Nerf Dart Tag Hyperfire Review

The Hyperfire is one of the oldest and most popular from the Dart Tag line (Marunas 2013) thanks mainly to the unique 10 dart revolving chamber.  The Hyperfire is a single shot blaster utilising the direct plunger propulsion method.

Usability

The Hyperfire is a straight forward blaster to operate.  The unique revolving barrel cuts down any uses with jamming and fires a quite a good rate.  The blaster is fired by pulling the slide slide backwards and pulling the trigger.  This process is extremely quick as the extra forward motion is taken out.  Reloading the blaster is simple and can be done as quickly as your fingers can work.  The blaster feels a little ungainly to operate at first due to not having and stock and being required to held at arms length to be effective.  The addition of the front grip adds to the accuracy of the blaster.  The front iron sight is somewhat ineffective due to distance this blaster is held from your face, but can be used to zero in on a target.

Usability Score - 6/10

Styling/Tacticool

I have never been a huge fan of blasters that stray to far from being pseudo firearm replica (mainly due to the awesome loadouts created by Basic Nerf).  The Hyperfire is about as un-tacticool as they come.  The blaster only features one tactical rail which is quite small and doesn't properly accommodate longer scopes and tactical lights etc.  I am also not a huge fan of the gaudy orange colouring, a blaster of this variety doesn't lend itself well to a camouflage approach.  Here are a couple of picks with some accessories added.

Styling/Tacticool Score 1/10

Performance

As mentioned above the revolving barrel is unique and quite effective for sending a barrage of darts at a target, but the overall distance performance isn't fantastic.  Out of 30 tested blasters the Hyperfire ranks 22nd.

Dart Distance - 10m (32 feet).  The Hyperfire is a consistent distance shooter firing a maximum of 11m (36 feet) and minimum of 8m (26 feet) on par with the distance stated on the original packaging.

Darts per second - 1.4 dps.  Not a staggering rate of fire but capable in the field.

Performance Score 4/10

Despite some fairly good usability features overall the Hyperfire doesn't stack up to some of the new competition.  Overall I give this blaster 11/30.

Tek Recon Predator - First Impression

The NY toy fair hasn't seen many surprises for Nerf fans as those with their fingers on the pulse already had a fair idea of the new range of blasters (Elite Cam, Thunderbow and Demolisher).  Tek Recon on the other hand have been teasing 'Tribe' members with exclusive details of their newest blaster, and from information and pictures they haven't disappointed.

The Predator looks like the next big thing with 100 NRG ammo capacity, 100ft ranges, slam fire and a multitude of accessories that can be mounted on the tactical rails.



As with the previous blasters these things look seriously cool and the 100 ft ranges could see Nerfs elite range getting some serious competition.  Despite still not owning an original blaster I was informed by Raiden of Nerf Canterbury that they were best used for indoor battles (by the way check out and like this facebook page it is amazing!) so I am hopeful that the 100 ft claims are true.

I am still trying to source a Havok and Hammerhead and hope that the inclusion of a new blaster on the horizon may speed up the process of getting these blasters downunder.

Nerf Elite Mega Magnus - Review

So the Mega Magnus has finally made it to our shores and I popped out to pick one up as soon as I could.  Currently I could only find them at Toyworld, Mighty Ape and Toylovers (a Trademe store) retailing for between $29.99 and $39.99 (Toyworld is the most expensive but has 20% off Nerf at the moment).

The Magnus is the little brother of the controversial Centurion featuring a inbuilt 3 dart mega clip and one tactical under slung rail.  It is a direct plunger single shot blaster.

