Paintball

[Cunha]

I think a 100 dollar automag with a 50 dollar compressed air tank and a revvy or just a view loader is a fantastic starter setup, for anyone that can carry it.

For a weaker person, a nice blowback like a piranha with a decent barrel and 12 oz co2 tank will be perfect.

[Ir0nExpress]

Personally, I'd go with one of those classic sear tripping electro's. You get the firepower but the simplicity also. Not hard to learn how the gun works that way.

I personally like spyder imagine/pilot (which is now an out of production gun, GOD I FEEL OLD ALREADY) You get the 13 BPS. Soon the boy will want MOAR FIREPOWER and we'll throw a T-board in there, upping to around 20 BPS.

To me, mags have always been very weird. You get the standard mech BPS of around 6-8, but it's a high end well built gun. The barrels kinda suck since no one makes twist locks anymore. But it's not quite at a newb price. I guess I'd go with that if someone guides them (no one guided me, I had to try out everything myself with my own money, 2 years and about 30 guns later, I have two phantoms and a blazer)

[Cunha]

Anyone strong enough to carry a mag would be much better off with a gun that shoots strait than a gun that shoots fast ( and wastes paint )

Twist lock barrels a great. There are more than enough of them around to cover all of the guns that currently exist.

I would never tell anyone to waste money upgrading a spyder, if they want more than what their blowback puts out, put the blowback in a drawer as a loaner and get a new marker. I am totally bummed that I spent 120 dollars on what was considered the best barrel at the time for my piranha. At that time..only a few years ago, classic mags were still worth a good 250 dollars though or more..and you didnt have as many used HPA tanks floating around either.

They are totally at newbie prices. I can get one for 100 dollars with a great barrel, easily.

[spawnsharks]

I too, am of the Automag persuasion. Started with Tippmanns on the advice of a friend, as well as threads here when I was new to the sport. Reliability and simplicity of design were important to me. Plus upgradeable. I had 2 98s that I got in trades and upgraded them to my liking. One I ran with an e-grip, the other with an e-bolt. started with Co2, then moved on to compressed air when I got a tank in another trade.

Then, a few months back, I decided that I really liked the look of the minimag, and traded my e-gripped 98 away. Fell in love with the sexyness that is AGD. I found a great deal on a 68 A.I.R. on Craigslist, and found that the guy has an RT for sale as well. No sooner was I driving away, then I realized that I made a mistake by not trying to work a deal for both. So I asked him to hold it for a week and posted my e-bolted 98 here to fund the purchase of the RT and extras...

By next week, I'll have 5 markers... 3 Automags and 2 PGPs. Once a new player gets the hang of tactics used for semi-auto play, I think they should grab a stock class pump as well, if only to trian them how to shoot accurately, and use less paint. Contrary to what the electro crowd thinks, you can hold a lane closed with 1 ball per second just as well as 30.

Playing stock class will allow you to go back to semi, and use less paint... so while the other side is filling hoppers, you can be scoring outs. My Pre 2k PGP has been my primary for the last few months, and my game is better already. Stealth, accuracy and conservation are great advantages in every type of game. It's harder to track where a single ball came from, but it's easy to follow the rope pointing at your opponent, and easy to time when they'll be out of paint and you can make a move.

Anyway... This little personal story just sort of fell off my fingers as I was trying to give kudos for Automag as a first marker.... Then again, we're all different, and different markers will feel different to everybody. I just personally like the heft, balance and ergonomics of the Automag, as well as that sleek styling. Plus upgrades are easy, affordable and really make a difference.

My $.02

[sdlm]

Just like to add, being part of the pro-Automag crowd myself, that the only hard to find barrels are Vertical twist-lock, I can find barrels for my powerfeed body all day long, however my vertical minimag body is another story.....

I think it is important to have enough simplicity, yet also have upgradeability, with a Pnuematic mag conversion even a classic valved mag can compete with electros

[Cunha]

I really dont think upgradability is important. If I told someone to buy a mag Id have them find one with a decent barrel and a foregrp and they would use that heavy setup with a 47/3k HPA tank until they want to quit the sport or keep going.

