Larami SuperMAXX 500 Review (8/10)

The power of air compels you!

I'm really glad I got this very rare blaster in my collection now. Despite I was completely unprepared to own this blaster and it had initial problems, I worked around it and found myself one of the most powerful pistols ever, and probably one of my new favorite blasters of all time. Enter the SuperMAXX 500.

Size compared to the SuperMAXX 5000.

The 1994 SuperMAXX 500 was the smallest blaster in Larami's original short lived SuperMAXX lineup that also contained the 1000, the 5000(Then known as the System 2000), and the extremely rare 1500 Missile Launcher. Nerf never reissued this blaster when Larami was acquired by Hasbro and it was replaced by the less than stellar SuperMAXX 750, and as a result, it and it's Small Soldiers and SuperTech variants faded away into the darkness and became very hard to find. I found this rather mint SM500 for $50 bucks and everything about it was PERFECT, my only disputes were that the original sticker was long gone and the pump was very stiff due to the 20 year old grease degrading due to age.

Internals are similar to most other SuperMAXX blasters.

I fixed this problem by dropping some silicon oil into the gap between the pump rod and the tube and it worked wonders overnight, now it operates like new. The pistol is super comfortable and is about the size of a Recon with no attachments. I love the color scheme because it just screams 90s all over it and how it somewhat resembles the old Super Soakers. Nothing really else like it.

CPVC fits perfectly snug into the stock barrel.

I have no Larami darts to properly test fire this stock so I had to find some way to test it out. It has a really massive air restrictor that totally nullifies any sort of dry fire and the barrel space was rather peculiar. I contemplated brassing the whole crap out of it but to preserve it's originality, I found that CPVC fits perfectly into the stock barrel, and depresses the AR allowing you to fire micros and stefans. The blaster takes about 3 to 4 pumps and it sends darts about 50 and maybe around 60 feet at the moment, and it has potential to break 100 if modded properly. This pistol is the perfect complement to the SM5k.

Overall this pistol is absolutely awesome and if you can find one for reasonable price, I highly recommend you get it. The SM500 is excellent by all means and there isn't many other pistols like it. I give the SuperMAXX 500 an 8 out of 10 for having excellent power but it's reliability is a hit or miss and believe me, if it croaks, you will be very unhappy.

UPDATE: I have no idea what happened but I test fired this gun again one day and it pressurized up just fine but then when I pulled the trigger, nothing. Something must have broken off inside the gun and I honestly can't be surprised this happened. These things aren't known for reliability.

UPDATE 2: Turns out the stopper assembly complete broke off inside the tank and my attempts at repair were in vain. I picked two more of these up recently and like before, they work flawlessly after a bit of lube, but I'm babying the hell outta them. Don't want them dying on me this time.

The Verdict

Class- Heavy Air Powered Pistol

Range- Excellent, 50 to 60 feet with micros, capable of 100.

Size- About the size of a stripped down Recon.

Reliability- Due to it's age, problems can vary between blasters.

Ammo- 1 Larami Dart

Modding- Has potential to hit 100 feet with barrel mods and plugged pump.
Value- At $10, this was a cheap and very powerful secondary but it's not cheap anymore.

Is It Better Than?

SuperMAXX 750- Yes, the SM750 is a decent pistol but it did not live up to SM500's standards. The SM750 is much smaller but it's also less powerful, plus the pump position is quite strange. Plus the SM750 is rather uncomfortable due to it's small form factor. Buy a SM500 if you can find one.

Secret Shot II- Depends, both pistols are air powered and both have their ups and downs. The SS2 hits similar ranges to the SM500 stock but uses a much more conventional ammo type, yet the SM500's pump is far better and it pressurizes in only 2 pumps. The SS2 is far more common however and you should get it if you can't find a SM500.

Magnus- Depends, the Magnus is just as massive and intimidating as the SM500 but this beast is a springer, hits pretty nice ranges, and boasts a built in clip which greatly increases rate of fire. However, if you like sheer power, the SM500 is air powered and can make the Magnus look like a pea shooter with modifications.