Automag - becoming extinct?

[Badmovies.org]

Years ago, I had posted this thread:

http://www.automags.org/forums/showthread.php?t=57521

I had not played much in the last three years (Marine, overseas and now the father of two children), but looking around it seems that AGD markers are even less common. I notice that they have disappeared from many online paintball stores and no brick and mortar places seem to carry them (or parts). I have not seen another AGD marker at a paintball field in at least a year.

I did play about a week ago, in 15 degree weather. One of the referees recognized my automag for what it was and looked her over with a smile on his face. He was also the ref on scene when one of those great paintball moments happened. I had pushed way up on the left side of the field, well in front of anyone on my team. The other team had the flag (center flag game - woodsball) and the three were coming right at me. They ducked down behind bushes about 25 yards away. There were another two guys, one with an electro (Spyder, I think) that were keeping me from moving.

When I saw the three with the flag, I decided to go for them - even if just to ground the flag. Quick reload, sent about 30 balls onto the pile of sticks that the Spyder and other guy were using as cover, and I charged. When I came around the bushes, because they thought they were safe, I caught the three guys with the flag totally off guard. All of their markers were aimed down. Put multiple balls onto each (it was cold, everyone was padded, stuff was not breaking easy) from about 12 yards, on the run. Then I got two others who I could see plain as day (again, caught off guard because I was so far up) before finally getting hit.

End of the story: Afterwards, the ref came up to me and said, "It was great to hear an automag going off like that, just 'bop,bop,bop,bop.' I hadn't heard that in years."

The worst part of that day was hitting one guy dead center of the chest with about 10 balls, but not one of them broke, then getting stitched by him. I hate playing in really cold weather.

Oh, and the previous weekend? I watched a guy with his brand new autococker have to give up making it work right and switch back to his model 98.

[neppo1345]

Yeah, they are going by the wayside.

However, I still seem to see one almost everytime I play.

I don't shoot one anymore, but I still always make sure to find a few seconds to compliment the player on his mag; especially when I'm reffing.

[matteusz]

I am pretty much a rec only player since fields are far away and spendy here in Kansas. I found out about mags cause I was reading up on the history of paintball. I started out using spyders and clones. Bought a ton of them on ebay and from a couple of fields that were going under. I got so sick of the things breaking leaking etc. Well the more I read about mags the more I wanted one. So I found a deal and bought one. It hadn't been shot in years. I oiled it up put a bottle on and have only had to replace one oring since. Needless I am selling of the spyders as fast as I can and buying mags. I tend to have about 4-6 guns in a game depending on how many of the people that own their own gear can come out that weekend.

Anyway if I hadn't done some reading it would have been unlikely that I would have ever seen a mag. I went to one tourney and have talked to several enthusiasts. Granted there are not many people in Kansas in general but the few I have talked to (equaling a sizable proportion of the population) only seem to know what a cocker shocker or tippmann is. I love bringing the mags out. When I just go play with some other group and have the only mag there I am irrationally feared since no one can hear my gun over theirs and no one knows what it is.

I think mags may be too good. No one ever needs a new one since you can pretty much always fix them with ease. Upgrades and faster guns maybe as you get into tourney play but still. I think we are gonna see paintball in general shrink (note the convergance of several big companies of late and fazing out of cheap mech guns). Some of that is the normal ebb and flow of things and some of it is the lack of social acceptance, perceived expense of playing and initial cost of starting to play. Maybe if the wealth in this country shifts down a little we will have more teenagers with rich parents who will spring for the 300$ ion setup and 100$ for a day of playing at a local field. Still I think the business will be moving increasingly to the internet and flieds will have to work harder to stay open. Or be in an area with a critical mass of people who only rarely go for a rental game after seeing a tourney on cable.

My .02 the mag dieing theories are all based on an irrational fear of not being able to get parts for a gun you love maybe a little too much? And on people not seeing advertising. AGD can survive for decades just based on moves like yours described in the above post. As more mature players learn what a good gun is (like I did as I grew into the sport) and more recreational players/ newbies get tired of their wal mart guns breaking more people will find mags. Meanwhile the strange religion that is alive and well here on AO will be around waiting to accept new converts into the fold of "quality always shoots straight." And I might add "almost (barring bolt stick) always shoots" .

[StygShore]

Mags = Niche market

Currently they are popular to the tinkerers for their mechanical guns, and the fact the Pneumatic mod can be done quite readily to them.

Every other manufacturer has E-guns that cost less than a stock mag, shoot faster than a mag, shoot further into the tank than a stock mag, so people tend to go with those.

The Mag is so easy to sell against in stores for all those factors, so what's the point of stocking them? When a kid comes in and asks "do you have any automags?" the sales person says, Oh no, you don't want one of those, they are old tech, you want to go with something elesctric like this one here that will shoot 20bps if you breathe on it and costs less than an automag, and runs on CO2 ( hey sales people aren't always that honest )


Aside form picking up a few new fans, and losing a few old fans, I dont see the number of mag shooters out there increasing all that much. More likely, we will see less and less of them at the fields as the players that have/use them get older, busier, and just stop playing.


