Few questions about TKO Automag

[Flash Flood]

I apologize if this is the wrong forum.. I wasnt sure whether to post here or in the technical section. Anyways.. Ive been having a hard time deciding what gun I want to upgrade to in the <300 dollar price range. I have a Spyder Imagine that I really HATE. Everything about it sucks, and I play woodsball so the electro frame's decent BPS doesnt really do much for me.

Ive been looking at the Dragun TES, which is nice because it comes with a reg and eyes and such.. and also the 2k3 Vertical Feed Autococker.. which might just be too much for me. Im new to paintball markers and the cocker might be too much work. Besides, my brother is buying one so if I like his we can always switch up guns... I was almost going to buy a TES, as it came very highly recommended, until I found some info on Automags. I read up as much as I could on them, and it seems an Automag Classic is perfect for me.

I just have a few basic questions about the TKO package that is found on Paintballgear.com. Im sure plenty of you will know what I'm talking about :)

First, does anybody know what kind of barrel that is that comes with the gun, or rather, if it's any good. I guess it doesnt really matter what type of barrel is it, just that it does its job.

Second, about Powerfeed and Vertical feed. I dont really know the pros and cons of each one. The powerfeed is 10 bucks more for the TKO, but that doesnt necessarily make it better. Id like opinions on which form of the gun to buy.

Third and lastly, it looks like there are different than the stock grips on the TKO? Maybe its just an advertising thing, as I dont see it listed there, but they do look like nicer rubber grips over what the trigger frame looks like when I see a pic of a non-TKO automag on the same site.

Is this a good starter package for me? Ive looked on Ebay.. and at the classifieds here, and Im considering it, but Id REALLY like to buy new, not used. Im sure they are durable guns, but it's just this thing I have. I like a shiny new product :)

Any and all responses are appreciated :) Thanks

[Remington]

My best advice, despite your want for a new marker, would be to browse the classifieds like you said you have. You can really find some nice deals on mags here, and on eBay, if you look hard enough. If you do decide that used is the route you want to go, be warned: Only buy something from someone if they have current and good feedback, otherwise, stay clear!

To answer your questions:

First, does anybody know what kind of barrel that is that comes with the gun, or rather, if it's any good?
I personally have never owned a TKO Automag but from what I have heard, it is a great, affordable beginner's package. I doubt the barrel is a very good one but it'll more than likely get the job done for the time being.

Second, about Powerfeed and Vertical feed. I dont really know the pros and cons of each one?
Powerfeed bodies are an older version of the Automag body and are a step up from the standard feed bodies of old. The new vertical feed ULE bodies are the top of the line bodies for Automags and were designed to be used with a force-fed hopper(such as a HALO) or a revy style hopper. I prefer the ULE bodies because I play tournaments and prefer the smaller profile, but it's all a matter of opinion.

Third and lastly, it looks like there are different than the stock grips on the TKO?
There could be different ones, but it really won't matter if you plan on buying any upgrades in the future (which I recommend you do if you think you want more speed out of your Automag).

Sorry if that was too long. ;D Anyway. If you do decide to upgrade in the future, browse AGD's store or PM/Email/IM me or anyone else on these boards and we'll be happy to answer your question(s). Good luck finding the mag that fits you best, and Welcome to AO! :D

[Janixs]

From the two on Paintballgear go with the power feed body, the other is standard feed. Don't get it confused with vertical feed.I was in the same position you are 9 years ago. I also switch from a spider to a mag it was the best thing I ever did.

[Woogie12]

I bought a TKO mag last year, great buy. If you do buy it, get the powerfeed option, much better than the standard feed. But those aren't stock grips and most TKO mags come with an old style All American barrel. That's what mine came with and it shot great.

[Flash Flood]

As long as Im asking questions.. who is this Tuna guy Ive read so much about? Assuming he sells mag related stuff, what kind of prices/products does he have and where could I contact him?

[bratch]

His screen name is TunaMan. He sells AGD products and does a lot of custom made jobs that are really slick. Run a search for his SN and you will see alot of his guns. Shoot him a PM on what you want and he should be able to give you a price quote.

[sneakyhacker420]

don't bother spending $250 on a classic mag

bump up to $450 and pick up a decked out RT-ULE Custom from AGD

has ULE body, intelliframe or y-grip, x-valve, and all the other goodies

much better investment IMO

[tonybhall]

Sneaky beat me to it but I agree, if you can save up a little more you can get a really nice RT Pro. Go to the AGD store site and check it out. I got mine about a 2 months ago. It comes stock with X valve and Level 10 for $399.00. You can upgrade to ULE body for $20.00 and add a ULT trigger pull kit for another $19.00. You can add an intelli for $95.00. With the level 10 and ULT this gun rocks. The trigger pull is almost electro light with no batteries.

