2012 Nerf Sum Up

To conclude an exciting and awesome year, Outback Nerf wishes you a late Merry Christmas (or Happy Holidays if you don't celebrate Christmas) and a Happy New Year, and also wants to congratulate you on surviving the highly anticlimactic and scientifically incorrect 2012 Mayan Apocalypse. Wait. Something's missing. Yes, the 2012 Nerf Sum-Up, where we sumarise all the new Nerf products released this year.

First up, the biggest and possibly best major Nerf release so far, the N-Strike Elite line.

N-Strike Elite

Ever since Urban Taggers first discovered the box art of the NSE(N-Strike Elite) Retaliator and the Rampage, Nerf's Elite series was the main hype of 2012, and it still is now. When initial images surfaced it appeared the Elite line was taking ordinary N-Strike blasters and making them awesome. It is now evident that this is both true and false - Elite is taking some N-Strike designs and awesome-ing them, but is also introducing all new designs, spearheaded in 2012 by the Hail-Fire. The line advertises to shoot up to 75ft/22m (approximently) and are mainly blue in colour with orange, white and grey highlights. Everyone was also introduced to new concepts in Nerf, like direct plungers fitted into old shells, new revovler tech (Strongarm's unique rotating mech), and new flywheel-tech. The Elite clips (mags) also became special because of new styling as well as a new primary feature: their right side is transparent, allowing people to easily see their remaining ammo, which is also helpful when filling/refilling clips (mags). Unfortunately because the right side is transparent, only left handers can make maximum use of this feature,while right handers (the majority of the human population) cannot see their capacity. Nevertheless, they look awesome.

Unfortunately, the countries with really strict toy firearm laws (like Australia) have to receive detuned units, identified by grey-triggers. The detuned versions advertise to shoot 15m (approx. 50ft).

Retaliator ('Elitified' Recon)
Ranges: 50-60ft (15-18m). About 2/3rds of the power for detuned ones, although mine seems pretty powerful getting 14m.
ROF: About 2-3dps. No slam fire.
Accuracy: Decent without barrel, good with barrel.
Capacity: 12 in included clip (mag)
Accessories: Barrel, stock, foregrip, 12 clip (mag), 12 darts

Rampage ('Elitified' Raider)
Ranges: 50-60ft (15-18m). About 2/3rds of the power for detuned ones.
ROF: About 2-3dps on single fire. Can achieve up to 5dps, possibly more depending on user (slam fire)
Accuracy: Very good at 10-12m. Flies off to the sides after aprox. 13-15m
Capacity: 25 in included drum
Accessories: 25 drum, 25 darts

Hail-Fire
Ranges: 45-55ft (13-17m). About 2/3rds of the power for detuned ones.
ROF: Can achieve up to 4-5dps and more dependant on user's trigger finger (semi auto)
Accuracy: Decent, but you don't use a Hail-Fire for accuracy.
Capacity: 24 in included clips (mags) (4x6 clips [mags]), value pack holds 48 (8x6 clips [mags]), can hold up to 144 (8x18 clips [mags])
Accessories: 4x6 clips (mags), 24 darts, various Hail-Fire parts (assembly required)

Stockade (Release only for countries outside US in 2012)
Ranges: 50-60ft (15m). About 2/3rds the power for detuned version.
ROF: Can achieve up to 4-5dps (semi auto).
Accuracy: Decent, much better than Barricade.
Capacity: 20. 10 in blaster, 10 in stock. Only comes with 10 darts.
Accessories: Stock, 10 darts

Additionally the Elite line had an updated Tactical Vest, with the blaster holster being designed to hold the upcoming Elite Firestrike, but otherwise being pretty much the same as the N-Strike Tac Vest.

To complement the Elite blasters, Nerf also redesigned the highly popular 18 clip (mag), and released it in its own blister package.

Nerf released a Hailfire Upgrade kit which basically has 4 more 6 clips (mags) to fill up the Hailfire.

Nerf rereleased the good old Bandolier, this time in Elite styling. It is essentially the same as the N-Strike Bandolier, but comes with Elite stuff and is slightly shorter and thinner.

In 2013 we have a number of Elite blasters to look forward to, some of which are already available in the US. This includes the Firestrike (Elite NF), Strongarm (Elite Mav/Spectre hybrid), Triad (3 shot Jolt), Elite coloured and more powerful Jolts and Reflexes with new designs, the Rough Cut 2x4 (multishot double barrel shotgun) and the Stryfe (redesigned Rayven) as well as an Elite Rayven.

Light It Up Series:
The Light It Up series was officially released on the 3rd of March, 2012 (3/3/12) and its blasters, besides having fluoro green colour have glow in the dark ammo, which is 'charged' by special mags/clips (mags). While the Lumitron is merely a repaint of the then favourite Vortex blaster, the Praxis, the Rayven was an all new design which became popular for its rapid fire and potentially ridiculous ranges capabilities.

