my thoughts on mags popularity

[renegade2k]

ok, here is what happened last weekend when i was out playing at my local field. There were about 5 or 6 guys with cockers, 4 or 5 with angels, and me and my team with mags. there were a couple of little newbies with spyders i was talkin to who were sayin like "wow look at those cold fusion cockers!" and they didnt even know what a mag was. I have noticed while lookin through magazines that there arent any automag advertisements. i think that is why cockers are more popular because of advertisement. if newbies knew that mags existed they might be more likely to buy them. maybe? if new players dont know that mags exist then there is no way that they would buy them. just a thought that i wanted to get out there

[Cha0tic]

AGD has always produced top of the line markers and equipment. but, no offense Tom, your marketing sucks. They have gotten better as i have seen e-mag, warp feed, and rt ads in magazines. AGD also appears at alot of the big tourneys and hands out free stuff. automags are gaining popularity once again...

[renegade2k]

i agree there is some ads for the emag but how many newbies will buy that? also if the newbies dont have a chance to go to tournaments were will they hear about them?

[Shaft]

When I was searching to step up from my Spyder to a thoroughbred gun I asked myself the age old question...

What swayed me is when I watched a bunch of 'Cocker owners wrenching on their guns, whining about their dealer or airsmith rather than playing.
The Mags remained in the games and playing hard.

It wasn't so much about advertising for me. My time playing, I knew what guns to look at.

For the kids though, flash is everything. The Mag is elegant in its simplicity, but lends little to surface area for flashy anodizing, mill work and crazy pneumatics sticking out of it.
Even with my mag, people pay more attention to my PT than the marker I'd more likely be using to coat them in paint.

AGD makes a players gun. We must dominate our fields, conquer the cockers, send the angels to the kill zone and let everyone know what technological supremecy in the game is all about.
(I'm not sure where all that came from - but I ran with it.)

If that doesn't work, then Tom can resort to cool advertising with scantily clad women and exotic sports cars. :D

Have a nice day.
r

[slayer]

I bought a mag because my friend had one, and when I picked it up not only did it feel like I was holding quality but that gun drove tacks. I have never seen a gun shoot like that before or after but wow what an amazing one it was. The dope sold it, but he got a good deal so who am I to say. Anyway, I think the best way to be famous is to put guns in the hands of winning pros. If you have famous NPPL teams sporting E-mags, or RT's (some people like them better) then when kids go to see the winners they see automags. Everyone might say that advertising is the way to go, but I look at the paintball magazines and want to kill myself because of the number of adds. Furthermore I don't want what they are advertising. That is just me but, people that are going to buy an emag probably know a little about the NPPL.

[gimp]

Why do they need to spend all their money on advertisements. AGD puts more of it's money toward the development of better quality equipment (not that they wouldn't have good equipment), and thats enough to make smart people buy mags. I'd rather have people asking me what kind of gun I have at fields. Then I can show them and they'll see what real performance is. People who are buying higher performance guns don't look for ads in magazines. They know what to get.

[irbodden]

All these old timers at my field who are coming back to play from back in the day are like " Holy [blank] is that an Automag?" Than they turn to their friends and tell em' how great they are. Everyone knows what a mag is at my field :)

[AGD]

Guys,

Emags, Emag Extremes, Warp Feeds, 4500 tanks, Intelliframes, Aluminium Valves, lightweight components, Super Bolts and Military Guns all take time money and effort. We are not advertising because we can't handle any more of anything right now. We are using the sizzle of the new products to keep them going through word of mouth. Once we get over this hump we will get back to advertising. In the mean time we have things like this forum and the tournaments to keep things going. For the most part we are not a players first gun so getting newbies to buy our stuff first is not our market. You all are our best advertising.

AGD

[Tunaman]

...and advertise for you we shall...to the best of our ability. Long live the automag!:D

[Gunga]

I think a lot of the 'Cocker's popularity and sheer quantity of advertisements is due to the fact that everyone and their 8th cousin make their own variation on the Autococker. I think lots of the younger guys tend to put more of an emphasis on looks and the 'boy that looks cool' part of a paintball gun rather than the amount of upkeep and maintenance you'd have to do.

I always hear guys say that Cocker's are great...but just don't mess with them if they're working or you'll screw it up.

[zvanut]

i think the reason why cockers, angels, etc. r more bought is b/c of the glitz and glamour. advertising is also a big thing, but word of mouth, is the best. something i noticed is that most shops by me have cocker techs, but no mag techs.

