For my first review here, I want to review the first half-length blaster I ever got, as I got into the hobby later than many. I picked up two of these blasters brand new from Target's clearance page on eBay for half price, which is quite the deal. I got one for my son and one for myself, quickly finding out I had to lower the spring for my son so he could even prime it. This blaster comes with a stock spring that shoots around 190+ FPS (feet per second), which is a very powerful blaster for a $50 price tag! Dart Zone also has an upgrade and downgrade spring that can be bought from their website, adjusting the FPS up to 250 or down to a more manageable 130, which is perfect for HvZ (Humans vs. Zombies) events. The best part of the springs is that it is an easy swap under the stock of the rifle, requiring only a Phillips screwdriver to remove and swap them. The Stryker also comes with various additions, being able to use a drum or straight magazine holding 25 or 12 darts, respectively. It comes with a PCAR (Plastic Calibrated Accuracy Rifling), which is fantastic when you're using the stock spring. However, on the lower-powered spring, leave it off as the power is not enough to use the PCAR. It comes with a plastic iron sight that is adjustable on one end; it helps but is not the best quality out there. It also has a visual-look-only silencer barrel that does nothing to help or hurt shooting, and a clip to hold the PCAR when not in use. The thing that impressed me the most is it came with 40 Nitroshot+ half-length darts. This is enough for quite a bit of fun, and it is even okay to lose a few and still have a full drum magazine. When using a standard magazine, there is a white insert you can add; it's thin plastic, and it feels like this will break on my first drop. The internals are solid for this blaster, featuring two mag release switches—one that works for just the magazine and not on the drum. It has an aluminum barrel and internals strong enough to handle the spring, though I think prolonged use of the upgraded spring could destroy them. I just have not tested it enough, but the shake that comes from the large spring makes me want to add padding to the plunger so it does not destroy the plunger tube. Overall, for a $50 buck blaster, it's a solid choice. There is some twist and give from the plastic, but not so much that I feel like it's going to snap. There are two 3D prints that I did that I think have made the Stryker 2.0 go from a good blaster to something that is much higher quality than the price would say. The first upgrade is an improved magwell that replaces the flimsy stock piece with one that matches the contour of the blaster. It fills the full magwell space instead of just giving you a slot to slide the magazine in. This helps the blaster twist less and gives it a firmer, higher-quality feel. In a lot of ways, it adds a much higher-quality feel and looks many times better than the stock magwell. The other print is a barrel collet; this allows you to replace the barrel without having to open the blaster again. This is fantastic for those who want a longer barrel or swap springs a lot. Changing the barrel out to a longer one with the 250 FPS spring adds even more FPS and better accuracy, taking just a few seconds to change them out. Overall, I would say the Stryker 2.0 is an amazing blaster for a fifty-buck price tag, and even better if you can get it on clearance. Though seeing it on clearance is sad, as that does mean they are cycling out this blaster for new stock. With two simple additional printed parts, you take it from a good budget blaster to an entry-level, high-quality, tournament-ready blaster. For a first primary as a foam blaster, this is a fantastic choice! Overall, I would give it 4.5 out of 5 stars. What do you think of the Stryker 2.0? Have you been as nervous with the upgraded spring, or have you found any other 3D prints that are a must-have? Drop your thoughts in the comments below, and stay tuned for my next review, where I'll be breaking down more blasters and showing off some custom builds!
