Xshot Skins Pro Longshot Review

Between work, home, and the adoption of a stray kitten, I haven’t had much time for games (hopefully I can film footage using this blaster on Sunday). But after extensive testing at home, I’m impressed by the first half-dart blaster from Xshot. The Target-exclusive (in the US) Longshot offers great performance, modding potential, a unique platform compared to other pro blasters on store shelves, and unexpected creature comforts. Not to mention the incredible paint scheme! It’s only halfway through the year, but we have a Blaster of the Year candidate for sure!

Bullpup Blasting

The Longshot differs from most other Pro blasters on the market in layout. Be it Dart Zone, Gameface, or Worker, the springer platform of choice has been largely similar in layout. Xshot, instead, goes for a bullpup layout, putting the magazine and loading mechanism behind the main grip. That choice allows for longer barrels in a similarly sized package, but it also requires some unique design choices.

At the back of the blaster, the magazine well and associated release sit in front of the stock. In a nice touch, Zuru made the stock adjustable. Not by much, but enough to allow for better comfort in blaster handling. The loading mechanism in the stock pushes the dart forward into the barrel, sealing the entire system off in the forward position.

The Longshot comes with magazines for both long and short darts, as well as an adapter. Uniquely, that adapter fits all current straight magazines (Dart Zone, Talons, Xshot, Katana). But there’s another unique feature: an ambidextrous thumb tab near the trigger allows you to release short dart magazines without reaching back for the adapter! That’s completely unexpected and handy for dropping mags quickly. I do wish the tabs were a bit larger (and I’m sure that can be modified to my liking), but when it’s a feature that’s so handy, it’s hard to criticize.

In front of the magazine, however, is where magic happens. The blaster features a reverse-firing plunger, with the barrel centered inside the plunger! This requires multiple o-rings and plenty of grease to seal properly (see an old community-designed blaster for more info on such a system), but Zuru makes the concentric design work! An extra spring sits in the “turnaround”, where the air is forced behind the loaded dart and through the barrel. That spring cushions the impact of the plunger – very important when dealing with strong main springs.

Both grips are comfortable to hold and use, and the prime is surprisingly light. There is a ratcheting mechanism present, which makes clicking sounds as you prime the blaster. This keeps you from accidentally making half-motions and potentially jamming the blaster. Experienced blaster hobbyists, though, may prefer to simply remove it.

The tactical rails are Picatinny, but the included sights are a loose fit. Not that they’ll move around just from swinging the blaster, but they don’t lock in place and can easily be bumped out of position. Interestingly, though, they appear to have open screw holes if you want to secure them yourself. In addition, the front sight can adjust up and down for elevation.

Finally, the blaster comes with a muzzle attachment. It’s “rifled”, in similar fashion to SCAR barrels seen on some high-end blasters (and in 3d printed ones, as well). However, the muzzle piece is wide enough for darts to fall through, so the benefits of the attachments are tiny at best, helping if a dart is off-center for some reason.

Performance and Use

The Longshot performed well with the included darts, averaging 134fps with the shorts and 128fps with the long darts. Other shorts darts (Dart Zone Max, etc) of similar construction had similar numbers. In addition, the rate of fire is surprisingly high, with a slamfire-enabled three darts per second! Between the light prime and the slamfire, it’s easy to place multiple rounds downrange with decent accuracy.

Internals, Modification, and a Warning

First, one small caveat that prevents a full 10/10 score. Between the thin plunger tube and the open box packaging, many people have found Longshots with cracked plunger tubes. It’s something to watch for, and hopefully can be corrected by Zuru in future production runs.

As for the innards of the blaster, you can see a full picture here. For most modification, however, you only need to worry about three screws. The two up front hold in retention pins. Once removed, the barrel cap can be taken out and the barrel freed for lubrication (remember the concentric plunger design) or replacement. One more screw, which goes into the priming mechanism, can be removed to enable a spring swap. And between a new barrel and spring, you can manage some really impressive numbers,

Final Opinion

The Xshot Skins Pro Longshot is an insanely good value for $30, offering high performance on a budget. It’s user-friendly, looks great, and has potential for more. Naturally, time will tell how durable the design is. But for now, it looks like a great way to introduce people to high-velocity dart blasting, as well as a new and comfortable modding platform. What more could you want?