Sk8ermog
03-09-2005, 05:11 PM
A team member just got his ION and let me play with it and take it home to take some pictures. Well I took it apart and took some gut shots cause I haven't seen very many on the web yet. So for those of you wanting to know what the ION looks like inside then take a look here:
ION PICTURES (http://www.pbase.com/rgunn4/ion&page=all)
Here it is being shot:
http://www.pbase.com/rgunn4/image/40524579/large.jpg
First Impressions:
This is one fun little gun. The first thing I noticed was the body. Everyone is worried about it being made of plastic, but it's actually really nice. Yes, it is hard thick plastic, but it takes the worries out of scratching it so you can play rougher and it feels more durable. The other issue everyone is talking about is the trigger. It is pretty clicky at first, but once you shoot some paint through it and adjust the trigger stops then it's pretty nice. I'd compare it to a hyperframe trigger or something close to that. Since the on/off switch is attached straight to the board it allows solid trigger clicks and no messy wires hanging everywhere. If the trigger really does start to bother you then you can just buy a new trigger from this guy: ION Triggers (http://www.freewebs.com/bettertriggers/smartparts.htm)
The next thing that is noticeable about the ION is the ASA. It's basic and to the point. Almost too much to the point. With a 68/3000 tank I was finding myself holding the gun Bazooka style (tank on top of the shoulder) because it was just too long. I'm starting to get away from drops, but with this gun it's almost a requirement if you want it to feel compact like it should be. Maybe a nice mini-drop would do the trick.
Before shooting the ION I was worried that the feedneck would not work with my HaloB because it just looked cheap and not strong enough for the heavy Halo with paint. I was completely wrong. It help up great and was a snug fit for my Halo, an EggII and a rev. The feedneck has 2 orings to help "clamp" down on the hopper and make it not move or come out unless you twist it out. It's really easy to get a hopper in it, but takes a little effort to get out which is the way it should be. Also it's just the right height for the Halo and helps keep everything centered and balanced.
I was very impressed with the way it shot. I tried several kinds of paint and everything seemed to work great and the eyes caught the 2 times I ran out of paint so I didn't chop a single ball. The barrel is defiantly the first thing that needs replacing cause it's stock and on a $300 gun you can't expect the stock barrel to be worth anything. But for what it was worth it was a good starter barrel. I'm just hoping they come out with a cocker adapter or new cocker threaded front barrel port. I also found it easy to really get ripping when I needed to and with little to no kick so my shots stayed in the same area every time. I played woods ball with it so with all the branches and brush you tend to shoot a lot of paint to get one through. Surprisingly enough I didn't have to go through hoppers just to get a shot through a group of branches. It stayed pretty much on target shot after shot.
Before we started playing I had to chrono the gun in. First shot was low 250ish because the paint was small bore. So I grabbed the wrench that comes with it and cranked the bottom nut of the reg about half a turn. Next shot, 260fps. A few more half turns and it was up at 282, 284, 286. I shot about 15 rounds over the chrono and it stayed really consistent with about a 4-5+/- fps average. It being new and with a new reg this should be expected, but looking into a nice CP reg shouldn't be out of the question.
Disassembly:
As far as taking the ION apart and cleaning it... well just pray you don't have to do that any time soon. This gun is more painful to take apart then the old Tippmann 68 carbine :tard: . There are 6 screws you need to be aware of. The 2 outside body to rail screws, 1 body screw where the barrel goes, and then 3 screws under the body. The front most screw under the barrel holds the body to the frame and needs to be taken out completely before you can get to any other parts. I learned this from experience :rolleyes:. Once the outer screws are off then you have to kind of bend the body to the side so you can get your allen wrench in to unscrew the 3 banjo screws. This is tricky and kind of annoying cause the hoses and eye wire keep the body pretty tight against the frame. I've seen pictures of guys taking the full noid and board out to help loosen everything up, but this is really up to you. I kept the noid/board combo in the frame and just unscrewed the banjo screws from an angle with my single allen wrench tool. Mag owners will be happy to know that all allen heads on the ION are the same as on a mag so you don't need to part with your favorite tool.
Once the screws are off then the body sleeve will slide off. Be careful to detach the eye wire from the board by pulling straight out. I used some needle nose pliers to do this and it came out smooth and goes back in only one way so you can't mess it up. The body slips off over the eye wire and is a tight fit so be careful pulling it off. Once the body is off then you can get to the valve and bolt. I'll let you read the manual to figure out what needs greasing or which orings to replace if it leaks. The manual is really helpful and has a few full page pictures to help you on your demolition of the ION.
