punkncat
06-24-2008, 10:14 AM
I went down to my favorite local field the other day and we got to talking about how long we had been playing, and how long since he had taken over the field and whatnot. We both got thinking about it and our automatic answer for the last couple of years has been "about 10 years".
Then we got really thinking about it. He took over the field he now operates from his brother in 96-97, and I started playing there at almost exactly the same time. Prior to playing at any paid field we were playing in a buddy of mines back yard, but even he only claims to have started playing in around 97 or so. It had seemed to me like it was earlier than that, and am pretty sure it was. I was thinking about 96...they were using some Brass Eagle pump guns.
By way of product timeline, I can remember that the Spyder One was a relatively new marker when I started playing, and can remember the 9v revy becoming common among "regular" players. The Stingray was new. The Tippmann model 98 came out after I had been playing a while, and was one of my first new gun purchases. I had been buying used clones off Ebay prior to that.
Seems like within the first year or two that I played I can recall one of our buddies getting an EM1. We had of course never seen an electronic marker and this guy certainly had advantage for a while till we learned how to deal with him. It was not too long, maybe the next season after that one of our buddies got an Angel LCD. When it wasn't chopping paint, that was one fast marker. Made that EM1 look like a snail. Of course at that time we were all still using Spyders and Tippys.
I started playing speedball and went and got myself the new Mako frame which had just replaced the BooYah, so I could "keep up" with the arms race. Otter over on the Kingman forums had a great info site to help you get the most out of a Spyder. Over the next couple of years I took a fatty striker Spyder and make it LP with AKA internals, and all the goods. Spent well over $1000 bucks on that thing. Later got a milly body for it. I thought that thing was so trick.
I saw my first one of the new Diablo Matrixes. It had the LPR mod on it, done by a fellow everyone called Hawk, and was the first marker I saw that would bounce off a ball. Hawk was a beta tester for the MAtrix and always has loads of neat prototype mods for his signature green trix.
After playing for a while I went and for my first really nice marker, and ANS GX 3 autococker. I payed over $500 for that thing at the local shop. My wife just about killed me. To this day I am not sure that I have had another marker that seemed so nice. Stepping from a tippy into the cocker was just a whole other world.
Since then of course I have bought and sold many markers. Been through every type that intrests me, and have pretty much settled back down to only the things I like. I don't even own a cocker anymore, and pretty soon, probably not a mag that I actually use either.....
Anyway, I know this got a bit rambly but what time frame would y'all put on some of that stuff?
Then we got really thinking about it. He took over the field he now operates from his brother in 96-97, and I started playing there at almost exactly the same time. Prior to playing at any paid field we were playing in a buddy of mines back yard, but even he only claims to have started playing in around 97 or so. It had seemed to me like it was earlier than that, and am pretty sure it was. I was thinking about 96...they were using some Brass Eagle pump guns.
By way of product timeline, I can remember that the Spyder One was a relatively new marker when I started playing, and can remember the 9v revy becoming common among "regular" players. The Stingray was new. The Tippmann model 98 came out after I had been playing a while, and was one of my first new gun purchases. I had been buying used clones off Ebay prior to that.
Seems like within the first year or two that I played I can recall one of our buddies getting an EM1. We had of course never seen an electronic marker and this guy certainly had advantage for a while till we learned how to deal with him. It was not too long, maybe the next season after that one of our buddies got an Angel LCD. When it wasn't chopping paint, that was one fast marker. Made that EM1 look like a snail. Of course at that time we were all still using Spyders and Tippys.
I started playing speedball and went and got myself the new Mako frame which had just replaced the BooYah, so I could "keep up" with the arms race. Otter over on the Kingman forums had a great info site to help you get the most out of a Spyder. Over the next couple of years I took a fatty striker Spyder and make it LP with AKA internals, and all the goods. Spent well over $1000 bucks on that thing. Later got a milly body for it. I thought that thing was so trick.
I saw my first one of the new Diablo Matrixes. It had the LPR mod on it, done by a fellow everyone called Hawk, and was the first marker I saw that would bounce off a ball. Hawk was a beta tester for the MAtrix and always has loads of neat prototype mods for his signature green trix.
After playing for a while I went and for my first really nice marker, and ANS GX 3 autococker. I payed over $500 for that thing at the local shop. My wife just about killed me. To this day I am not sure that I have had another marker that seemed so nice. Stepping from a tippy into the cocker was just a whole other world.
Since then of course I have bought and sold many markers. Been through every type that intrests me, and have pretty much settled back down to only the things I like. I don't even own a cocker anymore, and pretty soon, probably not a mag that I actually use either.....
Anyway, I know this got a bit rambly but what time frame would y'all put on some of that stuff?