Vortex Lumitron
Ranges: 15-18m (aprox. 50-60ft)
ROF: Up to 3dps. No slam-fire.
Accuracy: Good.
Capacity: 10 in light-up mag
Accessories: 10 disc light up mag, 10 GITD discs

N-Strike Rayven CS-18
Ranges: 11-12m (approx 36-40ft)
ROF: Up to 6-8dps, dependant on user's trigger finger (semi auto).
Accuracy: Decent for a CS blaster.
Capacity: 18 in light-up mag.
Accessories: 18 dart light up mag, 18 GITD darts

Vortex
The Vortex line received an extra addition, the Pyragon. Sporting a 40 disc drum and slam fire, as well as slightly better ranges, the Pyragon quickly became a fan favourite among Nerfers.

2013 holds only one known Vortex release, the Diatron. It comes in the same awesome colour scheme as the Pyragon, and fires 2 discs at a time, and holds up to 10 discs.

The Pyragon
Ranges: 16m-20m (unusually good, even for Vortex)
ROF: Up to 8dps, dependant on user (slam fire).
Accuracy: Excellent. Curves less than other Vortex blasters.
Capacity: 40 in drum mag
Accessories: 40 disc drum, 40 discs

As a Vortex counterpart to the N-Strike/Elite Tactical Vest, Nerf also suprised us with the Vortex Ammo Belt Kit, with never-before-seen mag holders and some other awesome stuff that comes with the kit.

Dart Tag.
We Aussies also finally got the 2011 Dart Tag blasters, but with strange new BLUE triggers. The models with blue triggers have been shown to be more powerful than their standard orange trigger models, with stronger springs in all. Of course, the downside is that the electronic blasters (Swarmfire, Speedswarm) have reduced ROFs because of the extra load on the motors.

The National Dart Tag League (US) was also not held this year for some reason, though possibly to put more emphasis on the Elite line.

The non-flywheel Snapfire 8 also sneaked onto Aussie shelves, giving us a whole new concept about semi-auto blaster as well as a variable power system allowing for easier trigger pulls but lower ranges, or harder trigger pulls and higher ranges. It has now become a popular sidearm for many because of its semi auto capabilities, decent sidearm capacity and firepower, and of course its small size. It is slated to have a 2013 release in the US.

Ranges: 9-10m (speed mode), 11-13m (power mode)
Accuracy: Decent, not great
ROF: 2-3dps attainable, any more taxes the fingers and risks misfires (semi auto)
Capacity: 8 in turret
Accessories: 8 darts

Sonic Series
The most popular 2011 Vortex blasters (The Vigilon,Proton,Praxis) were also given a green reshell to compliment the other blasters.
-Sonic Praxis
Nerf Wikia pics
-Sonic Vigilon
Nerf Wikia pics
-Sonic Proton
Nerf Wikia pics

Super Soaker
We also got the 2 other motorised Super Soakers: the Lightningstorm(Thunderstorm repaint with better accessories) and the Electrostorm.
-Electrostorm
Nerf Wikia Review
-Lightningstorm
Nerf Wikia Review

Other
The were also the new promotional blasters:
-The Ninja Commando Blaster (Red Furyfire),
-And the Hawkeye Big Bad Bow (Rerelease Purple BBB)

All in all, 2012 was a great year for Nerf, with the release of some of the best blasters you can get from the Elite line, and the best Vortex blaster so far. 2013 looks to be good for Nerf as well, with so many new Elite blasters and the new 'Multishot Madness' series (with particular interest from this blog's authors in the Elite Stryfe and Triad).

Nerf Vortex vs N-Strike Part 2

Continuing the long overdue post of N-Strike vs Vortex. In this post we'll be pitting the New Vortex Pyragon against the N-Strike Raider CS-35

Because I yet to have tested the Nitron, Stampede vs Nitron will have to be delayed until later in part 3 (which may never exist). Additionally, there will be a Barrel Break IX-2 Rough Cut 2x4 vs Diatron in part 4 (which again, may never exist).

