The blaster’s main air tank is used to pressurize a secondary tank which is released by a valve controlled by an Arduino Pro Mini when it gets a signal from the trigger when it’s pulled. Even with the secondary tank pressurized to just 40 PSI, the dart can easily decimate a target like a soda can or a coffee mug. And it can fly as far as 250 feet out in the open. But when the blaster is pressurized to its maximum 80 PSI, there’s enough power to send the custom darts straight through a sheet of drywall, and they’re even capable of shattering a cinder block on impact. A kid’s toy this is not.
Currently, Mark Rober still holds the official Guinness World Record for “Largest Nerf gun” (despite the fact that Rober’s creation wasn’t officially sanctioned by Hasbro, nor is this one) but Pike assures us that his official “Guinness World Record is pending,” leaving the ball in Rober’s court to win it back someday. As arms races go, this one might be the most entertaining.