Styg

[matteusz]

Yeah, they are going by the wayside.

However, I still seem to see one almost everytime I play.

I don't shoot one anymore, but I still always make sure to find a few seconds to compliment the player on his mag; especially when I'm reffing.


You don't shoot one but you post on AO? That is a first.

[neppo1345]

You don't shoot one but you post on AO? That is a first.

The key word was "anymore".

I sold my e-mag about about 6 months ago.

I had a minimag for a long time before that.

Believe it or not, there are a lot of people here who don't shoot mags anymore. Still no matter what, once you've owned one there's something inside that always drags you back.

[cyrus-the-virus]

You don't shoot one but you post on AO? That is a first.

There are quite a few people on here who don't shoot mag's. This is a nice forum with a lot of nice people.

[shartley]

I also no longer own an Automag.

[Badmovies.org]

Aside form picking up a few new fans, and losing a few old fans, I dont see the number of mag shooters out there increasing all that much. More likely, we will see less and less of them at the fields as the players that have/use them get older, busier, and just stop playing.


I think you summed up all of my hidden thoughts and fears. It still irks me that they are slowly dying out, just because they are not "sexy" like so many other markers. If I get worried about AGD markers dying out, I will pick up one extra valve and two rebuild sets. That should last me until I die.

Other players still ask about my automag (let's see what the reaction to my new RT ULE is once I have her ready in a week or two). They stop short of wanting one, usually citing the looks and that it is not electronic. They would rather have a spyder electro than a mechanical mag. This despite seeing spyders go down often and me telling them, "The only thing I have done to this mag in four years is replace some o-rings and put a few drops of oil in her."

I watched a kid spraying paint with a spyder electro lately. He had a Halo loader and all - but was literally spraying paint as he chopped balls with his fancy trigger.

[tech-chan]

I just bought a mag. My first! Im very exited and Im extroadinarily loyal to whatever marker I use.... Im trying to get one of my other friends to buy one, soo. Mag players are not going extint, not if I have anything to do with it.
Jeremiah

[Zneaky]

Badmovies, I may be wrong, but you may be in error. All the kids that used to have Spyders now have Ions made by smart parts. If you saw a bunch of them, they were probably Ions. In fact, I would say Spyder is trying hard to get back to where they were in the market 3-4 years ago.

Z

[Zneaky]

I just bought a mag. My first! Im very exited and Im extroadinarily loyal to whatever marker I use.... Im trying to get one of my other friends to buy one, soo. Mag players are not going extint, not if I have anything to do with it.
Jeremiah


Welcome to the Family. We are glad you are here.

Z

[wjr]

I know that there must be other kids out there like myself who will end up shooting automags. I was 12 years old when I bought my first automag. I had used electro blow-backs before, and I was tired of them breaking. I did my research, and I decided that I should get an automag.

[nathanjones008]

where i live there is a increase of mags( metro ATL area) we had a rec tourney at in my property.. we had 20 folks come out. 4 of two had mags. two ule rts, one classic and a mini mag. my best friend just bought a ule rt over a ion. brand spanking new! he loves it. on this side of the country or at least my county mags are on the rise. i always try to get people to buy mags over electros and it works sometimes. so the group i play with, 20% use mags. not bad.


As in mags falling off the face of the earth i think they are hanging in there. this websight is funded by agd (to my knowledge if i am wrong correct me. i am sure that they make more money than we think they do. they just hold their money instead of advertisng. but this is only speculation. :dance: i do not claim to know the facts.

[matteusz]

There are quite a few people on here who don't shoot mag's. This is a nice forum with a lot of nice people.


Ok so it is killing me. What do people end up shooting instead of mag? What features on what gun could possibly have you wanting to switch to another line? So as not to thread hijack please reply here:

http://www.automags.org/forums/showthread.php?t=209885

Always curious to know more.
Mat

[mclaggan123]

i had a minimag about 5 years ago but i wanted something that i could tinker with more so i went with a cocker. i still have a cocker but moved onto an angel 05 speed and a dark g7 fly. i also have a shocker sft. BUT i always thaught about my minimag and how i missed it, so i went and traded a cocker on this website for a micromag. i had the red and black micromag at my local field and a guy had a tacone and he just loved my micro so we traded. i then just 2 weeks ago traded my tac body for a ule body and $30. so now i have a ule'd tacone. i love my mag and will never get rid of it. i may change the rail or body but ill always have a mag from now on. if i have to get rid of all my guns but 1 the mag will stay. long live the mag. i just wish i found this website 7 years ago when i got my minimag.

[nate2k191]

they can't be going extinct unless people are trashing their mags. they just aren't really bieng produced much anymore.

people still use them, but i think more and more get put in the garage/attic/closet.

my mags are awesome paintball guns, and i still love using them.

