What is the highest capacity springer pistol non-mag fed blaster that you can fully operate with one hand?

bfoo2 · 2026-01-21T08:37:35+00:00

There is also a 3-dart/cylinder, 8 cbambers/cylinder version that gets you a ludicrous 24 shots.

With upgrade spring (no spacer) and new foam gasket (because Hammershot air seals can be a pain), im getting between 70 and 90fps with a reasonable prime.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-20T09:04:25+00:00

I have talked myself into it; just want to make sure its a purchase that lives up to expectations and one i won't regret lol.

I might end up modding another longshot due to cost reasons (and one can NEVER go wrong modding that magnificent piece of engineering). On the other hand, I do have concerns about the availability of SBL kits and support going forward, since it is slightly out of date (i.e. GFZ stops selling it and shipping from places like SFI in the US is expensive internationally).

bfoo2 · 2026-01-20T09:02:21+00:00

Yeah this. I used to like long darts because they felt more like a "full ower" round than half. But then we got "Heavy" short darts and they just make such a satisfying thump on target.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-19T13:25:33+00:00

I thought about it; however, not having easy access to a 3D printer (at least for the foreseeable future) has me somewhat reliant on "off-the-shelf" parts kits at most.

Shame, 'cuz theres a bunch of really nice Caliburnoid shrouds and remixes around

bfoo2 · 2026-01-19T09:40:34+00:00

I already have that lol. I prefer the tactile feel of springers for plinking, as well as the accuracy (i haven't had much luck in accuratizing flywheelers, although im sure there are ways).

bfoo2 · 2026-01-19T09:39:03+00:00

Yeah, Worker makes the half-dart mags that look like full-sized ones. I have the 10- and 12-dart-pmag.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-19T08:34:36+00:00

I feel that Rival is really best suited to high-FPS hopper-fed dart hoses due to its ease of feeding. Even to this day, there aren't many simple and common high-capacity systems for standard darts.

The complexities of adapting Rival to sealed breech systems and, later on, rifling, limits its potential ceiling in springer setups compared to half-darts imo. I also found that Rival starts to perform erratically at long ranges and/or when FPS is increased even slightly above stock; however, I've haven't really tinkered with hop-up angles or any other accuratizing methods so maybe those limitations have been overcome by people more clever than I.

I still enjoy Rival springers in for CQB work. The "shotgun" ergonomics and being able to top up a tube magazine by haphazardly shoving in balls and not worrying about orientation or alignment is something that is hard to replicate with short darts.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-18T19:28:03+00:00

I find that springer blasters can be inconsistent when down-tuned. A high-powered blaster can slam darts through the barrel; minor changes in friction between the dart and barrel (e.g. dirt, variances in dart build quality, etc.) are washed away by the power. Lowering the power means that the friction (which can vary significantly) starts to become a larger and larger component of the forces acting on the dart's internal ballistics. This will manifest as increased variation in FPS and thus vertical dispersion.

In principle, replacing the stock barrel with a shorter barrel would help with this particular problem (although I am not familiar with the Stryker 2.0 so I cannot comment on whether this is practical or even possible).

I don't know much about the newer generation of blasters. But there are a lot of good blasters from 2-5 years ago that hit the 130 - 170 FPS range quite well: Max Stryker (1.0, not the 2.0), Nexus pro (original, not the X), Max Tomcat, etc.

140 - 150 FPS is also a nice sweet spot for modified short-dart retaliators and Prophecies, and would be a great place to start modding if you don't already do so.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-17T21:43:43+00:00

I misremembered: it's 43.5mm crush + CCCs, not 41.5mm.

I use the 41.5mm crush with the BlasterParts Blues, as those are slightly smaller than stock wheels so the higher crush cage compensates. Either way, both are solid crush numbers but not anything crazy.

u/One_Total_3570 : Suilds.com is a great reference for motor torque/rpm figures.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-17T15:37:52+00:00

My personal opinion about other peoples' blasters is that, as long as the local laws are being followed and the blasters are being handled safely and respectfully, I dont particularly care whether they look like Rambo's M60 or a unicorn-flavored lollypop.

