The Water Warriors Gargantua is the largest, elastic-based water blaster released by Alex Brands Buzz Bee Toys Holdings for 2016. Despite its initial appearance, the forward-mounted plastic bulb is purely ornamental; inside, a small, but full-bladder elastic chamber resides as opposed to the hemispherical diaphragm-type chamber as originally seen on the Water Warriors Blazer back in 2003.) However, the internal pressure chamber is somewhat small. While offering more capacity than a Water Warriors Pulse Master, it is less than a Water Warriors Krypton's precharger's available volume. Nevertheless, the Gargantua's pressure chamber easily powers any of its three nozzle settings: two stream options and one burst option.

The Packaging

Like most Water Warriors-brand products, the Water Warriors Gargantua is mostly visible in its packaging. The part most obscured by the box is the Gargantua's trigger/grip region due to the size and placement of the "lifestyle" user image. The packaging notes the Gargantua "Holds up to 78 oz. of water" and features "Constant pressure technology [that] blasts up to 40 feet!" The nozzle selector and its three settings are readily inspected. The reservoir appears to occupy roughly half the length of the water blaster.

The back side of the box shows a labeled graphic of the Water Warriors Gargantua with various part names noted. The back panel also names the different nozzle settings as N1, N5, and N9. Some general instructions on how to operate this water blaster are included as well as previews of a few other Water Warriors-brand products presumably also available in various stores for 2016.

Unboxed

Free from its packaging, the full size of the Water Warriors Gargantua is revealed. With its more decorated reservoir to its enclosed trigger-grip region. At first impression, the Gargantua appears to be a more slender version of the Water Warriors Waterlord, but not all is as it seems

The Pressure Chamber .:
As the packaging clearly notes, the Gargantua features "Constant Pressure" technology, its forward bulb suggesting it uses a diaphragm-type pressurization system as first found in the Water Warriors Blazer. However, something seemed odd with the top-mounted bulb, particularly due to the presence of screw holes on one side and the lack of a hole on its top. A little internal exploration revealed an unexpected surprise - the forward bulb is purely ornamental and the Gargantua does NOT use a diaphragm system, rather it contains a small, albeit full elastic bladder pressurization system more like the original Super Soaker SC 500! Whether the Gargantua was initially intended to use a diaphragm system and changed later remains unknown. However, a full elastic bladder should provide better stream performance than a diaphragm-based system. Of course, results from further testing will confirm just how well this blaster performs.

The Nozzles .:
The Gargantua features a nozzle selector with three settings: two stream settings and one burst setting. The nozzle selector, itself, has an extended tab on one side to make it easier to determine what nozzle is selected without needing to view the front of the water blaster. When the tab is directly up, the largest nozzle setting is selected.

All settings are easily powered by the Gargantua's full elastic pressure chamber. The smallest stream (N1) setting provides roughly 1x performance while the largest stream (N5) pushes out slightly better than 2x performance. The burst setting (N9) pushes out four nearly-parallel streams and achieves an output over 3x. Unfortunately, due to the low volume of the pressure chamber, shot times are short. Streams, though, are packed with good power, bursting forth and hitting with a bit of a sting at closer ranges. The pressure chamber seems to have the power to have been able to power a larger nozzle, but shot time would be even shorter.

Of course, due to the pressure chamber's small size, the it can be quickly recharged by pumping, readying the Gargantua quickly for the next soaking opportunity! Being the mid-winter here, range testing still needs to be done, but based on the apparent power behind these streams, maximum ranges are expected in the high 30'-low 40' distance.

Capacity .:
Sporting a light-blue reservoir that occupies roughly half the length of its body, the Gargantua holds a good amount of water, carrying more supply than the original Water Warriors Blazer (2003) or even a Super Soaker CPS 2100. In fact, though having a smaller pressure chamber than the Super Soaker SC 500, the Gargantua's reservoir offers over double the capacity. Moreover, since the Gargantua features a full separate pressure chamber, its total capacity is slightly more since the pressure chamber can be filled, then the reservoir topped off, before venturing out onto the battlefield.

The Pump .:
The Gargantua's pump pushes a decent volume per stroke, pressurizing its limited-sized pressure chamber quite quickly. The pump pulls fairly smoothly, though a bit of pump lag/resistance is felt when attempting to pump more quickly. This is likely due to the length of tubing needed to reach from the back of the reservoir to the pump. Nevertheless, the pump is able to sustain both stream settings at basically full power if one pumps quickly enough while holding the trigger. The burst setting, however, has too high an output and the pump's flow rate cannot keep the pressure up long enough to create a consistent, continuous shot.

Ergonomics .:
The Gargantua follows in the footsteps of some of the other newer Water Warriors-brand water blaster designs, with more angular, technical features. The pump grip possesses decent ridging and is smooth to pump. The trigger/grip area is enclosed, partly for looks and partly for strength. This fixed space between the underside of the reservoir and bottom of the trigger/grip region is ok, but those with larger hands may find it slightly cramped.

The build of the Gargantua's body feels sturdy and well-built. While one may feel the ornamental bulb is unnecessary, the remainder of the shell is nicely sculpted and used with minimal wasted space left within the shell.

In terms of balance, the positioning of the trigger/grip region works well both when the blaster is filled or nearly empty. Once pressurized, one-handed operation is possible, though the Gargantua's short shot time means one will likely need to repump after a shot or two.

Overall .:

The Water Warriors Gargantua is a solid addition to the Water Warriors line. Though it would have been nice were its elastic pressure chamber were larger, streams produced pack good power and it is easy and quick to repressurize after each shot. The Gargantua is not without some short comings including noticable pump lag, constrained trigger-grip region and, of course, its rather small pressure chamber volume. However, it is nice to see the return of full-elastic-bladder-based water blasters again and hopefully the Water Warriors Gargantua is signaling the beginning of a new wave of higher-performing water blasters from the Water Warriors brand! Able to hold its own against most air and small-to-mid-sized elastic-based water blasters, the Water Warriors Gargantua makes for a good addition to most armouries. Of course, one must remain wary of high-output air pressure and the larger, higher-output elastic-pressure-based water blasters out there.

Pros

Full elastic bladder pressure chamber; all stream settings well powered; three settings to choose from; generous capacity reservoir

Cons

Pressure chamber the smallest of this class measured so far; enclosed trigger-grip region may feel cramped for those with larger hands

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Related Content .:

 Product Listing Page | Water Warriors Product Evolution Tree 

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