Piston Pressure
Streams generated from this method of pressurizing water often vary in strength since the stream is completely dependant on how fast the piston can be filled and compressed. Shot distances can vary quite dramatically and stream strength can vary during the duration of the shot. For larger pistons, a lot of arm force is often require to achieve decent ranges. This can lead to poorer control of the direction the nozzle is pointing, thus lower accuracy. These type of weapons are often inexpensive but are typically not recommended for use in large battles.

Air Pressure
This is the method of pressurizing water which put Larami Ltd ahead of the competition back in the days of motorized water weapons. The nice thing with air pressure is that a water blaster can be pre-charged before battle and this stored energy will remain in the reservoir/firing chamber until a trigger is pulled. As it takes water longer to exit an opening than air, the air pressure inside does not drop too quickly allowing for decent shot times. The main problem with air-pressure based water weapons is that it requires a fair number of pumps to pressurize the firing chamber and that the air pressure drops as water levels drop, resulting in the often-seen end-trickle. The other problem is that if the out-take tube gains access to the pressurize air instead of being submerged in water, the blaster will fire out a mist shot which also quickly drains the firing chamber's pressure. One interesting thing to note is that pressurized gas over water resulting in the water's gas content to be increased. What this means is that the water being fired from the blaster's nozzle may sometimes froth simply due to the once-pressurized water being released into a lower pressure environment, allowing the trapped gas to escape. This can cause a loss of stream integrity and shortened range.

Elastic Pressure
For the SuperSoaker CPS-based weapons, Larami Ltd. has chosen to use elastic rubber firing chambers to pressurize pumped water as opposed to using air pressure. As the firing chamber is filled with water, its rubber walls, wanting to return to the original shape, push on the water, pressurizing it. A simple pull of the trigger can release the pressurized water onto an intended target. Interestingly, the pressure exerted on the expanded rubber firing chamber remains fairly constant throughout a shot, resulting in a nice, even stream. If the firing chamber is emptied of residual air, the stream produced will be virtually free from gas and remain cohesive much longer. (This is part of the reason CPS streams fires farther than their XP and SS counterparts)