What gun to choose?

[Yitzy]

Hey everyone,
I am relatively new to paintball (owned a tippmann 98 custom and realized their limitations) and just sold that to have funds for a new marker. I have been looking at mags per my friends recommendation and am just wondering what everyone would recommend from any brand that is under 400 (suggest the gun and barrel and anything else necessary). The one that caught my eye was teh RT ULE but I really am not sure as many guns mentioned on here I have not heard of. Any help would be appreciated.

-Yitzy

[Codekevin0403]

the ion and a stiffi barrel definitely, and also the qev kit from www.airsoldier.com

That should get you set

And if you have leaking problems, well then you're screwed, but if you don't, you end up with a nice marker for about 400$ and it will keep you competitive for as long as you're fit as a fiddle.

[ojhspyro89]

buy a bushy! Get like a b2k4 w/ pds. They are insanly cheap and with the extra 100 dollars you have you could get a chaos board and some new stuff and make it sweet. Im a bushy guy myself, and from what ive seen bout the ion today, they arent very reliable......

[mark_1791]

Ok, disregard the ignorant posters above me and buy a mag. You have a smart friend. If you are willing to spend just a little more, the RPG Paradigm (a custom kind of mag) is a great out of the box gun. But for under $400, buy the RT ULE Custom. Make sure to get a ULE body (only $10 more!) and the ULE trigger kit (ULT). If you want a double trigger frame, just go with the Paradigm, because it's a better deal. Note that it doesnt come with a barrel though. I highly reccomend a CP 1 piece barrel.

[peewee]

Automag with out a doubt. . I Nothing against the guns mentioned they are decent ( I have owned or currently own both)

[tyrion2323]

Yitzy,

First of all - WELCOME!

There are a number of markers that you could look in to:

Automag ULE Custom = Fully loaded comes at about $450-500. Automags are reliable, EXTREMELY well made, and are a classic. If you decide that you want a mechanical marker, Mags are my recommendation. If you decide to buy a mag, consider that ProTeam Products will be putting out a pneumatic grip frame within the year. It will cost about $200, but if you get the low-end mag model, it wouldn't be too big of a cost.

Evil Omen = Selling new at $329, the Omen is my choice for the "inexpensive electro" category. It's simple, easy to use, and extremely well made. Just like the mag, it has a mechanical anti-chop system which works flawlessly. Pros include a higher rate of fire than a mag, better efficiency, and great customer service.

ICD Bushmaster PDS = Around $300, the Bushmaster is basically a smaller, lighter version of the Smart Parts Impulse. They're good lookin, fast, and very upgradeable. I've heard rumors that they can be a bit of a pain out of the box, but overall they are very well regarded.

Spimmy = Ranging between 350-550, a Spimmy is a home-made Intimidator. It functions exactly the same, but just doesn't have some of the more expensive milling and anodizing. If you look into this, I can help you. The pros are that you get high performance for a low price. The low is that your marker might look a bit odd if you don't manage to finish it well.

Those are some good options to begin with. Remember no marker is "the best" at everything, and in the $400 price range, nothing is going to be completely top of the line. The reason I didn't recommend the Smart Parts Ion is because I've never used one.

Just remember, choose what YOU want. Any one of these markers can be upgraded to a tournament-level marker...in fact, most are almost there.

Jacob

[ultralight]

welcome to AO!

automags can be very inexpensive if you buy them used. or if you decide to buy them in parts and assemble your own (not as hard as it sounds).

the nice thing about the automag is that it is extremely reliable, durable, and nearly maintenance free. just clean off the paint and put some oil in the ASA.

the other nice thing about mags, as i have mentioned above, is that all of the parts and upgrades are "drop-in" in nature. which is nice when you want to build your own from the ground up for a truly custom feel.

if you are looking for an elecrtonic marker then you should look intto the ion, bushmaster series, and the rat impulse.

as with anything you should test out the marker before you buy it if at all possible. and if you can't test out that particular marker then test fire one like it.

go to a local field/ pro shop and test fire as many as they will let you get your hands on.

see what works for you.

[Yitzy]

Thanks so much! This has to be the best forum I have been to with responses to first time posters. I can see I have quite a lot of options and hopefully within a week I can announce what I have chosen and get down to business tweaking the parts. Again thanks so much for the thorough answers and welcomes!

[maxama10]

Id steer clear of evil in my opinion there overated and overpriced....id go with an RT, my friend has one and he prefers it over his DM4 most of the time...

[Glickman]

Ok, disregard the ignorant posters above me and buy a mag. You have a smart friend. If you are willing to spend just a little more, the RPG Paradigm (a custom kind of mag) is a great out of the box gun. But for under $400, buy the RT ULE Custom. Make sure to get a ULE body (only $10 more!) and the ULE trigger kit (ULT). If you want a double trigger frame, just go with the Paradigm, because it's a better deal. Note that it doesnt come with a barrel though. I highly reccomend a CP 1 piece barrel.

wow weve got a live one here.

DOES ANYONE KNOW THE ACTUAL DEFINITION OF IGNORANT ANYMORE??!?!?!

no, "ignorant" isnt just a word that is used to make sentences sound nicer, and more intelligent, it has a real meaning

you, my friend, would be an example of ignorant


/peeve rant

anyway. i would definitly recommend the ion. it doesnt sacrafice performance for reliability (you should see the stuff they go through in tournies, and the many faceplants ive had in senarioball ) It can keep up with nearly any gun on the market, but its very simple. take 10 minutes to look it over and youll be able to build one from scratch.

for $280 it has:
-Eyes (break-beam, the good kind)
-Speed (up to 17 bps)
-Toughness (the body is very strong, i had a video of me whacking it over a steel bar with alot of force)
-Yet Simplicity
-Lightweight

yes, a mech gun like the rt would be even more durable, but if you like the feel of an electro, but the reliablity of a mech, id say ion



dont let us talk you into any gun, go to a store or field and ask around to try them out.
your the one getting the gun, even though i would really like for you to buy me an xmag

[Aslan]

Buy a used one and have more choices

:)

If I were you, I'd take a look at ebay. You can great deals on guns there. For example, I just saw an auction where the two guns below went for $255. That gives ya about $150 to spend on repairs (if it's one of the 3 out of 4 times somebody sells ya something on ebay without telling you ALL of the details) and/or upgrades.



Here is where the picture of the two guns would be if I could figure out how to insert pictures (Anybody?). The guns I am talking about are a 2000 Autococker and a minimag. Maybe the attachment works, maybe not...I can't figure it out cuz I'm a newbie and a half.

I've owned alot of markers, never bought one from a store...way too much of a mark-up and the gun is usually completely stock and will require another $350 to get close to the way you want it, probably more.