Well, I think all of us would ultimately say the answer to all of these 'vs' threads is try both and see what you get on with...
However, it's not always practical or feasible.
To lay my cards on the table - and mattymorgan has already implied my beliefs! - I sold my iR3 about 2 months ago to buy an Ion.
In order to arrive at this decision, I trotted on down to paintball warehouse (see sig) and A-B'd both - same barrel, same air system, same paint. Syd was also very keen to point out that it was totally stock, straight out of the box, no tweaking or tampering.
I'm NOT the fastest trigger in the world, and to start with I found the Ion trigger really hard to walk, whereas in my iR3 Fly I had a Cobra Blade. I also found the eye on was kind of slow, but then I thought - well, hold on, turn it off and - and yeah, it was just as fast as the Angel. And then I figured, with a new trigger, a little tampering with dwell settings etc, and eyes on, it would be a lot faster and chop-proof. And I was right...
It's INCREDIBLY light, and as a front player that matters to me, and it was new.
People make a lot of fuss about the fact the bolt isn't field-cleanable. I don't know anyone who's ever needed to, but in
this John C makes the 'Airbag' point which is fair enough, but I still stand by what I originally said. In addition, the Strange body kit adds this functionality.
In terms of 'required' ups, as Sheriff says, it's ready to rock, but my thoughts of what I'd change, and in what order are
here
So decision time for me:
Pro Ion:
Light
Cheap
Liked the styling, and the idea of the replaceable body shells
Eyes (huge factor)
First time I've ever owned a new gun)
9v battery
Very cheap parts
I knew the market was about to be deluged with after-market parts
Low pressure
Price
Anti Ion:
None of my Angel accessories would fit
Meant a move from a platform I knew
Un-proven longevity (NB: this is NOT the same as thinking the longevity is bad! And why would I care when the most expensive part on an Ion is £30? Ever tried to replace the board an iR3? The battery? The ram? I have
O rings are a lot cheaper...)
No field-strippable bolt (this is no longer an issue for me)
Pro Angel:
My Champagne Fly iR3 was a really good looking gat
Established tech network
Board LCD
Anti Angel:
Heavy, and in comparison, MASSIVELY heavy
High pressure = plenty noisy, and lots of turbulence around the ball
If you want it to shoot fast, you run the risk of it chopping (I don't care what anyone says about 'setting COPS up right, it's fine' - it's not, and if it was, how come WDP changed to eyes?)
Car charger gayness on way to tournies
In a sense, one of the final deciding factors was that I sold my iR3 for £250, which bought me a new Ion and a whole chunk of Reloader B to go with it (this was six weeks ago, and the market changes fast - now I'm trying to sell another
Fly iR3 for 150 and it's as hard as hell!
I loved my iR3, but believe me, I've never looked back. The QEV mod is a no-brainer - order one at the same time as your Ion. It's incredibly simple to drop in and makes a huge difference (you may wish to hold out for the SP drop-in banjo-fitting one's - but that's another story). A new trigger is also a must, and the ever-wonderful Skeetmaster will help you with that - you probably know him, but he's great to deal with, very reliable and good pricing too.
Any questions, don't hesitate to ask.
And for God's sake, don't consider the Wrath
hehe!!
