Tag: zcurve

Zing Toys – Huntress, Zombie Slayerz, Sky Ripperz, Zomp Rocketz, and more!

Overview of Zing Toys
Vas The Stampede

Zing Toys – Reviewing and taking a closer look at the Zing zCurve Huntress Bow, the Zombie Slayerz Bow, Air Storm Z-Tek Bow, Legends Longbow, Zoom (Zomp) Rocketz, and Sky Ripperz.  Thank you to Zing for all the samples!

This is probably going to be a HUGE post, so how about some pictures?

zCurve bow: Zombie Slayerz, Huntress, Air Storm, and the original green.

Zoom (zomp) rocket

Zartz of various types.

Zing Sky Ripperz

HUNTRESS & ZOMBIE SLAYERZ (zCURVE BOW VARIANTS)



Zing Huntress

STATS:
Price: $24.99
Includes: zCurve Bow, 3 Zartz (the arrows; 2 long range and 1 suction cup type)
Range: 100+

The Huntress and Zombie Slayerz are new skins for the old zCurve, and that’s that.  Still the same great bow, but but with a new look.  Regrettably, no included arrow holder like they used to years ago.

Next, the zTek bow/Legends Longbow

The zTek bow is a bit smaller and doesn’t feel as powerful as the zCurve, but the ammo holders and overall feel of its own merit work pretty well.  I t doesn’t feel like the bow has the same pull as the zCurve, but it is still pretty powerful and feels very sturdy and durable, what I’ve come to expect from Zing.

STATS:

Price: Approximately $29.99 (estimate, prices were all over the place online)
Includes: zTek Bow, 3 Zartz (the arrows; 2 long range and 1 suction cup type, compatible with zCurve Bow and variants)
Range: 100+

Interestingly, the zTek and Legends Longbow have the same feel.  They also both have ammo holders in the same spots on either bow, the same enclosure for the rubber bands (the zCurve bands are exposed), and all fire the same ammo.  The Legends Longbow seems to be a variant on the zTek bow.  Either way, the ammo holders on the bow arms are nice to have.

Also, this part gets missed with the Zing bows I think – while you have the ability to pull back as far as you can (to hit upwards of 200+’ with zCurve bows) some caution must be recognized in the operation of the zing bows.  Recommended directions state to NOT pull the bow all the way back, even for target practice.  But people will want to anyway, and shoot at each other/targets with full strength.  Use caution and be responsible.

 Next, there are the Zomp (Zoom) Rocketz – Zimple enough.


STATS:
Price:  Approx. 19.99
Contains:
1 Launcher (some assembly required)
3 Zoom (Zomp) Rockets – I have versions that use either name, so that’s why I’m using both.

Air bladder connected via hose to a tube where a rocket is slid on and then propelled via air when the bladder is stomped on.  They say 200’+ is possible, but I had a hard time getting to even 170′.  I would like to try having 30or 40 of them, and seeing what happens when everyone stomps at once. Being able to have different angles to aim the rocket is a neat little feature, and some kids would especially get a kick out of this, I think.  Nerf game wise, this might make for a good objective with the right rules set.

SKY RIPPERZ 


And one of my favorites from the Zing line, the Sky Ripperz.  Possibly upwards of 200′ with these, and so simple yet so powerful.  A handle with a rubber loop is all that’s used in launching these, and hooking the rocket onto the tubing. 

In the end, the Zing Toys may seem a bit pricey initially, but definitely well worth it for the quality construction and time you’ll spend perfecting your technique and your aim (hopefully outdoors when possible!)  Also, with the Hunger Games “Catching Fire” in theaters, wouldn’t you want to tap into your inner Katniss?  In Nerf games we count these as large ammo rounds to eliminate/break shields, so implementation is what you make of it.  I personally am a big fan of Zing’s products and whether I would use these on the field or not, target practice is always fun.  In the end, the choice is yours but whatever color your bow, may the odds be ever in your favor.

FULL PICTURE GALLERY IS HERE:

https://static.googleusercontent.com/external_content/picasaweb.googleusercontent.com/slideshow.swf

Zing Toys on tap – looking at the Air Storm versions! (Zcurve, ZX Hunter Crossbow, Pop Rocketz, Zing Shot)

Heads up!  So once upon a time, I shot some test videos of Zing Toys’s Zcurve Bow, and ZX Hunter Crossbow.  They were pretty cool!  I’ve always been a fan of the original Nerf Bow N Arrow, and even the Big Bad Bow and seeing these things piqued my interest.  In addition, thanks to some fine people at Zing Toys, I was able to get some samples of the rest of the line.  They’ve rebranded Zcurve under the name “Air Storm” with a new color scheme, but same simple awesome functionality.  Let’s have a look:

The original, Zcurve bow.  On the left is the new “Air Storm” version. Approx $19.99

The small arms, Pop Rocketz – $4.99 and Zing Shot – $9.99

ZX Hunter Crossbow! (my fave, cause I love crossbows) – $19.99

Zip Bak Bow

The toys are each banded with a different type of surgical tubing, except for the pop rockets which is a squeezable bladder that launches the rocket when compressed.  Would I count it as large ammo?  Hell yes.  Would I count it as a melee weapon?  Hell yes.  There you go, Call of Duty fans… you have a ballistic knife.  Sort of.

I like the bright orange, and you can kind of see the transparent look of the plastic.  It’s pretty neat, and a bit more interesting than the camo/red blaster lineup they ran after the bright green sets.  Very spacey, but if you got these already you’d be buying the same shooters, just in a new color.  Is that wrong?  Not when the toys are this great.

Enough jibber jabber, I shot some video:

From Zing Toys testing

From Zing Toys testing
From Zing Toys testing
From Zing Toys testing
From Zing Toys testing

Biggest surprise out of the bunch?  The Pop Rocketz.  Did not think those little things would have that kind of power (50′!), but damn they do.  Angled, the Zcurve has hit upwards of 200′, and the smaller Crossbow and Zip Bak are really comfy and perform respectably.    Thankfully, it doesn’t look like the Zcurve toys lost any power, they still feel/shoot the same with these new color jobs. 

Definitely give these a try where ever you can find them.  Target, Wal-Mart, Toys R Us… but don’t look in the blaster aisle!  These were in the same spots you can find Backyard Outdoor Safari, hula hoops, and other toys like that.  My guess is since these are more outdoorsy type toys.  You get three rounds of ammo with each of these, but it’s nice to note that the Zip Bak and Zcurve both shoot the same arrows (called “Zarts”), while the Zing Shot comes with 3 balls, the Pop Rocketz has 3 rockets, and the ZX Hunter has three small suction cup zarts.

Hope this was helpful!  With the “Hunger Games” out now, it looks like there are a whole bunch of new people looking to take up archery.  If you aren’t ready to jump to a proper bow and arrow set, these should definitely be on your radar.  – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpUcTC5ev74 – look at how she moves with a bow!  Holy crap!

Take it easy!