If they want to keep going, they can look for another gun.

Twist lock barrels besides centerfeed are definitely very common.

You can pretty easily modify a regular twist lock barrel for centerfeed use though.

[mobiusmorte]

Here is my unsolicited advice...

For the total newbie, Tippmann all the way. Maybe a Spyder if they just have to have it. But an A-5 is an awesomely easy gun for a beginner to use.

Next would be the players who have been playing for a while (borrowing or renting)
If the player is mechanically inclined, a tinkerer if you will, I would suggest picking up a used Autococker the way the floor fell out on their resale value is just amazing to me, you really can get a 'cocker that can compete on any field for around $200 or less... stupifying considering how much they were going for just 2-3 years ago...

For the guy (or gal) who doesn't want to be bothered with tweaking and and customizing I would suggest a used upgraded ION (if they can test it first) or a Used Timmy. (there are some great deals on those out there too)

I absolutely agree with the philosophy of learning how to play with a mechanical gun, alternately limit the amount of paint you bring on the field. If you only give yourself 50 paintballs a game, you will definitely work harder to make those shots count.

Personally I like to go out there with my Nova, it is just so darn quiet. There is a satisfaction gained like no other when you hear paintballs wildly spraying the bushes all around you as you calmly aim and fire an almost whisper quiet shot that either takes out your opponent or makes him jump like a scalded cat behind the nearest bunker/tree/large buddy because he has no idea where you are.... I recently purchased a Vector, can't wait to get out there and try the totally opposite technique of scaring the crap out of somebody when my Loudenener enhanced paint cannon fires a shot at them.... ooh the anticipation of that moment has me licking my chops.... After that I will take my SMG-68 out there and just go nuts.. for 20 shots anyway then run and hide while trying to reload before I get bum rushed... Actually I see myself using the SMG-68 at the next MOUT facility game as a room sweeper, I'll just keep it strapped to my back until needed (in theory anyway)

wow... talk about runaway keystrokes... sorry about rambling.

Now back to our regular programming.

[hostiletek]

I would simpliy suggest borrowing anything you can get your hands on, wether it be for a game or running a hopper over the chrono/target range to find what you like. When its time to buy especialally for first timers BUY USED! You can find package deals with guns/gear to fully outfit yourself for way less than a new gun will run many times your able to buy farther up the foodchain than you could afford new. And if you dont stay with the sport for whatever reason your not out a lot of cash and can offload the gear to the next new guy without much of a loss.

[spawnsharks]

Originally Posted by hostiletek

I would simpliy suggest borrowing anything you can get your hands on, wether it be for a game or running a hopper over the chrono/target range to find what you like. When its time to buy especialally for first timers BUY USED! You can find package deals with guns/gear to fully outfit yourself for way less than a new gun will run many times your able to buy farther up the foodchain than you could afford new. And if you dont stay with the sport for whatever reason your not out a lot of cash and can offload the gear to the next new guy without much of a loss.

This is good advice... heed it all newcomers!

[Mr. Furious]

Originally Posted by Kevin Barr

Hey lads, I have never used an Ion, so I am at a disadvantage. A friend asked me today if he should get an Ion for his first marker. I had already suggested a tippman or a spyder which he seemed to go with. Now he is thinking Ion and he says the research says it is a "10/10" but all I can say is I just don't know. Comments, questions, nasty remarks?

Kev

Just say "No" to Ions as a first marker. Simple, mechanical blowback is the only way to get started. Maintaining paintball markers takes some getting used to before you can dig into any marker without messing it up. Ions are notorioiusly tricky for new players to maintain and will cause tons of headaches for a brand new player. While they are priced in the "new player marker" range, they are not designed for the new player to easily maintain and repair.

The Tippmann Model 98C is the BEST marker in the world for a new player. Cheap, durable, reliable, easy to maintain and easy to fix. They are relatively fast with a light trigger for a mech and work extremely well on unregulated CO2.