[Lenny]

BadMovies.Org, eh? Signed up for a spam account but decided you loved us too much or what? :p

[Badmovies.org]

I used to play down in the Marietta, GA area when I was based there. I was usually the only automag around. One time, I did run into a family (dad and two sons) who all had mags. That was a fun day. Wish I could remember the name of the fields that I would play at in GA. It was back in 2000-2003. The store was the basement of somebody's house and there were several fields around it in the woods. One had a huge wooden fort (plywood and bracers - I think 4*4s) in the center.

You know, it could be a regional thing too: automags could be more common in some areas. I have another hobby, Warhammer (Fantasy and 40K). In some areas I have been based, most people play Fantasy, in others it is 40K that is more common. Interesting.

I'm a darn poor spammer if I joined in 2002 and haven't spammed yet. Although, I did bring 10 lbs of spam one time to a movie festival as gift (to get in you paid some money and had to donate food for the local food bank). Anyway, if you see Badmovies.org on a forum, it is 99% likely to be me - the whole reason I use it. On my own forum I am Andrew.

[DaFin]

I still use a mag. I took a 10+ year break and came back, put in fresh o-rings and took it out. Comments I got included "Antiques roadshow called and they want thier gun back!" But it still shoots better than a lot of guns on the feild, especially Ions, spyders and abused cockers.

I am on the bubble now tho, do I want to invest in building up my mags from fully up'd circa 1992 to an ULE E-mag spec ($400 ish) or buy another gun in the same price range. Or, do nothing, just play with them as they are.

Or go back to playing stock/pump on Sundays....

[tech-chan]

Mags have an extroadinary reputation around here, if you go on a field with a Mag, normaly the ref smiles at you and waves you onward to glory. All the little kids look at the mag and go woooow... Mags are not dieing out, they're just becoming almost a cult gun. And honestly, Im in that cult.
Jeremiah

[Skeeter]

Mags = Niche market

<snip>

The Mag is so easy to sell against in stores for all those factors, so what's the point of stocking them? When a kid comes in and asks "do you have any automags?" the sales person says, Oh no, you don't want one of those, they are old tech, you want to go with something elesctric like this one here that will shoot 20bps if you breathe on it and costs less than an automag, and runs on CO2 ( hey sales people aren't always that honest )


Aside form picking up a few new fans, and losing a few old fans, I dont see the number of mag shooters out there increasing all that much. More likely, we will see less and less of them at the fields as the players that have/use them get older, busier, and just stop playing.


Styg

I somewhat agree... There are easier things to sell than a Mag, but you have to ask yourself why. It is all based on how you sell, not what you sell. Get information from the customer/player and inform them of their choices. You would be surprised at the number of intelligent and well educated players out there, and the correspondingly intelligent decisions they will make. Just help them narrow down the choices they have at their disposal & provide them with what suits their needs best.

It is very easy for me to sell a Mag, but I will sell whatever the customer needs, based on their input. It’s not about “closing” a sell, but letting the customer make the choice that is best for them. This is much easier when you don’t stock “crap” or put a pile of low end markers on the wall.

I will welcome anyone on this forum to come and visit Paintball Charleston. A huge percentage of our players shoot Mags. Probably more at our field than at any field I have ever played at. It is an older platform, not a “dead” platform, and an amazingly good performer when in the right hands, just like most markers.

[SpecialBlend2786]

Consider this.

The Mag valve is ~ 15 years old.
The Poppet Valve(as used in markers) is ~ 50 years old.

When someone says that mags are an old technology, ask yourself which is truly the "older" platform.

haha I never actually thought about that.

[bentothejam1n]

You don't shoot one but you post on AO? That is a first.
some people here dont even play anymore

[kruger]

Today, Mags are an aquired taste. Sorta like chicken Livers. You either like them or you dont. They used to be at the top of the food chain, but, as far as a vast majority of the public is informed, they are not anymore.

You cannot buy a brand new "sexy" Mag. You can certainly build one, if you have the patience to do so, but most people in todays instant gratification world, do not. There are more choices for the player to pick from. You can buy marker "X" and it will shoot 4 quadrillion bps, got 900 user programmable parameters and will lie to your mom for you. Or, you can buy a Mag, a mechanical gun that will only get you laff'ed at by your buds, cuz its not "sexy". Personaly, I did not start out with a Mag, and to be honest, I did not even know what a Mag was when I first got into paintball. But a coupla guys that happend to play at the field that I started at did have them. I did do "research" into buying my first makrer, ended up buying a buch of crap that I did not need, nor could I see any real advantage to having, except for a very narrow set of circumstances. I got more interested and, the more that I looked, the more that I realized that the Automag was a diamond in the rough. It can be shaped to your personality and can be as individual as you are. It really is truly ahead of its time, yet that fact is missed my most of the paintballers because of big marketing dollars or scatily clad babes in pictures. Those babes are not gonna help you play the game, but they do help sell their employers goods. Paintball marketing is directed at 14 yo boys and the marketing gurus know that a bit of T&A will get their target market's attention.

