Nerf Guns 411
Submitted by SharpMan Editorial Team on Friday 15th October 2010- Nerf guns defined.
- Types of guns.
- Top ten guns.
Need to let off some steam at the office — or just a kid at heart? Read on for the SharpToys skinny on nerf guns:
Nerf Guns Defined
If you have kids, you’ve probably purchased a nerf gun at some point, but for those of you who haven’t, nerf guns are small plastic "weapons" that fire soft foam ammunition, ranging from balls and darts to small discs.
Most nerf guns are relatively inexpensive, priced between $10 — $40. The product group’s adult consumer base has grown along with the larger office toy market — as more and more employees look for non-lethal ways to cut loose with (and on) their fellow cubicle inhabitants. Since nerf guns are better suited to office war games than actual paint balls, voilà…a rise in the adult nerf gun consumer base.
Types of Guns
Most nerf guns fall into one of three categories: spring-loaded, motorized or air-powered.
Spring-loaded nerf guns. Guns in the spring-loaded category are ideal for single-shot duels, but their limited power doesn’t permit long-distance attacks.
For this reason, serious office warriors should leave the spring-loaded nerf guns on the store shelf, alongside the Frisbees and Barbie dolls.
Motorized nerf guns. The motorized guns are a bit more effective. Most can carry a larger supply of ammunition and are able to rapid-fire at good rates. Unfortunately, as with spring-loaded guns, these guns have limited accuracy at longer distances.
Another drawback is that motorized nerf guns run off of small electric motors that require batteries and produce a moderate amount of noise — not too smart for inner-office attacks, but quite useful for the outdoor smokers’ circle drive or walk-by.
Air-powered nerf guns: the ultimate weapon. Perhaps the most useful of all nerf guns are those in the air-powered category. Most work by either pumping a handle (and compressing a cylinder with air that will be later used to fire the weapon) or by pulling back on a tense lever (that forces air into a tube which rockets the ammunition forward). A number of these guns also have full-auto capabilities in addition to the usual semi-auto fire mode.
Other pluses to the air-powered nerf guns are their accuracy and distance. Most guns can fire in excess of 30 feet and some can shoot as far as 70. Plus, when you’re stalking down the halls and you cut loose on the guys in the mailroom, the quiet air blasts will keep your tactical "ops" on the hush-hush.
Our Top Ten Nerf Gun Picks
Below are our top-rated air-powered nerf guns, saving the best for last:
10. Big Bad Bow
Firing distance: 30 — 40 feet
Although this gun’s firing rate could better, its accuracy and distance get it into the top ten — plus it just looks mean. The small fins on each arrow are turned in a way that makes them spiral like a thrown football, providing for adequate flight ability.
Price: $15 — $20
9. Lock ‘n’ Load
Firing distance: 20 — 25 feet
Although test firing showed this gun to fire a bit high, it still manages a good distance for a small pistol.
Price: $5 — $10
8. Blast Fire (DX 500)
Firing distance: 25 — 30 feet
This gun holds five small darts and can either be fired semi-auto with the trigger, or you can hit a small button on top of the gun and empty all five in one monster blast. Requiring only five pumps to pressurize, this gun is also a quick loader.
Price: $10 — $15
7. Lighting Blitz
Firing distance: 10 — 20 feet
A close-range weapon, this gun takes about 10 pumps to pressurize and can empty its five darts in under a second.
Price: $5 — $10
6. Power Clip (DX 1000)
Firing distance: 25 — 30 feet
A small, compact weapon that can fire all 10 rounds in under a second. You would have to be blind to miss anything within 15 feet.
Price: $20 — $25
5. Vortex X/2
Firing distance: 40 — 50 feet
With a firing distance of 50 feet, this weapon has made its way into the top five. You can easily drill an adversary in the chest from 40 feet out, and with the cool-looking discs that the Vortex uses for ammo, you can’t go wrong.
Price: $20 — $25
4. Power Clip
Firing distance: 25 — 30 feet
With 15 pumps, this gun will let 10 rounds fly in just over a second, and it will let them fly hard.
Price: $20 — $25
3. Rapid Fire 20
Firing distance: 30 — 35 feet
Twenty rounds and the ability to move between auto and semi-auto mode. Cut loose all 20 rounds in a flurry of nerf projectiles, or pick your enemies off one by one in semi-auto mode.
Price: $25 — $30
2. Wildfire
Firing distance: 20 — 25 feet
635 rounds a minute: nerf warfare at a whole new level. Equipped with an arm sling for easy carrying and an ability to keep the weapon steady, 20 rounds that not only fly well, but sting like crazy when they make contact.
Price: $25 — $40
1. The Vortex Firestorm
Firing distance: 50 — 60 feet
Sixty feet, killer accuracy, six rounds of vortex rings that can knock a berry off a fly’s backside — what more could you ask for? How about silence and ease, because this gun’s got the both of them as well. Number one on our list.
Price: $30 — $40
This article last updated on Friday 10th February 2012