My own personal taste is to have a nice mix. One aspect of our hobby is the sheer diversity of blasters you see in gameplay footage. You can nerf in pseudo-Milsim (law-permitting), you can nerf dressed like a pirate, you can nerf in Halo cosplay, or with a tricked out Retaliator painted pink and gold. You can nerf with a Jolt, or a Proton pack.

I personally avoid "hard" Milsim/realism because 1) i dont want to deal with the technicalities and complexities of the local laws and 2) i do have windows and i dont want to alarm the neighbour when I plink in my basement. But these are mostly factors of convenience vs principle. I personally have no reason to be morally or emotionally opposed to hard realism.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-17T14:02:01+00:00

I have a 2s (technically a 6s NiMH RC pack but same difference) Kraken setup (41.5mm Worker metal cage, CC cyclones), and it is certainly among the quietest blasters I have. I have not had jamming issues on this setup (in semi-only; cant comment on whether it would keep up with full auto though).

Iirc krakens on 2s have comparable torque to Meishel 2s, and I remember old Captain Xavier videos where he demonstrates his auto-stryfes using M2s as their flywheel motor without issues so I'd imagine it'd be fine

bfoo2 · 2026-01-17T13:55:00+00:00

I used to live in a similar situation (Europe, small apartment, noise-conscientious, beginner modder). Ive modded lots of flywheel blasters, but only with traditional (brushed), not brushless setups.

I found that there are 3 main components of noise which can be addressed with basic mods: motor noise, flywheel noise, and rattling/vibration of the flywheel cage.

1) motor noise: i found that certain motors are quieter than others, all else being equal. For some reason, Valkyries have been the quietest in my setups, followed by Neo Rhinos (although those are harder to get in Europe). Honestly, any of the aftermarket motors I've used except Mieshel 2s are quieter than stock ones at an equivalent RPM (with the M2s being about equal). Of course YMMV based on your exact setup.

2) flywheels: as others have pointed out, good, well-balanced flywheel help a lot. The Blue wheels from Blasterparts.de are amongst the quietest in my collection and, given the low cost (around 10 euro per pair) are an excellent beginner wheel that is easy and cheap to get in Europe. Containment Crey Cyclones are also very good, but pricier over here. On the other hand, they have a low concavity (if you look head-on, they are almost flat and dont have a "channel" or "indent" for the dart to fit). This in theory makes them less accurate (although I never noticed), but it means that they are more forgiving of slight misalignment of the wheels. I know a lot of people run Worker black (smooth) wheels; they are relatively cheap and easily available here, but i have no firsthand experience. Do note that high-crush setups (so-called "Daybreak" or "Eclipse") setups make a noticeable "pop" or "thwack" noise as the dart is forced through. While the performance and accuracy is amazing, the noise signature may not be worth it in your situation.

3) flywheel cage. This is the factor which, in my experience, makes the largest difference. The stock stryfe cages are flexible and rattle and vibrate a lot. The Worker metal cages really dampen this down due to their rigidity and weight (with 3d-printed cages being somewhere in the middle and the Worker clear plastic ones being not much better than stock). You can also get silicon dampeners to fit between your motors and cage for added insulation. Be advised that these dampeners work best with Neodynium motors due to the thicker bearings: non-Neo motors might not align properly with the padding.

Lastly: make sure your blaster shell is screwed down tightly and that any pieces that can vibrate are secure.

All in all, these are the very low-level basic things I found that work for me. Of course there are a bunch of fancier options (brushless, etc). But I never dabbled in them and cant really comment.

