Offical LVL10, Reports from the Field Thread

[jewie27]

Level 10 Beta Test

I got my level 10 upgrade last week and put it in my Minimag w/ReTro Valve and Intelliframe. Then took it over to Warped Sportz in Los Angeles for Chronoing. Shot 300 rounds at 275 fps as fast as possible (fanning the trigger) and tried short stroking the trigger. NO CHOPS!!!!!!!! It cured my problem.

-How long it took you to get it installed and what your configuration was to get it working properly

30 to 40 minutes

-The type of gun you're using it on
Retro Minimag


-Efficiency

Can't tell if it's any different than before

-Number of breaks/chops and type of paint used

No Chops whatsoever. Used Viewloader paint, orange fill.

-Any problems you encountered

None.

-Other general comments

Just use the carrier with one grove, longest spring, and two shims, it worked for me and didn't leak. Just remember guys, turn up the velocity until it fires.

Level 10 rules!!!!! Chops are history.

[manike]

Another stunning day with Level 10. This time in my nice new C&C. I lent my RT out to some other guys (I think three different people played with it over the day) and had no reported problems, one of them even very kindly shot me with it :) Maybe JanStah or Jonneh will add their own comments.

Anyway the C&C was flawless today. Chrono'd at +/- 2fps. Shot two cases of paint pretty much. No chops or barrel breaks or anything, just lines of paint that got commented on by an IR3 user as 'fast' :)

I was running hybrid mode and ACE on setting 1.

With the extreme because it has ACE also I am thinking about using one of the shorter springs so I can run my tank down lower. At the moment my gun requires at least 850psi to shoot reliably. I'm thinking I should be able to get that lower with a shorter spring and thus squeeze a few more shots from the tank. The trade off to a heavier bolt force may well be worth it since the ACE and halo B are covering the bases.

With a mechanical gun I think having the bolt force as low as possible is best (as per my RT) but with an extreme with ACE you don't have to worry so much. Since the ACE stops you chopping also... I shall be trying out my theory during the week or next weekend.

manike

[P4ULuk]

Originally posted by manike
Another stunning day with Level 10. This time in my nice new C&C. I lent my RT out to some other guys (I think three different people played with it over the day) and had no reported problems, one of them even very kindly shot me with it :) Maybe JanStah or Jonneh will add their own comments.

Anyway the C&C was flawless today. Chrono'd at +/- 2fps. Shot two cases of paint pretty much. No chops or barrel breaks or anything, just lines of paint that got commented on by an IR3 user as 'fast' :)

I was running hybrid mode and ACE on setting 1.

With the extreme because it has ACE also I am thinking about using one of the shorter springs so I can run my tank down lower. At the moment my gun requires at least 850psi to shoot reliably. I'm thinking I should be able to get that lower with a shorter spring and thus squeeze a few more shots from the tank. The trade off to a heavier bolt force may well be worth it since the ACE and halo B are covering the bases.

With a mechanical gun I think having the bolt force as low as possible is best (as per my RT) but with an extreme with ACE you don't have to worry so much. Since the ACE stops you chopping also... I shall be trying out my theory during the week or next weekend.

manike

Look forward to reading the results and copying the set up

What kind of efficiency were you getting?

Paul.

[Bored383]

okay - here are the results of this automag newbie. setup on the paintgun when I hit the field was the 1stripe, 1 dot carrier and 2 shims. My automag has a carrier leak with the quick start 2 stripe carrier. The paint I was using was el cheap recball, its $40 a case.

I went to my favorite local field today to try the paintgun and the level 10 bolt out. First game of the day the gun worked like a champ, no problems.

Partway into the 2nd game of the day it stopped firing. Pulling the trigger had no effect at all. I noticed that the trigger actuator screw had backed down again. Whats funny is some kid ref noticed and asked me if I wanted to be called out - I said heck no! I kept a couple guys occupied for a couple more minutes just by pointing the gun back at them. Then they figured it out and I got flanked and shot . . . oh well

So back to the staging area and I tear the gun apart to fix the trigger. I used some silicon tape on the threads and when I got it set where I wanted I gave it a crimp with a pair of pliers. Yeah, I know - hack job surgery. But it worked - no more problems with the trigger the rest of the day. I am going to find another screw to set in behind it to lock it in place.

