Need some help as my son is driving me mad. He has ordered a Tippmann TIPX which is due in some time when, however the shop has offered a Tiberius 8.1. He wants to know what is the best pistol for his budget. Any help much appreciated as it gets him off my back
Magazines for a Tiberius 8.1 are a lot more expensive than that of the TiPX, twice the price in fact and at £25 each that’s going to get expensive if you want additional or spares in case they get lost. One thing that might be worth noting is that that the 8.1 has quite a big grip even for some adults so unless your kids got big hands the TiPX might be better suited to him.
I currently rate the TPX over the Tiberius, but it depends on your circumstances. If firing with 12 grams and relying on the pistol you have a theoretical disadvantage when switching CO2. The advantage of the Tiberius with this is that each magazine has its own 12 gram, which means if you have 3 magazines you can fire and switch magazine for a quick reload. Then if convenient top up the first magazine, if not you have a 3rd ready. Keep your magazines topped up, and use the clicker on the bottom to keep track of how many times they have been used so you know when they also need the 12 gram switched. However this means having more expensive magazines, and commiting your 12 grams by puncturing them at the start of the day. The disadvantage of the TPX against the Tiberius for this is that because the 12 gram is in the pistol and seperate from the magazine you are committed to when you change the 12 gram. You could slowly go through your first 2 magazines, but then get in a firefight with your 3rd and find yourself with an empty 12 gram But TPX magazines are cheaper, and you only commit your 12 gram at the first shot. That means if carrying as a 'sidearm' then you do not necessarily have to use a single 12 gram until you first shoot. (Remembering to double tap your first shot to puncture then shoot) However if you intend to make more use of the pistol then you should think of going to a remote line and compressed air instead of 12 grams. The disadvantage of the Tiberius for this is you fit an adaptor to the magazine, which means you then have plenty air but have to keep reloading the magazine instead of carrying multiple magazines. (You could still carry magazines with 12 grams but there is little advantage to carrying both) The advantage of the TPX on air is the adaptor fits to the back of the pistol (you have to leave in an empty 12 gram to maintain the seal). This means you can carry as many magazines as you want and keep loading. But you may not like pistols with a remote line attached as it takes away some of the 'compactness' of the pistol. Its possible to attach something like a 13ci cylinder to a Tiberius and run macro line to the adaptor, but this again bulks up the pistol and ruins the balance. Another advantage is the TPX is a Tippmann. BZ Paintball & Tippmann tech support attend a lot of UK events so you have any techyou need ready to hand.
I agree to everything quoted a above, but another advantage to the Tiribus is that you can add attachments, (longer barrel, stock, scope etc) whilst with the TiPX, you are limited to just the pistol. When it comes to pistols, i'd choose the TiPX.
The barrel is from the stock X7, the grip is from a TM-7 and the shroud is a custom modified Glock shroud made by HERA-ARMS in Germany. Bunged it all together, the extended mag belongs to a mate. I like the functionality, but too long a mag is risky with jumping around...
Tiberius all the way, feels much more solid than the bulky plasticy TPX, and you can fire first strikes with a T8.1, add the mock silencer to your pistol, which is effectively just a longer barrel, and you can make some pretty nifty shots at distance. Ive had a RAP4 DE aswell loved that thing, only problem with that was it only fires .43?cal Paintballs, now this is not a problem at most sites, but some say no. But it was pretty accurate, and by far the best looking and most realistic pistol on the market. You have to get ALL your parts/spares/orings from Crap4 though, that being the main problem.
Both good pistols, agentsmith from mcarterbrown forums has converted to the tippmann as, I believe has midnight angel. These are people that use pistols exclusively. They cite the main reason for favouring the TPX as the weight of extra mags (agentsmith for example carries about 10 on him with tubes to reload them). There is also the issue of your kids hands fitting a tib8. I supose its a question of what you want a pistol for - I carry one for backup and fating around on the target range outside the safe zone for. Also I can pretty much assume that if I've a pistol in a holster my main gun will work flawlessly, if I don't something will go wrong with it. I've not handled a TPX and have used a tib8, found it to be very reliable and accurate (its basically an automag inside). Head to mcarterbrown.com and read the posts in the sidearms section of the armory for more info on this debate. My favourites for sitting in a holster doing nothing are splatmaster / PGP / 3357 but I wouldn't suggest them to anyone not wearing rose tinted retro specs.
I prefer the 8.1 for it's FS capability, but it does have a larger grip and that's the main drawback for younger players. The T8.1 is double regulated, so you get a more consistent shot, and more shots per 12g than the TPX. Also - T8.1 is metal, TPX is plastic. I prefer metal guns, depite the added weight. The T8.1 is basically an automag engine, which I prefer over the TPX engine. The small reg pin in the TPX tends to bend over time and hence I think the TPX would be more maintenance heavy - I do no maintenane on my 8.1 - although I don't own a TPX, so I can't be 100%. Early TPX's were garbage, so be careful if buying used.
Further to this the TiPX does have a problem with continued pressure per shot. Some will fire well and then you might get a barrel slip before the next shots go well again. From what I have read the T8.1's double reg stops this prob
