Thinking of buying Automag as first gun.

[Shirow]

I am thinking of purchasing this as my first gun:

http://www.actionvillage.com/010-1012-1.html

With a 12" J&J Ceramic Barrel, and a 48/3000 Pure Energy n2 tank.

Do you think this is a decent 'newbie' gun (bear it mind it will be without a lvl10 kit at first.)

I've been shooting rental pirahnas previously, but am looking at automags on the field owners recommendations, as I want a decent gun I can upgrade to tournament quality (my previous thoughts were a model 98, but I'm not sure if I want something that can never be more than mid-level.)

Any suggestions or thoughts are appreciated.

[SlipknotX556]

Its a perfect gun. I got the exact same setup when I started and loved it to death. No chopping problems, as long as you got a motorized hopper and a good barrel.

[Shirow]

12" J&J Ceramic and a 12v Revy w/ X-board good enough??

[Load SM5]

Should be just fine. Just remember to take the time to learn the trigger so you don't shortstroke and risk chopping. Start off slowly and pick up speed as you get the feel of it.

[Shirow]

Cool, thanks. I think that is what I will pick up then. If I get the package I linked to, will I need anything other than hopper, barrel and gas tank? Other automags I saw seemed to come without anything other than the body.

[magsRus]

I suggest you dont go for the automag as your first marker unless compressed air is very avaible to you and you decide to buy a larger tank. It will not be worth it for you. If you dont want to spend a lot of money but have fire power like any other newbie gun go for a Spyder e-99 with a 16oz tank and a 12volt revy you will be very very please trust me I shoot an Impulse and minimag and I was impressed when I played a few games with this gun.

[spazzed]

Try checking out the classified's here on AO. You might be able to pick up a better deal...

[Shirow]

I can easily get compressed air, but why do you say I need a larger tank? The guy at the field has a 48/3000 on his, do you think that is too small?

[than205]

Yes, you'll want at least a 68.

[spazzed]

yeah, a 48//3000 is way too small. I had a 48/45 & was very unhappy w/ it. If you're gonna get a 68, I would suggest gettting a 68/4500. 50% more shots per fill, no size difference. Can't complain there :) BTW, you'll wanna make sure that you Can get 4500 fills in your area before you get one.

[Shirow]

Man, guess I will be passing on that for a while then, I can't find a 68/4500 tank under $200. Maybe I will buy the gun this week and the tank in a couple of weeks or something - if the tank size is the only drawback, I don't mind waiting :p

So, the gun I linked, plus a 12" J&J barrel, 12v revy w/ x-board and a 68/4500 pmi pure energy tank - that sound like a decent package?

[Telefragged]

Sounds great, but some people might recommend switching the PMI tank over for a CrossFire, they supposedly have better recharge rates. CenterFlag makes a 68/4500 screw in for around $200, see if you can find either of those on the net. The CF is $199 @ pbgear.com, I think.

[mihanikos]

if you can't afford a 68/4500 get a 68/3000. i get around 700 shots with my mag. Sell it later and buy a 4500. But definitely go nitro, it's a hell of a difference with a mag.

[Shirow]

How about this one? http://www.action-village.com/031-7300.html

[boggerman]

You might also check out www.modifiedpaintball.com and look at System X tanks. Don(owner of Modified Paintball) is a great guy. He has good prices and is awesome on customer service.

[magsRus]

Thats the exact tank I have on my minimag just makes sure you get the crossfire tank with the red neck and not the blue neck..the red neck is a preset output of 800psi the blue neck preset output of 450psi 450psi is to low to operate a mag. its a great tank and its worth your money

[Shirow]

Thanks for the link, I will check that out too :) Is the Automag I have linked to decent, are those TKO parts good? Do you think the J&J barrel is a good choice or do you recommend something else? The field I play at uses Diablo Blaze paint.

[boggerman]

J&J ceramic is a great all-around barrel, especially for the price, and I believe that it is a good bore match to Blaze. I have seen several other people on AO say that they are happy with the TKO mag packages, I would only recommend that you might check out the classefied ads here on AO(as spazzed mentioned) as you might find one cheaper and better equipped. I feel that the mag is a great first gun, solid as a rock and once you get comfortable with it you can fix any problem you might have(rare) in a few minutes. Most of the guys I play with have spyders, rebels, and tippmans and at least one of them has trouble every time we go play; cut o-ring, velocity won't tune, double fires, etc. My mag gets cleaned up and oiled after every use and is good to go when the next game comes around. Good luck and welcome to AO.