Putting back together should be pretty easy, but again be careful when putting the eyes and Banjo screws back in. Like I said the hoses are really tight and there is a reason they include a spare pair of hoses in with the gun. I almost ripped the back hose out just trying to get to the screw head. With the right amount of angling with the allen wrench and body I was able to get the screws back into the body and frame. Make sure to get them back in straight cause the Banjo screws that go into the body need to fit right so the body will line up with the frame correctly. The bolts do not screw into the plastic body at any point so don't worry about miss-threading or stripping too much. The screws will go in nice and smooth if you lined them up right. If you are forcing them then back them out and line them up again. Also there is a rubber band around one of the hoses which holds the eye wire down so it's out of the way. This is a life saver cause the eye wire tends to get in the way so stick it through the rubber band and it will save you a lot of head ache.
One the banjo screws are back in and the eyes are plugged in then you can sit the body back on the frame and screw the body/frame screws back in. These also should line up correctly and screw smoothly into the body. These screws also do not screw into the plastic body, but into the metal housing under the body shell. After the screws are in you can plug the battery (which you should have taken out at the beginning) in and start playing with the modes of fire and settings. For a $300 gun it sure has an easy way to adjust the settings and modes, but boy is the main button hard to push down. You really have to push hard to get the button to activate when turning on or off. The manual will help you switch between semi, rebound, 3 shot burst and full auto (my favorite) :D The little light behind the on/off button will flash every time it fires so you can tell what mode you are in. I really like that the little light isn't as bright as those LED lights on spyders, but it's still bright enough to see in the day time.
Conclusion:
Overall this is a great gun for the price. It's a little complicated to figure out the guts and how it works, but with it's reliability you shouldn't have to mess with taking it apart for a long time. The ION works best with compressed air and a HaloB, but can still work good with CO2 and a Rev. If you are going to use CO2 then read the directions in the manual so you don't kill the solenoid or hoses. I can honestly see this gun being the big ticket to help many new players really get into the sport, but I don't see it being used by any pro teams in the near future. It's a great back up or main gun if the budget is tight. With all the settings you can figure out what works for you and even make the gun help you save money on paint by slowing it down. I've never been a big fan of Smarts Parts, but considering they made the first electric gun and have been in the business longer then most, I'd say they know a think or 2 about paintball guns. This is a great example of what a few good ideas and lots of testing can produce. If you are still skeptical or interested in finding more info your best bet is to cruise the PBnation section for the ION. PBnation ION Reviews (http://www.pbnation.com/forumdisplay.php?forumid=336) Or you can go to your local shop and test one out. My guess is that every paintball shop will be stocking these in a few months when all the back orders get squared away. This most likely will be the paintball gun that will define this year. That alone makes it worth a test shooting.
PM me if you have any questions. This is just my observation and a personal review. To complete instructions and details about the ION visit www.smartparts.com.
ION PICTURES (http://www.pbase.com/rgunn4/ion&page=all)
Here it is being shot:
http://www.pbase.com/rgunn4/image/40524579/large.jpg
First Impressions:
This is one fun little gun. The first thing I noticed was the body. Everyone is worried about it being made of plastic, but it's actually really nice. Yes, it is hard thick plastic, but it takes the worries out of scratching it so you can play rougher and it feels more durable. The other issue everyone is talking about is the trigger. It is pretty clicky at first, but once you shoot some paint through it and adjust the trigger stops then it's pretty nice. I'd compare it to a hyperframe trigger or something close to that. Since the on/off switch is attached straight to the board it allows solid trigger clicks and no messy wires hanging everywhere. If the trigger really does start to bother you then you can just buy a new trigger from this guy: ION Triggers (http://www.freewebs.com/bettertriggers/smartparts.htm)
The next thing that is noticeable about the ION is the ASA. It's basic and to the point. Almost too much to the point. With a 68/3000 tank I was finding myself holding the gun Bazooka style (tank on top of the shoulder) because it was just too long. I'm starting to get away from drops, but with this gun it's almost a requirement if you want it to feel compact like it should be. Maybe a nice mini-drop would do the trick.
Before shooting the ION I was worried that the feedneck would not work with my HaloB because it just looked cheap and not strong enough for the heavy Halo with paint. I was completely wrong. It help up great and was a snug fit for my Halo, an EggII and a rev. The feedneck has 2 orings to help "clamp" down on the hopper and make it not move or come out unless you twist it out. It's really easy to get a hopper in it, but takes a little effort to get out which is the way it should be. Also it's just the right height for the Halo and helps keep everything centered and balanced.
I was very impressed with the way it shot. I tried several kinds of paint and everything seemed to work great and the eyes caught the 2 times I ran out of paint so I didn't chop a single ball. The barrel is defiantly the first thing that needs replacing cause it's stock and on a $300 gun you can't expect the stock barrel to be worth anything. But for what it was worth it was a good starter barrel. I'm just hoping they come out with a cocker adapter or new cocker threaded front barrel port. I also found it easy to really get ripping when I needed to and with little to no kick so my shots stayed in the same area every time. I played woods ball with it so with all the branches and brush you tend to shoot a lot of paint to get one through. Surprisingly enough I didn't have to go through hoppers just to get a shot through a group of branches. It stayed pretty much on target shot after shot.
