News does not pause for weekends. There are new blasters, wars, and other interesting news. Here’s an update on Adventure Force Accelerator. Next, some new water blasters are on the shelves that may be worth your time.
Accelerator Updates
Factory retooling of the product.
An earlier review of the Accelerator indicated that Rival magazines caused feeding problems. To overcome the mag spring’s pressure on the pusher, a stronger spring is required. In addition, the wheel fit on the motor shafts hasproven less than optimal stock blasters have had loose fits, and running motors on anything beyond stock has resulted in wheels coming off (see Out of Darts) or moving in and binding to the motor cage after the friction led to plastic melting together. In that case (mine! ), this automatically led to the motors stalling and frying.
At the very least, there are some improvements being made. As per a recent email:
Hi Brian,
We wanted to provide you with a quick update regarding the Tactical Strike gear shipped to you.
Dart Zone will be displaying an updated version the blaster at their Toy Fair booth to demonstrate! To make it more compatible with compatible magazines, internal adjustments were made to the tooling. Here is a short video that highlights the improvements in performance made to the product.
So Prime Time Toys is making a good effort to fix the issues quickly among other things, the original planned release date (this fall) got moved up to this month at the behest of retailers. So while there are issues with the first run, future ones should be better able to deliver on the promises of being a rival to Rival.
Pressurized Water Blasters
The new year brings with it the opportunity to restock at different stores. Nerf seems to be content with pump and shootwater blasters bearing the brand name. Other companies will have to come up with their own designs or improve the performance to justify their shelf space. Or, in the case of the large box stores, making things as part of their in-house brand (see Adventure Force for Walmart, using Prime Time Toys and Buzz Bee Toys blasters, among other things).
Adventure Force uses Buzz Bee as their Power Raider. It features a separate pressurized firing chamber and a red dot sight.
It also uses the same mounting rail as other recent Buzz Bee offerings. The red dot sight should be waterproof. Once it is a bit warmer, testing will begin. It is
The Xshot Hydro Jet is also available at Walmart, but under its own brand. It uses a large, pressurized reservoir instead of a separate chamber. However, it still offers a rather large supply. It was not what I wanted to say, but I will be able to do a thorough review this weekend and post all relevant information.
Prime Time Toys has signed a deal to produce water blasters and is now doing so with Target. According to the press release:
Battle Monster Ages 6+,
Getting the upperhand in competition has never been easier with this SuperMax Power Water Blaster. The pressurized water blaster action will send water soaring up to 11.6 m! The Battle Monster has two blast modes Constant Blasting, and Pump Action, and comes with adjustable spray nozzles.
Aqua Strike Ages 6+,
Aqua Strike is a new way to use squirt guns! Aqua Strike blasters are compact and lightweight, with superior performance and design. They can be used for sneak attacks or packed away for travel. This 3-pack super set includes three team colors: Orange, Green, and Red.