[Shirow]

Thanks, I will definitely check out the classifieds too :)

[boggerman]

I was just looking on ebay and found a bunch of stuff that action village has for auction, including mags! Check this out.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1849198513
Hit the "View sellers other items" button and check out the other mag packages, might save you some $$$.

[Shirow]

refurbished though, do you think it's still alright?

or what about this one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1849687773

[boggerman]

Sure, there is really nothing to wear out on a mag, just replace the o-rings and it is as good as new. Besides, it has a star on the valve so you get AGD's factory warranty with it still. My first mag was way old when I got it and it still works just fine.

[Shirow]

I won't have the cash soon enough for that one, it closes in less than 24 hours.. what about the other one? (I get paid on Thursday) ah screw it i bid $175 on it.

[DeFAuLt]

i dont think an automag is good idea for a first gun. look in to pumps first. then if you get really good with that buy an automag. people who start with pumps and use them for at least 6 months are deadly because of how skill building a pump is.

[Shirow]

too late for that, i've been playing with semis for months already =p the field I play on has some pretty hardcore bastards (matrix, impulse, emag etc is what i'm normally up against) so playing with pumps would be really disheartening.

[Shirow]

What do you think of the barrel on http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1849198513 would it need replacing? Hopefully I will win this and then I can afford a 68/4500 tank :)

[boggerman]

I have no experience with the PMI ceramic barrels, can't help on that one.:(

[magsRus]

personally I think if you are willing to buy an aftermarket barrel you should save up and purchase the FREAK KIT its the best barrel..(barrel kit) on the market that truely works like a wonder. If not I would go for a Lapco Bigshot, CP barrel, Smart Parts All American, DYE barrels are also very nice but will cost ya a bang for your buck which in the end your better off going for a 180 dollar freak kit instead of buying a 120 dollar DYE Boomstick.

[Shirow]

What about a J&J two piece? I'm willing to buy an aftermarket barrel but I'm not into spending $180 if a $40 barrel is just as good.

[Load SM5]

J&J Ceramic Barrels are really good. You can also look at CP barrels and Lapco's. They are all good barrels at reasonable prices. If you primarily shoot the same paint I see no reason to invest in a multi bore system. Aslo before you go buying a 4500 psi tank make sure your field can fill to 4500. Quite a few out there can't, and you'd be wasting your money.

[spazzed]

If you can find one, get one of the old-style Smart Parts All-American barrels. They're 1 piece, & work like a charm. It's what I use :D

[Shirow]

Cool, I'll check. I'll ask my field too, but I'm 99% sure they can. Better to be sure than sorry though. All I am worried about is chopping paint really, I think after a month or so I will order the LVL 10 kit. Hopefully I can figure it out or install it myself :)

[Vegeta]

Dang... a mag with n2 for a first gun...

I started out with 200 ropunds of paint and a Talon.

[Shirow]

Well, that's not quite how it is.. here is the story :)



I used to live in the UK, in a remote part of Wales. Very small. There was a paintball center near where I lived, but they did other things too. Canoeing, 'team building courses' etc. I used to go play there when I could. They had mostly pumps, and a couple of semis (I never got to fire a semi!)

I was never all that good, but mostly because we just screwed around.

A couple of years ago, I moved to the USA. Was very poor for a long time. A few months ago, I got a decent job and started paintballing again. Been playing weekly for a little while, using rental gun (pirahna) w/ CO2. I can kill newbies pretty easily, but the guys with Matrix, Impulse and 'Cockers are wasting me ;) Mostly because of skill, but outranging me doesn't help either.

My first plan was a Model98 w/ a 16oz CO2 tank. I was all set to order it, then I went paintballing this Saturday. I was talking to the field owner and he said:

'Are you going to keep coming weekly?'

Yeah.

'That model 98 is a waste of time then.'

Why?

'In a few months, you'll have totally outgrown it, and dumped tons of cash into it on a new barrel, upgrades and everything else. If you're going to play, start cheap, but start with something good.'

Well, I was looking at Autocockers and stuff but they seemed pretty expensive AND hard to maintain.

'Get an Automag.'

A what?

'Automag.. great gun, not expensive, but you can upgrade them to tournament quality if you put the time into it. As long as you can live w/o having an electro, you could feasibly never buy another gun in your life.'

Well, will it run on CO2?

'Don't bother. It'll screw up your gun eventually, and it's just another $30 down the drain - if you can't afford it yet, wait 2 weeks and get an N2 tank.'

Well, my interest quirked, I came home and looked up Automags. Everyone raved about them, they seemed to have genuinely useful upgrades (unlike the Model98) and they sounded like fantastic guns. Heeding the CO2 advice, I found a 68/4500 N2 tank for about $200. I figure, what the hell - I've been playing long enough to know I like paintball, and why cripple myself and waste money with CO2?