As long as I have an interest in paintball, I will own a Mag. I am 46 years old, a field owner and I have not lost interest in this game yet. I have the resources to buy any marker that I choose, got a good day job. And I have learned that if I want something to last, then buy the best quality that you can afford, and the Mag is truly a bargain.

my two cents worth

[Lenny]

I'm a darn poor spammer if I joined in 2002 and haven't spammed yet. Although, I did bring 10 lbs of spam one time to a movie festival as gift (to get in you paid some money and had to donate food for the local food bank). Anyway, if you see Badmovies.org on a forum, it is 99% likely to be me - the whole reason I use it. On my own forum I am Andrew.
Yeah. Right. We all believe that one. :rolleyes:
You're just advertising for a naughty video website. We know the truth.


:p

/Just messin' with ya.

[kruger]

Rogue, I stand corrected.


But, the problem is that a person has to be exposed to that marker to know that it even exists. And, if you are looking for that marker, or one very similar to it, then you are already aware of what the mag is and what it reperesents. My comments dont concern "those" people. "They" are either already converted, or about to be. I was referring to the general paintball population.

[PumpMag]

Just like Pump play is making a huge come back so is the Automag. :headbang:

Notice how CCM is very popular. Tippmann released Propane technology fuel in a Pump marker. Now Sterling ads indicating their return to the paintball scene...............

Have some faith.

......every time you shoot it...........The Return of the Automag! :shooting:

[StygShore]

Funeral Durge anyone...Dead guns my arse!

http://www.anythingxtreme.com/Dead-Automag-Paintball-Guns-C3082.aspx

[Ninjeff]

I just got my first automag also. After a long absence from the sport, it was the first gun i looked at buying.

Im now having HUGE amounts of fun just LEARNING about it, working on it, and buying new bits for it.

And to think, i almost got an A5. Pshhhhh :cool:

[Masta G]

there is some hope

i went from looking for a sniper to buying an X-mag

it basically went like this

i owned a 98 custom for about 3 years and wanted a change
i checked out some sites and found the Special Ops Longbow
i was fascinated and by their description it was exactly what i wanted
i read some reviews and did some research but two things were getting my attention
1. although i wanted a sniper i wanted a gun for speedball also
2. i kept hearing about the *tac-one* base marker

so i did some research and found the AGD site (gosh this is getting long)
so i saved up and decide to get the Etac
after a while i found my local shop had an "Emag" according to my friend
when i walk in guess whats staring me in the face...an Xmag
after reading so much about AGD products i was quick to buy it and figured that i could just buy a gun wrap or something
i talk to some of the employees and one guys there was the stores "AGD specialist" another guys said that if i hadn't bought it, then he was gonna :D

so there it is, i went from being a woodsballer who knew nothing about AGD to buying an Xmag in less than a year (i worked my *** off to get money for it)

so have some hope, i bought my mag through a series of practically non related things

[JKR]

I live in a rural area with a fair number of players in a 25 mile radius of the area's largest city (Parkersburg WV - population approx 32,000). There are a couple of small fields around and a good bit of renegade play. The primary field that I play probably averages about 25-30 walkons a day on the weekends (in good weather). I have seen as many as 60-70 players at any one time at the field.

Having given a brief summary of the area, one thing I have noticed lately - more and more 'Mags are making it to the field. One day out of about a dozen walkons (slow day) there were six or seven of us with 'Mags at the field. Just recently, one guy who is a big mil-sim fan (digi camos, normally has a decked-out Mil-A5, etc.) showed me his newest acquisition. He had just bought a used Micro-Mag and was extremely proud of it. It brought a little tear to my eye to see this guy excited about a 'Mag - especially considering his normal equipment. Most always, there are a couple of 'Mags at the field besides mine.

Of course, it could also be because of the field owner - he has owned and shot a 'Mag for something like 13-14 years and is a very good player. I believe there are a lot of 'Mags around because he uses his so effectively.

[-B-]

I just got my new Tac One and wanted to add my experiences to the conversation.

After taking a two year "I have no money" break from the game i made a come back only to find that several years of abuse and neglect had taken its toll on my M98. When I started looking for a replacement one of the field/proshop guys told me to look into the Tac One even though they didn't carry it. I've only played a handful of times with it but every time I have gone out I've had a lot of people show interest in it, which is rather embarrassing cause I still know so little about it. The guy who recommended it to me actually reffed one of those days and had a lot of fun in pointing out to everyone I got exactly what got him. Its true I did take some flack from a few of my friends who bought 200$ electro Spyders, but one of those just chopped paint all day. I'll take long term reliability and the fact that I can fix almost any problem myself over the fancy lights and switches on a marker that wont hold up, and I cant fix. And a lot of people around here agree with that point of view

So up in Albany at least interest in the mag is growing and may god help the man who tries to take mine away from me cause i still have that battered old 98 to club him to death with.

