Hands-On: SS AquaShock Arctic Blast - @iSoaker.com

[isoaker]

Just got an AQ Arctic Blast today! Still have yet to see a Hydro Blitz, though. As for the Arctic Blast, as others have noted, it's pretty much a modified Flash Flood with a larger reservoir cap to allow use of ice cubes if desired.

In general, it feels fairly solid and balanced. Haven't filled it and tested it just yet as I'm still at work. Pump grip doesn't become flush with the body of the soaker and it's a little odd that Hasbro opted to make the grip portion so short; while functional, it's not as comfortable.

With some luck, I'll get to do a little more testing and stats measuring this weekend, though it'll still be awhile before I can do any range testing on any of the 2007 stock soakers I do have.

[isoaker]

Arctic Blast images now posted. Full review to be done sometime this week, hopefully.

[Hannibal]

Saw one of these at Walmart. I'm curious to know if it's better or worse than the FF. The FF actually wasn't bad for its size. This one was supposedly a FF/AS combo, right?

[isoaker]

Saw one of these at Walmart. I'm curious to know if it's better or worse than the FF. The FF actually wasn't bad for its size. This one was supposedly a FF/AS combo, right?

If you ask me, the Arctic Blast is more like a modded FF with different colours and a larger reservoir cap to allow ice cubes to be put more easily into the reservoir. Unlike the Arctic Shock, the Arctic Blast does NOT have an ice-core attachment. The larger "Flash Flood" nozzle looks slightly smaller, but this could just be an optical illusion since the Flash Flood's large nozzle had the large outer plastic area around it while the Arctic Blast's large nozzle has a trimmer housing.

[hydroblitz]

Do you have a special white room to take the pictures in?





Edited By hydroblitz on 1179717947

[isoaker]

Do you have a special white room to take the pictures in?

For picture taking, I've been using my couch with a white sheet and white pillows on it; works better than my previous set-up of using pieces of white foam-board to create an open box

Super Soaker Arctic Blast review now posted (sorry, no ranges yet).

Enjoy!

[HBWW]

Sounds like it's not as bad as many of us have speculated (based off the nozzles and that the PC appears to be the same). Perhaps the trigger has also been fixed and less likely to break. Also, it seems very odd that the FF supposedly has a PC that pushes out more water and yet the reservoir isn't that much larger than the FF's. (though it looks like it would be) Also, this seems to be the first time you've used decimals for shot time (which should've been for the CPS 2000mkII and perhaps the CPS 2500 but I'm not sure on that) as well as an output (mL/sec) rate larger than the PC size.

Hmm, I might get one just to try it out if I get the chance, but it's somewhat unlikely that I'll be able to. (FF appears less bulky and still a bit better designed IMO)



Edited By C-A_99 on 1179862628

[isoaker]

In terms of the shot time being reported as a decimal, I'm experimenting on this one. I did a few tests timing the shot and each time I was measuring ~0.45 to 0.65 seconds. I had previously also tried measuring shot times for the CPS2000 Mk1 and Mk2, but both of those I tended to get closer to 1s (measuring ~0.85-1.05s). I am a little weary about calculating output from shot times below 1s since small errors in measurement there dramatically change the resulting value. As such, the output value for the Flood nozzle may be changed after I do a little more testing.

The PC is smaller on the Arctic Blast than the Flash Flood. Perhaps they are using a more elastic rubber bladder. Not sure... I'll measure it again later just to be sure I didn't make a mistake.

[hydroblitz]

Do you have a special white room to take the pictures in?

For picture taking, I've been using my couch with a white sheet and white pillows on it; works better than my previous set-up of using pieces of white foam-board to create an open box

Super Soaker Arctic Blast review now posted (sorry, no ranges yet).

Enjoy!

Oh. Very Nice.

[marauder]

I just wanted to say that I bought an Arctic Blast over my week of vacation at the Beach. I have to agree with pretty much everything isoaker said, great gun. I'll post some pics eventually.
I don't know how it worked for you guys, but the Flash Flood nozzle or whatever it is sprays a wider area than the Flash Flood did, but it doesn't shoot as far. My Flash Flood fired about 30x (guess) 45+ feet, but the Arctic Blast is even bigger, although it only shoots about 30 feet. I like how strong it is structuraly, and I think it would make a good primary blaster for standard grunts. It'd make a good blaster to mix in with 1200s/2100s/1000s for your teams main weapons since although it doesn't offer the same range it does have decent range on the small nozzle and works really well with the big nozzle at close range. I have already tested this in battle MANY times, so I will be adding a review based off of that later, in addition to the great stuff isoaker already posted.

[marauder]

*bump and edit*

I just reread your review Isoaker. It's interesting that your Arctic Blast gets more range than your FF and its stream is more coherant. My Arctic Blast's FF nozzle is more of a close range giant blast with less coherency than my FF. My FF is my furthest shooting blaster besides my CPS 2000. I guess this just goes to show that there will always be variation when it comes to specific blasters... but that's a big variation.