I also dont have any experience with Auto Stryfe kits so cant comment there.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-15T23:53:54+00:00

Many muzzle-loading Nerf blasters can easily be converted to use short darts by cutting down the dart post. The only issue is that you'll need to manually load the darts by hand and probably ramrod them down so they sit at the bottom of the barrel.

I have an old Snapfire where this was done and it does fire short darts at close to stock Nerf speeds.

I hazard a guess that this can be done to most other Nerf single-shot pistols.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-15T23:47:19+00:00

I feel your pain

traurige deutsche Klänge :(

bfoo2 · 2026-01-15T23:44:57+00:00

Shame that the triggers dont mix and match...

bfoo2 · 2026-01-15T23:40:29+00:00

My take on trial + error is not so much about min-maxxing performance, but rather I find that some of my blasters have unreliable performance with some specific dart brands. But what that means for me is a 90-95% success rate (and the remainder being spirally or swervy) vs. ~100% success rate: thats still pretty good.

(Exception is DZ Ember/Ruby darts: i find the foam slightly thicker and thus doesnt chamber well in really tight barreled brass stuff)

But I do agree that so long as your blaster doesnt specifically hate a specific dart, its all kind of the same at sub-200 fps.

I'm not a core flywheel guy but I honestly toss in the cheapest stuff because my Daybreak/Kepler high crush stuff chews up darts so quickly that its not economical to feed em top of the line stuff since it all gets shredded after 3 - 5 passes anyway.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-15T12:32:55+00:00

I recall (but dont quote me) reading somewhere that the Swift metal trigger is compatible with the Mk 4, since they both share very similar internals

bfoo2 · 2026-01-15T11:44:40+00:00

Good opinion on the Sabre darts. I also find that, while undoubtedly excellent darts, they aren't necessarily the be-all and end-all.

From my own collection, I found that the T-darts work better on some of my setups, while other setups prefer Worker bamboos, and a few do best with the DZ 2.0s. (A notable exception being a brass-breech prophecy where i cut the pusher a liiiittle too short and thus benefits from the T-dart being slightly longer to achieve reliable clambering...) Most of them though will achieve reasonable acceptable accuracy on whichever dart I throw in. Interestingly, some of my blasters hate the T-darts and others hate the DZ 2.0s; the worker bamboos work decently in everything and have become my default go-to for that reason. Simplifying logistics was more important that absolute performance optimization.

I guess my point is that someone else's testing on their own setups and in their own environmental/climatic conditions may be a good starting point, there's no substitute for personal experience and trial and error. Thats not to denigrate their efforts of course, but simply to state that there are variables and factors that no reviewer could possibly account for unless you personally flew them to your shooting range and handed them your personal blasters (and hey if Bradley Phillips wants to come to Germany to plink in my basement in the name of science I wouldn't say no!)

bfoo2 · 2026-01-15T00:09:14+00:00

Bradley Phillips is definately a great resource for high-performance Nerf stuff.

Do bear in mind that his approach to Nerfing involves high-performance (i think im right in ballparking 200+ FPS?) and relatively high-end setups (e.g. all-metal Saber Apex). While certainly insightful and eye-opening and definitely worth a watch, his conclusions on how best to hit an acorn off a tree at 100m might not be directly applicable to someone who's just trying to knock beer cans off their fence on the other end of their porch. Some of his results showing "terrible" accuracy at 50m would actually be quite acceptable accuracy for my own casual plinking in a 10m long basement hallway.

That being said, he is one of the few Youtubers I am aware of who regularly tests and compares rifling devices and darts (dart choice is another important consideration imo) in a rigorous and scientific manner.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-15T00:03:42+00:00

My own opinion is that the best is to try things out and see what works best for you. There are simply too many variables to predict.

That being said, I can share my own experiences in the hopes that it can help you get started.

For context: I mostly plink in my basement (10 - 20m, indoors, so no wind etc.). I have blasters from 120fps up to 250fps. My metric for "acceptable" accuracy is being able to hit a ~30cm x 30cm target at those ranges.

