2008 water gun report

General water gun discussion.
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SSCBen
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2008 water gun report

Post by SSCBen » Thu Jan 24, 2008 7:49 pm

If you're coming here looking for which water guns are the best from 2008, read this page in our FAQ.

I never posted about my Quickblast find back in November when I found it, so I figure now is better than never to post what we know.

Super Soaker's line appears the same as 2007 aside from the addition of the Super Soaker Quick Blast, a small piston water gun.

http://www.amazon.com/Super-Soaker-Quic ... 05&sr=1-18
http://www.entertainmentearth.com/prodi ... r=HSS63648
http://cgi.ebay.com/SUPER-SOAKER-QUICK- ... dZViewItem

Water Warriors' lineup is apparently recolors with refinements over last year and some new additions. The WW Raven is a renamed Wasp. There's some more information about the specific changes here: http://www.isoaker.com/Info/article.cfm ... D=20080120

Here's another thread (at iSoaker.com) to check for any updates they notice: http://www.isoaker.com/cgi-bin/Ikonboar ... =3552;st=0

While I do want improvements fast, I realize that they take time. Hasbro seems to be getting back into the two-year-cycle that Larami was in. BBT seems interested in refining their current lineup. This is much better than years like 2003 and 2004 from Hasbro when absolutely terrible lineups were released, so I'm grateful we're not that low.
Last edited by SSCBen on Sat May 31, 2008 3:08 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Specter
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by Specter » Fri Jan 25, 2008 12:53 am

didn't the '07 Orca fill from under the reservoir? i noticed on iSoaker, the fill cap is on top for '08. Unless its the other big WW soaker i'm thinking of.

(nevermind haha, it would help if i actually read the description. i just looked at the pics)
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Silence
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by Silence » Fri Jan 25, 2008 1:21 am

Yeah, a couple people on the forums had complained about the whale-like noise that came from the air bubbling through water while pumping. Buzz Bee Toys moved the cap to compensate. While I can't say it matters too much, it's really nice to see a company that listens to suggestions and complaints, especially from a very small but dedicated group of enthusiasts.

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SSCBen
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by SSCBen » Sat Jan 26, 2008 4:03 pm

Here's some links about the new for 2008 Super Soaker Bottle Shot:

http://cgi.ebay.com/SUPER-SOAKER-BOTTLE ... dZViewItem
http://www.topvision-online.de/details. ... 3607650055

If you ask me what I think about this, all I could say was that I wish they at least made the gimmick in this water gun have a point. I mean, who cares that this one can use water bottles? Using water bottles certainly makes replacing the reservoir easy if it was lost, but other than that I see no benefit to this. It's just a gimmick, and not even a well thought out one.

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Silence
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by Silence » Sat Jan 26, 2008 8:19 pm

I agree with you. At least similar water guns have used pressurized reservoir systems, so you can take the bottles out and keep them pressurized. But regular old water bottles have no valves, so they made this a piston pumper.

Nice finds, by the way.

sbell25
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by sbell25 » Sat Jan 26, 2008 9:55 pm

Man, that Bottle Shot doesn't make any sense; now it just looks like they're trying to compete with crappy piston guns from a dollar store. That is what this thing looks like to me, and is not something I'd expect from Super Soaker. I really do hope that they have actually released something worth getting this year.

As for BBT, their 2008 line of piston soakers look pretty good. They look like solid performers, and they have cool styling as well. I won't be getting any more triggered guns for a while as I'm tired of the springs breaking, but I will definitely pick up some of those piston guns if I see any.

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SSCBen
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by SSCBen » Mon Jan 28, 2008 12:10 am

Yeah, I am becoming more impressed with BBT now. While they might not increase the power of their water guns, they do seem attentive to problems noticed here and likely elsewhere. They also have some interesting blasters there.
Man, that Bottle Shot doesn't make any sense; now it just looks like they're trying to compete with crappy piston guns from a dollar store.
That's a good way to put it. I mean, the Bottle Shot isn't a squirt pistol, but it's one step closer to dollar store guns. They already have a decent piston water gun in the Quick Blast, so this other one just seems really out of place. Maybe they're testing the waters? I can't see this water gun being a success unless a kid and their parent think "Oh, this is a great use for all those water bottles we have!" I suppose using these water bottles for water gun is better than throwing them away.

