WDP restructures and becomes "Angel Paintball Sports" - Page 2

Tajue17 · 01-01-2008, 05:23 PM

my opinion is that the REAL reason Angels are a dying breed is because WDP didn't want to train alot of techs to work on the things because of the 7 Master techs who want all the buisness and 2--> it seems they don't want the PB stores to easily carry them because why THEY DON'T WANT TO TECH THEM..

if they only offered to easily train techs in the USA (like Planet & Dye did) and then keep sponsership high with D2 and up teams (like planet & dye did) then they would of remained very popular and easily close to the top in the marker sales area,, people just don't want to mail out guns to be fixed they want to bring it down to the tech and drop it off and then pick it up when it is done or the guy fixes it right there while you wait..

i have an ego that i can litterly bring anywhere locally (nationally) to be fixed,, same with my DM's everybody is a dye certified tech OR theres one not too far away..

also how many stores do you see selling angels?? around here (50 miles from performance angel which isn't even a retail store anymore) its everything but..

but I still love my A4 fly,, it stinks that I have to mail it off to FMA to get a check-up soon though--> I work around the corner from Boston paintball and they don't want to touch it unless its something simple and might not need replacement parts but you only want to bring your marker to the guy who has the love for that brand and even personally uses one-->its only natural that he will know the tweaks it needs...

Cunha · 01-01-2008, 07:13 PM

Its true.

Parts obscurity, Tech obscurity.

The a1 parts are cheaper than ever (thank you china), but you still will 90 percent of the time need to look online for support.

Kids ARE willing to pay 1300 dollars for paintball guns. Egos are the most overpriced and best selling "high end" electro. Kids want to have the one that is supposed to be the best. EGOs cost the most, so that is what they must be.

The A1 platform is fantastic and their board is bar none the best ive ever seen in my life, and the best i could even imagine.

If they make a new model with radical milling (that allows the breech to open with a no rise on thank you very much) and charge about 50 dollars less than an ego, they could have a winner. The gun initially had some issues, and the next gen should have detents that people can trust, but besides that its a beautiful design.

Weird they changed the name though. I hope they dont start sucking big time.

Su8lime Paintball · 01-01-2008, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cunha

Kids ARE willing to pay 1300 dollars for paintball guns. Egos are the most overpriced and best selling "high end" electro. Kids want to have the one that is supposed to be the best. EGOs cost the most, so that is what they must be.

Not just kids, either. I was at BPS Indoor this weekend (don't ask

) and had a long conversation with a 46 year old guy who had a gearbag full of two DM7s, a Mini, and a few Timmies (including an Ego7). We talked a bit about vintage markers, and eventually ended up discussing the Ego8, which he was there to purchase...

This massive collection prompted me to ask who he played for, and as it turns out he was just a recballer with a pricey taste in guns who spent about $2500 a month on guns, paint, and field fees. He was a nice guy, but after meeting his friends and observing just how much gear they had between them and what types of markers they had, I can see where DYE get's off selling carbonfibur shoes and how Eclipse manages to unload Ego8s for $300 more just because they're a signature model with no differences other than anno...

I'm certainly not complaining about any of these things, just pointing it out.

Mr. Furious · 01-01-2008, 07:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Su8lime Paitnball

Not just kids, either. I was at BPS Indoor this weekend (don't ask

) and had a long conversation with a 46 year old guy who had a gearbag full of two DM7s, a Mini, and a few Timmies (including an Ego7). We talked a bit about vintage markers, and eventually ended up discussing the Ego8, which he was there to purchase...

This massive collection prompted me to ask who he played for, and as it turns out he was just a recballer with a pricey taste in guns who spent about $2500 a month on guns, paint, and field fees. He was a nice guy, but after meeting his friends and observing just how much gear they had between them and what types of markers they had, I can see where DYE get's off selling carbonfibur shoes and how Eclipse manages to unload Ego8s for $300 more just because they're a signature model with no differences other than anno...

I'm certainly not complaining about any of these things, just pointing it out.

It's not a new phenomenon. People have always been willing to spend ridiculous amounts of money on "the best" gun. I paid $1200 for a C&C LCD back in 2000 and the exact same marker with a warped sportz jewel and a little different milling cost $500 or $600 more IIRC. Stock cockers from certain shops with nothing but a trigger job and a once over by a famous cocker guy commanded twice the price of the same cocker at another retailer. Some folks like to have something special even if the only thing that differentiates it from the rest of the herd is the ridiculous price.

I personally like to shoot expensive guns but I wait to buy them until the new year's models have arrived and the price drops by about 40% from the bloated "gotta have it 'cause it's new" price.

Quacker · 01-04-2008, 02:24 PM

Nobody shoots Angels at my local field, but they have incredibly strong brand recognition. Anytime I get questions about a high end gun I'm holding by someone who is relatively new, they will ask, "Is that an Angel?" It's slowly turning into, "Is that an eGo?" but Angels are still objects of desire. Comes with selling only high end products, I suppose.