Aesthetics:
The Pyragon somehow resembles a sci-fi laser weapon (as with most other Vortex blasters), while the Raider resembles older weapons with side magwells.
From the side, The Raider looks cool, but when you look at it from an angled view, it's really ugly.
I personally prefer the Pyragon's appearance because of the red and white colour scheme as well as its lines, but as always I don't score on aesthetics.
Accessories:
The Pyragon, comes with itself, a 40-disc drum, and 40 'bright orange' discs.
The Raider comes with itself, a 35-dart drum, it's special extendable stock and 35 streamline darts.
The Pyragon comes with 5 more bits of ammo and its drum holds more ammo, but the Raider comes with its own sturdy stock, thus equalising this round.
Range/Power:
The Pyragon, being a Vortex blaster, easily hits 15m+ and has a good disc velocity, almost having the same fps as dart blasters.
The Raider, because it's an old reverse-plunged blaster, barely breaks 10m, only getting up to 8-9m. A strange difference between the blasters is that the Pyragon is still consistent in range when slam firing, while the Raider gains a metre or two in range when slam-firing.
The Pyragon obviously beats the Raider easily.
Accuracy:
The Pyragon, as mentioned in the review, has very consistent accuracy, both in single fire and slam-fire, and seems to curve less than other Vortex blasters too (well, at least mine does)..
The Raider, on the other hand has bad accuracy, which is ordinary for clip (mag)-system blasters. Some darts spin away, and others get a straight line, but still with a twirl. Others 'helicopter' out and travel only a few metres.
The Pyragon wins, because its accuracy is far more consistent.
Usability:
The Pyragon is extremely smooth to fire and to prime, especially in slam-fire. It's drum never misfeeds and most of the jams are caused by user error. So far, I haven't experienced any jams relating to the blaster. On the other hand, the Raider is notorious for jamming, because the drum can't keep up properly and misfeeds. Although it doesn't jam as badly as the old Recon, there are few good-feeding drums out there but the majority of Raiders can jam easily. Additionally, over time Raider drums wear out and its feeding slows down, thus increasing the rate of misfires and jams. I've only heard that a few defective Pyragons jam.
The Pyragon wins this round easily again.
Rate of Fire:
The Raider is capable of 4-5dps, but most Raider's drums jam very easily at high rates of fire, so it's limited to a reliable rate of 2-3dps.
The Pyragon, on the other hand is capable of over 8 dps and the drum is fast enough to keep up with the ROF.
The Pyragon once again defeats the Raider with ease.
Capacity:
The Pyragon holds 40 discs in its drum, but the Raider only holds 35. The Pyragon wins a again, but only by a small margin.
Value for Money/Availability:
The Raider is available at most toy stores, usually at $35 or more. The Pyragon is also available everywhere, but it's more costly at $40-$90. Both blasters are found almost everywhere, but because the Raider comes with a stock and the Pyragon has better stats overall, this round is a tie.

Overall, the Pyragon has won 5 rounds, while the Raider has won no rounds, with 2 ties. The Pyragon is by far the better blaster than the original slam-fire blaster. It's not surprising how much better the Pyragon is than the Raider, considering it just got released this year, but it's surprising that there is no category that the Raider is better then the Pyragon.

So now Vortex is catching up with N-Strike. If N-Strike can managed to win just one more round, or tie both rounds it will win. For Vortex to win it has to win both rounds.
The score is now:
N-Strike: 3 : Vortex: 2

Comparison: Elite vs N-Strike Part 1.5: Retaliator vs Alpha Trooper CS-18

Because the Recon was such a bad match for the Retaliator, I decided to make this post. It won't count towards the Elite vs N-Strike score because the Retaliator isn't an Elite AT, but it might help those of you trying to pick a new blaster to buy.

Loadouts 5: Sniping

On smaller play areas, pretty much all Nerf blasters can fire the greatest engagement ranges required. However, on larger play fields ordinary Nerf blasters cannot fire far enough to reach most of the field. This is where snipers and modded blasters come into play, which can fire much further than ordinary blasters and with greater accuracy. There are few true sniper blasters, but those included in this loadouts post are the ones I feel are most suited to the task. Note that I have not included airguns which are extremely powerful (e.g. Titan, 4B) as they require stefans to really shine. Stock darts just get ripped apart, but the listed blasters can do well with stock darts.
Note also that where there is a "(m)" before the blaster's name, it means that the blaster must be modified to be an effective sniper.
Scenario Description: Player is relatively well concealed, behind or near cover, and can hit enemy players/targets while not being within range of enemies.
Keys to Victory: Accuracy and patience. If you can't get a good shot off, don't waste your ammo and give away your position. Sure, if you really need to fire then go ahead, but if there isn't that urgency then keep your shots for when you can guarantee hits.
Unnecessary Burdens: Large, non-sniper primary blasters. As a sniper, you should be travelling light to be able to fire, then move from cover to cover to prevent being retaliated against. Alternatively, if you're good enough, you can prevent enemies from taking your hiding place, which is good if you've found a particularly good spot for sniping. To do this you'll need lots of ammo and quite a bit of skill. If you are constantly being shot at, then either the play field is unsuited to snipers, you're not being a good sniper, or you're holding a critical position.

Nerf War 18/12/12

I had some friends come over today, and we had some Nerf wars and played some video games. I only managed to record one of the rounds, and here it is:

Nerf N-Strike vs Elite Round 1: Retaliator (Aus version) vs Recon CS-6

This post starts off a series of ongoing posts in which I compare the original N-Strike blasters to their updated Elite versions. Expect the Elite version to win, but more importantly note the differences between them.

For the first ever Elite vs N-Strike post, we'll be comparing the 'basic' blasters of the Retaliator (Aus version) and Recon.

Nerf Elite Retaliator Review (15m Aussie version)

I am proud to present the review for the Retaliator, but unfortunately I can only present the downtuned Australian version, approximately 50% weaker than the US version.

The Elite line was revealed to have claimed "75ft ranges" (approx 23m), which naturally people were skeptical of, because N-Strike's claimed ranges were a meager 35ft (approx 10.7m). The first two blasters, the Retaliator and Rampage, were shown to look similar, if not almost completely identical, to current N-Strike blasters, the Recon and Raider respectively. It became completely obvious that the Elite blasters initially revealed could not simply be Recons and Raiders with bigger springs, because not only would they reach not as spectacular ranges, but they would also not be kid friendly. Thus it was speculated that Nerf had managed to fit direct plungers into the Elite blasters, and when SG Nerf got his hands on a Rampage, he showed the new, awesome direct plunger being used instead of the reverse plungers of N-Strike blasters.