[Mind'sEye]

Extinct - def. No longer existing or active. We're not there. I live near the largest Electro-Mag preserve on the CA, Central Coast, A-Tach-One's house, garage, barn, etc. I forsee these things roaming free in the hills and fields for a quite a while yet. Others will continue to be spotted here and there across the US, and even around the world. You can talk about moving on to better, lighter, faster, more efficient guns. There's plenty of them out there, and they may be better suited to today's tournament style play. In terms of just going out there and getting the basic job done, Mag owners will continue exist and flourish.

[tech-chan]

So up in Albany at least interest in the mag is growing and may god help the man who tries to take mine away from me cause i still have that battered old 98 to club him to death with.

Amen to that brother, if we had sigs, that would be going in mine.
tech-chan the pbreview chat famous

[don miguel]

Automags are becoming extinct like dinosaurs. A huge asteroid hit the earth (a SP asteroid) and made them extinct.

[kiltedpainter]

I'm new to mags but i already love the one i have. I traded a Tippmann 68 Special to get an old 68 Classic and am glad i did. It's taken me some work to get my mag up and running but now that it is, I see it being a permanent part of my collection.

Still, i wanted a mag because I wanted a chunk of paintball history. I first found interest in vintage markers when a friend showed me an old Nelson 007. That Tippmann popped up at a garage sale for a price you couldn't beat and right then I began the spiral towards my mag. I love the thing and won't get rid of it for the world.

[__Phoenix__]

Automags are becoming extinct like dinosaurs. A huge asteroid hit the earth (a SP asteroid) and made them extinct.

Will you shut up with the anti Smart parts stuff man?
Mags were falling behind years before smart parts did anything.

[don miguel]

Will you shut up with the anti Smart parts stuff man?

NEVER.

and I know, mags are going down the drain.

[StygShore]

oh... he's back.....

AO Mod Squad ACTIVATE!!!!!


Styg


The dealers have not really chimed in on one thing... about how many NEW mags do you sell each year - rough guestimate?

[commrad]

back in the 90's when I played all the time I used a Tippy ProLine and loved it, one guy showed up with a mag, running CO2 mounted right behind the valve and it was cold that day. any one who knows mags knows that was a bad day for him, not knowing any better i shunned mags for years (stupid me) about 01 some new friends dragged me back out on the field, dusty old Tippy, and a Brass Eagle 280 extreme mask (i didn't know they had been recalled). the shop owner had a mag for sale and asked if i wanted to try it, i laughed and said nah i remember what happened to greg way back when. he convinced me to try it (classic on N2) can you say sold. played 3 games after that and fell in love with that old mag, after that tippmann it was a cadillac. i now have a ule x mag with a hyper frame on the way and the only thing i need to put my classic back together after all the upgrades are a few screws and some macro line.

the kids with their e guns could not believe that an old man with a gun that came while they still thought girls had "cooties" was tearing em up, it killed em that they couldn't hear where the shots were coming from (old school smart parts all american :D ) and the last game i played there were 8 man teams, 6 of the 8 had pink paint on em and i'm the only one at that field that ever used pink paint, gota add insult to injury lol

some of them were still amazed a marker that small could actually shoot a paint ball.

can't wait till i get my nitro fill station so i can go play with my 17 year old cousin and his friends, the closest place to get HPA or nitro now is 45 miles from my house, half his friends all ready want mags and have never seen one in action, one tryed to trade me an angel for my x mag, i just laughed and told him not for 10 angels if i had to play with one. i think that really got his attention.

personally, i don't think mags are dieing, i think the market is trying to kill them but they won't go away

"i will not go quietly into the dieing of the night" the old mag says :shooting:

[Tao]

Just like Pump play is making a huge come back so is the Automag. :headbang:

Notice how CCM is very popular. Tippmann released Propane technology fuel in a Pump marker. Now Sterling ads indicating their return to the paintball scene...............

Have some faith.

......every time you shoot it...........The Return of the Automag! :shooting:

Wow this is the first thread in a while I read ALL THE WAY through. great thread, nice to hear how much the mag shows up everywhere else.

There was and still is (just not as big) a mag following here. Unfortunately the dealer had a falling out with AGD (I don't know the story) so he sells mostly other stuff now. Also a national paintball store came to town a few years ago and of cource they only sell agg....

It is good to see that pump is making a comeback! Last year I bought myself a sniper 2. They used to say that mag owners and cocker owners would eventually own both and I guess this is my venture into the other camp.

I own a classic mag which was my first REAL gun (asside from ol 3 feed: the Brass Eagle raptor), an x mag which is my tourny gun, and now a classic RT with Z grip, which will be my rec gun which I am sure will stir up the other players as they ask "WHat the hell is that?" for years to come.

