Nerf Strongarm

Nerf N-Strike Elite Strongarm

This pistol is all business. Hasbro decided exactly what they wanted to make, and then made it exactly right. They designed virtually the perfect Nerf war sidearm. The pitch on the box claims it was "designed for quick draws and fast firing… When speed and mobility are essential, this is the ultimate blaster." I was honestly expecting that to just be a bunch of meaningless hype when I bought it. Boy was I wrong.

I don't want to spark a debate about Strongarm vs. Hammershot (yet), but the Strongarm was literally built for Nerf warring. And it does a great job with that. Here's my analysis of the pros and cons.


Good:

• Purpose-built. See rant above.
• Compact. The Strongarm isn't as small as, say, the Doublestrike, but Hasbro didn't waste any space here. And heck, it holds three times as much ammo as the Doublestrike.
• Capacity. Speaking of that, six darts is a nice number for a sidearm.
• Holster-built. The nose of the Strongarm is practically asking for a holster. It was designed to be

  

  Strongarm in
  a holster

  straight and smooth to fit nicely into most generic holsters. And even with limited skill, you could probably build a useable holster for it.
• Quickdraw. If you have it in a holster, it's very easy to grab onto and pull out. The handle easily manipulates your hand into just the right position for a grip.
• Slam-fire. I personally wouldn't use this feature in a war, but I know many people who would. It's nice to know that in a pinch, you can lob darts nice and quick.
• Priming handle. It's very grippy and easy to pull, even with an upgraded spring.
• Ranges. This pistol gets regular Elite ranges, which is pretty good for a pistol. Most pistols sacrifice range for small size. This one doesn't.
• Rotation mechanism. I was initially skeptical about a revolver that rotates, not on the prime or the trigger-pull, but right after firing. Such a system, I theorized, would surely be unreliable under demanding use. But so far, it has continued to operate smoothly, in spite of me dishing out the hardest scenarios I can come up with.
• Sling mounts. They're in a great place, allowing you to intuitively sling the blaster over your shoulder for easily accessible storage.

Bad:

• Handle. I would not recommend this blaster for Nerfers with small hands, as the handle is very large and difficult/uncomfortable to grip with small hands.
• Handle "spike". For those who look closely, there is a small cosmetic bonus, a "spike" at the bottom of the handle. Though not sharp, it could pose a safety hazard in the hands of inexperienced or reckless users.
• A slightly lamentable lack of a tac-rail on the bottom of the front end of the blaster. Not a big deal, but I would have liked to see one there.
• XD claims. I have no idea where Hasbro came up with the idea to repaint a few Elite guns and jack up the range claims, but the whole XD thing is bogus. At least they don't cost any more than the regular Elite guns, but literally the only difference is the paint job.

In summary, I would strongly recommend the N-Strike Elite Strongarm for any Nerfer who would use it for Nerf battles. It's purpose-built and very reliable, with the ability to slam-fire up to six darts, making it nearly the perfect war-practical sidearm. It's also a very fun toy to just play around with, though the handle size can be somewhat alienating to younger Nerfers.

Now for some Tacticool Tips to get more out of your Nerf Strongarm:

Tacticool Tip: For a shotgun-esque double-dart burst, prime Strongarm as usual. Keep grip on priming handle. Pull and hold trigger to fire first dart, then immediately pull priming handle back to slam-fire off a second dart.

Tacticool Tip: If you use it with a sling, you can prime the Srongarm by simply pushing it away from you while the sling is still looped over your shoulder.



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