I also stuffed my PGP into my belt . . . just in case

Go to play the next game - I hit the chrono to recheck the gun. Its not firing again - but this time I could tell it was a shim issue. Back to my truck and I stick another shim in. Back to the chrono to test. The automag was again firing away like mad. I put a hopper down range there with no problems. Though I did notice a consistency problem with velocity. I dialed the gun in at ~285 and it would have the odd spike to ~300 and the also occasional drop to ~265. Most shots were within a 10fps range. I verified this on 2 chronos, the fields radar chrono and my own personal optical chrono. If anyone has suggestions let me know - I ordered a spare parts kit and figure I should just replace all the seals in the valve.

On to the next game - airball, ick . . . but I wanted trigger time. The automag hammered through about 400 shots in short order, I tagged one guy and then got tagged myself.

On to the next game - this was in a village field with a fair number of people. I put close to 800rnds through the automag in that game without a hiccup or a bobble. It just worked and flat out ripped when I got on it. I had 2 guys try to dash to cover in front of me and I put a wall of paint up and got both. I was happy later in the game I put down some long streams of cover fire to pin down opponents while some of my teammets manuevered. And the gun worked - I think I got the setup tuned in now.

A comment on efficiency. I seemed to be getting about 200shots per 1000psi. I have a PMI Pure Energy 68cu.in. 4500psi tank on the automag. I dunno if this sort of gas consumption is good or bad or just average. It didn't feel like a gas hog, and that is all that matters in my book.

In the end I had no breaks in the gun or the barrel. The recball paint was prone to being out of round and lumpy so I had the occasional bolt reset - it is really seemless when it does it, I barely noticed them.

[manike]

Bored, the inconsistant velocity is very likely due to the cheap paint.

Paint which is out of round seals differently in the barrel each time and so has more or less friction and sometimes allows air to escape around it and sometimes not. This results in very bad consistancy.

manike

[Top Secret]

-How long it took you to get it installed and what your configuration was to get it working properly

Approx. 5 minutes 2.0 Carrier, 2 shims, long spring

-The type of gun you're using it on

Emag WF Left, 68/45 Flatline, 12" AA Freak

-Efficiency

A little worse, not very noticible with the 4500

-Number of breaks/chops and type of paint used

0/0- 4yo RPS, RPS Advantage Premiums, Diablo Inferno + Blaze, Brass Eagle, Zap Chronic

-Any problems you encountered

Didn't know I had to turn up the velocity to get it to cycle.

I have no reason to carry a squeegee anymore.

-Other general comments

Reduced recoil is very useful and the shot groups seen much tighter.

[banzaimf]

Installation has taken me a while due to insufficient velocity, To date I am still not shooting above 245

The bolt is in a Minimag, serial number 1321, so... kinda old

I have had a few breaks down the barrel, one chop. Paint used has been 6 month old RP All Star (open in the garage that whole time), Hellfire, and Severe Terra

I have been having issues with velocity.

Today was quite probably the best day of paintball I have ever had, Everyone on the field was in awe of a 9 year old mag

[manike]

Banzai, if you have an old mag then you may well need a new reg piston with a higher relief pressure limit. I take it you are not getting velocity because it starts to vent out the back if you turn it up too high? a new reg piston should sort this out.

manike

[Gijim]

listen to manike

Hes knows what hes talking about, I had the same problem but talked to AGD and they sent me a new piston and it cured the problem. You may want to get a new spring pack(I believe that is what it is called) also. Good luck

[Ohms Law]

2 hours to install on ReTro Valve Hyper Mag.
Number 2 carrier
2 shims
Short bolt spring.
Same efficiency as the Level 7.
1500 rounds of Severe Terra, no chops or breaks.

