diff --git a/Assets/Scripts/ServerShared/Behaviors/InstantWeapon.cs b/Assets/Scripts/ServerShared/Behaviors/InstantWeapon.cs
index 08376cf3a..49a0b7ea6 100644
--- a/Assets/Scripts/ServerShared/Behaviors/InstantWeapon.cs
+++ b/Assets/Scripts/ServerShared/Behaviors/InstantWeapon.cs
@@ -64,7 +64,6 @@ public class InstantWeapon : Weapon, IProgressBehavior, IEventBehavior, IPowerCo
     // The shooter asked for fire during this step (Activate): a weapon asked of for the whole step fires every round its
     // cooldown allows inside it, rather than one per step. Cleared when the step ends.
     private bool _pulled;
-    public string DiagBreak = ""; public int DiagRetriggers;
     // The shortest cycle a countdown divides by: a cooldown of zero would otherwise fire without end in one step.
     private const float ShortestCycle = .0005f;
 
@@ -305,7 +304,6 @@ public class InstantWeapon : Weapon, IProgressBehavior, IEventBehavior, IPowerCo
             if (!refused && !_burstPaid && (!TrySpendActivationEnergy() || !UseAmmo(dt)))
             {
                 _burstRemaining = 0;
-                DiagBreak = $"spend failed charge={_capacitor.Charge} cap={_capacitor.Capacity}";
                 return false;
             }
             if (!refused)
@@ -342,11 +340,10 @@ public class InstantWeapon : Weapon, IProgressBehavior, IEventBehavior, IPowerCo
         ended |= FinishCountdown(dt);
         // The trigger is held and the weapon is ready: the next burst starts now, at the moment the cooldown ended (what it
         // ran past zero is how long ago, at the step's end), or at the step's start when the weapon was already ready.
-        if (!Repeats || _burstRemaining > 0 || !CanFire || (retriggered && !_burstStarted)) { DiagBreak = $"cond Repeats={Repeats} rem={_burstRemaining} can={CanFire} re={retriggered} started={_burstStarted} cd={_cooldown} cooling={_coolingDown}"; break; }
+        if (!Repeats || _burstRemaining > 0 || !CanFire || (retriggered && !_burstStarted)) break;
         retriggered = true;
-        DiagRetriggers++;
         Trigger();
-        if (_burstRemaining == 0) { DiagBreak = "trigger refused"; break; }
+        if (_burstRemaining == 0) break;
         if (ended)
         {
             _burstTimer = TakeOvershoot();
diff --git a/tests/Aetheria.Shared.Tests/SimRateTests.cs b/tests/Aetheria.Shared.Tests/SimRateTests.cs
index db68e5a6d..0d6b09694 100644
--- a/tests/Aetheria.Shared.Tests/SimRateTests.cs
+++ b/tests/Aetheria.Shared.Tests/SimRateTests.cs
@@ -45,6 +45,7 @@ public sealed partial class ContactRevealTests
         var name = $"Gun@{cooldown:R}";
         if (_openCache.GetByName<ItemData>(name) != null) return name;
         var gun = Armed(new InstantWeaponData { Count = Const(1), BurstTime = Const(0), Cooldown = Const(cooldown) }, 0);
+        gun.Energy = Const(1); // the fixture reactor pays a round a hundredth of a second apart; the rounds-per-step tests top up nothing
         _openCache.Upsert(new WeaponItemData
         {
             Name = name, Hardpoint = HardpointType.Sensors, Shape = new Shape(), Durability = 1,
@@ -293,7 +294,7 @@ public sealed partial class ContactRevealTests
             var rounds = HoldTrigger(ship, Guns(ship)[0], dt, 10f, fireTimes);
             var probe = (InstantWeapon) Guns(ship)[0].Behaviors.Single(b => b is InstantWeapon);
             var cap = (InputCapacitor) typeof(InstantWeapon).GetField("_capacitor", BindingFlags.Instance | BindingFlags.NonPublic).GetValue(probe);
-            Assert.True(abs(rounds.Count - 1000f) <= 1.01f, $"dt {dt}: {rounds.Count} rounds in 10 s, expected 1000 +-1; capacity {cap.Capacity} rate {cap.Rate} charge {cap.Charge} cooldown {probe.Cooldown} canfire {probe.CanFire} firing {probe.Firing} retriggers {probe.DiagRetriggers} break {probe.DiagBreak}");
+            Assert.True(abs(rounds.Count - 1000f) <= 1.01f, $"dt {dt}: {rounds.Count} rounds in 10 s, expected 1000 +-1; capacity {cap.Capacity} rate {cap.Rate} charge {cap.Charge} cooldown {probe.Cooldown} canfire {probe.CanFire} firing {probe.Firing}");
             Assert.Equal(rounds.Count, fireTimes.Count);
             for (var i = 1; i < fireTimes.Count; i++)
                 Assert.True(abs(fireTimes[i] - fireTimes[i - 1] - .01f) < 2e-4f, $"dt {dt}: rounds {i - 1} and {i} born {fireTimes[i - 1]:R} and {fireTimes[i]:R}");