Initial range tests showed that the blasters got around 50-60ft flat, and could achieve the 75ft ranges angled. Additionally, it was shown that Elite darts are a great help for many stock blasters, increasing range and accuracy compared to Streamlines. Nevertheless, Nerf started revealing new blasters with awesome performance, and Elite suddenly became a massive hit.

I personally went for the Retaliator over the others currently available (the Rampage, Hail-Fire and Stockade) for several reasons:

1. I dislike the Raider design, and as the Rampage uses the Raider shell I'm unlikely to get it.
2. The Hail-Fire looks weird because of its proportions, and I just don't see a use for it except for spraying 144 darts.
3. The Stockade is a redone Barricade and I'm not a fan of Barricades, although the Stockade stock is awesome.
4. The Recon was the blasters that got me in to Nerf, and I've always liked the design. Because the Retaliator is a re-done Recon it follows naturally that I'd love it.

Now, on to the bulk of the review.

Last War Vids from 22/11/12

The last three war vids I recorded from the 22nd of November. All these three are a simple elimination, in a 3v1 format, where the 1 always wields the Stampede.

Two more Nerf War Videos - 22/11/12

I had a Nerf war with my friends about two weeks ago, but never got around to uploading any of the vids. Well, here's two of them, with the other ~5 to come within a few weeks.

My Modified Recon CS-6

I'm a little late in posting this because I totally forgot, but I uploaded a video of my Recon CS-6, and why it is so special.

The upshot of it is that I'm getting 17-19m consistently with Streamlines, and around 15m with Elites.
I measured the ranges using Google Earth and it measured ~20m for Elites and 25m with Streamlines. Which doesn't really sound reasonable, but I measured the right places, so...
EDIT: Ranges probably weren't flat, so don't pay them much attention.

Why I Want the Stryfe - A Little Rant on Tacticool Accessories

The recently released Elite Stryfe is a prime candidate for the art of tacticool. Originally one of the best contenders for tacticool was the Recon, because it was clip (mag) fed, could accept barrels and stocks, and had a tac rail ideal for sights. However, anything on its tac rail caused potential issues when priming the Recon, resulting in sights generally not being used. The Stryfe solves this problem by being semi auto (and thus not requiring priming), as well as one-ups the Recon with an extra under-barrel tac rail. Nevertheless, it is inevitable that people will end up using the Stryfe as a clip (mag) fed pistol as a sidearm rather than the multitide of blasters it could be.

Nerf Dart Tag Swarmfire (blue trigger) Review

Today I'll be reviewing a blaster which has been out for a while, the Nerf Dart Tag Swarmfire. This beast of a blaster is generally seen as the flagship of the Dart Tag line (2011 reboot), and it's definitely worthy of that title.

The Swarmfire comes with itself, its detachable stock, and 20 redesigned blue-tip white velcro orange body DT Whistler hybrids.

The Swarmfire was originally released with three other DT blasters (Quick 16, Speedload 6, Sharp Shot) to revitalise the DT line which had been stuck with Furyfires and Hyperfires for the past years. The new DT line introduced new concepts into DT - all new curved and sleek designs (previous DT was primarily angular) full auto (Swarmfire), all new in built mag mechs (Quick 16, Speedload 6), and no tac rails on any blasters, leading some people to cry 'fake' before official proof.

The Swarmfire is the 'big daddy' of the DT line, providing some battery operated full auto goodness. It requires 6 'C' sized batteries to operate, which provide a hefty weight. To counteract the ammo wastage of full auto-ness, the Swarmfire has a capacity of 20 darts, the highest of any DT blaster so far.

BasicNerf & Friend get Elite Stryfe

I'm a little late on this bandwagon, but BasicNerf and one of his friends got their lucky hands on the Nerf Elite Stryfe, the blaster I want most from the ones officially from 2013. Anyways, they posted several useful videos on them, so I thought I'd share them here.
They were purchased from Toys 'R' Us for $25 USD each, so expect US retail price to be around $20. (TRU marks up their prices)

For the owners of these vids, go to:
BasicNerf (blog)
BasicNerf's friend (blog)

On a random note, you may be wondering why the blog has been a little quiet recently. Well, education calls. Not long ago I had my school exams, so I haven't had time to write up much. Don't worry, though, within the next fortnight a few more posts should be up.

Nerf Vortex Lumitron Pic Spam

Ordinarily I'd make a review for a blaster in order to do some pic spam, but the Lumitron is so similar to a Praxis you might as well refer to that review and it'll tell you all you need to know. Nevertheless, it is necessary to point out the few differences between the Lumitron and Praxis.

• Lumitron has no stock
• Mags are different (Praxis has generic vortex 10 mag, Lumitron light up vortex 10 mag)
• Colour scheme
• Price

The Lumitron and Praxis are functionally the same as the Lumitron effectively is a Praxis, so go read the Praxis review for all the details.

 The rest of the pics are after the jump.