B-)

[Flash Flood]

While Im sure the RT is an amazing gun, I dont really want to spend 400 on a gun for the type of paintball I play. I play mostly with friends, woodsball, not even at registered fields or anything.

I just wanted a nice upgrade from my Spyder, I dont really have the means to buy a 400 dollar gun anyways.. college is expensive so I have to limit my hobby spending whenever I can.

I will gradually upgrade the mag over time.. but Id rather not buy a 400+ dollar package at once.

[ERut]

Originally posted by Flash Flood
I dont really want to spend 400

No need. Sorry to deter business from AGD, but if you're buying a mag, used is the only way to go. You will find some killer deals on AO and ebay. Mag resale value is tanking because of upgrades like the ULE body, and packages like the RT Pro Custom. For the price of the TKO package, you could get a much better used gun. And with automags, it doesn't really make a difference whether its new or used.

[NoFearPaintballer]

well first of all.... do you have a HPA tank? dont bother going for rt's and prolly a cocker (the valves are weak on cockers when u use co2 on them) unless you have one. that would be another 200$ to spend because if you go cheap on your tank you will end up buying a 80$ tank and run out every 200 shots on a mag.

[Remington]

Originally posted by NoFearPaintballer
well first of all.... do you have a HPA tank? dont bother going for rt's and prolly a cocker (the valves are weak on cockers when u use co2 on them) unless you have one. that would be another 200$ to spend because if you go cheap on your tank you will end up buying a 80$ tank and run out every 200 shots on a mag.

Actually, he could very well pick up a cheap, used steel tank in the 68ci size and be able to get about 800+ shots out of it.

Flash Flood - Just so you don't get confused, you'll only need to pick up an HPA system if you plan on getting a mag with an RT/X-valve in it. Otherwise, running C02 on a regular Automag is fine, just make sure to pick up a good expansion chamber. ;)

[Flash Flood]

I already have HPA, so Im a step ahead there. It's not a big tank.. but on my current gun I get around 600 shots out of it, which is usually fine. I dont know how much more/less efficient a mag will be, but I cant imagine it will be much different.

[FalconGuy016]

I honestly would reccomend a TES in your situation, you get a lot for the money (since you dont seem want to spend more money in the future)

stock mag < dragon TES

[ERut]

Originally posted by NoFearPaintballer
if you go cheap on your tank you will end up buying a 80$ tank and run out every 200 shots on a mag.

I'm pretty sure the quality of the tank won't effect how many shots you get out of it, its more the efficiancy of the gun that matters.

That being said, mags are gas hogs. I wouldn't be surprised if you get about the same as your spyder.

[tyrion2323]

As much as I love mags, a Dragun TES is a better deal for $200.

[Flash Flood]

Hmm... so you guys are saying that the TKO mag from paintballgear is not worth the money compared to a TES? No offense but that's not really reassuring coming from the Automag forum!

[tony3]

No, thats just one person on this forums opinion, and its kind of expected considering he is sponsored by them....personally, just keep your spyder, a stock tko mag isn't going to be much better then your spyder, as long as your spyder has a new barrel and a motorized hopper.

[Flash Flood]

There were actually two suggestions in this post that I get the TES, not one. Seriously though, if I dont care about BPS (which I dont), then how could the spyder be better? The Mag should be much more accurate because of the internal regulator, and its probably a more sturdy and well built gun.

[Woogie12]

That is true. I would go for the mag since you're going to be playing woods. It's built much better and is much more durable. And yes it will probably be more consistent as well.

[ERut]

Look, pbgear makes a big deal about the TKO automag. All it is is a bare bones mag with a foregrip and some macro-line. Thats it. ITs really not worth it to buy the package from pbgear. Seriously, new mags are for suckers.

[tonybhall]

Flash Flood- Hey man, from reading your posts in this thread the TKO sounds like a good deal for you. While it is a bare bones Mag, if does come with a barrel, front grip, hose, and bottom line ASA. You can't buy all that and build one for the price PBGear is asking for the TKO.

From what you have said it sounds like you are looking for a tough as nails marker that will not let you down, you would prefer new over used, and you don't want to spend $500.00. Look no further. I agree with the posts that say you could get a better deal used, but I am like you when it comes to that. I just like new stuff.

I would not get a spyder or a TES for what you are looking for. I have a spyder imagine as a back up and it does a pretty good job. It will fire faster than a stock mag but you said BPS is not what you are looking for. You want tough as a rock and not to tempramental, right. Well, the spyder and tes can't match the mag in those areas.