So that's pretty much the story of how I got here. If I hadn't talked to the guy, I'd probably be shooting an Model98 next Saturday :)

[Load SM5]

A field owner recommending an automag over a cocker?

gasp......

*clutches chest and falls over*

[Shirow]

Well, he said he'd never own a 'cocker either, as he likes to screw around with his gun too much and he'd be forever breaking it :) He has a really nice Matrix, with a warp feed and a bunch of other stuff that I don't even know what it is yet.. thing weighs a TON though..

BTW, just noticed that this Mag I'm bidding on only has '1 star' - is this real bad? If I use up all my stars, then what?

[Shirow]

bump :)

[than205]

You will most likely never use the star. Buy a parts kit when you have a chance. Otherwise, the field owner is right. You will not ever "need" another gun. Want may be another thing.

[Shirow]

yeah, I know that feeling.. ;)

[Shirow]

Well, I just bought a TKO automag on ebay for $160 so hopefully it'll be decent =)

[boggerman]

Congrats on the ebay mag purchase.:D Is it the one with the PMI barrel or do you need a barrel? I would still recommend the J&J ceramic if you need a barrel. Check a few sites before you order one, if you have to pay more than $35-$40 you are getting ripped.

[Shirow]

Well, this is what I ended up getting (I got a smart parts barrel because the J&Js were all out of stock.)

TKO Automag
12" Smart Parts Progressive Barrel
68/4500 Crossfire preset N2 tank
12v Revy w/X-Board (Ricochets were out of stock too)
DYE Invision mask

And the other stuff (thread protectors, rechargable battery etc etc)

Hopefully I'll have it in a few days and will be rocking it by next weekend :)

[lillfroboy]

extremly good choice thats the same stuff as i got except i got a teardrop instead of a progressive and now i just bought a mako frame and soon im going retro

[boggerman]

Way to go! You will be happy with your setup. Add an intelliframe when you can and then Level 10 and you will be set for life. Check back and let us know when you get your stuff and how you like it.

[Shirow]

Level 10 will definitely be first :) I'm a bit iffy about the intelliframe, as I don't like the idea of some cable hanging off the side of my gun, but I'll look into it.

[lillfroboy]

you dont have to has your hopper intelli fead to your gun thats just there if you want it, but the intelli frame has a real shot trigger pull and after the LvL 10 and all of that you get your retro valve, and then youll see the true potential of the Intelli frame ( it Awesome

[Shirow]

So whats good about the intelli if you don't hook it to your hopper? I thought that was the whole point..

Is it better than the dye frames?

[the123]

The point is about the Revvy- some people don't shoot fast enough to outshoot their hoppers. Others that do, like me, want every possible thing to help prevent that from happening, like an intellifeed off of an Intelliframe.
The intelliframe is BETTER than the Dye because it is made by AGD holding the strict tolerances that your Mag demands.
Plus they have neat little grooves in the back.

[boggerman]

The Dye frame is a bad choice for a mag anyway, I have a friend with one and it does not fit correctly. It has been nothing but trouble for him. The intelliframe will fit right the first time.

[fearc7]

i must disagree about the Dye Frame dis. I have a dye frame and am very satisfied with it. It made me shoot a lot faster and all that stuff. Plus, if you get a custom trigger done by Tyson whats his name and the thing works as good as it looks! I read somewhere about a guy who compared them and even said the Dye frame has a shorter pull than I frames. The intelliframe would be a better choice, but Dye frames are pretty good.

[Shirow]

k, cool, thanks. Found out my local dealer has 14 LVL 10 kits in stock for $75 each so I'll be grabbing one of those first and then an intelliframe :)

[Shirow]

Well, I finally got around to taking a picture ;) Doesn't look like much yet, but I'll be getting a 5" drop forward and an intelliframe this weekend. Got LX already :)

http://www.digitalgunfire.com/images/automag.jpg

[Spray Painter]

www.skanline.com has the system X tanks for cheap. it's $181.99 for a 68/4500 and $187.99 for 88/4500

[Yatta!]

Owner....Mag over cocker....Did hell freeze over?

[Dern]

wow... at the action village auction for a ... well just go here!!! http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1858336345 anyway, at the time that i am writing this, the minimag (powerfeed) and VL200 (comes with mag) are only at $$$51.87!!! damn.... i'd like a minimag for 50 bux...

[Shirow]

I bid on it, but that guy has put a max bid really high on it. Matrix for $450 here too. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1857169382

Action Village is where I got my classic mag from - it was a tko automag and I got it for $162. I always check Action Village auctions when I want something new :)