----------------------------------
General Procedure:
Overview: Sometimes, internal parts in a soaker may start leaking or fail working properly altogether. Thus, the only way to remedy the problem is to open the soaker up, find out what's wrong, and see if a repair is possible. Of course, the first step is getting to the soaker before any further analysis can be done. The following steps outline a general procedure used here at iSoaker.com for opening blasters (some for repair and some just to take internal pics to share with the community).
The following is a general guide that should be read in its entireity before proceeding. This guide does NOT cover all the potential problems encountered when opening a blaster, but does its best to describe how to deal with common troubles.
1) Take a picture/sketch the side of the soaker with all the screw holes - In most cases, all the casing screws are found on one of the sides of the blaster. As it turns out, different length or sized screws are used in different screw holes. To keep track of which screw belongs in which hole, a picture of the blaster comes in handy with the various screw holes marked on it;
2) Remove all the screws placing each screw next to the marked hole on the soaker diagram - this step prevents screws from being mixed up with each other and is a good way to keep screws from becoming lost. Some opt to simply puncture the printed paper the soaker is sketched/printed on. Here, we usually tape the screws onto the page. For removing screws, a size 0 and size 1 Phillips ( + ) screwdrivers appear to be the most common type required to remove the majority of water blaster screws;
3) Examine the entire length of the joint between either halves of the blaster casing - in many cases, parts of the casing are glued together. As well, there is usually a piece of plastic that holds the two halves together at the end of the pump area (commonly referred to as the 'pump cap'). The pump cap is usually glued on as well, but in some cases, can be unscrewed;
4) Use a flat head screwdriver to gently pry apart the two halves of the blaster casing - look for a good starting point that seems to naturally open after all the screws had been removed. From this point, trace along the divide, splitting any areas that may be glued gently using the screwdriver to assist in prying. In the area near to the pump cap, if the cap had not been removed yet, do not over-force things in that region and simple trace the other direction until reaching the pump cap from the other side;
5) Separate the casing from the pump cap (It should be noted there are a few blasters i.e. CPS2500 that do NOT have pump caps. In those cases, this step is not applicable.) - in may instances, this is one of the hardest things to do since the pump caps are often very well glued on. By now, the rest of the casing should be easy to open apart from where it is held together by the pump cap. Some use vice-grips to grab and twist the pump cap to break the glue, but this often also does severe plastic damage and may also crush parts inwards. Some carefully use saws to cut the cap off, but doing so means it cannot easily be placed back on. Sawing also increases the chance of accidentally cutting into the pump shaft and/or other internals which is not a good thing. Here, we typically use a couple of small books to first help wedge open the two halves of the casing, thus applying consistent force onto the pump cap region. There may be some plastic tearing in the pump cap region. Wear protective eye wear at this point since sudden plastic snapping may send small bits of plastic flying. After some prying apart, we usually find one half of the casing moves more freely. Thus, we end up gently, but forcefully twisting this half of the case versus the other half, adding more stress, but in a different direction, to the pump cap region. First, we twist in one direction as far as seems safe, then twist in the opposite direction, all to attempt to loosen and/or break the glue bond between the casing and the pump cap. Care must be taken not to put much stress on the pump, itself, otherwise one may end up damaging the piston. Most times, the pump cap gets slightly deformed in the process, but usually not too badly and can be reshaped to look more-or-less intact. As well, the pump cap often remains attached to one half of the casing, but so long as the other side can be removed, the blaster is open.
6) Carefully separate the halves of the casing and examine the internals - once the pump cap has been split from one side of the casing, the blaster is more-or-less open and ready for examination in attempt to find the internal problem. When opening the casing, be sure to make note if there are any parts attached to the side you are removing. For some blasters, there are wires or other things attached to both sides of the case. For most blasters, the bulk of the internals are attached to one side.
-------------
Specific trouble shooting is another story, though. This guide merely attempts to cover the basic problems commonly found when opening up a blaster. Of course, some blasters have specific things to watch out for so only use this as a general guide. In the end, one must study the blaster at each step, looking for things that may not be accounted for in this guide and compensating for it.
Good luck and soak on!
...to be added.