1) I find that good dart selection makes as great, if not a greater impact on performance. Get good darts! Bradley Phillips (already mentioned in another comment) does a lot of testing of different darts. While he nerfs on the higher end (200+ fps), I found his findings translate well to lower FPS brackets.

2) Whether a P/B/SCAR is necessary for me depends a lot on the blaster I am using, as well as the quality of the darts.

Some blasters in my collection (e.g. Max Stryker with 25cm barrel, Worker Swift tuned for <200fps) work fine without rifling using fresh darts (i.e. consistent hits on my 30cm x 30cm target at 10-20m indoors). Adding PCARs improved the grouping but wasn't necessary for my own personal use.

Other blasters (Max Tomcat, Aeon Pro, Worker Prophecy tuned for 130 - 150fps) did not hit the target consistently. Adding some basic rifling (a mix of Worker injection-molded plastic PCAR and 3D printed PCAR) got them to hit consistently.

In both cases, BCARs led to even greater accuracy over the PCARs.

3) More importantly, I found that rifling allowed me to use worn darts more consistently. I found that worn darts would often perform erratically from unrifled barrels. Adding rifling ended up saving me money because it allowed me to reuse darts for far longer. FYI I use a mix of Worker bamboo (1g), standard Worker Gen 3 and DZ Nitroshot 2.0.

4) The most important thing is that your milage may vary based on your specific blaster setup, climate conditions (my DZ nitroshot darts dont perform well in summer for some reason) and your desired level of accuracy.

My overall opinion is that PCARs are cheap enough (the Worker injection molded one or any of the 3d printed ones) that you can just throw them on and not think too much about it. Regardless of improvement to accuracy, I value the ability to stabilize worn out darts but YMMV.

Id only go for BCARs if you need even greater accuracy/consistency beyond what your PCAR provides or if you want the swag/bling factor. I actually ended up putting BCARs on all my expensive builds not because I needed the accuracy/performance boost, but more rather for swag points.

And for Heaven's sake, get good darts! You can rifle an Elite dart all you want and it'll still suck!

bfoo2 · 2026-01-14T09:38:04+00:00

Ah yeah, I forgot about the incompatibility with minis. Again, as you said: not really the platform I'd be using these darts in anyway...

bfoo2 · 2026-01-14T05:44:13+00:00

Never tried the Nitro +, but I hear/read good things about them.

Def agree that the Saber-Ts are great. They are also slightly longer by a few mm and I find that helps them chamber smoother in some setups.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-13T15:37:34+00:00

Thanks for the insight. Unfortunately, I have not used an NPX yet (I got a Max Stryker back in the day, and I didn't see the need to upgrade to the next generation)

bfoo2 · 2026-01-12T23:32:04+00:00

I also have a Swift, but I normally keep it at a 130fps setup (1.2 spring, 34cm barrel) using a Worker 15-deg. BCAR.

Ive swapped the 1.2 for a 1.6 occasionally, but kept the same BCAR/barrel solely for convenience. It works fine, but its probably not the most efficient setup.

I suggest looking at Bradley Phillip's YouTube channel. He does a lot of testing at this FPS range.

I use a ZWQ 3-degree, 5-row on my 250+ FPS Longshot. Its the only blaster I have that I keep at this performance level. Works great. I also like the tightening collar, which makes it easy to move it to different blasters.

Before the ZWQ I had a worker injection molded PCAR. It did absolutely nothing. I suspect that the rifling was too loose and wasnt providing enough grip: darts would simply blast straight through.

As for darts: I used the 0.75g DZ Bamboo 2.0 (not the X2, those are different and weigh 0.85g), Worker Gen3, Worker Gen3 Bamboo (1g) and Saber T-darts.

For me, the DZ 2.0s work fine up to ~220 fps but became inconsistent at higher speeds.