I will never sell of my guns since why bother? The only one worth anything is the X mag which I would keep over the others. No mater how my life goes I will always keep a gun since I know I will always play again, or eventually I will have kids who might play. That being said, there is no point selling the others for a $100-200 why bother....that is a week or two or three's spending money, big deal.

Patents only last for a few years 20, but maybe 10 now or pretty soon. Eventually all this patent stuff will blow over and AGD will come back into the business again :dance:

[LBX!]

I will never forget an article i read when i was getting into paintball WAAAY back in the stone ages. It read the top 10 things most often heard on the paintball field.
some where near the top was
"Oh my gawd!! that bush does have an automag!" Yeah, that told me right there how pimp automags were. Heck, i watched ESPN paintball around that time and the All Americans were shooting mags. I think that if the iron men had also shot mags my fate would have been sealed. I whored my way through several markers before winding up with a classic mag. I had 2 expansion chambers 1 on my remote and one as a fore grip. Why? cause i shot so bloody fast that i could not keep from freezing. When i say expansion chamber i dont mean one of those coke can things that is just 1 chamber, no, i spent CASH on mine. You older guys know what i am talking about, the 8 to 14 chamber expansion chamber/marker rest/club. When i was at my local store the owner had a mag that he modified, my school friends and i contemplated the horrors we would accept if it meant we got to shoot that marker. The only reason i dont own a mag right now is that i am not currently playing paintball, i am looking to get back into the sport and i have a WTB thread, my top two considerations right now are an Emag and an Ecocker. I am not dissing any other brands here, but i dont think that i will ever own a marker that is not either a cocker, a mag, or *old sponsor love here* an AKA product. It saddens me that newer players have to have a marker that shoots 30bps with 100 different modes all to cover their inability to play. I could hit half that with a pneumatic marker and it was awesome to me. *eyes glaze over as i think about refs shooting themselves with my marker* Yeah, and then we walked to school, up hill both ways in the snow and hell fire. We were attacked by rabid badgers and we liked it cause it was attention........bloody kids these days *wanders off to his rocker and front porch* GET OFF MY LAWN!

[bornl33t]

some people here dont even play anymore

That's me. I bought a phantom after I sold my mags. I should have kept one of them at least. But who am I kidding I'm not going to play paintball in the next 2 years soooooo........

[Maghog]

I would disagree that mags are on their way to extinction. Just look at the forum and check out how many threads there are with people posting about their new mags. In the nineties, there were two guns to consider if you wanted performance, the clunker and the mag, so the mags share of the market was huge. Now you've got a flooded market, hundreds of choices, used gun sales surpassing that of the newer ones so it's obvíously going to make it difficult for a gun to appear to be a winner.
The entire industry is struggling to keep consumers happy and if you look at what AGD has done, it's actually not such a bad strategy. Rather than push your company to unknown risks, sit back, perfect the product that you've got, (level 10, aluminum bodies, and so on) and ride the waves.
How many others have sold out or went under while AGD putts along on its old motor? Even the once mighty clunker sold out in the hopes of a better future. We all know how that's going. Look at WDP. They used to own the tourney circuit, only to have to find ways to catch up with their competitors now. The only ones who've really profited from it all is Smart Parts, proving that the only way to emerge on top is by lying, cheating and otherwise undermining your colleagues of the industry.
Paintball should never (but unfortunately has) forget what companies like AGD have done for the good of the sport. Tom Kaye could probably be a very rich man now, if he decided to patent a few of his ideas rather than just making them public property.
It's sad to see what paintball has become, what with all the greed and distrust. It used to be a lot different, though those who remember it are the ones who are on their way to extinction. If the mag ever does really die out, at least it will do so with dignity.
Long live AGD!
Dan@Triggernomics

[Mongoose]

Mags have an extroadinary reputation around here, if you go on a field with a Mag, normaly the ref smiles at you and waves you onward to glory. All the little kids look at the mag and go woooow... Mags are not dieing out, they're just becoming almost a cult gun. And honestly, Im in that cult.
Jeremiah


kids ask me what kind of shocker it is!!!

[Paintchucker]

I used to play down in the Marietta, GA area when I was based there. I was usually the only automag around. One time, I did run into a family (dad and two sons) who all had mags. That was a fun day. Wish I could remember the name of the fields that I would play at in GA. It was back in 2000-2003. The store was the basement of somebody's house and there were several fields around it in the woods. One had a huge wooden fort (plywood and bracers - I think 4*4s) in the center.



Sounds like maybe Arkenstone, a little north of Marietta in Acworth ???

[Desega]

New mags are hard to find, but at AO they are still worshiped, despite aging. Anyone remember chuff chuff

[Dark Side]

3 of the members of my team have Mags, but on that same note a kid last weekend asked me what my Xmag was. I'll never let go of any of mine, except in the passing of them to my children.

[Badmovies.org]

Sounds like maybe Arkenstone, a little north of Marietta in Acworth ???