More Slydev Parts - Iron Sights, Longshot Attachment & Sling Points

My order of Slydev stuff finally arrived, and I'm already quite impressed with it. Not just aesthetics wise, but they're practical too!
FIS - front iron sight
RIS - rear iron sight
LSFTRA - Longshot front tac rail attachment
SLTRA - sling loop tac rail attachment

Nerf Scout IX-3 Review

I'm finally going to complete a review which I started long ago: a review on the Scout IX-3. Unlike before, though, I actually have a stock Scout to play with.

The Scout IX-3 is an internally contained firing mech single shot blaster. Basically what all that means is that when primed there's nothing sticking out of the Scout, unlike the Nitefinder, which has its priming rod sticking out. It was first released around 2005 (patent says 2004, Nerf blasters usually come out one year after their patent), and first came with the Unity Power System (a Titan ASV-1, Hornet AS-6 and Scout IX-3 all combined into one box) in a nice red and grey, then was released in a 'tech target' package in a blue paintjob which had an electronic target to log hits. Said package has long since been discontinued (thus blue Scouts are rare and probably valuable), while the UPS has been available for a long time, and thus red Scouts are not so valuable. The Scout has only been available on its own (albeit in a two-pack) for several months in the nice yellow paintjob you see above. Before this pack was released it has not been sold separately of another gadget or blaster.

Loadouts 4: Offence - Rushing

There's no point having the best defensive Nerfers in the world if you can't bring the fight to your opponents. This loadouts post is dedicated to delivering maximum damage to your opponent's forces, not so much their base or fortress.
Scenario Description: Combat with concentration of enemies. Player is playing offensively with intent to tag as many as possible, or tag specific player(s). May or may not have backup teammates, depending on situation, severity and importance. Generally will not involve game factors other than players. Player intends to run in and tag as many enemies as possible and may sacrifice themself.
Keys to Victory: Rate of fire is key. Range and accuracy not as important because the player will be close enough to opponents to ensure tags. Fearlessness is helpful, especially with the loadouts that involving running. Fitness is important as you will be running a lot as an offensive player.
Unnecessary Burdens: Sidearms. Normally an attack will end one of two ways: total victory (all or majority of enemies tagged, few or no allies tagged) or failure (few or no enemies tagged, all or most allies tagged). As a result, you will either be alive to reload your primary(ies), running away or have been tagged, and are thus returning to base to respawn, therefore having plenty of time to reload.

Nerf Brass Breeched Longshot Range Test

I finally got around to recording me fire my BBLS outside with stefans.
EDIT: Probably don't pay too much stock to my range claims in the video.

Nerf Elite Dart Review/Test Results

While out shopping today I managed to pick up some of these:

At a local Target. Normal price is $12 but they have a 30% off Nerf so I got it for $8.40. Not bad for 30 darts.

Nerf Dart Tag Snapfire 8 Review

This is a review of Nerf's newest DT blaster, the semi auto Snapfire 8.

Initially the Snapfire 8 was spotted at a toy convention of some kind earlier in the year. It was first sighted in stores in Singapore in around May (possibly later), and only reached Australia around September. Unfortunately for USA Nerfers one of BasicNerf's Nerf contacts has confirmed that the Snapfire 8 will not be released in the US in 2012. I personally find this quite weird given Nerf's biggest audience is the US (I assume), although Singapore's Nerfers per square kilometre is probably the highest of all countries.

The Snapfire 8 caused a stir because it promised semi auto firing without the use of electronics, and the ability to alter ranges and rate of fire with the use of a knob. At first people were skeptical about ranges given its size, and many people were intrigued by the trigger system because it is segmented.

Comparison: Nerf DT Snapfire vs Barricade RV-10

This is a comparison of Nerf's two semi auto revolvers, the N-Strike Barricade RV-10 and the Dart Tag Snapfire.

Nerf Longshot w/ Brass Breech Test Fire

In this video I try to show off my brass breeched Longshot. Unfortunately you can't really see the darts because of lighting, the camera quality and the dart velocity. Nevertheless, you can hear the firing sound and impact sound.

Ranges with Heavy Silicone Darts (~1.6g total weight I believe) average 25-30m.
Ranges with Lite Silicone Darts (~1.2g total weight) average 24-28m.
Ranges with Streamlines are anywhere between 20m and 30m because they go completely nuts after about 10m.
Springs are: Stock LS spring, OMW 5+kg spring (total load ~8kg)
EDIT: Don't give these ranges too much weight, I doubt they were properly flat shots.

Nerf War Vids 23/9/12 Part 2

3 more videos from the 23rd of September.

Game 6: 4v1 TDM

Game 7: 2v3 TDM

Game 8: 2v2v1 TDM

Nerf War Vids 23/9/12 Part 1

The first five of ten videos I recorded on Sunday the 23rd of September, 2012.