[Major Ho]

When I was pretty new to paintball a few years back('98 ish I think) AGD always had a two page layout in APG within like the first...20 or so pages advertising the classic, minimag and RT in there with specs and a pretty pic of each. The RT seemed to jump out at you...Recently the past year or so since I decided to browse through and read APG again their werent and AGD ads but more...Spyder this and that taking up like 10 consecutive pages of all basically the same guns.
Just a lil something I noticed is all. Oh yeah, When AGD still had their ads the following pages were riddled with Bruizer guns and scantily clad women...LOL :D
Mr. Kaye, Hire Bon Bon from JT ;)

[mac2k4]

i just looked through the nov. 2001 APG and here is the guns i saw

Smartparts shocker
PMI parahna
ACI F4 illustrated
kingman spyderflash
kingman spyder AMG
WGP blackmagic
WGP STO cocker
WGP dark raider
kingman spyderXtra
sidekick semi
coldfussion cocker
32 deg. rebel Xtreme
Viewloader Genesis
PMI trracer SA
BBT SFL cocker
ICD bushmaster
smartparts Impulse
tippmans
warpedsportz dark LCD angel
aci griffin
AMC commando 2
DYE ironman LCD angel
KAPP k2 flame cocker
AKALMP V2 revenge
Boblong's Intimidator
ZAP ZXS-GooE or what ever?
T3 inferno terminator
Palmer Blazer
JT excellorator


and there was no AGD represintaion.

[boggerman]

When was the last time you looked at ebay(or yahoo or ...)and saw a 4 or 5 year old cocker or angel or <insert your favorite here> for sale? They just don't hold up like a mag. This is what convinced me to buy a mag. That and the fact that everyone around my area shoots tippmans or spiders and just wanted something better! We have no fields and only one store(he charges $100/case for big ball!) so there is no issue about supporting a local guy, everyone buys from the internet.

[zads27]

Why oh why are mags so unpopular?
"Frankly, my dear- I love you.
Let's get remarried." (simpson's joke)

But anyway, I don't mind that most people don't use mags.. I like being unique, and I like knowing that I have that relibility advantage over my competition.

[SIGSays]

what is it with cockers and people?? and i heard some guy saying a tricked cocker is better than a tricked mag and cockers are cheaper in the long run........

[udtseal]

Originally posted by SIGSays
what is it with cockers and people?? and i heard some guy saying a tricked cocker is better than a tricked mag and cockers are cheaper in the long run........

HAHAH!

My friend has spent over $500 in a 4 year period to keep his poo poo cocker running.

$500 to keep a cocker running.
$2.00 for oil in a 6 year span for my minimag.
The look on his face when I light him up time and time again...priceless!

LONG LIVE AGD!!!!!!

[1HitWonder]

well, honestly i believe the mags decline in popularity has nothing to do with marketing. its about working upgrades. think about how many marker owners buy the newest upgrade. then think about how many there are for the mag that work properly or even better tan the stock parts.
many owners love to tinker with their guns......that is why i own both a mag and a cocker. to be honest, i love the mag bc it easy to maintain and shoots like adream, but then my cocker is like a hobby......you can upgrade sooooooo much stuff. honestly, if their were other upgrades for the mag to totally trick it out......you would see a huge rise inmag owners

[tooslow]

I think you are right about the upgradability thing. It does seem to be the way the market is going. It's kinda funny when you think about it. Look at any tricked out cocker. How many parts are actually from WGP? In many cases, none at all. I don't know why people even bother calling their guns Autocockers. I guess Frankencocker does not sound as good...:D

Any way that is exactly why I was drawn to the mag in the first place. My hobby is playing paintball, not building a paintball gun. I'm playing this weekend and my buddy with his new cocker won't be joining me because he cant afford to play. He has to dump all his money into aftermarket parts so his cocker will at least be bearable for him to play with.

[LeadBasedPaint]

boggerman:

Hey me too! There is a pirahna or two scattered in, and one kid has a rebel (piece of crap) but everyine else has tippmanns and spyders. And some actually think thier spyders and T98's are better than my Minimag!

[pumpamatic]

Has anyone ever shot a cocker from like 5 years ago. Poor shooting, heavy.... I don't mean to flame, because today's cocker is smooooooth. I am just saying that AGD has had a good product that doesn't need changing for like the past 8 years.
The only AGD ads I have seen lately are for the flatline.
Ohh, that reminds me. Last week playing at a friend's house my friend's bro brings one of his lil punk friends.At first he said my gun doesn't look like it's worth that much. . He was in disbelief after I shot him and let him shoot my mag. The next week my other friend gets off the bus saying some kid was saying mags are awesome like he was bragging. Now I am confronted like everyday by some 6th grader who wants to hear more about my gun like I'm some god. Geez, I only paid like 300 for it with a tank and rev, not much more than everybody else pays for their spyders. They think I'm some huge tourney player, even though my mag is my first gun and I've been regularly playing for about 3 months. It's great just listening to some newbies talk to you.
Honestly though, If I could trade my automag in for a black magic I would, I might even take the black magic over an rt. But still, both are great guns, I would like one of each.

[a person]

To defend the cocker, do you want to know why people keep and spend so much on them? the answer, brain washing by the elves! i got brain washed and now i have a cocker. now i forgot why i liked the cocker, hmmm....

[LeadBasedPaint]

pumpamatic

Take advantage of it! :) Take in the comliments, take the worship. It's not much when its comming from 6th graders, but hey, maybe they will give you miney or something :)