Digger · 01-07-2008, 10:33 PM

I hope that they stay around...but as stated in some posts earlier, teching an angel or even finding a local tech is pretty darn hard...Our team bought 15 a1 markers, and they were totally useless out of the box...we had to have them all set, pressures done correctly, put the right settings into the board etc...luckily our local shop actually had a decent angel guy there, not certified, but was very knowledgable about the marker as he has been shooting them for a long time and owned his own, and actually had all the "special" tools needed to tune the marker properly.

we did have one a1 that came in with a bad board, and our local shop sent it out to the west coast service center, but because they had not "sold" or transfered the ownership to my teammate yet had a hell of a time getting it fixed.They made some rule you have to have a retail slip for you to reg your warranty, and the gun hadnt been offiically bought yet so no such slip existed YET.as a result , our local store will no longer carry ANY ANGEL MARKER, or any of thier repair parts.The owner said it was the hardest factory defect repair he has tried to get done ever, and if they were not going to take his word that it was like that when it came in he would not deal with a company like that.I personally know he and his staff test every marker in front of the customer prior to leaving the store, which is great for the customer, and him, as he shows how to care for it etc..but Angel did not want to accept the defect marker for warranty since it wasnt sold,,aint that a crock?

I love the style of the a1, and the quality of the markers are good, but the service problems are going to kill them...they also were selling the A1 a comparable dollar amount to the other elite high ends, but the wdp "sponsorship" program killed the value of resale of them, and also killed the retailers chances of selling them.

I hate to say it, but I think they are on thier way out...just my opinion though

01-07-2008, 10:33 PM	#16 (permalink)
Digger Active Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: NJ	I hope that they stay around...but as stated in some posts earlier, teching an angel or even finding a local tech is pretty darn hard...Our team bought 15 a1 markers, and they were totally useless out of the box...we had to have them all set, pressures done correctly, put the right settings into the board etc...luckily our local shop actually had a decent angel guy there, not certified, but was very knowledgable about the marker as he has been shooting them for a long time and owned his own, and actually had all the "special" tools needed to tune the marker properly. we did have one a1 that came in with a bad board, and our local shop sent it out to the west coast service center, but because they had not "sold" or transfered the ownership to my teammate yet had a hell of a time getting it fixed.They made some rule you have to have a retail slip for you to reg your warranty, and the gun hadnt been offiically bought yet so no such slip existed YET.as a result , our local store will no longer carry ANY ANGEL MARKER, or any of thier repair parts.The owner said it was the hardest factory defect repair he has tried to get done ever, and if they were not going to take his word that it was like that when it came in he would not deal with a company like that.I personally know he and his staff test every marker in front of the customer prior to leaving the store, which is great for the customer, and him, as he shows how to care for it etc..but Angel did not want to accept the defect marker for warranty since it wasnt sold,,aint that a crock? I love the style of the a1, and the quality of the markers are good, but the service problems are going to kill them...they also were selling the A1 a comparable dollar amount to the other elite high ends, but the wdp "sponsorship" program killed the value of resale of them, and also killed the retailers chances of selling them. I hate to say it, but I think they are on thier way out...just my opinion though __________________

01-01-2008, 05:23 PM	#11 (permalink)
Tajue17 Rec Poster Join Date: Jan 2007	my opinion is that the REAL reason Angels are a dying breed is because WDP didn't want to train alot of techs to work on the things because of the 7 Master techs who want all the buisness and 2--> it seems they don't want the PB stores to easily carry them because why THEY DON'T WANT TO TECH THEM.. if they only offered to easily train techs in the USA (like Planet & Dye did) and then keep sponsership high with D2 and up teams (like planet & dye did) then they would of remained very popular and easily close to the top in the marker sales area,, people just don't want to mail out guns to be fixed they want to bring it down to the tech and drop it off and then pick it up when it is done or the guy fixes it right there while you wait.. i have an ego that i can litterly bring anywhere locally (nationally) to be fixed,, same with my DM's everybody is a dye certified tech OR theres one not too far away.. also how many stores do you see selling angels?? around here (50 miles from performance angel which isn't even a retail store anymore) its everything but.. but I still love my A4 fly,, it stinks that I have to mail it off to FMA to get a check-up soon though--> I work around the corner from Boston paintball and they don't want to touch it unless its something simple and might not need replacement parts but you only want to bring your marker to the guy who has the love for that brand and even personally uses one-->its only natural that he will know the tweaks it needs...

01-01-2008, 07:13 PM	#12 (permalink)
Cunha MCB Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Monterey, CA	Its true. Parts obscurity, Tech obscurity. The a1 parts are cheaper than ever (thank you china), but you still will 90 percent of the time need to look online for support. Kids ARE willing to pay 1300 dollars for paintball guns. Egos are the most overpriced and best selling "high end" electro. Kids want to have the one that is supposed to be the best. EGOs cost the most, so that is what they must be. The A1 platform is fantastic and their board is bar none the best ive ever seen in my life, and the best i could even imagine. If they make a new model with radical milling (that allows the breech to open with a no rise on thank you very much) and charge about 50 dollars less than an ego, they could have a winner. The gun initially had some issues, and the next gen should have detents that people can trust, but besides that its a beautiful design. Weird they changed the name though. I hope they dont start sucking big time.

01-04-2008, 02:24 PM	#15 (permalink)
Quacker Seasoned Member Join Date: Nov 2006	Nobody shoots Angels at my local field, but they have incredibly strong brand recognition. Anytime I get questions about a high end gun I'm holding by someone who is relatively new, they will ask, "Is that an Angel?" It's slowly turning into, "Is that an eGo?" but Angels are still objects of desire. Comes with selling only high end products, I suppose.