In an earlier post I suggested that you buy a Custom RT Pro instead. I realise it was a little more but here is my thinking on that. You will probably want to upgrate the TKO eventually. I would really reccomend the Lvl 10 bolt. It stops the chops which is really nice to have in cold weather when paintballs are so fragile anyway. Now, the TKO cost about $275.00, if I remember correctly. You could spend $124.00 more ($399.00) and get the RT Pro which comes standard with the X-Valve and Level 10 bolt. Then for an additional $20.00 you can upgrade to the Ultralight Body which is cocker theaded. (That means better barrel selection). For an additional $19.00 you can get the Ultralight Trigger pull kit (very nice). So, for $438.00 you can get an RT pro fully loaded. That's just $168.00 more than the standard mag. But to buy all those parts seperatly would run you over $1000.00 (minus $225.00 if you send in your old valve.) That's why the Custom RT pro that AGD is offering is such a great deal. Plus, it comes factory tuned and ready to rock and roll out of the box.

Hope this info helps, good luck,
Bryan

Hey Woogie, it looks like you and I have a mutual friend in Robertjuric. I've played against his team in a tourney. They are great guys.

B-)

[bapachu]

after reading that last post (tonybhall) i kinda wish i could go back in time 2 months and not buy a tko mag, and instead buy an rt pro...sucks to be me. anyway, i have a tko mag right now. its a stock mag with a front grip/expantion chamber and bottom line....oh yeah power feed...you sounded like you didnt quite know the purpose of a power feed. a power feed makes the "line" of paintballs waiting to be loaded turn at a 90 degree angle preventing the "line" from being blown back up into your hopper by the excess air escaping out the feed tube from the back of the barrel. the barrel i got with mine is an unknown (and unlabeled) brand...and i feel that its not that great. i would definitly upgrade the barrel as every shot has a tendancy to run off to the right near the end of flight. the rest of the gun is fine for woods ball, which was my purpose also. i would also reccomend buying a drop foward for it because its balanced funny, it tips back all the time. my temp fix was to remove the foregrip and hook the tank up there like a minimag. it helps the balance a lot. you also asked about the trigger frame/grip, the trigger frame is a stock classic trigger frame with a 45 style hard rubber grip, it gets kinda slippery in sweaty hands. oh, you also said that you had an HPA tank...i hooked my friends up to my mag and i couldnt get it to shoot over 241fps. the tank was a preregulated 400psi tank, you need to have a tank that puts out 800psi or so to get the valve to work as intended. other than that, it is a very solid feeling gun that was worth the money and has a very surprising amount of upgrades for it. i hope this helps. :)

[ERut]

Exhibit A: The TKO automag from pbgear:
http://store.yahoo.com/actionvillage/010-1012-1.html

Exhibit B: Extensive used package being sold on AO:
http://www.automags.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=124531

Exhibit C: MICRO-mag (sweet milling) with boomy:
http://www.automags.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=124715

Exhibit D: Xvalved mag that hes asking too much for:
http://www.automags.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=124567

Again, its really not worth buying a mag new, in my opinion. As for the barrel, pbgear just throws on whatever barrel they have a lot of.

A couple years ago, I almost bought the TKO mag. Instead, I waited a while, and picked up a barely used mag with an x-valve, level 10, intelliframe, and ULE body. It came with a bunch of extra stuff, like four barrels, an SS body, a classic valve, etc... I picked it up for $600, sold off the stuff I didn't need, and it ended up costing me exactly $300, only $25 more than the TKO mag. And now mag resale is even lower.

Buy the TKO if you want it, just don't expect more than a bare bones mag.

[ZAust]

Originally posted by ERut
Exhibit A: The TKO automag from pbgear:
http://store.yahoo.com/actionvillage/010-1012-1.html

Exhibit B: Extensive used package being sold on AO:
http://www.automags.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=124531

Exhibit C: MICRO-mag (sweet milling) with boomy:
http://www.automags.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=124715

Exhibit D: Xvalved mag that hes asking too much for:
http://www.automags.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=124567

Again, its really not worth buying a mag new, in my opinion. As for the barrel, pbgear just throws on whatever barrel they have a lot of.

A couple years ago, I almost bought the TKO mag. Instead, I waited a while, and picked up a barely used mag with an x-valve, level 10, intelliframe, and ULE body. It came with a bunch of extra stuff, like four barrels, an SS body, a classic valve, etc... I picked it up for $600, sold off the stuff I didn't need, and it ended up costing me exactly $300, only $25 more than the TKO mag. And now mag resale is even lower.

Buy the TKO if you want it, just don't expect more than a bare bones mag.

pwn3d

[angelbeast24]

get the tko mag that was the first dec gun i owned and it treated me well

[Ityl]

TKO package is one nice little deal. The big deal not to get it is resale. Used mags go for cheap and there's a lot of them out there. It's the same way with Spyders though, as with most PB guns.

The mag will shoot great, last a long time, and need very little maintenance. It sounds like that is what you want.