Okay you are a new player or you probably woudn't be reading this. I'm going to help you as much as possible in choosing what you should buy.
Commitment. What is your level of commitment to playing paintball? If you haven't rented or been loaned a gun and played a few times this is the best place to start. Really! Paintball is not a cheap sport to play. If you are not gonna be playing fairly often then why buy? Maybe you will be tired of it after say 5 10 times playing...
Money. Well you have decided you really want to play paintball and you want your own gun. Money is now the issue. If you a budget to work on like many folks then you really need to read the rest of this. If money all but grows on a tree in your backyard well readin on will not hurt either.
Woodsball. If you are only interested in going out in the woods my advise to you is Tippman. Either a 98 or A5. Honestly these this are tanks and will take a bit of a beating. They are both fairly inexpensive and highly upgradable to suit your needs. Some of the other mil sim weapons sure look nice but are plagued with problems. And for thier price tags not worth the money.
Speedball/ Hyperball/ X-ball/ Air ball. What ever you call it, if you're on this site I take it you more then likely wanna play something along this line. Let me give youmy honest opinion on what to buy.
Well if money is a issue then your best bet is to either buy a nice used gun or a Smart Parts Ion or WGP Auto Cocker. These both can be bought for under $300 and are nice platforms for the beginner. But if you have a nice bit of money and you are for sure gonna be playing paintball for a while then you should skip right over these guns. Honestly if you are truely commited to playing then get what you really want.
$300
Smart Parts- Ion: A investment in a Q-lock/ Locking or clamping feed neck is a must. A barrel upgrade will help a lot also. It's a fairly durable gun and will allow a lot of upgrades. Pretty fast at 17 BPS (balls per second) stock. Not many parts so I think they are easy to work on.
WGP- Auto Cocker: Really no need to upgrade anything but a barrel wouldn't hurt either. A bit slower then a Ion but highly accurate gun. These are a little more mechanical the a Ion so working on them can sometimes be a pain. But the nice thing is Intimidators and Egos use the same threading so a later investment in to one of those guns will allow you to use any upgrades you may have purchased for this gun. Like a $15o dollar barrel kit...
$1000
Bob Long- Intimidators: Great guns fast and accurate. Basicly a faster version of the auto cocker and well they look sweet. Lots of upgrades availible.
Smart Parts- Shocker: Fast and durable! Dynasty uses them so they are more of a following gun. Loads of upgrades. Most folks seem to love them but I have don't like the trigger guard.
WDP- Angel: Fast and fairly acurate guns. A bit on the heavy side but those who own them love them. Lots of upgrades availible.
ICD/ Indian Creek: Not much experience with these but I know they are fast and good guns. I pretty much think of them as a different brand of Angel. I have noticed they tend to be loud guns. Think about a Stiffy barrel for this gun.
Dye/ Proto- DM's: FAST! Accurate. Fairly light. People are a bit mixed on what I like to call the midget cricket. But most can agree they are some awesome guns. A few less upgrades then some of the other guns but I don't think you'll need anything they don't make for it.
$1500
Planet Elcipse- Ego: Well this is the cream of the crop folks honestly. Fast accurate and lightwieght. Planet Eclipse spent some years just taking other guns and making them better. Well they finally decided to make thier own gun and needless to say they are awesome. Most say a CP barrel but it's up to you. Not many upgrades needed on this thing.
Air Tanks:
Most of the Guns use High Pressure Air tanks and trust me if you have the money carbon fiber all the way. But if not a steel tank gets the job done just at the cost of wieght.
Angels- I hear used the low pressure or so I hear but I've never really checked it out myself since I don't own one.
When in doubt check it out. A quick thread or a little time looking for the answer and you'll have the answer you need. Heck maybe someone will follow my thread up with a post with the answer.
Loaders:
There is only a couple choices here and basicly it is a needs thing. Depending on how fast your gun can shoot will narrow the field of loaders and make your need more expensive.
View Loader, Halo's, Empire are top notch. There are some cheaper options but trust me look at these 3 companies.
Upgrades.
Barrels:
Barrels are allways nice upgrades. 12" or 14" is all you need. Anything shorter or longer costs you accuracy. This has been tested and there are so many myths. But what you just read is FACT!
Bore size .689, .691, .693 these are the most common size barrel bores and your choice can make or break you. The wrong barrel bore with a paint that doesn't match and you'll be breaking paint all day. NOT FUN!
Barrel Kits... Freak Kits, Dye Kits, Evil Kits. Nice nice nice! You get the three inserts listed above or more and you are sure to have the right barrel bore and paint to barrel match for better accuracy and break free shooting.
Triggers/ Grips:
Well I'll just say these are personal options to play with. Maybe you like a certain trigger design and it helps you pull the trigger faster. Grips tend to be for looks but can play the same role in how you feel pulling the trigger. You may like the way a grip looks but hate they way it feels.
Boards:
Well there are of coarse options here and they change so much that I'm not gonna bother listing what boards to get. When you get to this stage read up a bit, and ask questions. The big in board for right now is the Virtue Board. You really can't go wrong with a new board but trust me it's usually not a needed option for a beginner.
