This is a really fun Nerf gun.

We bought the Nerf Sniper Rifle for my 9-year old son at Christmas 2007. (I'll put together a review of that excellent Nerf offering as well.) In turn...I NEEDED to purchase a gun for myself for defensive purposes, of course.

I found the RF20 at a local Toys-R-Us. At the time, they were a Toys-R-Us exclusive. I picked up the gun along with an extra 20 micro darts and we've been have a blast ever since. I think I spent about $30-35 including the extra darts.

Here are some observations:

- RANGE: The gun shoots accurately/well for about 20 feet. It's definitely not a sniper gun. Per the title of this review, the RF20 is what you pump up to the max and rush an opponent with. Or, sit in giddy-expectation for your opponent to walk into your surprise trap. A solid short- to mid-range Nerf gun.

- RATE OF FIRE: When set to Rapid Fire, it's ridiculously fast. If I pump the gun up about 25-30 times, it will unload all 20 shots in about 2-3 seconds. When set to Single Shot, the gun still seems to shoot in an automatic way (i.e. hold the trigger down and it will keep unloading until you either let go of the trigger or you run out of air/darts), but just slightly slower. Either way, it's fun to burst-fire this gun.

- EASE OF RELOADING: Pretty nice and easy. The nice thing is that all 20 of the chambers are exposed, so it's easy to pick up darts and reload as you go. You just have to remember that the gun shoots each bullet one at a time from the top of the ammo holder. So if there's gaps of empty chambers in the holder, the gun will dry fire the empty chambers. Not the end of the world, by any means, but just something to keep in mind. Just get used to reloading -- the rate of fire empties the chambers REALLY FAST.

- EASE OF USE: Load the darts in the chambers, pump up and go. Again, to unload all 20 darts, I usually have to pump the gun around 25 times. I've read recommendations on the web to avoid over-pumping the gun. I have no idea what the upper bound is for that, so I just usually stay around 25 pumps as a max. My 9 year old has a bit of trouble pumping the gun up, so I look at it as a way for him to build up his arm/shoulder strength. :) He's getting better at it each time he uses it, though.

- AMMO: This shoots normal suction cup tipped micro darts. These are very common and easy to find in most any store that carries Nerf products (i.e. Toys R Us, Target, etc.). You definitely should purchase extra darts as you will lose some/many in the heat of battle.

- COMBAT OBSERVATION 1: Pumping the gun makes a distinctive sound that's pretty easy for everyone to hear. Whenever my son and I play, pumping the gun up will always give away my position. Our home isn't huge (2,100 sq. ft. 2-story)and it's pretty wide open, so he can hear me a room or two away. So, pump up early BEFORE you start sneaking around. Or, now that I think about it, figure out how to lubricate the gun so it's quieter...(hmmmm, I may have to find my mini-screwdriver and go exploring...)

- COMBAT OBSERVATION 2: When you rapid fire this gun, it sounds amazing. My son (or I, when I let him use it) immediately starts to run away when the ammo-rain begins. It's just the natural reaction, especially if you're ambushed.

What comes in the box: 20 yellow suction cup-tipped darts, the gun, a sheet of stickers and some instructions.

Again, this Nerf gun is a riot to use. Very Terminator like.

It's definitely a worthy primary Nerf weapon.

p.s. Google Search "Nerf Rapid Fire 20 modification" and you'll find a plethora of suggestions for making the gun more powerful/accurate. Just about any of these mods would void your warranty, obviously.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 26
Type of Toy: Sports
Age Range of Child: 9 Years or Older