That name rings a bell, you are probably correct.

[Cow123]

That name rings a bell, you are probably correct.

Yep, sounds like arkenstone for sure. What color was your hopper, just out of curiosity?

[RRfireblade]

Obvioulsy not extinct , there still alive in the hands of those who still use them.

But the population is losing ground to natural selection.

[Russ]

...It's sad to see what paintball has become, what with all the greed and distrust. It used to be a lot different, though those who remember it are the ones who are on their way to extinction. If the mag ever does really die out, at least it will do so with dignity.
Long live AGD!
Dan@Triggernomics

AMEN to that, Dan.

Mags are rugged and reliable. They are built to last, NOT to some low-ball, high profit price point. I'm in my fourties, and am a Tool & Die maker. I appreciate the engineering that is in the entire AutoMag line up. I'll be using a mag as long as I can keep playing paintball :cheers:

[Badmovies.org]

Yep, sounds like arkenstone for sure. What color was your hopper, just out of curiosity?

Black. I shot a black classic-valve Automag back then, with a gas-through stock and the tank on my back. I had a sling for it. Heck, I just sold that old gal:

http://www.badmovies.org/common/ebay/automag1-s.jpg

Quite often, I was there with some other Marines. We would wear old cammies. Underneath, I often had on an old team shirt (team meaning "a group of friends who played a lot") that said "Penguin Lust Paintball" and had a picture of Opus from Blood County with a paintball marker. Since I would take off my cammie blouse between games, you might have seen the shirt - others would get a good chuckle from it at times.

[RobOpel]

I got my mag this past summer, I was tired of my cocker goin down ('97 mini + 2 or 3 years w/out paint or air will do that to it...) and did some research on how mags work and basically just got excited over the simplicity and beauty of the operation. Kinda the same way I came to love the rotary.

Anyrate, the first day I played with it, it had an old glued sp all american, cf frame, vl grips, and bottom line. Simply put I was hooked. Now, probably 9 months or so later Ive got an iR3 framed xvalved pmag that gets me stares and questions like '...is that...a g7 frame on...is that a mag valve?' and thats from the ppl who have an idea of what they're looking at, most just kinda stare, or if I happen to end up talking to an older ref or store/field owner I get compliments and that far away gaze with statements like 'I remember back when everyone used those things...'

Whether I think theyre going anywhere or not...most people I talk to tend to respect the mag for what it is and where it came from, enjoy shooting it (yes Ive loaned my mag out before) but would rather not have to spend a fair amount of money or build their own system in order to get that all powerful rof out of a gun. That and the efficiency problem, which is funny, because IIRC my brother and I both get about the same number of shots/1000 psi and he shoots an ion with the dwell set to its lowest reasonable setting. So, from the looks of things, mags seem to be the gun for tinkerers, old timers, or people who just like a well designed no-nonsense mechanical operation. And if you haven't noticed, in paintball, those three seem to be in short supply.


Rob

[ProblemKinder]

You don't shoot one but you post on AO? That is a first.


no, that's not a first. far from it.

[Don Carnage]

Most of us can agree that AGD's sales aren't what they should be. The reason is still debated. Some believe it's because electro's rule the scene and people buy into the hype. Others, like myself, believe AGD should market more to the scenario/rec crowd (even going as far as to make Classic 68's with Tac One bodies).

However, the most effective thing any company can do is marketing. As a player, the best marketing you can do for mags is to use them, be friendly and talk to people at fields that ask. The second thing we ourselves can do for AGD is post reviews for others to see.

Say what you want about pbreview.com (http://www.pbreview.com/) but thousands of players go there (especially newbies shopping for their first gun.) Many will read the reviews of multiple guns before deciding which one to get. When I wanted a reg for my A-5 a few years back, I read every reg on pbreview, based off that, I ended up with a Palmers and not one of the regs the local shops and magazines try to pimp.

So if you want to educate more players about AGD, visit one of the review sites, write an honest, educated review, and let shoppers find that. If you have a nice looking mag, post a pic for them to see. If there's aftermarket products that you have experience with, review those, post pics, educate new players to want a mag.

If more players buy mags, more people will make aftermarket parts for them, those people will advertise their accessories on mags and get more people to buy mags because they like the add-ons, this demand will encourage more shops to carry mags, which will encourage more people to buy them, etc...

Here's a few examples:
Tac One Body: only 1 review (2004)
Exile Body: 0 reviews, no pic
Pariah body: 0 reviews, no pic
Recon Rail: 0 reviews, no pic
Shadow Rail: 0 review, no pic
Splinter Trigger: 0 reviews
AGD Pro Classic: only 11 reviews
RPG Paradigm Classic: 0 reviews
RPG Paradigm Pro: 2 reviews
Devil Mag: 3 reviews
SpecOps Longbow: 5 reviews
Tunablade Trigger: not even showing
AGD TacOne Warp Body: not even showing
E-Tac: not even showing
Thrasher Rail: not even showing

If I was an uninformed shopper, just based off the low number of reviews, I would feel discouraged from looking into a mag or its accessories. This is something we ourselves can fix rather than complaining about AGD's lack of marketing or Smart Parts' lawsuits killing the X-mag.

