Paintball gun help

[LLDJR]

My son is wanting a paintball gun and I have no knowledge of this sport, I think that $250 is the max investment on this gun not including accessories..

Anybody have thoughts, obviously Tippmann an I have heard of Spyder as well.

 

[shooter521]

I suggest you Email or PM TargetIndy; he runs Paintball Indiana and would likely be up on which markers are good, bad or indifferent in the current marketplace.

 

[LLDJR]

thanks I will do that*** this week I am going to try and set up a meeting at the Tippmann mfging plant in Ft Wayne. See if I can a.) sell them some automation components and b.) learn about Paintball guns and c.) pick their brain

 

[kevincullman]

Tippmann is made in indiana. it 's always good to see a good product that's made right here at home. It's hard to beat the reliability and quality.

 

[BSUrugger]

I have owned two Tippmanns and a few Spyders. The Spyders are good, but I have had more problems with them than I have with Tippmanns. Love the Tippmanns!!

 

[shooter521]

Back when I was playing, Tippmanns weren't the "cool" guns, but were widely hailed as durable and reliable, if a bit clunky/heavy/old tech. Tippmann kinda struck me as the Ruger of the paintball world. Their pumps and semi-autos were VERY popular choices for field rental guns back in the day.

Disclaimer: I am a and have no firsthand experience with any of their products newer than the Model 98, so things might have changed.

 

[kickbacked]

i had a spyder as my first marker and sold it to buy my tippman. with a few accesories they can be made to be more easier to move around on the field, i added a 14in j&j ceramic barrel and a drop forward so that it wasnt extremely long. also a double trigger. i would suggest a tippmann if you are wanting to get started.

 

[xmas_asn]

I have been playing about 10 years. I can offer some insight if you would like. I just want to know how old your son is and what kinda of paintball does he want to play? Rec ball, woodsball, speedball, scenario or outlawball

A good forum to look into for insight is TechPB.com The owner is a bit out spoken but it has a more friendly atmosphere than other paintball forums like Pbnation.com

 

[scott delaney]

buy something cheap to see if its just a phase or will be something he will want to get in to big time......we got air soft instead of paint ball......much cheaper and hurt less

 

[Jtgarner]

Honestly, for the money you are willing to spend I would not get a tippmann or a spyder.
The IONs are pretty good guns, but might not be the best for your money either. Give me a sec and I'll look some stuff up.

Edit: Ok, the gun I was looking for is a little out of your price range. Also, after looking some stuff I was reminded that Smart Parts (the maker of the ION) is out of business so I am not sure if I would go with them. I would say that your best bet would be to find a used Empire/invert Mini on Ebay. Price should be about what you are wanting to spend and they are good guns that have "eyes" so they won't chop paint and gunk up your barrel no matter what hopper you get.

If you do decide to go with an ION (they should be fairly cheap) they are simple markers (spool valve) and hold up pretty well. I built one from a stock one once and actually upgraded every part (including the frame) and was able to build a stock ION with my leftover parts and a few screws. Again though, Smart Parts is out of business so support (aside form knowledgeable people who have owned them) will be limited.

Edit 2: if you need a cheap HPA tank for the gun (can't run CO2 through a lot of the newer, nice guns) let me know, I have 3 I am trying to get rid of and at least one is still in hydro.

 

[obijohn]

Tippman 98. durable, reliable, well within budget. i still keep a couple for loaners.

 

[xmas_asn]

Honestly, for the money you are willing to spend I would not get a tippmann or a spyder.
The IONs are pretty good guns, but might not be the best for your money either. Give me a sec and I'll look some stuff up.

Edit: Ok, the gun I was looking for is a little out of your price range. Also, after looking some stuff I was reminded that Smart Parts (the maker of the ION) is out of business so I am not sure if I would go with them. I would say that your best bet would be to find a used Empire/invert Mini on Ebay. Price should be about what you are wanting to spend and they are good guns that have "eyes" so they won't chop paint and gunk up your barrel no matter what hopper you get.

If you do decide to go with an ION (they should be fairly cheap) they are simple markers (spool valve) and hold up pretty well. I built one from a stock one once and actually upgraded every part (including the frame) and was able to build a stock ION with my leftover parts and a few screws. Again though, Smart Parts is out of business so support (aside form knowledgeable people who have owned them) will be limited.

