Feeds vs Accuracy? That is the question...

[Sean Diamond]

Right, i have played on a tippmann, which as you know has a side feed, as the elbow is at the side which allows a clear view down the barrel. This is great and i can aim my shots quite nicely. I have seen other markers though like the Terminator T3 and Spyders like the Shutter-Sport-TL that have a vertical feed. This must decrease accuracy as you cannot aim (correct me if i'm wrong) but yet the majority of big tourney players use a vertical feed. Fill me in, becasue i want to buy this style of gun but want to know about aiming it first. Finally what the hell is a power and warp feed. I KNOW its a lot to ask, so thanx...

 

[Buddha 3]

The vertical feeds are designed to be able to feed the balls into the markers faster. This is a good thing to have on high end electro markers that are capable of firing off 13+ balls a second.
A power feed is more or less an side feed, but instead of the balls going straight into the breach, the feed is attached sort on top of the marker, which makes the ball drop through a 90 degree angle, which prevents the paintballs from bouncing back up into your hopper when they get hit by a blast of gas when you fire your marker. The automags really benefited from this, since they fired fast (for their time) and they use a pressure way higher than today's top end markers. This often caused the balls to jump up into the feed tube, meaning that when you fired again, there was no ball, or worse, it was only half way in, so it would get chopped. The powerfeed prevents this, because when the ball jumps up, it just hits the side of the feed tube...
As far as aiming is concerned, it's not a problem with a vert feed. You can look down the side of your marker, and even better, you can look 'through' your marker. Despite popular belief, aiming should be done with both eyes open. That way you can see the distance better, plus you can look through your marker. Give it a try, you'll get better results with a bit of practice.

 

[Al Woods]

Ok Seany boy, here goes

I can't give you any super experoenced tech blah de blah on it all but I'll tell you what I know.

Power feed: like on my old mag, side feed with a big hole in the top (you'll be able to see your balls in there) is a bit quicker than a regular side feed because there's no blow back from the air firing back into your feed tube, it escapes through the power hole(?). When the air blows back, your paintballs jiggle back up your feed a touch which slows down your feeding speed slightly, power feed gets rid of this.

Vert feed: Ok, I know where you're coming form with the whole aim down the length of your gun bit but after a while you'll find you don't really need to do that, you'll just look down the side of your barell and either follow your line of paint or pretty much have a good idea of where to hold your gun to hit a certain distance/area. Vert feeds make your gun more balanced as they eliminate any side heavy feel that a side feed would give and they decrease your profile slightly on both left and right sides, depending on which soide of your bunker you'll be working. Vert feeds rock baby!!

Warp feed: Never used one so all I can say is they are an innovative look forward as to how things can be done differently in the sport. The Warp feed unit sits at the side of your gun attached to a hopper which then feeds a steady stream of balls UPWARDS into an upside down side feed tube. The Warp feed unite has a kind of carousel which carries around 20 balls round then up into your gun. Some people swear by 'em some don't. Try before you buy buddy.

Hope that's been at leats some use to you man.

L8r

 

[rob_evanson]

Warp Feed

I had a go of a E-Mag with a warp feed attached to the left. The weight with the warp feed and the hopper full of balls was tough on the old wrist, and I found that you couldn't help but tilt it that way because you wrist couldn't stand to hold it staight for long periods of time. Don't get me wrong the warp feed is an amazing device and you hardly miss a shot with one attached and it does help with aiming because the hopper is out of the way, just keep in mind the weight factor.

 

[Sean Diamond]

How do you look through your marker, would i be able to on a Inferno Terminator T3 (VERT FEED), and if so, where do i look. Its just because i am comtemplating a marker. The best ones (in my price bracket) are all vert feed, (excluding the tippmann) and they look nicer. By the way if anyone has a marker like this i'd love to buy it.

 

[Buddha 3]

Okay, I'm assuming you're right handed....
The easiest way to do this is to hold the marker as if you're aiming it. Instead of looking over it like you normally did, try holding the place where the bolt is in front of your right eye (this is particularly easy with an inferno, because the bolt is sticking out the rear). Keep both eyes open, and you'll notice that you'll still see everything. Now look at your intended target. Your eyes will automatically focus on that. If you hold the marker in such a way that you can see neither side of the marker via your right eye, then you have the barrel pointed in a straight line towards your next victim.

 

[KillerOnion]

I shoot a vert feed Cocker and an Angel. I aim by simply tilting the gun about 10-15 degrees to the right when I shoot left handed and vice versa, and look across the top. This is simple, quick, points well, tucks my hopper back behind the bunker slightly, and is very comfortable to me.

 

[KCJones228]

I put my marker right between my eyes, keep both eyes open like Buddha said. But that's because my Left eye is stronger than my Right, which would make me shot wide of my victim if i used my Right eye to aim.

Get used to the vert feed gun and however you chose to fire it, and after awhile, as it is with any gun, you don't really need to truly aim it, it becomes like pointing your finger. The gun becomes an extension of you body and you know where the balls will fall.