Can Anyone Recommend A Paintball Gun?

B

Bruise Lee

Joined
Aug 4, 2002
Messages
363
Anyone here seriously into paintball?

I used to play a lot - I have an old Nelspot 007 I upgraded to constant air and put a stock, sights, and a hopper on. I think I got that gun back around 1990!

But all my friends got so out of shape I couldn't find anyone to play with anymore. I finally met some younger people that want me to take them paintballing. But, I want a newer gun cause I can't talk them into a stock game and I'll be at a big disadvantage with my old pump gun.

I mainly play in the woods, although I love to play in indoor fields and faux urban settings whenever I can.

I don't want to spend more than $200 if I can help it. I heard the Smart Parts Ion is good, and that the Spyder Imagine and Pilot are good for the money. One guy I'm going with got a used Tippman 68C for $50.

I've already got my mask, squegee, web gear, barrel plug, and all the other assorted crap you need to play the sport so I guess I'm fairly serious. I just haven't played for a couple of years.

I guess the #1 priority I have in a gun is reliablity. I broke a ton of balls in my Nelspot, and had to field strip the thing under fire at least twice a day. I remember one of my buddies made a sweet move on an enemy position. When he came up to fire his rental gun it literally came apart and he got smoked. LOL.

I prefer a shorter, compact gun because I had a long ass barrel on my Nelspot that was a real disadvantage at close quarters in "urban" settings. I'm not too concerned about bps because anything I get has to have a higher rate of fire than my Nelspot.
 
Tippman 98 custom is a very good gun for any amount of money. It lists under 200 and can be upgraded at a later date with factory drop in parts like electronic triggers for full auto. It is also very forgiving of over oiling I loaded one with tons of oil once before loaning it to a guy who kept borrowing my extra guns and the bloody thing still worked :(
 
I've been playing for about 10 years now. I agree that the TippmannM98 Custom is a good buy.
Not only is it a solid performer, but, if you decide it's not your cup of tea, it'sa easy to sell. I actually had 2 of them, one for myself and one for my son, both performed flawlessly.

I use www.countypaintball.com , great service.

The M98 is as compact as they get. Anything over 8 inches of barrel length doesn't do much for accuracy or velocity. We have done tests and proven it. The 8" Lapco Bigshot barrel is what I would put on it. make sure you get a motorized hopper too, helps the rate of fire.

I wouldn't touch a Spyder with a 10 foot pole. Tippmann made in USA, Spyder inTaiwan.
Spyder uses metric hardware, and the bottomline holes are different than standard paintball guns.

Quality and price of paint is much better now. You will see a lot fewer breaks, unless you get a hold of some crappy or stale paint.

I'm not a fan of the Ion, they really need HPA to work well , but they use a lot of it.

PS: I have a private paintball field, I fill both Co2 and HPA, the guys with Ions are always filling up.
Smart Parts guns ahve been known to use a lot of air. The M98 will be more gas efficient and will work fine on Co2.

I strongly recommend the TippmannM98 Custom, it's a universally accepted marker, everyone knows how to fix them, easy to maintain, and cost effective, plenty of aftermarket parts, too.
 
SkunkWerX said:
I've been playing for about 10 years now. I agree that the TippmannM98 Custom is a good buy.
Click to expand...

What about the Tippman A5? The air agitating feed seems like a great idea.

I currently own and shoot a Sheridan VM68. How's that for old school?

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
I own an original Tippmann 98, almost identical to the custom, except that the Custom probably has some upgrades of some sort (even though mine performs flawlessly. )
If you're undecided about which paintball marker to get, check out the badass ways you can deck out your Tippmann here: http://www.opsgear.com/s.nl/sc.22/category.1219/.f

If the A5 is your thang, you can dress it up nicely too.

Have fun!
 
IIRC, didn't Tippman have a Propane powered auto in the pipeline? Their manual cocking model is out - speaking of airing up, one propane bottle is reputed to fire 50k rounds, and every Walmart in the country can supply.
Then again, I don't think it meets the $200 criteria, but I'm waiting them out.
 
I throw my vote out for Tippman. I have thier .68 carbine and the original Model 98. The thing I love about those markers is the fact that liquid CO2 has minor effect on them. I can remember one game when I frosted up the Carbine, it shot the same through the entire game. Go with a Tippman to get the most bang for your buck.
 
Tippmans are like the Old Faithful of PB guns.... I personally have never cared for them though, as I started with Spyders. I think they both have the ability and accessories out there to be competive with each other.

I can't give you a whole lot on the Tippy's as I have never owned one. I currently own about 8 Spyders though. Not all mine, some of friends, friends kids and what not.

If you go with a Spyder, you can go electro, but I personally think it's a waste of money and worries. I've had electro guns and have gotten rid of them as I don't have a need for the Full Auto (Not ALLOWED in real play) And so I just went back to the manual with how fast you shoot is up to you. Plus you don't have to worry about batteries and what not.

