Hi guys, I'm new to paintball but want to get a mid range marker, any ideas on what i could get, my budget is about £400. Is it worth buying New or Used? Thanks.
For that price you could buy a fantastic marker second hand such as an Eclipse LV1, Geo 3.5, Shocker RSX, Empire Vanquish, Luxe 2.0. If you buy second hand you will get much more for your money but make sure you are buying from a reputable seller on here, just ask for a vouch and check out their history etc.
My biggest advice from years of playing is a £400 gun will do the same as a £300 marker and the same as a £200 marker but will be newer (although this doesn't mean it will be any more reliable or parts will be any more readily available if needed) You are best buying a setup you can afford to use and still have enough money to play as the biggest error most new players make is spending hundreds of pounds on the lastest kit and then by having the finance to actually play.
My biggest advice from years of playing is a £400 gun will do the same as a £300 marker and the same as a £200 marker but will be newer (although this doesn't mean it will be any more reliable or parts will be any more readily available if needed) You are best buying a setup you can afford to use and still have enough money to play as the biggest error most new players make is spending hundreds of pounds on the lastest kit and then by having the finance to actually play.
In the £200-300 range you have some excellent markers I would recommend looking at the Eclipse Gtek, Eclipse Ego 10/11, Eclipse Geo 3, Dye DM13 or 14 or a Vanquish 1.5 all of these will easily perform the same as the newest models out and at a fraction of the price.
All have been well proven and can be picked up cheap in the for sale section of the forum here. Planet Eclipse markers are the most commonly used tournament style markers in the U.K. due to them being based in England and attending the CPPS to provide tech support if required (other paintball shops also attend and will provide tech support for markers)
All have been well proven and can be picked up cheap in the for sale section of the forum here. Planet Eclipse markers are the most commonly used tournament style markers in the U.K. due to them being based in England and attending the CPPS to provide tech support if required (other paintball shops also attend and will provide tech support for markers)
The Gtek is an excellent marker I would highly recommend it. Make sure you have enough money for all of your kit (ideas and second hand prices listed below) but also enough to play. Average costs for a days tournament paintball at the CPPS is around £100 each (for a team of 5-7 with paint and entry, obviously this depends on how much paint you shoot but is a decent guide) lots of new guys to the scene spent all their money on kit then can't play after 6 months due to the reoccurring cost of paint (£25-35 a box)
Masks:
Virtue Vios-£60
V Force Grillz-£55
Empire Eflex-£40
V Force Profilers-£30
Dye I4s-£40
Hoppers:
Dye Rotor-£50
Virtue Spire-£85
Empire Z2-£40
Tanks:
Carbon fibre (in test with life left)-£90
Aluminium (in test with life left)-£25
Top and pants-£45
Ancillaries:
Barrel fluffy-£5
Allen (Hex) keys (if not coming with marker)-£7
Batteries (AA for hopper and 9V for marker-£10)
Kit bag-£40
Listed above are some of the most common items currently used in the tournament scene in the U.K and guide prices.
Masks:
Virtue Vios-£60
V Force Grillz-£55
Empire Eflex-£40
V Force Profilers-£30
Dye I4s-£40
Hoppers:
Dye Rotor-£50
Virtue Spire-£85
Empire Z2-£40
Tanks:
Carbon fibre (in test with life left)-£90
Aluminium (in test with life left)-£25
Top and pants-£45
Ancillaries:
Barrel fluffy-£5
Allen (Hex) keys (if not coming with marker)-£7
Batteries (AA for hopper and 9V for marker-£10)
Kit bag-£40
Listed above are some of the most common items currently used in the tournament scene in the U.K and guide prices.
I pretty much echo what the guy above says.
Really the first purchase you should have (on the basis you don't already have one!) is a good mask and buy a NEW lens for it. Just get a standard clear thermal lens and you're sorted. Then keep the lens nice wrapped up in some micrfiber and small protective container like a cheap tesco tupperware box to make sure it doesn't get scratched from zippers / markers etc.
Spend around £150-200 and get you'll get a very decent marker. Then use the remaining to build up the rest of your kit and keep around £100 spare to play (you'll get around 2-3 games if you split paint costs with someone friendly). You'll probably find a nice cheap steel tank or carbon fiber one (just make sure to look at the hydro test date which has to be tested every 6 years) or if you want to budget-ball you can borrow a rental one from the place you play at for free or cheap. Get a good cheap hopper, theres loads of rotors knocking about and they're fantastic. Then thats pretty much your marker sorted. Just make sure you have some comfortable pants / shirt that fits your size, doesn't nessicarily have to be paintball pants but they help, get at least 1 barrel swab like a barrel maid or something similar and a bag to keep all your gear in. Also make sure you have some shoes you don't care get grubby. Trainers are actually really decent and when i started playing I got some comfortable £15 astroturf football boots that had soft plastic studs which work to this day.
Just remember you don't have to go CRAZY when your starting out. The main thing like said above is that you keep some money behind you to PLAY. Thats the whole reason you're buying this gear and you don't want it neglected sitting in your room and you stare at a beautiful marker but with no funds to play!
Really the first purchase you should have (on the basis you don't already have one!) is a good mask and buy a NEW lens for it. Just get a standard clear thermal lens and you're sorted. Then keep the lens nice wrapped up in some micrfiber and small protective container like a cheap tesco tupperware box to make sure it doesn't get scratched from zippers / markers etc.
Spend around £150-200 and get you'll get a very decent marker. Then use the remaining to build up the rest of your kit and keep around £100 spare to play (you'll get around 2-3 games if you split paint costs with someone friendly). You'll probably find a nice cheap steel tank or carbon fiber one (just make sure to look at the hydro test date which has to be tested every 6 years) or if you want to budget-ball you can borrow a rental one from the place you play at for free or cheap. Get a good cheap hopper, theres loads of rotors knocking about and they're fantastic. Then thats pretty much your marker sorted. Just make sure you have some comfortable pants / shirt that fits your size, doesn't nessicarily have to be paintball pants but they help, get at least 1 barrel swab like a barrel maid or something similar and a bag to keep all your gear in. Also make sure you have some shoes you don't care get grubby. Trainers are actually really decent and when i started playing I got some comfortable £15 astroturf football boots that had soft plastic studs which work to this day.
Just remember you don't have to go CRAZY when your starting out. The main thing like said above is that you keep some money behind you to PLAY. Thats the whole reason you're buying this gear and you don't want it neglected sitting in your room and you stare at a beautiful marker but with no funds to play!
Use a box etc for spare lenses. You may not want to keep taking them off the goggles putting stress on the lens. Keep them in their goggle bag to protect from scratches or get a large micro fibre cloth and sew it into a bag
For hydro test dates, any current cylinders will have a 5 year test cycle for fibre wrapped and 10 year test cycle for aluminium
Note that a 'good cheap' hopper means a force feed hopper. Don't bother with a gravity or get caught out by an old agitated electric hopper