Maverick REV-6

The Maverick REV-6 is a Nerf blaster that was released in 2005 under the N-Strike series.

It comes packaged with six Micro Darts. In the United Kingdom, it comes packaged with six Sonic Micro Darts.

Details
The Maverick is a revolver-style blaster with an auto-advancing six-dart cylinder. The Maverick can be reloaded by pressing the button on the left of the blaster to swing the cylinder out, allowing for quick reloading. It has one tactical rail atop the priming slide, followed by a small sight and also a lanyard attachment point. The Maverick's cylinder advances counter-clockwise (when viewed from the front) on trigger pull.

Dual-wielding
It is possible to dual-wield this blaster as a result of the slide mechanism's built-in attachment point. In the popular "string/lanyard" method, a length of thin rope or similar material is tied to the hole at the end of each blaster's slide. This allows the blasters to be primed by pulling them away from each other, causing the string to pull back on the slides. The string can be looped around the user's body to allow the blasters to still point forward while being reloaded.

There is a different, less popular method of dual-wielding in which the top of the slides are put together and pushed in opposite directions, priming both blasters. The advantage of using this method is that there is no restraint to the user's movement, therefore increasing mobility. The disadvantages of using this method are that it takes more practice, and it results in slower action in the act of priming the blaster.

A far less common but possibly more practical method is to pull the slide back with the fingers of the hand holding that blaster. Whilst this requires far more practice than the above, it means that the blasters can be cocked individually, allowing for one to be fired whilst the other is being cocked, giving a more consistent rate of fire if alternating each hand between firing and cocking.

Left-handed use
Some users prefer to hold the Maverick with their left hand. This allows one to reload quicker, as the index finger can be used to press the button that makes the cylinder swing out. However, because the cylinder swings out to the left, left-handed users may have to go cross-armed to reload, making the reload process more awkward.

History
The Maverick was previously known as the Prototype IX-6 in its first appearance in the Unity Power System DVD. The true identity of the blaster was revealed in November 2004, when a Hasbro engineer posted information about the at-the-time unreleased blaster. Its "IX" number code implies that the Maverick may have been intended to be designated as an internal mechanism blaster since it technically does use an internal mechanism for priming.

The Maverick was given an official release in March of 2005, although some had discovered the blaster on shelves just after Christmas 2004. By February of 2005, it had been spotted in several major stores around the United States.

In September of 2011, the Maverick REV-6 was spotted in a two-pack exclusive to Walmart.

In 2012, it was named the 2011 Boy's Toy of the Year in the United Kingdom by the Toy Retailers Association and the British Toy & Hobby Association.

The Maverick has a direct successor: the 2013 N-Strike Elite Strongarm. Despite this, in 2014, another color scheme of the Maverick released. This variation is one of many Elite Repaints and performance is unchanged from the original N-Strike variant.

Color schemes
The Maverick has been released with the following color schemes:


 * Original/"Midnight" (blue, black, gray, and orange)
 * N-Strike (yellow, black, gray, and orange)
 * Clear Series (clear plastic and orange)
 * Sonic Series (clear green and orange)
 * Gear Up (orange, black, and gray)
 * Whiteout Series (white, black, gray, and orange)
 * Elite Repaint (white, orange, black, and gray)

Modification
The Maverick is a popular candidate for modification due to its simplicity and low price. One simple modification allows the cylinder to fully flip out and rotate 360 degrees for easier reloading (known as a "full barrel drop" or a "Russian Roulette mod"; the latter due to the cylinder being easier to spin after this modification). Removal of the air restrictors allows for higher firing power and the ability for different types of darts to fit better without jamming. It is also possible to remove the cover from the cylinder on some versions of the blaster, thus decreasing the weight of the cylinder, and making it rotate more reliably. This modification is not possible on older versions. In addition, some Nerfers choose to buy a second Maverick, make the rotating cylinder come out completely, and reload the blaster using the second Maverick's cylinder. Some modders combine three barrels together so that they simply turn the barrels until the next one is in. Possibly in response, Nerf has made two stock blasters, the FlipFury and the Doominator, which are conceptually similar - the Flipfury has two barrels, and the Doominator has four.

Despite many modification possibilities, the range on a Maverick is very difficult to increase due to its reverse plunger system. It is possible though, to bring the range up to around seventy feet by replacing and/or lubricating the o-ring.

Value packs
Exclusive to Walmart and K-Mart is the Maverick REV-6 2-Pack, with twenty-four Sonic Micro Darts (under the Whistler Dart refill label). The Maverick also has a Double Your Darts and a similar "Refill and Reload" value pack that comes packaged with twelve darts instead of six.

Trivia

 * The Maverick is featured as a weapon in the Nerf N-Strike video game series.
 * The original blue version is often dubbed by Nerfers as the "Maverick Midnight", a fictional variant of the Maverick from the video games that has a similar color scheme to that of the original Maverick. The most noticeable difference is the Midnight Maverick's lack of yellow colors.
 * The original blue version of the Maverick is noticeably more powerful than the newer yellow ones, primarily because of a better O-ring. Even if one modifies a yellow Maverick by removing its air restrictors, the blue Maverick is still more powerful.
 * Hasbro modeled its Transformers Classics Megatron toy off of the Maverick. Hasbro later modeled the Avengers Captain America Brigade Blaster after the Maverick as well.
 * The word "maverick" is used to describe someone who shows independence in thoughts or actions. This may be akin to the revolver-style design of the Maverick, a popular weapon choice for renegades and lone gunman style characters in media.
 * The Maverick is one of few N-Strike blasters where the screws and warnings can be seen when the barrel end is on the right of the blaster, rather than when the barrel end faces the left, like on most recent Nerf blasters.
 * On the side of the Nerf N-Strike Double Blast Bundle, the blaster is erroneously titled the "Maverick REV-5".
 * It is not recommended to spin this blaster, as accidentally pressing the trigger while spinning will cause the drum to rotate.
 * The Buzz Bee Tek 5 bears a resemblance to the Maverick.
 * Many people consider the Maverick to be Nerf's signature blaster.
 * The Maverick can still fire with the cylinder swung open. This can damage the blaster, as the cylinder houses the air restrictors, and thus, a lack of cylinder means a lack of an air cushion for the plunger head.
 * Tagger Micro Darts and Whistler Darts must be fully pushed into the cylinder tubes or else the darts will jam the blaster frequently.