[isoaker]

Hmm... I think I may need to rewrite that part of the review. That was written before range testing was done, but after range testing, the FF did get more range. See Arctic Blast vs Flash Flood

I'll edit that soon. Shows how off initial feelings can be. That's why I still like measuring numbers.

[isoaker]

Super Soaker Aquashock Arctic Blast Review

Willing to share your experiences, thoughts, personal reviews on this product? If so, post below!

Note: you must be a member of iSoaker.net to be able to post.

[thelaminator]

now known as the "iron man 2 water blaster", i stll think it's great. it may not get over 10x output, but at least hasbro's trying. i agree, the "freezing cold water" idea is abit.. lacking, but sporting an overload backpack (if you can find one), it can be one of the only two availible formidable blasters. (also includes vindicator)

[martianshark]

This is an okay blaster. The reservoir is in a comfertable spot and it's somewhat powerful, But the pump is very short. Some people seem to have a problem with the short pump handle, but to me, it's kind of nice. I wouldn't recommend this because there are much better blasters for the same price - the Flash Flood, Vindicator, Vanquisher, etc.

[HBWW]

Haha, this thread has only been kept alive by necro-ing.

I think most people (myself included) much prefer the Flash Flood. I like the FF's handling overall as the foregrip (despite being a bit small) is a nice addition that almost no water guns have. The firing hand's grip on the AB is unique though and still has a nice feel, I just don't like how the rest of the gun looks like a fat bulk of plastic; the FF is more "gunlike", if you will.

It'd definately a legit blaster for it's size and class, though the nozzle modifications that have become standard to the FF are even more "needed" for the AB.

(Yes, this time I've fired an AB before at a friend's house; performance wise it's roughly on par with the FF though the FF feels a tad bit more powerful)

[SEAL]

This is like, my favorite blaster that I own. There is nothing more fun IMO, then to fire the flood nozzle point blank into your opponent. A lot of people say that the Flash Flood is better, but I don't have one anymore so I can't compare them.(The trigger broke before I knew how to fix it.) My AB has also broke a couple of times. It seems to work fine now, but it also feels less powerful then when I first got it. The main stream is only about as powerful as my secret strike. But it's still a very fun blaster.

I definitely recommend this for light assault and possibly a captains personal defence weapon.

[Nitro123PG]

Got my Arctic Blast from the NMR Mega Sale, and I must say it is a decent blaster. It like the overall shape and feel of it, though the pump grip isn't the greatest. I don't think anyone who has an Arctic Blast holds the pump handle as on the box. That doesn't even LOOK comfortable, and the terrible pump volume doesn't help. Also, I wish the resovoir held a bit more water and didn't use an intake tube. It's really annoying having some water left but you can't use it effectivly. The main nozzle is okay. It just seems to "squirt" out and I don't know how that thing reaches 35 feet. The main nozzle does seem to be getting a bit stronger with use, however. I wish the output was about 2X instead however, XP 150 like. I like the riot blast. Though it spreads out way too much for my liking beyond 15 feet, it is a lot of fun to use in close range. I just wish it was a bit more concentrated, though. The ice is a gimmick. Hasbro actually makes a decent gun and all the care about is the ice. Overall, the Arctic BLast is a nice addition to my armoury, especailly since it is only 5 blasters large. I'd give it 77.5 %, because I can't decide between 75 and 80. A good soaker.

[martianshark]

Since the reservoir is on the bottom, it has to have a intake tube, unless you want to hold it upside-down while pumping.

[HBWW]

The pump volumes on both the AB and FF are pretty terrible. The problem is compounded by the fact that the pump is also short and difficult to operate. The latter probably comes from the fact that the tubes going to the PC are tiny in diameter and don't allow enough flow. Not sure if that's the case for the AB, but it seems to be an issue with the FF. Overall, both have very poor pump designs and they could really use much better nozzles too.

Lately I've stopped caring so much about the intake tube, especially with reservoirs. They affect performance in PR's and air chambers, but don't significantly affect pumping speed. Bad reservoir shaping is much more likely to cause problems using all the water than an intake tube. Take the CPS 1000, 1200, 2500, 2000, 2700, and other blasters. The shape and placement of the drainage on the reservoir is incredibly annoying as water sloshes around and tends to miss the drainage, resulting in air getting pumped in. (This happens when the reservoir drains to about 1/4 of its capacity.) This problem was corrected in the 4100, 2100, Monster X/XL, and other blasters, but I'd much prefer an intake tube resting on the bottom-back of the reservoirs than that setup. (So that you can simply tilt all the water back to drain it out, instead of having to slosh the blaster around to try to get the water to submerge the drainage.) In fact, I should do a mod for this sometime.