Edit: I said I mean twice, which sounds weird. I also added a little more because this post wasn't complete when I posted it. I left and then went through my tabs posting what I had written when I returned... perhaps I should pay more attention.
Last edited by SSCBen on Mon Jan 28, 2008 3:36 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Aqua_Flash
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by Aqua_Flash » Fri Feb 01, 2008 10:00 pm

Personally, what I think Hasbro are doing with the BottleShot is just making people waste more money. They know their targeted age range are going to be rough with the bottles (bottles aren't exactly tough are they?), so that means kids will have to go and buy a bottled drink or just use up bottled drinks they already have quicker in order to have a reservoir and basically a working gun. That is just stupid, like what has been said before the idea of a bottle is just while sort of unique is just completely stupid and cheap looking.

What I also don't like about these two is the fact of why have we gone back to the dark ages of screw on reservoirs? It is slower and less practical mostly, that's why the standard fixed reservoir with a cap replaced it and it was so much better and easier. Hasbro are taking a step back in time and technology here. And I thought the idea was the make things better as time goes on, it looks like whoever works in the Super Soaker department at Hasbro was pretty crap doing Business Studies at school, and most certainly wasn't paying attention.
Last edited by Aqua_Flash on Fri Feb 01, 2008 10:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Silence
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by Silence » Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:00 pm

Yeah, I'd say selling the Bottle Shot is a big mistake. They can justify many other water guns from recent years: the Flash Flood, for example, is a fully-functioning water gun. Other water guns have gimmicks that are actually unique and may serve a purpose. But nobody, not even a child, wants a cheap device that operates off water bottles. As I said earlier, putting a seal on the bottles (which requires custom bottles) would actually be helpful since you could store pressure. And custom bottles can have a solid latch.

I wonder what'll happen when people unscrew pressurized bottles... :p

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Drenchenator
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by Drenchenator » Fri Feb 01, 2008 11:02 pm

Maybe Hasbro made a deal with bottle manufacturers. That way both win, right?

I don't get what's happening now. We though that we knew the reasons they made bad guns; but then again, Hasbro breaks one of those every year now. This year they seem to think technological steps back are the new money makers. Maybe they are; maybe they're not. The only thing I can do is not buy anyone of the guns--they just aren't improvements over what I already have. Sadly, this won't solve the problem though.
The Drenchenator, also known as Lt. Col. Drench.

sbell25
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by sbell25 » Sat Feb 02, 2008 6:56 am

The idea that using replacement bottles because kids are rough with toys is logical. However in this case it doesn't add up. A broken reservoir is the last problem I'd expect to see on any water gun, especially one that doesn't take pressure. Jeez, if they're so worried about durability, why are they still using Max-D triggers?

Also, having several spare bottles for easy refilling is pointless. Refilling your on-board reservoir is going to take just as long as screwing in a new one. Plus, how can little kids carry them? I don't see an easy way to attach them to your body, and small children can't be expected to wear a backpack full of water bottles. First the Oozinator, now this. What were/are they thinking? :confused:

On the BBT side, as I mentioned previously I'm only interested in new piston soakers they have. I'm also sort of interested in the Water Warriors Jet (the small motorized pistol). It looks to be a neat alternative to guns like the XP 215. To be honest my experience with the Tarantula was terrible, but I'm curious to see how good the technology is in a pistol.

Looks like the best soakers in 2008 are still going to be the old ones off eBay. Oh well.

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Silence
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by Silence » Sat Feb 02, 2008 1:56 pm

The Jet? I've never heard of it, but I haven't really been perusing information about the 2008 lineups. As far as I'm concerned, it'll get here when it gets here. :p

It sounds like Buzz Bee is expanding its motorized lineup as they refine the system. That said, I doubt the Jet will have a pressure chamber; from what I remember, the other water guns didn't need one for the smaller nozzles. And granted, BBT has broken the naming theme of arachnids for electric water guns and insects for pistols.

sbell25
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by sbell25 » Sat Feb 02, 2008 2:22 pm

The info about the '08 WW line is in one of the the links in Ben's original post. You're right, the Jet most probably won't have a pressure chamber, as the Tarantula didn't; it just has a pump that starts up when you pull the trigger.

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SSCBen
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by SSCBen » Fri Feb 15, 2008 3:57 am

A press release was made by Hasbro today: http://hasbro.com/media/default.cfm?pag ... elease=632

Other than that, I'd like to say I've been a little busy with school work... as I suspected I might have been. That's why I got the update out where I could have. ;)

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Silence
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Re: 2008 water gun report

Post by Silence » Fri Feb 15, 2008 4:44 am

Pshaw. Some press release. It's so filled with propaganda that it looks just like their normal advertisements. The difference is that the article will probably never get read by the right audience, so I don't know why Hasbro targeted it to them. Whatever.

:p

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