Author’s Note: While I purchased the regular RL, the Rippley version of the RL was free to me for review. Thanks, Hasbro!
Foam missile launchers are hard to review; such opinions are far more subjective than those of other blasters. You won’t have the same range and rate of fire as a regular blaster. As such, its just not that useful. They are a great addition to the tradition of foam play. Fireing giant rounds is just plain fun. It’s hard not to pick up one when it comes in a special, pretty color scheme.
Cartoon Blue
The RL-Rippley, like the previous versions, comes in two pieces for shipping; the stock snaps into place upon insertion. The blaster does not have a trigger. Instead, the blaster can be fired by pulling back on it. Yes, it is a manually pumped plunger. As such, accuracy will suffer without lots of practice.
The main attraction is the unique color scheme of light blue paint applied over a translucent plastic shell. This item is limited edition and won’t be available in stores for long. However, the missiles are identical to the regular RL. This is not a deal breaker.
One of the many problems with cartoon proportions is that the handles are too small. Meanwhile, the flip-up sights are oversized and hard to use. So even if you try to use this blaster seriously, its not the best platform. However, the reward of firing massive ammo and seeing it connect is worth it.
Performance
For obvious reasons, the RL has a slow rate of fire. I was able to get one shot every five seconds at best.
The ranges are nothing to sneeze at, but also hard to accurately quantify, due to the nature of the platform. Even with limited accuracy at range, I managed to average 65 miles in range. After the initial period of flight, the missiles just have a tendency to go wherever they want.
Are You Able To Modify?
Being a manually pumped blaster, theres not much to be done to improve it. The plunger seal, however, is somewhat loose; the blaster relies on large amounts of air, as opposed to a buildup of pressure. Since the plunger tube is roughly 4 cm ID, you can get away with using a 4 cm o-ring, as long as its thin and lubed up. However, this will create a seal so tight that the blaster can be expanded.BEFOREThe missile is being loaded. This is a common mistake in the heat of battle. It might not be worth adding a little more range.