Games 1&2: FFA

Games 3,4&5: 2v2v1 TDM

Nerf Dart Tag Snapfire 8 War Review

Name: Dart Tag Snapfire 8

Capacity Used: 8 (non-variable)
Range: 9-10m (speed)/11-13m (power)
ROF: 1-2dps
Mods: None
Point of View: User
Scenario: Outdoor, close range - basketball court, boundaries set as basketball court's lines
Other blasters: Furyfire*3 (all stock), Swarmfire (stock, updated model)

Even against superior capacity blasters, the Snapfire could hold its own through ease of firing. With it, I could run around very easily, preparing to reload with one hand and firing with the other. It's low weight and size made it very easy to use single-handedly, and its good ranges let me stay on par with the Furyfires. Because of the ease of reloading (from the Snapfire being one-handed), the advantage of the Furyfires' capacity was not prominent.
It could also be noted that likely due to adrenaline and whatever else makes you more energetic in a Nerf war made trigger pulls very easy, even in power mode. I experience few, if any misfires, provided I pulled the trigger with the correct rhythm.

Against the Swarmfire, however, the Snapfire was no match. Because of the lack of cover, the Swarmfire's superior range and spammability made it very difficult to avoid, andbecause of the number of darts it was spitting out, I found it difficult to get any potshots off at him.
The only times I could ever threaten the Swarmfire wielder was when he was occupied with other players, and I could sneak in closer to him without being spotted.

The Snapfire's accuracy was pretty good, and I was able to fire off reasonably accurate potshots even when running. This let me keep up pressure on the enemy when trying to dodge, with the exception of the Swarmfire. Even then, the Snapfire's one-handedness let me fire off a few potshots which occasionally hit the Swarmfire wielder.

In summary, against similar blasters (such as the Furyfire) the Snapfire can definitely hold its own, but against superior blasters (such as the Swarmfire) the Snapfire is completely outmatched.
I personally enjoyed using it because it meant I only had one hand occupied, and I could do others things with my other hand, like pick up darts or prepare to reload.

Nerf Dart Tag Snapfire 8 Range Test

A few of you know that I recently picked up a Snapfire 8. Well, now you all know :P
Anyways, RRP is $19 from Target (exclusive), but with a 20% all toys sale I got it for $15.20
Full review to come, but for now enjoy this range test vid.

EDIT: Don't pay the vid too much stock, I can't guarantee how flat the shots were or how accurate the range measuring actually is.

Nerf Maverick REV-6 Review

The Maverick is possibly the most iconic Nerf blaster, being the best selling blaster worldwide. At it's price of $8-20 it's not hard to see why. The Maverick was originally released around 2004.

Loadouts 3: Defence

Scenario Description: Player has reasonably good cover and lots and lots of ammo. When necessary player can call backup from teammates. Player is guarding important item (e.g. flag in CTF) or important area (e.g. home base). Ideally opponents are exposed and vulnerable when attacking. Player has defined the field of combat so as to give themselves the biggest advantage and give the opponents the biggest disadvantage.
Keys to Victory: Intimidation can be just as effective (if not more) as actually tagging your opponents. Scared opponents are less dangerous than confident and fearless opponents. Ability to cope with numerous opponents in a small timeframe - a well organised team will attack as one. Manipulate your environment to your advantage. Make your opponents fight on your terms, not theirs. If you can do this effectively, you could defeat even the best and most well equipped player with something as humble as the Jolt or Nitefinder.
Unnecessary Burdens: Numerous blasters - a well equipped player should only need 2-3 blasters at most. A well equipped defender should only need one or two blasters, although backups can be useful for certain blasters.

Buzz Bee Berserker Mod

So I overhauled my Buzz Bee Berserker which I've had for about 8 months.

Mods:
-Extra Tac Rail
-Replaced handle
-Airgun couplered
-Turret rebarreled
-Stock attached

This is the result:

And throughout the mod I took loads of pics for a writeup, which I've posted on Oznerf here: link

Ranges:

Turret (PTG)
-50-55ft with Whistlers
-60+ft with Streamlines
(ATG)
-Probably over 70-80ft
Airgun (PTG)
-Typical 4B - 40m (~130ft) easy with the right dart-barrel combo.
(ATG)
-Well over 200ft (~65m)
EDIT: Don't pay too much attention to these ranges, they're probably not properly measured or done.

All in all, it could have been done better, but I'm happy with it.

New Elite Rumours

Recently, many sites and blogs have spilled out tons of rumours at once.

First up is the 'Elite' Pinpoint sight. This was found by SG Nerf in a Malaysian Dart Tag tournament booklet, which is interesting as Nerf has finally listened to many Nerfers' pleas to bring back the Pinpoint sight.


A website called Wired.com has revealed two new Elite blasters from Nerf via an article. The blasters are:

• Strife - Semi Auto pistol
• Ruff Cut - Blaster which can shot 2 darts at once

 Given these are the only details we know, the Strife is rumoured to be an Eliteified version of the Snapfire 8, and the Ruff Cut an Elite Barrel Break.

