Am I evil?

[behemoth]

Tell him to put a pump kit on the 'cocker, and be a real man.

[evil]

your not Evil i am.


a cocker is a great starter gun. the new ones with everything basically integrated is even better. i personally cant stand people who play these days and have no idea how a marker functions so learning to do a little tweaking on a cocker goes a long way.

[turbo chicken]

given the budget that would have been my decision ...

the only other option would have been advice to save a little more money and get a mag ...

[B-Pow]

(stupid moment)Should have gotten an ion(/stupid moment)

Well if he had gotten an ion he could see first-hand how bad a gun can be...and how little a fast gun matters...

I picked up a 04 prostock like 2-3 weeks ago, it's a neat toy for the price. The only downside to the 04 is the milling by the barrel it scoops up rather agressively behind the frontblock and makes it impossible to get some barrels into the gun. I just took a metal file to it and brought it down to a level which is more managable. I've comptemplated pumping the gun, but I almost want to keep it semi...it's fun...I thin it is because of that backblock...it's hypnotic.

And if he ever gets bored and has too much money it's always simple to throw money into an autococker! Autocockers always "need" new bolts, hpr's, lpr's, rams, 3-ways, frames, backblocks.....I always have to keep reminding myself not to get new parts for my cocker because the current ones work fine (but I do want a delrin bolt just so I have one less thing to lube to death).

[SR_matt]

personaly a cocker was my first higher end gun. i think it is a great way to learn how things function because you can see it working. mags are great guns but being new to the sport you need to learn to work on guns and have those bad days where you tech your gun more than you play.

just my 2 cents
-matt

[tebo]

(stupid moment)Should have gotten an ion(/stupid moment)

Well if he had gotten an ion he could see first-hand how bad a gun can be...and how little a fast gun matters...

I think i might be the only one who likes ions here. Nothing is wrong with the ion. @00$ and with another 60-100 you have a nice gun. They are also really customizable, not saying that cockers arent though. I love ions just saying.

[aNtHrAx323]

I think I've gotta agree with Spider-TW and SR_matt... Though it is a relatively complex marker, and at that it costs $62 (which leads me to want to question its overall quality), it'd be a hell of a starter for several reasons.

1) As others have said, Autocockers are great until you mess with them *if* you have no idea what you're doing. It'd be a great learning experience for him both in terms of general mechanics/physics, but also all the subtle complexities of playing paintball - high pressure vs. low pressure markers, why the gun doesn't need to be pumped and what all that air is doing, as well as various ways to tweak out a marker to make it more enjoyable to play with as his playing style develops (and you really can't argue this last one with an Autococker - although I'm an Automag evangelist to the end, and it is insanely customizable, most upgrades and modifications for the Autococker are more directly related to the way the entire gun behaves mechanically/pneumatically).

2) He'll develop his field skills more quickly competing against most of these electronic makers on the market nowadays. Having to put more effort into placing effective shots seeing as the Autococker (at least in relatively stock form) is not exactly known for easily laying down large quantities of paint quickly will make him think much, much more about how he advances and sets himself up relative to other players on the field. Plus I personally love spending less money on paint.

3) Once he's played with the Autococker for a bit, when he picks up an Automag he'll be an immediate member of the family :) . My old teammates initially laughed about me using my Z-gripped Mag, but come game day, at one point each would inadvertently cripple their Angels (frying a board, etc.) and fall back to my backup Mag (with the classic valve, not my RT) and immediately start looking for a good deal on an RT Pro. They're amazing markers, and most who use them have trouble finding anything else that is as comfortable or dependable.

I think that given the fact you've put even this much forethought into your brother's beginning in the paintball world, you'll be helping him make the right decisions without even knowing it. Let him start out with a cheap "beater" marker that will unquestionably be a blast for him to play with, and then grow into other options as he continues to play. He'll start asking questions as he learns, at which point you should continue to be a helping hand in his development.

And with regards to the gnomes - become the gnome. If anything, teach yourself how to maintain an Autococker so you'll both grow from the entire experience. Plus, don't underestimate those little bastards - I'm finding younger siblings are often far more intelligent than we anticipate.

Regards,
Campbell

[grEnAlEins]

I think I've gotta agree with Spider-TW and SR_matt... Though it is a relatively complex marker, and at that it costs $62 (which leads me to want to question its overall quality), it'd be a hell of a starter for several reasons.

And with regards to the gnomes - become the gnome. If anything, teach yourself how to maintain an Autococker so you'll both grow from the entire experience. Plus, don't underestimate those little bastards - I'm finding younger siblings are often far more intelligent than we anticipate.

Regards,
Campbell

First of all, great post. Input like that is always appreciated.

On the first thing I bolded, it is a quality marker. It was produced by the real WGP, before they were acquired K2. It was so cheap because it was a "2004" marker, which somehow makes it of lesser quality Silly kids... they year means nothing. Nobody wants to buy an 04 marker, so online retailers had to blow them out. I should've bought one actually. Sold out now though, ratsers

On the second point, I am already sort of a gnome I guess. I have a basic idea of how it works. It is like any other poppet gun inside, and has pneumatics on the front block so it cocks itself. It does not seem that difficult... although I have no clue how to properly time a cocker, never done it. Not even really sure what it does



Nick

[B-Pow]

although I have no clue how to properly time a cocker, never done it. Not even really sure what it does

Google and YouTube are your friends. There are some great resources out there on timing and how, why, and when to do it.

[Hexis]

Pie is so much better, since: THE CAKE IS A LIE!

[grEnAlEins]

Google and YouTube are your friends. There are some great resources out there on timing and how, why, and when to do it.

I know that, but I have never before had a reason to utilize those resources.

[turbo chicken]

timing a cocker ... pretty simple ... i'll paraphrase

-Put the backblock on to where there is a teeny gap when in the closed bolt position
-Set the Cocking Rod length
-Set hammer lug to correct postion depending on the type of frame you are using ... sliders usually want about 1/2 way thru the trigger pull
-Set actuator rod ... adjust till there's no blowback

[grEnAlEins]

Pie is so much better, since: THE CAKE IS A LIE!

But I could divide by zero becoming a lie myself, and then consume delicious cake.

[ThePixelGuru]

My apologies if you've already found this, but by far the best 'cocker tuning resource I've found on the web is here:

http://www.moodypaintball.com/pages/tech/index.htm

[aNtHrAx323]

First of all, great post. Input like that is always appreciated.

On the first thing I bolded, it is a quality marker. It was produced by the real WGP, before they were acquired K2. It was so cheap because it was a "2004" marker, which somehow makes it of lesser quality Silly kids... they year means nothing. Nobody wants to buy an 04 marker, so online retailers had to blow them out. I should've bought one actually. Sold out now though, ratsers

On the second point, I am already sort of a gnome I guess. I have a basic idea of how it works. It is like any other poppet gun inside, and has pneumatics on the front block so it cocks itself. It does not seem that difficult... although I have no clue how to properly time a cocker, never done it. Not even really sure what it does



Nick

My bad on the assumption - $62 is a hell of a deal then. I'm actually hoping to pick one up for a pump conversion soon :). I was clicking around at work (being highly productive, of course) and found a 5-pack of WGP ProStock Autocockers for ~$260. Yes, you heard me - a 5-pack, all black. I am damned tempted to hunt that down again and pick it up purely for the sake of having a collection of backup and project markers. It's like having a scrapyard all to myself

** Correction - it was a 5-pack of WGP Trilogy Autocockers for $347.99 on Amazon. Looks like the deal has been removed.