[gibby]

Took about 45 minutes to install without a hitch.
No. 2 Carrier
2 Shims
Medium Spring
Chrono'd at 280
Didn't notice a drop in efficiency.
Around 1000 rounds fired not one ball break.
Using Cobra Eggs, Point Blanks, and All Stars.

Only time I had to clean my barrel is when I fired with my barrel condem on. Other than that, I faned the hell out of it which usually meant major choppage in the past. Not a one! A friend installed his on his micromag, started to fan without his hopper turned on, no chops.

Another surprise was that my RT started to go reactive last night and it was an awesome feeling to lay down a constant stream of paint. Again, no chops or breaks.

The confidence that I have in my gun now allows me to focus more on the game rather than the operation of my gun.

Gotta love the Level 10 baby!!

[Bad_Knees]

Ahhh...Bliss!

Took about 10 minutes to install and 45 to tune.
No. 2 Carrier
2 Shims
The spring that has one end cut
no foamie
Chrono'd at 273
Didn't notice a drop in efficiency.
Around 1000 rounds fired not one ball break.
Using Cobra Eggs, Point Blanks, and All Stars.

As the friend with micromag (mentioned in Gibby's post), I had absolutely no chops and enjoyed hammering the trigger. The RT valve responded well and the trigger has a nice crisp feeling to it.

No more short stroking...no more breaks anywhere! It was a great squeegee-less night! Showed the people on the field what Level 10 could do, it definitely changed their views on Mags for good!

[kevdupuis]

I installed mine today:
1 p/f left no star valve # cf30046, reinstalled stock grip for setup and run in. I will be reinstalling the ELCD after I'm satisfied that everything is correct.

2 Install time= 15 min. Using fast install guidelines, I assembled the valve using #2 carrier and cut spring and proceded to wear in o-ring accordingly. Running with 1.5 carrier, 2 shims and long spring.

3 I did the dry firing bolt test first using an old staightshot squeege. Then I tried the the dollar bill test with one of the most beatup 5 dollar bills I could find, you can see light through it, and it worked. "I'll post the pics Deb took if I can figure out how the get the file attachment to work".

4 Paint is fresh Draxus Blaze, 1 and 2 bounces off the paint.

5 chrony speed 278 284 284 286 282 279 280

6 I put about 800 paint balls through the with no breaks in either bolt or barrel. Twice I noticed a hiss in the bolt area, but a cycle of the marker cleared it. This I attribute to leaving the carrier to bolt fit on the loose side, I won't put a tighter one in until I have to.
I also demonstrated it to some cocker, shocker, angel, and even a black dragon owner. There was also a Retro equipped Mini Mag owner there. Although he doesn't have a chopping problem, he was interested in the insurance and light kick.
My over all thought on this, is that it's an excellent upgrade for the mag. KEV

[Papa Smurf]

LVX

Pretty quick... Install in 2 mins. 1.5 carrier, no shims, stock spring. Cranked it up and hit 272-278 all day no breaks. I did have one problem though... I found out that I'm not very good shooting left handed. I got so used to my warp that I'd just tilt the mag over and score eliminations. Gotta love LVX though.. Even had 2 people stick their fingers in there. No blowback what-so-ever and since I have a Center Feed Minimag you can understand why that would be a problem.

C/F Minimag
Hyperframe
Freak
Kapp DZ2
88ci 4500psi
Ricochet
Man does this thing hum!

[1_BAD_TAZ]

FINALLY

Over the past few weeks I have been posting for help trying to get my old autorespose to work right with LVL 10 and I finally got it. This past weekend I was playing at my local field and I went up agianst a cocker and a auto spyder the mag with the auto response can keep up. So far I have put over 5000 rounds through with the LVL 10 and have only had 1 break and that was in the barrel not the LVL 10's fault. I can not say enough good things about this. The only down side is my brother wants to get a LVL 10 on his and when he does he wants his auto response back .