Lastly the Elite Jolt, now known to be called the Triad EX-3. It appears to have two dart holders on the top, and fires from the bottom barrel. Judging by the design of the handle, it uses the same or similar plunger to the Jolt. There is possibly a tactical rail on the top.
And now a translation of what the kid is saying:

• Ranges 13-16m flat
• Really powerful
• A little big

Original source here (UT): link
EDIT: There's now a grey-triggered version: link

Loadouts 2: Heavy Fire Support

Scenario Description: Close-mid range team based encounters. General engagement ranges ~7-12m. Generally numerous, small teams instead of few, large teams. May or may not have numerous obstacles obstructing lines of fire. Player has taken role of fire support for team. Where necessary player provides fire support for team, and where necessary team protects player.
Keys to Victory: Rapid fire blasters with reasonably high capacity, preferably easy to reload. Reasonable range - does not have to shoot particularly far. Must be able to effectively spray darts at opponents, idealistically suppressing or tagging them. Large amounts of ammo. Fearlessly spray opponents, even when under heavy attack.
Unnecessary Burdens: Sidearms - your team covers you when you reload, more than one blaster (with exceptions) - unnecessary weight and bulk

Loadouts 1: CQC 1

This is an ongoing set of posts, inspired by Street Tag Warfare's post here and Awesomely Nerf's page here.
In these posts I will have a small set of blasters, their purpose, their strengths and their weaknesses along with pictures.

Scenario Description: Close range combat with lots of walls and other obstacles in the way. Range not particularly important. Usually few players, thus usually small or no teams.
Keys to Victory: Mobility/maneuverability, adapting quickly to changes in scenario, fast firing blasters with short reload times.
Unnecessary Burdens: Weight, bulk, excessive amounts of ammo, slow firing blasters, large blasters, unnecessary sidearms, unnecessary attachments.

Slydev Nerf Jolt Rail Attachment Review

Slydev is an Aussie based small business who sells 3D printed plastic Nerf accessories. Possibly they're most well known one is this highly innovative piece, the Jolt Holder, which effectively turns a Jolt into a tactical rail accessory.

Nerf Stampede ECS SMG Test Vids

Some vids to test my Stampede ECS SMG.

ROF is about 4dps (I think).

Ranges up to about 23m flat (75ft). Accuracy is almost nonexistent.
EDIT: Probably don't give these ranges much stock.

All in all it's a great rushing and spamming blaster but it definitely sucks at accuracy.

Rayven Reliability Test

In this vid I test how reliable the Rayven is. I fire off 7x18 clips (mags), which totals 126 darts.
ROF peaks at 6dps in the middle three clips (mags).
Not a single jam or misfire.

Elite Strongarm Speculations!

Yep, the day you've all been waiting for is here!

SlyDev Accessories

This is really just an advertisement for a fellow Aussie providing a great service for Nerfers in Australia and the US (for now, may expand to worldwide).
SlyDev is an Aussie based store which utilises 3D printing to make reasonably small Nerf accessories which have been experimented a number of times and calibrated to fit perfectly on Nerf rails (or be glued on to blasters).
He makes accessories such as tac-rail mounted iron sites (which I'm very interested in), a tac-rail mount for a Jolt (which I'm also interested in) and the Companion Cube from Portal.
The store link is this blue underlined text.

Fellow Aussie blogger Rolley (who runs Street Tag Warfare, link left) has gotten a bunch of the accessories SlyDev sells, and has two reviews: Jolt mount and Iron sights + other stuff.

Postage in Australia is capped at $6 (an absolute bargain) and to the US postage is a flat rate of $13.

Outback Nerf gets on Facebook

Like everyone else, Outback Nerf has just gotten a Facebook page. You'll get all sorts of extra info and pics as well non-post-worthy news etc.
It's also a better place for discussion than a blog.
https://www.facebook.com/OutbackNerf?sk=wall

Videos: Nerf Armoury & Riot Shield

Two videos I recorded today with my iPod Touch.

Video detailing basically everything Nerf I have except the Hydro Cannon (range test to come in some time) and my Riot Shield (below).
Basic timeline:
00:00-00:35 - Blaster Rack
00:35-01:13 - Box 1
01:13-02:42 - Box 2
02:50-03:25 - Clips (mags)/drums box
03:45-04:30 - Attachments box
04:40-05:05 - Parts box 1
04:50 - SPRINGS!
05:10 - 05:30 - Parts box 2
05:45 - 06:10 - Gear basket
06:15 - 09:10 - Ammo
09:15 - 09:20 - 35 drums and friend's Deploy
09:30 - N-Strike Tac Vest
09:35 - 10:21 - Nerf boxes & Box 3

My riot shield. Can hold 3 N-Strike clips (mags) or Magstrike clips, 12 darts and a reasonably small blaster. All details in the vid.

Nerf Vortex Ammo Belt Review

Outback Nerf is proud to be able to bring you a world first - a review of the Vortex Ammo Belt.

In essence, it's the Vortex equivalent to the N-Strike/Elite Tac Vest - a clothing method of holding ammo.

Vortex Belt Kit Found in Australia

This is not a first for Australia (getting stuff before everyone else - happened with Barricade), but I think this is one of the first sightings of the Vortex Ammo Belt Kit.
$15 AUD, which is reasonable considering a mag and 10 discs is worth about $10.

Orig link here.
*DISCLAIMER* This is not actually mine. This was found by someone on Oznerf, hence the orig link.

Nerf Clip (Mag) Fed Barricade w/ Video

Between me and one of my friends, we have 4 Barricades. So naturally, I decided to do a clip (mag) mod for one of mine.