Usability

The Magnus is an impressive looking blaster a lot bigger than I was expecting it to be.  It is comfortable to hold and gives a menacing 'get out of my way' type of look.  The blaster is straight forward to fire you pull back the slide then push it forward and pull the trigger.  Loading the blaster is similar to the Quick 16 and the Speedload 6 by pulling back the slide inserting the darts one by one into the clip and pushing the slide forward to ready the blaster.  This process is straight forward, but not overly quick and so far hasn't led to any jamming issues.  The Magnus fires with a satisfying thwack and is quickly ready to send the next dart towards your target.  Despite the flimsy overall nature of the Mega darts this blaster fires quite accurately over short distances.  The added bonus of a sling/clip point means this blaster can be a devastating secondary in any Nerfers arsenal.

Usability Score - 8/10

Styling/Tacticool

The Magnus is a big blaster and has a pretty unique styling unlike any of the previous pistol style blasters.  The creative way of including the clip avoids any unnecessary added accessories on the blaster and keeps the clean lines intact.  The blaster only has one tactical rail meaning that Tacticool options are low but as you can see from the pictures a front grip doesn't look all that bad.

Styling/Tacticool Score 5/10

Performance

Due to rushing this review to give New Zealanders an idea of the Magnus coupled with the unrelenting wind I have been unable to do a  distance test.  The box of the Magnus claims distance of upto 22m (72 feet) although I find it hard to believe as none of my current blasters (even modded) have reached this distance.  When the weather settles I will compete my testing and upload results.

Darts per second - 2.3 dps.  This is a very impressive rate of fire for a single shot blaster the ease of priming and firing the blaster leads to this impressive rate.

Performance Score 8/10 (using claimed distance)

The Magnus is a fantastic blaster and a must have for any collector.  It is a lot more usuable than the Centurion and should fire about the same distance.

Overall I give the Magnus a score of 21/30.

Nerf Dart Tag Speedload 6 - Review

The Speedload 6 is a member of the Dart Tag line up and is the little brother of the Quick 16.  It features an inbuilt six round clip and is slam fire capable.  The Speedload 6 is a single shot blaster using the reverse plunger propulsion method.

Usability

The Speedload 6 is a bulky pistol thanks to its in built clip, but despite this is comfortable to hold and fire.  The pistol grip is textured and fits an adult hand well.  The blaster is fired by pulling back and pushing forward the priming slide then pulling the trigger.  Although not advertised the slam fire function is achieved much like any blaster, by holding the trigger and repeatedly pumping the priming slide.  The effect is a quick barrage of darts perfect for CQB situations.

Loading the blaster is more straight forward than the Quick 16 thanks mainly to the decreased clip size, but unfortunately the likelihood of jamming is still quite high.  This often happens during slam fire when a dart is incorrectly loaded in the barrel and the blaster tries to pick up another dart causing a severe jam and dart damage around the dart loading area.

The sling clip at the back is handy for attaching to a tactical vest or your belt and makes this blaster a formidable secondary weapon when your down to your last few darts.

Usability Score 6/10

Styling/Tacticool

As with its older brother the Speedload 6 doesn't lend its hand well to attachments.  It features no tactical rails and is unable to have a stock attached to it.  This blaster would have benefited from a top rail as a scope of some type would look sweet sitting aloft this blaster.

Unfortunately I feel the general style of this blaster is somewhat blah.  I am not a huge fan of the Dart tag logo splashed everywhere but can understand how it fits with the design aesthetic of the Dart Tag league.

Styling/Tacticool Score 3/10

Performance 

The Quick 16 disappointed in the performance stakes and I was hoping for better results from its little brother.  But alas this wasn't the case as the Speedload came in at 30th out of 32 blasters tested (please note the blaster tested featured the orange trigger which was later improved to a blue trigger version further down the track).

Dart Distance - 7.6m (25 feet).  The blaster fired a maximum distance of 9m (30 feet) and a minimum distance of 6m (20 feet).

Darts per second (Slam fire mode) - 3dps.  An impressive result firing even quicker than the Quick 16 and just less than the Raider CS 35.  Check out the testing video.

Performance Score - 5/10

I would love to like the Dart tag line more but the continued poor performance of these blasters makes that hard to do.  Despite an impressive dps figure the overall score I give the Speedload 6 is 14/30.