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Cheap Entry Tournament Marker

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sophos9

New Member
Oct 2, 2005
63
0
0
www.leansigmanetwork.co.uk
Hi

I'm new to these forums and would like a bit of help looking for a entry level tournament marker

Budget is a real big thing for me at the minute but I want to be realistic about the cost...

What I am looking for is a marker that is accurate and does not chop balls left right and centre. The site I will be playing uses compressed air....

Everyone seems to rave on about Ions as entry level.... Can someone help on costs and info on what:

  1. Marker
    Upgrade barrell
    Hopper
    Air tank
    General Upgrades
    Other Items needed (trigger, etc...)
    [/list=1]

    Many thanks....
 
Skeet

Skeet

Platinum Member
Sep 15, 2002
7,783
8
113
Most inappropriate thing on the Forum...
www.freewebs.com
Ions are great, but as you say...they could do with a few upgrades etc, to get them nice....whatever you do, dont buy any marker new, if your on a budget...if you think you can handle one, get a Cocker (try one, se what you recon) if you want a really good one, as upped as you can get, you can buy my gorgeous one for £300...

Try a few different guns blah blah cliche...
 
johnmassive

johnmassive

Spitfire Factory
Sep 5, 2004
525
8
43
Ion Noob
A lot of people will bang on about Ions as a <£200 marker (which will soon come; trust me!). But as mentioned, you then need to replace the stock parts raising that cost. Plus other such equipment as air/loaders/etc.

From experience you dont have to settle for entry level equipment due to a tight budget...

Listen to Skeet, and buy SECOND HAND!

When I introduce friends to playing paintball, I take them down the following path...

Step 1) Buy cheap Angel (LCD/IR3/Speed/A4) package with air/loader.

Step 2) Buy Goggles, Pack.

Step 3) Buy Spitfire Mod

Step 4) Shoot people with semi, ramping (capped or uncapped) and look good.

I would always advise someone who is getting into tournament ball to get a used cocker/angel than a brand spanking new Ion/Wrath. Its also good to differentiate between products that are required and not a fancy upgrade (i.e. Soft nose bolt is required more than what a new trigger is).

Good luck hunting.
 
KitsuneAndy

KitsuneAndy

Platinum Member
May 15, 2005
1,333
0
0
Norwich/Norfolk
www.kitsune-paintball.co.uk
Originally posted by johnmassive
A lot of people will bang on about Ions as a <£200 marker (which will soon come; trust me!). But as mentioned, you then need to replace the stock parts raising that cost. Plus other such equipment as air/loaders/etc.

From experience you dont have to settle for entry level equipment due to a tight budget...

Listen to Skeet, and buy SECOND HAND!

When I introduce friends to playing paintball, I take them down the following path...

Step 1) Buy cheap Angel (LCD/IR3/Speed/A4) package with air/loader.

Step 2) Buy Goggles, Pack.

Step 3) Buy Spitfire Mod

Step 4) Shoot people with semi, ramping (capped or uncapped) and look good.

I would always advise someone who is getting into tournament ball to get a used cocker/angel than a brand spanking new Ion/Wrath. Its also good to differentiate between products that are required and not a fancy upgrade (i.e. Soft nose bolt is required more than what a new trigger is).

Good luck hunting.
Click to expand...
I'd agree with that, I'm new to the sport and picked up a second hand Angel IR3 with a soft nose bolt and added a cobra blade trigger, couldn't be happier with it :)
 
Equinox

Equinox

Go Ball Deep!!!
Jul 26, 2005
368
1
28
Bridgend, S.Wales
welshdragonspaintball.com
thats sound advice...

Im new and went down the "Ion" route..
But i didnt know any better at the time..

but 3 months ago i didnt even know what an Angel or a Cocker was.. and i was about as "in the dark" as you could get..
(heh.,. what ive learned in the last few months is unbelievable..)

Dont get me wrong.. the ions a half decent gun...
Its Fast, light, and it comes with ramping out of the box, (whitch is neccessary with the ****ty trigger..) and the stock barrel isnt as bad as people make out.. its a surprisingly simple marker, although it is fiddly to take apart or field strip.

on the downside, its not too reliable, (i am now technically quite profficient on it through neccessity.. not choice..) as ive had nothing but trouble with it.. and smart parts were about as usefull as a chocolate teapot.
Its build quality is poor to say the least, the crap i found inside it from an obviously "rushed" manufacture was unbelievable.
its a gas hog.. and thats being polite..
Also, it really needs some upgrades.. namely a new trigger, and a on/off drop & mini rail is a good idea as the stock one wears quick.. a new feedneck is handy too..

hell, ill stop ranting now..

bottom line is..

Ion is a fine gun when it works, but dont believe the hype..
all that performance for just £180 new?? as they say.. every silver lining has a cloud.. and the ion is no exception..

Get a second hand cocker as there cheap as chips at the moment..

in retrospect, if id known better, i would have went second hand, but if i had to buy new for the same price range again in my ignorance, it would have to be a WGP Trilogy pro, or save for an angel 05.
 
bulldog2k

bulldog2k

New Member
Apr 27, 2004
462
0
0
Bridport, Dorset
www.teamsynapse.co.uk
I just typed a massive reply here and then my kitten stood on the 'home' button on my keyboard and lost it...

I'm not impartial :)

My whole team moved from the Angel platform to the Ion this season. Forget what people are saying about reliablility. In a season, we've had one problem that wasn't trivial (a board went) - everything else was batteries.

They're cheap, light, fast, reliable, totally user-servicable (unlike Angels - that's an important point) and I think you need a real reason NOT to get one. I don't think these reasons are poor build quality (you do get the odd duff part but it's rare) and SP customer service (which is atrocious unless they're making a sale, but the Ion is so user-servicable I don't lose any sleep about it)

An iR3 is reliable, fast, HEAVY and not user-servicable. Parts are expensive, and economically, (I think it's a given in this day and age you MUST have eyes on your rifle) £140 iR3 + £80 Spitfire doesn't quite add up to £120 2nd hand Ion. I'm not Anti-Angel but equally I didn't move without reason (NB: - I haven't had any experience of the Spitfire mod and have heard only good things about it)

In fact Ion's have fast become a standard, and in that kind of context, it's invitable that some people WANT to be different. That's fair enough, but it's important not to get things confused. The Wrath/Ion showdown never materialised and I don't believe the Promaster will fare any better - but I guess we'll see.

As was noted by Skeet, ups are an idea for the Ion, but even so, I think it's a postivie benefit - buy the core system, and buy what you need as and when you can afford it.

Try both blah blah but I dob't believe in the Ion backlash. The fact that it's here to stay is underlined by the fact that some leagues have mooted a 17 bps semi cap... ;)

(BTW - would never recommend a cocker for a beginner and you might want to weigh one before you commit to it ;) )
 
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