What I would recommend is getting a manual spyder with LPC and a 6 or 8 stage expansion chamber, make sure it has one of the new ACH??? Anti-Chop bolts in it, run if off of the 12 or 16 ounce CO2 with a 12" barrel. Make sure that the barrel is not one of the ones that has Rifling in it, as it don't work with a PB. Ported on the end is fine, and I'm thinking though I haven't used one but I think the ones that allow you to put directional spin on the ball would work, as I've got a friend who patented the idea... It worked when I used his gun at least. Get a MaddMann valve or some other type that allows you to run it on Low Pressure to maximize the amount of shots you get out of your tank.

Get a small Air Tank to run if you want better consistency. BUT check with the availibility arouund you for refills. Also if cost is an issue on refilling you can pick up a used scuba tank and buy the fillers for it to save you some money, and to make it easier to do "woods ball" once in awhile.

If you need/want more info let me know via PM or Email.... I currently run a Bob Long Millenium Spyder, a Phantom Pump for Stock Class play and an Automag with a Q Loader.

HOpe it helps...

DM
 
Bruise Lee,

I say either Tippman, or Spyder. I see you're in LA, and I can recommend 2 places for you. One is I&I Sports , down in Torrance , off the 110. (www.iiports.com) Check them out, theres some good deals , especially on paint. I also recommend ANS in Simi Valley, 118, Tapo Canyon exit, they have package deaLs starting at $129. A large selection of guns, at better prices then I&I. Paint is not cheap there. Hope that helps. Good luck. Maybe I'll see you at one of the fields.
 
nel spot 007? dayum thats an antique in the paintball world. a colector to some. I would get a new autococker. they are like 160 bucks now and as reliable as anything. I love my autocockers but they are worth well over $500.00 a piece. I like the ion by smart parts but i dont like electric guns since mine dies sometimes for no reason in the middle of games. tippmans are tanks(reliable) and about the same price but they dont have the performance.
 
I used to play professionally, on the NPPL and PSP circuits. A couple years before that I played for Tippmann's factory team, Tippmann Effect.

You can't beat a 98 for less than $200. Here's a picture of me playing in Miami with a basically stock 98, against some of the best guns made.
 

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the gunshop i work at sometimes,sells paintball...
just an observation,,,spyders come back everyday for repair,,,

tippmans never do,,the rare time is something really dumb and easily fixed,,

tippmans always to me seemed to be Benchmade like,,,

wish you luck!

oh yeah,,98's are great starter guns...but the A5 is a better all around value in my opinion
 
My final decision was to spring for a new Smart Parts Ion for $200. The final cost with a Halo B with RipDrive ($125) and a regular aluminum 48/3000 Pure Energy Tank was over $400.

I actually talked to 3 guys who were trying to sell their used Ions. They all wanted more for their used guns than the guns cost new - one wanted $85 more! Stupid kids - I got quotes from 3 local stores and all were cheaper than what these geniuses wanted.

O.K., here are some observations after playing with the Ion for a day.

PROS:

O.K., this gun shoots wicked fast. It will pump out 17 balls per second in semi-automode, and it has a 3 round burst and full auto mode which I think is like 30 balls per second! Just squeezing the trigger in full auto mode sounds scary!

Interestingly, according to the manual the full-auto and 3 round burst mode is not available in Ions sold in England.:barf:

This gun is way more reliable than my ancient Nelspot 007 pump. It has "eyes", which means it actually has a laser which detects if there is a ball in the chamber ready to fire.

The Halo B hopper - it failed to feed electrically on my second game. But, using the RipDrive to manually feeed my balls, I was back into action in seconds. This was probably due to my inexperience with my new gear. It fed reliably for the rest of the day, and even took some wicked hits during a firefight. But, the cool thing is when i was really pumping out paint, you could hear that electric motor going, loading paint...man, I felt like I was firing a minigun lol!

Players respect this gun! When you go on the field with one of these, you already have a psychological edge if you are playing against walk on noobs with rental guns.

CONS:

This gun has a hair trigger. I have been shooting since I was 9 and I'm 45 now and I've never had an accidental discharge in all that time. In one day with this gun I must of had at least 6 different accidental discharges. The gun does have an adjustable trigger; I'm going to try to adjust it to have a heavier trigger pull. Right now it probably has like a 6 oz. trigger pull!

The gun's accuracy with the stock barrel is just so-so. It's not awful, but my old Nelspot is more accurate (with a longer aftermarket barrel).

O.K., some of these cons are more from the point of view of using the paintgun as a training tool for serious social encounters.

I hate the fact that the hopper is right where you iron sights or scope should be. In other words, there is no way to really aim the gun, or even point it by sighting down the barrel like a shotgun. You just point the gun as best you can, shoot balls out, and watch them fly downrange like tracers, then walk them onto target. I dunno about you guys, but I don't fire too many tracers rounds normally, nor can I concieve of any situation where a citizen would be pumping out 17 tracer rounds a second.

