Apologies for the lack of review postings! I had to take a short break for the sake of my sanity. Sometimes, you just get depressed, and you have to recognize that and work your way back out.

Today’s review focuses on a blaster that’s actually been around for quite a while. Captain Slug’s Caliburn has seen several revisions over time, and not only can it be used for several ammo types, but it can be easily swapped between them thanks to a new method of assembly. It’s a great design that can be used in both superstock and NIC levels of play. thanks to the ability to easily swap springs. And of course, it’s a testament to the things that 3D printing can do for the hobby.

In my case, I got the MEGA version. Because I’m a strange person who has lots of Buzz Bee Tyrant mags and uses them. A big thank you to Captain Slug for sending me a model for review.

With Great Power…

The MEGA Caliburn made me giggle when I first fired it. Mega darts don’t usually travel at 140-150 fps, but with the included K25 spring, they do. This is the case for both Nerf and Buzz Bee style Megas, and the “Accumegas” travel not quite as far, but more accurately. Thanks to the retaining pins in the middle of the blaster, I could more easily pack the blaster, as well as remove the plunger for an easy spring swap. The blaster is longer than even a Hades, however, and is definitely meant for use by older people with longer arms.

The body is 3D printed,

One issue I did have with the blaster was the prime being slightly off – I initially had issues getting it to catch, and the bolt would actually go completely inside the plunger tube, getting stuck on the edge of a 3D printed piece. Captain Xavier had this same issue. In his case, the bolt was replaced with one that was 1/4″ longer. After checking with Captain Slug about it, I opted for a different solution – I added a second rubber washer for padding on the back of my bolt. This solved my catching issues and bolt jams, and given the power of the blaster, I was okay with just slightly less draw.

After this, the MEGA Caliburn itself worked as intended. I was just completely inept in using it until the end of mission zero at the recent YSU Humans v Zombies Invitational.

“Accidental User Malfunction”

This part is embarrassing, but I’ll post the video anyway because it’s important to show.

The MEGA Caliburn, using a 788 spring, fires Mega darts decently below 130fps, well within range of many HvZ games. However, the less power you use, the more issues you have with darts. A K25 or K26, meanwhile, will fire most darts, even imperfect ones.

For obvious reasons, smooth darts work better in enclosed barrels. Have some excess glue on the head? You’re probably going to jam. I didn’t have this issue at home trying the blaster for the first time. However, that was with well used darts. Prior to the HvZ game, I topped off my ammo bucket with lots of brand new darts (or at least as new as Buzz Bee XL darts can be, fresh from the package). As a result, I had lots of darts with glue on the sides jamming my blaster. Many darts that didn’t jam had enough friction to not leave the barrel – at one point, I had stupidly shotgun loaded three darts (seen at end of video).

By the end of the mission, however, I was getting down to the magazines with older darts, and those worked like a charm, firing right where I wanted them to go. Once you get used to firing Mega darts at high speed, they become so much more fun.

Final Thoughts

Actual issues with the blaster are easy to fix; Captain Slug has been making these blaster mainly for the sake of the hobby, and has great customer service. If you have a 3D printer, you can even replace parts that break on your own. It’s simply a blaster with a lot of parts. Treat it with care and maintain it, and it’ll work wonders.

The blaster itself is wonderful to use, with lots of options for power. It’ll fire as fast as you can prime it, and with the ability to swap out the front half, you can even fire different ammo types with ease. In my case, I just enjoy using odd ammo types, and Megas are no exception. I just need to be smart about what darts I’m using. I really should unwrap the rest of my AccuMega darts.

It’s a pretty penny due to the time and materials needed for it (lots of time for printing the body parts), but $165 is reasonable for an NIC-level Mega primary. The Rival version is the same price. If you want to just shoot normal darts, the Elite version is $150. And of course, you can buy the front halves separately if you already have the newest iteration of the Caliburn,