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
First up the Iron Sight set.

The iron sight set consists of 3 FIS and an RIS. The three FIS are of different sizes, so that you can swap them about as necessary. All four of them attach to Nerf tac rails, so almost every N-Strike and Elite blaster can use them.

The idea behind having 3 different FIS is that you can use the FIS most suited to the power of your blaster. The lower iron sights force you to tilt the blaster upwards to lock on to your target, maximising range. For really powerful blasters, you don't need to tilt for great ranges so the no-drop FIS is on level with the RIS.

The no-drop is suited for engagement ranges of around 5m or more below the blaster's maximum range. (e.g. maximum range 25m, engagement ranges 10-15m)
The medium drop is suited for engagement ranges roughly equal to the blaster's maximum range, as it causes you to tilt the blaster slightly upwards, allowing for hits on the body rather than shoes.
The high drop is suited for engagement ranges greater than that of your blaster's maximum ranges. Obviously trying to fire 50m with a stock AT is not going to work no matter what angle you aim, but when engagement ranges are slightly higher than your blaster's maximum ranges then the high drop is your best bet.

Each iron sight is secured using the usual Slydev tac rail attachment system, having a small protrusion which locks into the dips in Nerf tac rails. This allows the attachments to be very sturdy without being large.
It's also a good point to mention that the iron sights each use 2 screws, unlike the Jolt rail holder. [I have been informed by Slydev that the Jolt holder has been updated with 2 screws] This means increased strength meaning the iron sight definetely won't pop off randomly and you can probably use them to prime stuff like Recons.

The rear iron sight is a simple hole on a stand, in which you line up the front iron sight and your target. Doing so, provided you're using the right iron sight for the blaster, correct dart etc etc, will ensure your shot goes roughly where you want it to. The design of both the FIS and RIS are based of actual gun sights, so their design has been tried and tested over many years.

An example of an iron sight setup on a Longshot. In this pic I've got the high drop FIS.

Badly lining up the iron sights. Ideally you'd line up the FIS with the centre of the circle.

All in all, for 10AUD for the three FIS and an RIS, the iron sight full set is a pretty good deal. If you're one for using iron sights, I definitely recommend this. If you're more of a scope or RDS fan then this won't be useful to you, except for aligning/calibrating your sights.

Random pic here as a testament to Slydev's great designs. The iron sight is being held in purely by friction. Sure it'll fall off with a bit of a shake, but this is still impressive. Some of Nerf's accessories don't even fit properly and they've been cast molded specifically to stay on the rails.

Now on to the LS Front Tac Rail Attachment

Originally designed by dryxhyl with a picatinny rail, Slydev redesigned this nifty attachment for a Nerf tac rail instead. It fits onto the front of a Longshot on the sling point. Of course, this means cutting off use of the sling point but if you've got a good Brass Breeched Longshot who needs to switch to sidearms?
Unlike other Slydev attachments the LSFTRA is held in purely by friction. It stays together extremely well and doesn't come off without a fight (big credit to dryxhyl for this feature).
The basic idea behind adding this extra rail is to allow the attachment of iron sights and lasers, but can also be used for shields.

The LSFTRA comes in two pieces, which are practically mirror images of one another (with one key difference). This means the LSFTRA fits together the same way the LS shell fits together, making it attach almost seamlessly with the LS shell.

Here you can see that one difference. The right side has a hole while the left has a protrusion. These fit together perfectly and hold the attachment together tightly.

Because of the design it is perfectly possible to assemble the LSFTRA incorrectly, as above. This is the only way to assemble incorrectly, however.
The design also means the attachment only fits in one way into the Longshot, so no questions on how to assemble it.

As you can see, once attached, the LSFTRA looks pretty damn good, at least in orange on a yellow LS. It stays in quite well, and no amount of shaking from a Nerf war should dislodge it. When attachments are used, it'll never come apart provided the attachments stay on.

As you can see, the LSFTRA merges practically seamlessly with the profile of the LS. This is also credit to dryxhyl's great design.

A Pinpoint Sight on the LSFTRA. Why? Cos I can :D
It stays on reasonably well, although the LSFTRA is probably better suited to iron sights (like the above iron sights) or shields.
Also in the background the package this stuff came in.

So to summarise? The LSFTRA is a great attachment which in no way detracts from the LS's looks or shape, and adds extra functionality to the LS. Sure you lose the front sling point but you can always attach a Slydev sling point on it anyway :D
For $6 it's a good buy for Longshot fans/users, but for the non-Longshot user the money might be better directed at some of Slydev's other accessories.

Full credit for the original design to dryxhyl, with this model having Slydev modifications.

Last but not least, the Sling Loop Tac Rail Attachment.

The SLTRA is designed to attach to tac rails, and provides s sling loop for blasters in need of them, such as the Pyragon (which has none) or the Longshot if you are using an LSFTRA.

Like all the updated designs, the SLTRA uses two screws instead of the original one, for added strength. This makes it consume slightly more tactical rail space, but honestly, given the size of this thing, who really cares?

At first glance the loop through which you attach a sling seems rather thin and flimsy. However, it has been well designed and is thick and strong enough to withstand much abuse. This is partly due to the thickness of the plastic, partly due to the way the piece is printed, and partly due to it being a curve.

 

The SLTRA slots into the grooves in tac rails just like all other Slydev tac rail accessories, and is thus very secure.

As you can see, the N-Strike Bandolier attaches to the SLTRA very well, with some maneuvering space but not enough to case significant rattle.

A random note at this point, you might wonder why mine are red. Simple. I originally purchased them for my Pyragon (which is a Christmas present so review will be up probably next year), and thus red is most suitable, but I did not realise how useful they would be on my Longshot. Thus for now, one will stay on my Longshot until I get the Pyragon to play with.

Summary? Well there's really not much to say about it. The SLTRA does its job extremely well - that is to provide a tac rail mounted sling point. It is strong, sturdy, small and cheap at $3.
I recommend getting some if you need them, but otherwise they're not really the 'tacticool' type of attachment, rather more practical. At $3 they're really not much of a loss even if you don't need them, so get a few if only just to have some for fun.


So all in all another batch of great Slydev products. They all do their job brilliantly and look pretty cool as well, as well as being cheap. What are you waiting for? Go order some on the giant orange picture on the left. You'll appreciate it when your Longshot looks as tacticool as this: