly. Only two buttons to push when making adjustments, which eases the programming of the frame. Also, the new colors of not only the frames, but also the grips, make adding this frame to your marker custom looking.

I would suggest replacing the rechargeable battery with a nickel metal hydride battery. These last longer and do not have a "memory" limit like the ni-cad rechargeable. They should be no more than $10 per battery. Depending on the price for the Boo-Yaah wall charger, another option is a Radio Shack Universal Charger for around $15. With this, you can plug into a wall and charge 2 batteries at once.

All in all, the eLCD is a wonderful electronic upgrade for any Spyder (and it will fit all Spyders). I highly recommend it for those that want an adjustable trigger pull and the option for full auto or burst mode. The addition of the tournament switch is also a nice feature for the tourny player.

For the retail of $234 for a black (according to eLCD web site at time of first writing) to $249 for a red eLCD to match the red on the Spyder Shutter, the price range is within reach of those considering an electro marker. This is a great upgrade to your Spyder. Prices range on on-line stores anywhere between $210 to $250. There is a warranty and a return policy with a phone number provided (877-610-ELCD)

I guess I better mention also as an after thought. If purchasing the eLCD frame, I would also look into getting a nitro system. If using CO2, you may very easily freeze all of your o-rings with the potential high ROF of the frame. Even if you have a x-chamber. Prolonged high ROF is enough to freeze up your marker.

Also, at the time of this writting, Boo-Yaah seems to have disappeared from the Internet. I have emailed them several times with no replies. Should you decide to purchase this e-frame is at your own risk. Tech support is not there if there is a problem. But for the Mako Storm, the contact information is as follows:

Please note: The following address and number below is no longer valid. Not sure if Mako is no longer a company, or moved. If anybody can help me find the correct information, I would appreciate it. For servicing, I am not sure who would do this. 32Degrees came out with an electronic trigger frame that looks similar. Would not hurt to try them.

Mako Paintball Products, Inc.

1041 N. Dupage Ave.

Lombard, IL 60148

Phone: 630 705-9293

Fax: 630 576-5064.

*All of the above comments and opinions are that of the author, Tim "OtterSC" Gochenauer. Much thanks also from Mike "MTDreams" Tran for giving information on the rel 3.1 eLCD. If you wish to use this review of the eLCD in full or in part, please give proper credit.

Back to top...