Before we started playing I had to chrono the gun in. First shot was low 250ish because the paint was small bore. So I grabbed the wrench that comes with it and cranked the bottom nut of the reg about half a turn. Next shot, 260fps. A few more half turns and it was up at 282, 284, 286. I shot about 15 rounds over the chrono and it stayed really consistent with about a 4-5+/- fps average. It being new and with a new reg this should be expected, but looking into a nice CP reg shouldn't be out of the question.
Disassembly:
As far as taking the ION apart and cleaning it... well just pray you don't have to do that any time soon. This gun is more painful to take apart then the old Tippmann 68 carbine :tard: . There are 6 screws you need to be aware of. The 2 outside body to rail screws, 1 body screw where the barrel goes, and then 3 screws under the body. The front most screw under the barrel holds the body to the frame and needs to be taken out completely before you can get to any other parts. I learned this from experience :rolleyes:. Once the outer screws are off then you have to kind of bend the body to the side so you can get your allen wrench in to unscrew the 3 banjo screws. This is tricky and kind of annoying cause the hoses and eye wire keep the body pretty tight against the frame. I've seen pictures of guys taking the full noid and board out to help loosen everything up, but this is really up to you. I kept the noid/board combo in the frame and just unscrewed the banjo screws from an angle with my single allen wrench tool. Mag owners will be happy to know that all allen heads on the ION are the same as on a mag so you don't need to part with your favorite tool.
Once the screws are off then the body sleeve will slide off. Be careful to detach the eye wire from the board by pulling straight out. I used some needle nose pliers to do this and it came out smooth and goes back in only one way so you can't mess it up. The body slips off over the eye wire and is a tight fit so be careful pulling it off. Once the body is off then you can get to the valve and bolt. I'll let you read the manual to figure out what needs greasing or which orings to replace if it leaks. The manual is really helpful and has a few full page pictures to help you on your demolition of the ION.
Putting back together should be pretty easy, but again be careful when putting the eyes and Banjo screws back in. Like I said the hoses are really tight and there is a reason they include a spare pair of hoses in with the gun. I almost ripped the back hose out just trying to get to the screw head. With the right amount of angling with the allen wrench and body I was able to get the screws back into the body and frame. Make sure to get them back in straight cause the Banjo screws that go into the body need to fit right so the body will line up with the frame correctly. The bolts do not screw into the plastic body at any point so don't worry about miss-threading or stripping too much. The screws will go in nice and smooth if you lined them up right. If you are forcing them then back them out and line them up again. Also there is a rubber band around one of the hoses which holds the eye wire down so it's out of the way. This is a life saver cause the eye wire tends to get in the way so stick it through the rubber band and it will save you a lot of head ache.
One the banjo screws are back in and the eyes are plugged in then you can sit the body back on the frame and screw the body/frame screws back in. These also should line up correctly and screw smoothly into the body. These screws also do not screw into the plastic body, but into the metal housing under the body shell. After the screws are in you can plug the battery (which you should have taken out at the beginning) in and start playing with the modes of fire and settings. For a $300 gun it sure has an easy way to adjust the settings and modes, but boy is the main button hard to push down. You really have to push hard to get the button to activate when turning on or off. The manual will help you switch between semi, rebound, 3 shot burst and full auto (my favorite) :D The little light behind the on/off button will flash every time it fires so you can tell what mode you are in. I really like that the little light isn't as bright as those LED lights on spyders, but it's still bright enough to see in the day time.
Conclusion:
Overall this is a great gun for the price. It's a little complicated to figure out the guts and how it works, but with it's reliability you shouldn't have to mess with taking it apart for a long time. The ION works best with compressed air and a HaloB, but can still work good with CO2 and a Rev. If you are going to use CO2 then read the directions in the manual so you don't kill the solenoid or hoses. I can honestly see this gun being the big ticket to help many new players really get into the sport, but I don't see it being used by any pro teams in the near future. It's a great back up or main gun if the budget is tight. With all the settings you can figure out what works for you and even make the gun help you save money on paint by slowing it down. I've never been a big fan of Smarts Parts, but considering they made the first electric gun and have been in the business longer then most, I'd say they know a think or 2 about paintball guns. This is a great example of what a few good ideas and lots of testing can produce. If you are still skeptical or interested in finding more info your best bet is to cruise the PBnation section for the ION. PBnation ION Reviews (http://www.pbnation.com/forumdisplay.php?forumid=336) Or you can go to your local shop and test one out. My guess is that every paintball shop will be stocking these in a few months when all the back orders get squared away. This most likely will be the paintball gun that will define this year. That alone makes it worth a test shooting.
PM me if you have any questions. This is just my observation and a personal review. To complete instructions and details about the ION visit www.smartparts.com.