[punkncat]

Although they are out of the mainstream and you don't see parts on "AV" doesn't mean they aren't lurking around. If anything I would say I have seen more around lately than ever. Most at scenarios, but quite a few packed in the speedballers gearbag as the backup to the backup.

[Corbet]

I love my mag but I just don't understand why AGD dosn't work on a new marker, obviously electric. Every other paintball company is. :(

[matteusz]

I know what we can do to boost sales (in addition to the very awesome comment on reviewing our stuff) . . . HOARD all the existing AGD stuff you can get your hands on. Then when someone wants to borrow something you will have nothing else to loan and will have to all the use of a mag despite your friends greasy fingers. Also anyone wanting to buy a mag will then have to go buy one from the source thus creating more used parts/ guns for you to hoard.

/no those are for sale threads
//I can't afford to but I wish

[matteusz]

no, that's not a first. far from it.


A first for me. Obviously not for those more familiar with the other peeps here on AO.

[Corbet]

The fact of the matter is AGD is dead. Whoever is the current owner of AGD must not want to make money... many people arn't buying them and alot of times us "AOers" are buying custom stuff from dealers.

I really just don't understand why they don't work on an electro or work towards re-engineering the E/X-mags for today's paintball world. It can be done.

[Mind'sEye]

The fact of the matter is AGD is dead. Whoever is the current owner of AGD must not want to make money... many people arn't buying them and alot of times us "AOers" are buying custom stuff from dealers.

I really just don't understand why they don't work on an electro or work towards re-engineering the E/X-mags for today's paintball world. It can be done.

Leave papa alone. He's resting.

[Tao]

The fact of the matter is AGD is dead. Whoever is the current owner of AGD must not want to make money... many people arn't buying them and alot of times us "AOers" are buying custom stuff from dealers.

I really just don't understand why they don't work on an electro or work towards re-engineering the E/X-mags for today's paintball world. It can be done.

The owner is still Tom Kaye to be clear....

I agree though I would bet AGD could make a new marker (and not get sued). There are new markets still comming out. Even if AGD has to pay a royalty, a new marker might still be profitable. It is hard to say that about a new marker in this environment, but some advertising for their current products I don't think would hurt. I think what DOES HURT is the silence eminating from this company....hell many Aoers have been demoralized from this...

My two cents would be to make a trimmed down version of the emag (which I will be the first to say is out of character for AGD). Cut cost by getting rid of mechanical overide, the expensive batery (and its housing), cut out the level 10 and leave it optional, have it come without a barrel (how many tourney players use the stock barrel on any marker?)
All of a sudden the emag is about $300-400 cheaper at retail.

[Corbet]

The owner is still Tom Kaye to be clear....

I agree though I would bet AGD could make a new marker (and not get sued). There are new markets still comming out. Even if AGD has to pay a royalty, a new marker might still be profitable. It is hard to say that about a new marker in this environment, but some advertising for their current products I don't think would hurt. I think what DOES HURT is the silence eminating from this company....hell many Aoers have been demoralized from this...

My two cents would be to make a trimmed down version of the emag (which I will be the first to say is out of character for AGD). Cut cost by getting rid of mechanical overide, the expensive batery (and its housing), cut out the level 10 and leave it optional, have it come without a barrel (how many tourney players use the stock barrel on any marker?)
All of a sudden the emag is about $300-400 cheaper at retail.

Sounds like a plan. And I'd buy one the day it comes out (seriously). The level 10 is just another pain, especially if you've got eyes. Mechanical override, although awesome, is a thing of the past. Electric guns are here to stay, we shouldn't have to worry about switching to mechanical.

[nathanjones008]

Sounds like a plan. And I'd buy one the day it comes out (seriously). The level 10 is just another pain, especially if you've got eyes. Mechanical override, although awesome, is a thing of the past. Electric guns are here to stay, we shouldn't have to worry about switching to mechanical.

any thing brand new would be nice. Shoot if they do not come out with anything new i am going to be a ion :rofl: lol jk! at least they are innovative. I think indain creek design still makes new things every now and then and they are on the same boat as agd. :cheers:

[Don Carnage]

OK, since I found the number of Automag items that are not listed on pbreview.com (http://www.pbreview.com/), I went ahead and submitted them.

Once the items are approved and uploaded on the site, some one will need to put a review up on them (I've never used any of them myself, otherwise I would.)

New items will be:
E-Tac
Tac-One Warp Mainbody
RPG Gripper
Tunablade

[matteusz]

Read this thread. Hardly silence on the part of AGD.

http://www.automags.org/forums/showthread.php?t=210765

There are a couple posts in there which clearly tell you what is up.