The Rayven is more powerful (can support 4x14500s), more comfortable, has a weaker trigger pull (easier to fire) and is cooler. I'll be sticking with my Rayven, thanks.
The Barricade, however, can support a stock (can use Recon stock which holds extra clip (mag), or adjustable Raider/Barricade stock), is smaller (and thus more sidearm viable), cheaper (even with the clip [mag] mod), and has a certain visual appeal.
In the end, it's all personal preference. Because of the way I clip (mag) modded my Barricade, it's less comfortable to use than the Rayven (trigger pull and clip [mag] loading), as well as the Rayven looking cooler and supporting barrel extensions (more fun to play around with than stocks). If I had done a better job on the Barricade, the only deciding factor would be that the Rayven is smaller than a clip (mag) fed Barricade with stock, as well as looks cooler, so I'd take the Rayven.

Ranges unknown, but with 2 14500s look to be 15+m (50+ft). With 3 it doesn't work (motors cut out).

Original mod link. Credit for the original mod go to pSyK and SG Nerf.

Nerf Stampede ECS SMG War Review

Name: Stampede ECS SMG
Capacity Used: 18 + spare
Range: 10-13m
ROF: 4-5dps (full auto)
Mods: AR removal, air release hole plug, minimisation, 4AA battery conversion, voltage increase, sling point add (not in pic)
Point of View: Opponent

Scenario: Outdoor, 2v2v2 TDM
Other blasters: Rayven (voltage increase, me), 2*AT (stock), Recon (stock), Deploy (AR removal)
Facing the Stampede SMG, even with a blaster like the Rayven, is an incredibly daunting task. From a 3rd person view of the Stampede's usage, it's scary. It can spew out a great rate of fire with ease, and the person wielding the Stampede was also particularly agile, which made it difficult to approach. The Stampede's accuracy was terrible, as one person commented they wouldn't get hit if they stood still, but the agility of the person wielding the Stampede coupled with the Stampede's spammability made it a fearsome combo.

Overall, the Stampede was effective in close quarters, and had high intimidation factor, but was vulnerable to long range blasters (none of which were present).

Nerf Rayven CS-18 War Review

Name: Rayven CS-18
Capacity Used: 18 + spare
Range: Variable (20-25m generally)
ROF: up to 5dps
Mods: 3*14500 batteries, safety locks/switch removal/disable
Point of View: User

Scenario: Outdoor, 2v2v2 TDM, FFA
Other blasters: AT (spring upgrade, AR removal), 2*AT (stock), Deploy (AR removal), Recon (stock), Longstrike (spring upgrade, AR removal)
The Rayven with 3 14500 batteries offers a high level of threat, because of its extremely loud noise. The nosie alone can dissuade attackers, even if you're completely out of ammo. Its high range allowed a good spray of suppression fire. The Rayven outranged all other blasters, and was the easiest to rapid fire.
The Rayven, however, was plagued with several flaws.
For one, it was impossible to fire upon impulse - I had to rev it up to fire, and in those seconds the situation often changed drastically, forcing me to adapt under much pressure - not particularly easy.
Another issue was that it commonly misfired. This forced me to tip the barrel down numerous times, costing me ammo, time and often my advantage as it forced me to retreat to ensure safety. As a result I have moved to reduce misfires.
The final issue was its inaccuracy. Clip (mag) system blasters are naturally inaccurate (the Elite dart moves to change this), but the Rayven with 3 14500s is particularly inaccurate. I found it difficult to hit anything past 10-15m.

Overall, the Rayven in theory is great, and if all goes well (and I obtain Elite darts), the Rayven will only be plagued with instant-fire issues, and in the outdoor scenario this is rare.

Change of Blog Name

Nerf Blasters & Accessories really isn't flashy or memorable.
And so, I pose a challenge to anyone interested.
I'm going to rename the blog (URL will remain the same, do not worry), and I'd like suggestions on what to rename it to.

Criteria:
MUST BE ORIGINAL (cannot emphasise this enough)
Must have clear reference(s) to Nerf (as a sport/hobby, not a brand)
Must not contain any form of profanity or offensive language whatsoever
Must not reference hobbies unrelated to Nerf (this blog is a Nerf blog and only a Nerf blog)
Have some reference to Australia (optional, but ideal)

Entries can be submitted as comments or in an email.

Unfortunately, no prize, but the one who comes up with the best blog name will have their name (or at least internet nickname) featured on all future versions of my blog, as well as my thanks, and potentially a role in the running of this blog (within reason).

No set due date. The psuedo competition will end once I find a name I think is great, and satisfies the criteria.

EDIT: For now the blog will be renamed Outback Nerf but if someone can think of a really awesome blog name I'll consider it. 

I like the name Outback Nerf now, I'm sticking with it.

Update on Stampede ECS SMG

Did more (horrible) work on my Stampede SMG.

 

Overall Shot.

Blaster Rack

My newly made blaster rack. Holds all my clip (mag) system blasters.

Sorry about the bad lighting, will take a better picture tomorrow.
EDIT: Better pic.

War Videos 8/7/12

Like last week's vids.
There are 5 of them, and I'll upload them one by one over the week.