NerfN-Strike Elite: Strongarm Blaster

This is the best nerf blaster! we got 4 of them (one for each kid, and parent) . They take the elite darts. which are easy to find. Everyone got to decorate their nerf blaster with sharpie markers so there would be no arguing over which one belonged to who, and it was really fun to decorate them. We keep them close buy and occasionally full on nerf war breaks out! The kids like to bombard us in the morning coming out of our bedroom. It leads to us all running around the house diving for cover. running out trying to pick up spent darts to reload. These are moments the kids are going to remember.This blaster is easy to load. easy to use. and very reliable. It also gets pretty good distance!

If you want a Nerf hand gun, nothing beats the Strongarm from the new Nerf Elite line. This 2012/13 update to the venerable Maverick (Nerf N-Strike Maverick - Colors May Vary), build to a much tighter tolerance, the Strongarm improved on almost every aspect that matters.To start, the gun's new orange white blue color scheme is much more striking than the solid yellow or the solid blue scheme the Maverick had. The seams / gaps are smaller, and the two halves of the gun align much better than before. I had to use a dremel to sand out the rough spots on the Maverick (the misalignment was cutting into my palm), didn't have that problem with the Strongarm.The plunger system is redesigned, and it offers a much better seal upon trigger pull, which translates to a more powerful shot. The Strongarm feels like its twice as powerful as the Maverick, and indeed the darts fly out much further (50ft vs 30ft). One of the best attribute of the old Maverick was its accuracy, and the Strongarm retained that aspect. Add the Slam Fire ability (you can hold down the trigger and each cocking of the gun will send out a dart, allowing for chain fire) to the mix, its just piling on.The cylinder of the Strongarm revolver (where you load the bullets) now comes out all the way to facilitate easier reload. In comparison, the Maverick had to be modified to allow for the same ease of use. Granted that mod was one of the easiest out there, but still, it was a hassle. Also the Maverick had six air restrictors build into the cylinder (one for each chamber), where as Strongarm combined it into one and moved it into the body of the gun. This makes modding a bit more trickier, since its harder to get to the AR. On the flip side, you only have to mod 1 AR as oppose to 6, so that's basically a wash. The timing of the cylinder spin has also changed, and this reduced jamming on a gun that didn't jam much to begin with. The Strongarm also has a redesigned cut out on the right hand side of the barrel to allow jammed rounds to rotate out. Over all, jamming is never a problem.The one problem I had with the Strongarm is its overall dimension. The gun is actually about an inch and a half longer than the Maverick, but somehow the grip is only about 3/4 the size, with a sizable portion cut out to accommodate a useless lanyard loop. If you are a child with small hands the grip will work for you but the gun will be front heavy and you'll need to grip it with two hands. And if you are an adult, that grip is going to be just a tad too small for your hands.Pros:Good AccuracyGreat RangeEasier Reload (compare to a stock Maverick)No JamsSlam FirePriming IndicatorBetter build qualityCheaper than MaverickBetter Color SchemeCons:Weirdly sized gripWorse overall balance due to the smaller gripAll in all, if you need a nerf handgun, the Strongarm is the one to get. The two cons are basically nitpicking and does not detract from its many positive attributes. If you've never played with nerf, the Strongarm is also a very good introduction. At only 13 bucks, there's no reason to not try it.

This thing is great. It's basically an improved (perfected?) Maverick. Of note:- Elite ranges. Shoots harder, like the other Elites.- No more curving shots because of "cylinder shake." The cylinder rotates AFTER the shot is fired, instead of while the trigger is being pulled, like the Maverick. The old design led to people who were quick on the trigger (me) firing a shot before the cylinder stopped moving, affecting the flight path of the dart. The new design fires the shot, THEN rotates the cylinder for the next dart.- No more air gap. In the Maverick, there was a gap of air between the spring plunger air nozzle and the cylinder that contained the darts. That allowed air to escape and weakened the shots. The Strongarm's air nozzle actually extends and retracts... When firing, the plunger extends to press against the cylinder, releases the air, then retracts for the cylinder to rotate. No more (or at least LESS) lost air.Great range and accuracy, good weight and feel, comfortable grip, quality construction and that well-loved futuristic revolver look. What an awesome gun!

The good:Simple, straight-forward nerf gun. I didn't want anything that needed batteries or had lots of moving parts in order to minimize risk of it breaking. The darts go pretty far and are fairly accurate; I easily hit my sister from about 20 to 25 feet away. Even if you're close the darts don't hurt all that much on impact (though the sound is still a little startling and the anticipation can still make you flinch). Great for 20-somethings of all ages and genders to enjoy and indulge in their childhood desires of having a nerf war.The bad:Occasionally my Strongarm misfires (I'd say once every 10 to 12 shots), but it's not a big deal for casual play. Just push the dart back in (usually it comes out partly) and move the revolving chamber to line up the dart with the chamber.

Bought for 5 year old. He absolutely loved it. Size is nice. No jamming. Appears to be well made. He will get a lot of play from this nerf gun.