The handling/pointing characteristics of this gun are horrible. You can kind of use the tank like a stock, but it's piss poor ergonomically. Length of pull is all wrong, you are trying to rest the bottom of a metal tank on your shoulder where normally there would be a rubber recoil pad, etc.

I don't like the red safety led at all. The old Nelspot had a simple mechanical crossbolt safety. Easy to see or feel if the gun was on safe or not. The Ion has a red flashing led. OK, I'm playin in Southern California in the summer and it's 90 degrees out. The sun is bright! That flashing led gets washed out - especially if you have been hit in the goggles by a few paintballs.

The same goes for the status led of the Halo B electric loader - next to impossible to see it in bright sunlight.

MISC:

This is probably not the fault of Pure Energy, the tank manufacturer, but I felt I should mention this anyway. My tank broke the first time I tried to refill it. Something about an O-ring or a nipple ring busting.

The reason I don't think it's the fault of the manufacturer is that the guys working at the paintball field I played at were total Bozos. The reason I say that is because when I got the gun it was set-up on full auto mode. They only allow semi at this field. I don't know how to change modes in the Ion, so I ask the guys that work there for help. The guy tries to push in the led button with a Phillips screwdriver! And I mean force it! I was horrified and immediately told him to stop! Luckily I had brought the Ion manual with me....

Then, like I said, when I gave them my gun for a refill, they broke my tank to the point that it wouldn't hold any air! At least they had the decency to loan me one of their tanks so I could keep on playing with my Ion.

My other friend's Dye paintball marker had problems, too. He wisely decide not to play at all, other than risk these guys monkeying around with his gun!

The trigger is huge, set up for rapid fire two finger shooting. This is great for the sport of paintball, which of course is what the Ion is all about. However, it's not a good thing if you are trying to replicate a real firearm. I can live with it, though - I try to think of it as an M1A with a winter trigger.

CONCLUSION:

It may seem like I had more negative things to say about the Ion than positive, but the positive things were major (rate of fire and reliablity), and the negative things were minor (except for the hair trigger and iffy safety, a real safety problem in my opinion). Overall, I am happy with the gun, and am looking forward to playing my next game with it soon (after I get my brand new tank repaired, grr.)

Oh, the reason I didn't buy a Tippman over the Ion is that new they are almost the same price, and although they seem to be as reliably as a Colt 1911, they can't shoot nearly as fast as the Ions can, which is important if you are playing speedball. Also, I couldn't find a used Tippman at a reasonable price, although my friend did ($50 for a 98c).
 
Bruise Lee said:
O.K., this gun shoots wicked fast. It will pump out 17 balls per second in semi-automode, and it has a 3 round burst and full auto mode which I think is like 30 balls per second! Just squeezing the trigger in full auto mode sounds scary!
Click to expand...

The stock boards are capped at 17. Full Auto is capped at 10. Sorry bud, but you're not shooting 30.

You're definately not shooting 17 in semi auto either. The ion trigger isn't the fastest out there, and if you've been out of the sport for so long I doubt (no offense, just facts) you can shoot much more than 8 bps.

Good choice though, good guns. They aren't the easiest to maintain, but if you know how to work on real guns and knives you'll pick up on it quick.
 
E-mag for a battle tank with a built in back up system if your electronics fail; or Autococker if you like to tinker and tweek to get perfection.
 
E-Mags are so outdated and overpriced, they are not a good choice. Cocker's do not take a lot of tinkering, unless the user doesn't know what they're doing and wants to "tune" it.

The Ion is the best gun under $300, you made a good choice.
 
TFin04 said:
E-Mags are so outdated and overpriced, they are not a good choice. Cocker's do not take a lot of tinkering, unless the user doesn't know what they're doing and wants to "tune" it.

The Ion is the best gun under $300, you made a good choice.
Click to expand...
E-mags Outdated? I can guarantee an E-mag is fully capable of shooting faster than 98% of the paintballers who play. If being fully capable of continued operation if the battery dies by flicking a switch, antiball chop, a quicker barrel take down in the unlikely event of a broken ball, and a proper heft to prevent barrel hop during hammer time, a trigger fully adjustable down to 1/2 a mm of movement, and problems with valves that can be easily fixed in the field by the user, then yeah it is outdated. How many other electronic markers can do all that? Overpriced? It will be the only marker you will ever need.

Cocker I didn't say they take a lot of tinkering, I said they are great if you like to tinker and tweak to get perfection. That is a whole different meaning. I will spell it out to alleviate the confusion. If you are a person who likes to do a lot of little things, tinker, tweak, buy after market stuff to push the limits of your marker, and generally just have to get your hands inside the mechanism, then get an Autococker as they are perfect for that. They are also just fine for folks that don't.
 
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