Paintball

[Menso]

Well my brother's birthday is approaching fast, and he wants a gun.

I'm at a lost here, I have no idea what to get him. I don't keep up with guns, at all, so I'm looking for some help. I was thinking about getting him an 08 Electra, or an Ion, but I'm open to take any suggestions for guns under the $300 range. My parents and I are going half and half on this gun, and they ABSOLUTELY refuse to buy used, so we have to go the new route

[Mayvik]

Has your brother played much? How old is he? Is he mechanically inclined at all?

08 Electra is a pretty good buy for $200, it comes with pretty much all the add-ons you'd normally buy for a Spyder (clamping feedneck, bleeding on-off ASA, etc) with the exception of a barrel, and it runs on a normal 9V. Also it uses CO2 or HPA so you don't have to worry about gas compatibility. Spyders are pretty simple to maintain and clean and also quite durable.

[2SIC4U]

smartparts sp-1 or vibe?
08 Electra is good too though.

[pizzaluvr]

SLG with a 48/45 Steely and a cheap Revvy so he's good on paint.

[Cunha]

I would get him an automag. How old is he? Could he tote a gun with HPA?

You can grab a right feed classic automag for 100 dollars with a decent barrel and a foregrip. You can grab a 47/3k aluminum tank for 40 dollars. You can buy him a brand new JT spectra thermal for 30 or 40 dollars.

Thats a complete nice setup that will be accurate as the devil and work great..but also not shoot too fast so the game doesnt cost him too much money.

Otherwise, starting pump is REALLY a great great idea.

For 300 dollars you can buy a brand new right feed phantom with .45 frame and bottomline, a 12 oz or 9 oz co2 tank and a good mask like a jt spectra or flex 7, and detent rings, and a 5 buck VL 200 hopper.

He can play all day and it is a light weight and natural gun to use..that is what I would recommend.

Also consider buying a centerfeed phantom and modifying it to take ego feednecks so it is a bit lower. Depends if you want him started right feed or centerfeed.

So for a semi i'd say a classic mag (maybe with a ULE body for an extra 90 bucks)

For pump id say phantom, direct feed, constant air, 11 inch stock barrel, detent rings.

And I would lean towards the phantom. He can only IMPROVE his play when you start him with a pump. When he steps up to some crap gun with a big huge HPA tank he might hate it and stick with the phantom forever, or he will appreciate the incredibly firepower of 7 BPS (on a good day) out of the classic mag and feel like a killing machine.

- EDIT -

Sorry, I realized that you said NO USED. Get the phantom! Unless you dont play pump at all (he will feel outgunned if you arent a pumper). In that case DO NOT get him a crappy electro. Starting with inaccurate but significant firepower will get him on a course of crappy play right from the get go. It is the worst thing you can do, In my opinion.

Brand new phantom from wevo or whitewolf (whitewolf is cheapest but you can end up waiting for a while so, if his birthday is soon buy elsewhere.

Tippmann 98's are good semi autos, but not as good as a used mag so i'd feel like I am telling you to waste money..the phantom doesnt lose much value.

Really though - dont start him with a low end brand new electro. For 300 dollars for the gun alone you can buy a LOT of GOOD used electro, but just 1 mediocre new one (id reccomend a mini for a mediocre new electro..) but still, dont do it. If you start him off dumping 200 rounds every game, it is going to be a very expensive hobby for him. If he can do 500 rounds a day, he will be a happy camper.

Plus, alot of new players are not comfortable with heavy guns, but a nice lightweight thing with a 12 oz co2 tank will last all day and feel a lot more natural for the player.

If you want HPA for your pump than myth 13ci tanks are easy to get now, same with 22ci tanks if he has long arms. Please seriously consider NOT buying him a low end electro.

[PhileyOFish]

I'd recommend the SP-1.

[Menso]

I was honestly thinking about getting him a Mag, before my parents said the no used gun route. I would buy him a nice Mag if I could, but I simply can't drop that much right now on a gun. I ruled out any Tippmann gun. Tippmann makes good guns, don't get me wrong, I own an A-5 but I want him to have something lighter and faster than a Tippmann. Also something that's a lot more easy to disassemble. He's played with a 98 and doesn't approve, and he feels my A-5 is too clunky, which it is. He doesn't really like the SP-1, so that ones out too :/

He's only played about 6 or 7 times but probably has played more than 50 games, no thanks to the righteous field X-Factor has, and almost every time he's played with their rental Piranha's and clunky steely 3K psi tanks. I'm going to go out on a limb and say he's pretty good for being 10. He's played with my A-5, SS-25, and Phantom. He likes the SS-25 and Phantom. But he has a lot of trouble pumping the Phantom and cracks under pressure with the Phantom. He likes pump play, but he doesn't think he's ready to move up to pump yet, nor do I. He takes his time with his shots and a VL-200 lasts him a good 4 or 5 games before he needs to reload, so I'm not worried about him flinging paint either. A case lasts him two days worth of play and he knows paint is expensive so he knows how to take his time with his shots. He'll make a fine pumper one day, but this ain't the day. My Phantom is currently down, no thanks to the ****ty clear acrylic parts that all broke and have yet to be replaced, but he has expressed interest on wanting to play with it more, so I'm not worried about him never getting into pump.

I should have been more clear with my first post, sorry. I already have a mask and tank for him and I'll hook him up with one of my friends hoppers who doesn't ball anymore, so just a good starter gun for now. An electro will do fine. He already knows what happens when he shoots fast, he learned that real fast. Last time he played, he played with an Ion, but it was giving him all sorts of trouble but then again, it was a rental so it's no surprise it'd be screwing up.

I'm leaning towards the Ion for now since it's so cheap and I haven't seen an Ion go down on all my days of play, so it can't be that bad? Haven't seen or heard much with the Vibe, and I'm not sure if I want to experiment with getting him one.

SLG, Ion, and 08 Electra are looking good right now. I'd get him a mini if I could, but my parents are shiesty with money and my spendings catching up with me Not sure on how mechanically inclined he is, but he'll get mechanically inclined with his first gun, and I'll be there to help him. So as long as it's nothing like my Phantom. That sucker is complicated.

[Sly1]

yeah, I would say go with an ion.. or the new ion like things.. sp1 I think it is, they run on co2 and are basically indestructable.. and like 100new..

I'll look for a link..

Its a vibe..
Splatter Paintball Supply

I hate to be pushing smartparts, but an ion or this thing would be a good entry gun level marker..

[PhileyOFish]

The Vibe and the SP-1 are the same game internally (they both have the anti-chop bolt and capped 11bps).

[2SIC4U]

if you get an ion, try getting the ion xe. its way better than the original one, mainly because of the b.o.b. feature. but i suggest the proto slg over the ion. about the same price too.