Paintball

[idkfa]

I am trying to get my girlfriend into Paintball (she seems to really want to), and it looks like starting her off on pumps was not that good of an idea...

I am looking at getting her a Spyder Xtra. There are other markers *I* would prefer over this, but I am mainly getting it for the size/weight. The dropforward is good because she finds most tanks a little too long (9oz CO2).

I just wanted to be sure on the weight. This looks to be a light gun. Am I correct in my assumption? A Tippmann 98C would have been a good choice, but more than a little heavy.

Any help?

[Railgun]

Any of the lighter bodied blowbacks are pretty light for the price. If you don't mind spending a bit more and going electro then something like an Invert Mini is REALLY small and light. A great compromise for small and light that is about 1/2 the price of the Mini is an ICD Promaster. Just got one and it's a lot lighter and smaller than it looks in the pics.

These are all electro options though. If you're after mechanical then any of the blowbacks that use a plastic trigger frame and the figure 8 extrustion for the bodies is pretty darn light.

If it helps I REALLY like my lowly Piranha R6 that now uses a 12 inch CP or Lapco barrel depending on my mood of the moment. It's been upgraded with a delrin bolt and flush cocking back pin so it doesn't whack ya in the face shield like it would otherwise.

If you're buying new then I can recomend any of the '08 Spyder mechs that use the quick strip pin on the bolt. Nice and light and fairly compact. And being top cocking you can set up the bottle so that the back of the body is just barely in front of her mask.

To save some more weight I can recommend an Archon gravity hopper. On blowbacks that shake like they typically do it feeds paint just lovely. No electrical agitation required. And they are darn light compared to even the lightest electro hopper.

[Chaos]

The Newest model Xtra is the lightest of all the Xtras that were released,they are also slightly smaller,more comfortable and more compact.I had an 07' one briefly and I have to say for a Spyder it sure was alot of fun to shoot and it was really comfy.

Here's a pic of the 07' Xtra


And here's the prior models

2006


2004-2005

[Phantom Power]

The best "girl friendly" semi I've found so far is the ICD cats. I just got an Alley Cat from Russc last weekend and it's fantastic. Super light markers that perform really well. You can also set them up with a vertical tank (think 3.5oz) or backbottle with a 9oz or something.

Check one out. Far more reliable than a Spyder would be.

[super-cameron]

You could snag an old school power feed metal body Spyder and bring a 3.5 oz tank straight down (like a grip, don't use the bottom line). Light in weight and on the wallet.

[super-cameron]

And the Archon gravity fed hopper is a nifty cheap toy- good call on that one!

[idkfa]

Wow. I forgot about this thread.



I ended up getting her an older Spyder Victor for cheap (almost new actually), and replaced the stock detents with Killa Detents, and just got a APP Hitman barrel from Titus. It shoots great, is super light, and the few times she has had time to play, she rather enjoyed it.

If she decides to pursue paintball, I will probably look into something a little more rugged, but for now, this is a perfect option.