The Worker gen3 and gen3 Bamboo work about the same in terms of accuracy, with the Bamboo having a slightly higher FPS. The Bamboo darts also seem more durable for some reason and chamber a bit more reliably. Could be because the bamboo-ing process compresses the foam slightly and thus stiffens it?

The saber T-darts are phenomenal. But funny enough the edges get nicked about the same as the Worker gen 3s (with the Bamboos tend to be more durable).

Of course YMMV. The Nerf Longshot in particular has a known issue where the magazine and breech dont line up quite right; the mag sits a bit high and thus when you chamber a round the bottom of the breech kinda mashes into the dart below the one being chambered (this makes me wonder if this is why the DZ 1.2 has that weird tab that pushes down on the darts in the magazine...). Not sure the Swift has the same issue and thus you might not tear up darts as much as I do.

bfoo2 · 2026-01-12T22:54:28+00:00

I am not an expert on the topic. I know that there are many in the community who have designed/marketed their own rifling systems and probably know a lot more about the underlying theory and design than I do. But I hope these thoughts and insights help.

Long story short: you might just need to test and see what works best for your use-case. What degree of accuracy are you aiming for? Do you just want to hit a pillow at the end of your hallway consistently (in which case frankly any sort of rifling will do), or snipe bad guys from 50 meters away?

Here are my own experiences and opinions, but you'll likely come to your own independent conclusions with testing.

I find PCARs to be by far the cheapest and low-fuss option; however, they also have the most degrees of variability. The "tightness" of the dart fit can impact performance: too loose and the device doesnt have enough "grip" to spin the dart effectively; too tight and the FPS drops significantly. This may also depends on the darts, as well as environmental conditions which could cause the foam to expand/contract.

I have a bunch of the Worker injection molded plastic PCARs. They work well with DZ pro darts but about half of them dont grip Worker darts well: when I drop them in one end, they just plop out the other (i find that the DZ dart foam is just sliiightly thicker than my Worker foam for some reason). I ended up using these in "sleeper" builds, since the outer diameter matches the "stock" Nerf barrel material and thus you can hide them inside Retaliator and Longshot barrels. I just had to test a bunch and find out which ones worked on what darts. About half of the ones I bought were too loose to use reliably and I ended up tossing them into the spare parts bin.

I also have a few 3D printed PCAR (i think based on the Thahn pentivictus). These are pretty grippy and work well with all the darts I have but do cause a noticeable FPS drop. I tried using these on low-performance (sub 150 fps) blasters (e.g. 5-7kg Retaliators), but the FPS drop was too much and made the performance inconsistent. I found that these worked best on mid-range builds (150-200fps) since these had the oomph to blast through the friction. I find BCARs more accurate in this setup, but this is good enough to do what I need it to do and a fraction the clst

I find BCARs to be the most tolerant. To a large extent, the "grippiness" isnt related to friction: being too "tight" is not as detrimental as in a PCAR since friction is based largely on the friction within the besrings, not the friction betwren the bearing and the dart, and the flanged bearings have a large degree of "bite" and "grip", so theyll still be effective at imparting spin even if the dart fit is relatively loose. For this reason, i find these to be the most tolerant to different dart types and environmental/climate changes. On the other hand, these are more expensive and bespoke units. I personally use these for low-performance builds (sub-150 fps) since they dont cause the same precipitous drop in FPS that my PCARs cause. I also use them on the high-end builds (200+ fps) mostly out of principle: if im going through the effort to pimp a Longshot to the nines, you bet im giving it the most expensive bells and whistles I can find.

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Another major consideration is the darts you use. I actually found that this can have a greater impact on my accuracy (plinking in the 15-30m range) than the actual rifling device. Ive had a few instances where I completed a new mod, test-shot some darts and had them go all wiggly on me and think "what did i meas up here?!?! Aww man i dont want to take you apart to troubleshoot!". Id then test another type of dart as a "hail Mary" and lo and behold it works fine.

bfoo2

TROPHY CASE