Paintball

[Mike@NDS]

I have only been playing for 2 years now, and it seems they are considered a "low end" starter gun. Mainly, I presume, because they were sold at big box stores at a low price point.

But from a design/mechanical point of view, I consider the STBB Spyder design to be the AK47 of paintball guns.

A 3mm Allen wrench, #15 O-rings, and some oil and you can pretty much fix one in 10 minutes.

Probably blasphemy, but I think they are better than the Tippmann 98 series.

[Chappy]

I have watched too many brand new spyders fail at the field to consider them an ak47. The 98 is a pita to take apart but it runs on mud. Not a spyder fan myself, but we all have different experiences.

[GanonsGrin]

Originally Posted by Chappy

I have watched too many brand new spyders fail at the field to consider them an ak47. The 98 is a pita to take apart but it runs on mud. Not a spyder fan myself, but we all have different experiences.

It doesn’t sound like you’ve ever shot a decent spyder then!

They are fantastic platforms as long as you take the time to finish them out properly. With just a tiny bit of effort and care, they can be absolutely amazing! I’ve seen just as many Tippmanns on the field having issues as I have spyders, and typically the spyder could be brought back to the front lines in less than 5 minutes. My favorite spyder (my old Imagine) is one of my smoothest shooters and has survived YEARS of use and abuse. I ran it almost completely stock for the first few years it was wrecking fields, and that one came from a Wal Mart online purchase for about $40. Out of all of my markers, that one is 1 of 2 that will never leave my possession.

Everyone had their opinion on this topic though, and most have negative connotations due to thinking “they’re cheap starters” but that isn’t the case. And before anyone jumps at me about making a standard platform run smoother, think about the site you’re visiting, take 2 aspirin and then call me in the morning. I can walk you through teching that spyder that you gave up on years ago.

Mags and spyders are my two favorite platforms, but I have a soft spot for spyders.

[Mike@NDS]

I'm curious, what types of failures have you seen?

I can see where a 13yo with a straight out of the box marker can have some issues.

No lube, didn't check the tightness of screws, etc.

My Cronus runs and runs, but get a ball in the charging handle port and it will stop too.

[ChoSanJuan]

Build tolerances vary from mfg to mfg. But if we are talking about only Spyders (buyouts and changing of hands withstanding...) They are pretty solid if you know what you are doing with a STBB. I've got a wall of Kingmans, a couple of other STBBs and 1 Ion.

I stand with Ganon on this one. [emoji6]

[Axel]

Everything should get the respect it's due. The question is, what is it due?

[Mike@NDS]

Originally Posted by Axel

Everything should get the respect it's due. The question is, what is it due?

ouch

[Trbo323]

Originally Posted by Mike@NDS

.

Probably blasphemy, but I think they are better than the Tippmann 98 series.
:

Because they are, shorter lighter, easier to work on, if it doesn't have a regulator chances are fairly high that it only uses 015 size o rings (tank rings) and compared to most tippmanns, either the same performance for half the price or, more performance for the same price.

BT is better prices but the same design

Id take a jt tac 5 though, it's the same online blowback design but it's simplified, there's roughly 1/3 to 1/2 less parts than a tippmann 98 and it's priced to be competitive with the Spyder stuff

Originally Posted by GanonsGrin

typically the spyder could be brought back to the front lines in less than 5 minutes.

Heck, years ago my sister in law had a piranha, we went out to play and it just would not fire, in the process of 20 minutes I had the valve body out TWICE and turned out it needed a new poppet stem and valve body

I've spent more than 20 minutes just fighting the clip ring on a tippmann valve body

Originally Posted by GanonsGrin

Everyone had their opinion on this topic though, and most have negative connotations due to thinking “they’re cheap starters”

They are cheap and starter markers though, that doesn't make them bad though.

More features and less money is always a plus in my book

Originally Posted by Mike@NDS

I'm curious, what types of failures have you seen?

My Cronus runs and runs, but get a ball in the charging handle port and it will stop too.

Shoot, let's see

Some of the more odd ones I've seen on tippmanns

Pinched spring
Rusted bolts/ nuts (which can lead to stripped heads and not being able to take the marker apart)
Casting mistakes which caused one of the pins around the trigger to fall out
I hate the trigger group on most tippmanns, it's too much plastic and not enough machined parts. I've seen lots that start binding, it's usually not enough to bring down the marker but it's super annoying if you know how just about any other trigger feels.
One of the big things, while it is technically the end users fault is tippmanns can be easy to mess up when putting them back together. If you even have 1 part not in the right spot you have to basically start all over which just increases the chances of pinching parts, losing parts or just flat out breaking something


For the spyders, the overwhelming failures that I typically see are simple o ring failures. It then gets compounded when people try to fix the marker themselves and do it wrong. The marker then for some reason gets blamed and labeled as "bad" because of course, they can't admit that they did something wrong. In the last month I've come across two spyders that had a leak but also wouldn't fire. The leak was again, a simple o ring, the wouldn't fire turned out to be the hammer bumper was in front of the hammer rather than behind. The marker doesn't do that on its own....

[SignOfZeta]

I think for a lot of people...Kingman wasn’t the first company to make a crappy asian gun but they were so successful at it that once they did it became standard.

In 1990 it was assumed your gun was American because almost all of them were. Once the Spyder hit the Phantom seemed instantly high end by comparison when before it was just a decent gun. Kingman got players used to cheap Chinese garbage, I guess is what I’m saying, even if they weren’t bad at it. Now paintball guns are sweatshop Harbor Freight made by people who also make your Xmas decorations and they don’t know WTF either one of them is and they do this because most players are too cheap to pay anyone make something. The gun is just a commodity like gasoline or burritos and Kingman was a big part of it.

In other words, Kingman sucks but you won’t see it in the actual gun any more than you’ll see blood in a diamond but it’s there.

[Axel]

Originally Posted by SignOfZeta

The gun is just a commodity like gasoline or burritos and Kingman was a big part of it.

This is quite possibly the most amazing thing anyone has ever posted on this website