The Nerf Super Soaker Battle Shield is a new water war accessory under the Nerf Super Soaker brand released in 2012. The package comes with both the Nerf Super Soaker Battle Shield and a Nerf Super Soaker Soaker Burst.

The Shield

Shield ::

The Nerf Super Soaker Battle Shield is an inflatable vinyl shielding device for use during water warfare. The shield is inflated through a standard air squeeze valve. All parts of the shield, including its handle, are inflated; not enough air makes the handle feel rather floppy, though it is a little difficult to determine when the shield is properly filled since the bulk of the shield seems to inflate well in advance of the handle portion.

The Nerf Super Soaker Battle Shield features something called "tactical ports" which, for all intents and purposes, are simply holes in the shield. While it makes sense to possibly provide a single hole through which on could envision firing a water blaster through, providing 5 holes perhaps makes it more fair for the unshielded combatant, but seriously reduces the efficacy of this device to be a useful shield. Furthermore, the overall size of the shield is ok, but will not really cover much area on an average-sized adult.

Interestingly, the shield also comes with a repair kit in the event on happens to rupture part of it. The kit, itself, appears to be akin to clear packing tape, but whether or not it is a truly effective means to repair a tear has not been tested.

The "Soaker Burst"::

TheNerf Super Soaker Battle Shield package comes with a "Soaker Burst" device. This item is a little larger than an average tennis ball and, at first glance, appears to be a football-shaped objected. Upon closer inspection, one will see that this foam device has 30 holes drilled into it. The Nerf Super Soaker Soaker Burst is supposed to act as a sort of reuseable water-balloon-type device. It is meant to be dunked into water to fill, the hurled at one's desired target. The material the Soaker Burst is made of does not appear to be able to absorb or dispense much water, itself, thus its water retaining and dispensing capability relies primarily on its distribution of holes. As these holes are permanently open, they will dribble out water if the Soaker Burst is placed on dry ground.

Overall ::

As a whole, the Nerf Super Soaker Battle Shield is an interesting accessory, though its usefulness in the real battle field is rather questionable. Its small size limits its defensive capabilities and this is further reduced by the fact the shield also has a number of large holes on it. While this makes it "fairer" to the unshielded opponent, it rather defeats the purpose of the shield. The Soaker Burst device has some soaking capability, but the fact that water is only dispensed from its holes limits water dispersal as well as capacity. Furthermore, like all other reusable water-balloon-substitute devices, it must be retrieved after use and may be re-used against the owner.

Pros

Inflatable shield offers some additional protection; light and straightforward to use. Soaker Burst device re-useable and non-messy as opposed to one-time-use water balloons

Cons

Holes in the shield limits its protective capabilities. Inflatable handle does not feel very secure. Soaker Burst has limited soaking capabilities and must be retrieved after being thrown.

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Related Links .:

 Product Listing Page | Super Soaker Product Evolution Tree 

Additional Resources

Water Blaster: Basics | Care, Cleaning, and Storage | Soaker Use: Basics|Repair Articles