Edit 2: if you need a cheap HPA tank for the gun (can't run CO2 through a lot of the newer, nice guns) let me know, I have 3 I am trying to get rid of and at least one is still in hydro.

Smart Parts did go out of busness but they where purchased by White Hat and are back under the name GOG.

 

[tTotalProvidence]

When it comes to ballin', you can't go wrong with a tippman a5.

 

[firemedic140]

Tippmann. Very easy to fix, have serviced. I've had many over the years. A5 your looking I think around 150, which leaves money for a good mask paint air ect. second on eBay. Now with ebay watch for addon prices. Just because theres a lot of stuff with it doesn't mean its a good deal. Try to find a players pack. A local shop PBSports offers a package for 25-50$ depending on what you want for a tank, mask etc. Craigslist has several listed right now that are good prices. If you buy it person to person ask to shoot it.

 

[LLDJR]

Thanks a ton guys, I've been reading up on this little by little,
he wants to shoot in the woods and at places like White River Paint Ball in Anderson***

He is 13 years old last month and he has no less than 15 Air Soft Guns,, 1-Spikes Tactical AR-15, 1-M&P 15-22, 1 Ruger Mark III Hunter Target 7-/8 fluted SS barrel and a Glock 17 Gen 4

 

[Jimbovia]

Paintball opinions

Check out pbnation.com They are the largest paintball forum...well...in the nation. They have forums for every marker manufacturer and reviews on just about every marker. As for the Tippman / Spyder dilemma....gotta say...dont waste your money on either. The pain in the butt your boy will deal with using CO2 and broken paint isn't worth saving a couple hundred bucks. Go with any marker that has an electric trigger and break beam eyes. The eyes wont allow the bolt to cycle until a ball is in the breech. This almost eliminates the occurance of broken balls in the breech from a bolt cutting a ball in the half.

Also, the really "high end" (high cost) markers are just good markers with lots of extras milling and annodizing/painting. The same markers with less paint/milling, but do have adjustable high and low pressure regulators are where you should look. Find the balance between features and cost. DYE/PROTO are the leaders in marker design. The proto markers tend to be on the lower end of the price scale in comparison to the DYE markers.

Best of luck to the kid. Paintball is just as fun as Airsoft, though paint cost can add up. Just my

BTW, Airsoft can hurt significantly more than a paintball depending on who you are playing with.

 

[sepe]

The place we play uses Tippman 98s and sometimes an A5 gets thrown into the mix as their rental guns. I like them both.

 

[LLDJR]

Check out pbnation.com They are the largest paintball forum...well...in the nation. They have forums for every marker manufacturer and reviews on just about every marker. As for the Tippman / Spyder dilemma....gotta say...dont waste your money on either. The pain in the butt your boy will deal with using CO2 and broken paint isn't worth saving a couple hundred bucks. Go with any marker that has an electric trigger and break beam eyes. The eyes wont allow the bolt to cycle until a ball is in the breech. This almost eliminates the occurance of broken balls in the breech from a bolt cutting a ball in the half.

Also, the really "high end" (high cost) markers are just good markers with lots of extras milling and annodizing/painting. The same markers with less paint/milling, but do have adjustable high and low pressure regulators are where you should look. Find the balance between features and cost. DYE/PROTO are the leaders in marker design. The proto markers tend to be on the lower end of the price scale in comparison to the DYE markers.

Best of luck to the kid. Paintball is just as fun as Airsoft, though paint cost can add up. Just my

BTW, Airsoft can hurt significantly more than a paintball depending on who you are playing with.

Been looking around, your info helped, Dye and Proto make some nice PB-guns, leaning towards a Proto 2011 Rail

 

[45fan]

When I go out, I still use my Ion customs, the wife still plays with an old Autococker with electronic grip, but the tipman 98 always goes with me to the PB field. The newer, lighter guns are nice, and for some considerably faster, but the tipman 98s are dead reliable, and have yet to let me down, no matter where I play. The other downside to the high end markers is that they tend to be very finicky about the temp that they operate in, and the pain that you feed them.
A tipman 98 will probably still be shooting when his kids start to play paintball.

 

[LLDJR]

Is there a good place locally to check out some decent PBG's ?