That about explains the bulk of your need to know options. If you go cheaper at first you may be spending more money in the long run when you buy the gun you really wanted. So think before you buy.
Commitment. What is your level of commitment to playing paintball? If you haven't rented or been loaned a gun and played a few times this is the best place to start. Really! Paintball is not a cheap sport to play. If you are not gonna be playing fairly often then why buy? Maybe you will be tired of it after say 5 10 times playing...
Money. Well you have decided you really want to play paintball and you want your own gun. Money is now the issue. If you a budget to work on like many folks then you really need to read the rest of this. If money all but grows on a tree in your backyard well readin on will not hurt either.
Woodsball. If you are only interested in going out in the woods my advise to you is Tippman. Either a 98 or A5. Honestly these this are tanks and will take a bit of a beating. They are both fairly inexpensive and highly upgradable to suit your needs. Some of the other mil sim weapons sure look nice but are plagued with problems. And for thier price tags not worth the money.
Speedball/ Hyperball/ X-ball/ Air ball. What ever you call it, if you're on this site I take it you more then likely wanna play something along this line. Let me give youmy honest opinion on what to buy.
Well if money is a issue then your best bet is to either buy a nice used gun or a Smart Parts Ion or WGP Auto Cocker. These both can be bought for under $300 and are nice platforms for the beginner. But if you have a nice bit of money and you are for sure gonna be playing paintball for a while then you should skip right over these guns. Honestly if you are truely commited to playing then get what you really want.
$300
Smart Parts- Ion: A investment in a Q-lock/ Locking or clamping feed neck is a must. A barrel upgrade will help a lot also. It's a fairly durable gun and will allow a lot of upgrades. Pretty fast at 17 BPS (balls per second) stock. Not many parts so I think they are easy to work on.
WGP- Auto Cocker: Really no need to upgrade anything but a barrel wouldn't hurt either. A bit slower then a Ion but highly accurate gun. These are a little more mechanical the a Ion so working on them can sometimes be a pain. But the nice thing is Intimidators and Egos use the same threading so a later investment in to one of those guns will allow you to use any upgrades you may have purchased for this gun. Like a $15o dollar barrel kit...
$1000
Bob Long- Intimidators: Great guns fast and accurate. Basicly a faster version of the auto cocker and well they look sweet. Lots of upgrades availible.
Smart Parts- Shocker: Fast and durable! Dynasty uses them so they are more of a following gun. Loads of upgrades. Most folks seem to love them but I have don't like the trigger guard.
WDP- Angel: Fast and fairly acurate guns. A bit on the heavy side but those who own them love them. Lots of upgrades availible.
ICD/ Indian Creek: Not much experience with these but I know they are fast and good guns. I pretty much think of them as a different brand of Angel. I have noticed they tend to be loud guns. Think about a Stiffy barrel for this gun.
Dye/ Proto- DM's: FAST! Accurate. Fairly light. People are a bit mixed on what I like to call the midget cricket. But most can agree they are some awesome guns. A few less upgrades then some of the other guns but I don't think you'll need anything they don't make for it.
$1500
Planet Elcipse- Ego: Well this is the cream of the crop folks honestly. Fast accurate and lightwieght. Planet Eclipse spent some years just taking other guns and making them better. Well they finally decided to make thier own gun and needless to say they are awesome. Most say a CP barrel but it's up to you. Not many upgrades needed on this thing.
Air Tanks:
Most of the Guns use High Pressure Air tanks and trust me if you have the money carbon fiber all the way. But if not a steel tank gets the job done just at the cost of wieght.
Angels- I hear used the low pressure or so I hear but I've never really checked it out myself since I don't own one.
When in doubt check it out. A quick thread or a little time looking for the answer and you'll have the answer you need. Heck maybe someone will follow my thread up with a post with the answer.
Loaders:
There is only a couple choices here and basicly it is a needs thing. Depending on how fast your gun can shoot will narrow the field of loaders and make your need more expensive.
View Loader, Halo's, Empire are top notch. There are some cheaper options but trust me look at these 3 companies.
Upgrades.
Barrels:
Barrels are allways nice upgrades. 12" or 14" is all you need. Anything shorter or longer costs you accuracy. This has been tested and there are so many myths. But what you just read is FACT!
Bore size .689, .691, .693 these are the most common size barrel bores and your choice can make or break you. The wrong barrel bore with a paint that doesn't match and you'll be breaking paint all day. NOT FUN!
Barrel Kits... Freak Kits, Dye Kits, Evil Kits. Nice nice nice! You get the three inserts listed above or more and you are sure to have the right barrel bore and paint to barrel match for better accuracy and break free shooting.
Triggers/ Grips:
Well I'll just say these are personal options to play with. Maybe you like a certain trigger design and it helps you pull the trigger faster. Grips tend to be for looks but can play the same role in how you feel pulling the trigger. You may like the way a grip looks but hate they way it feels.
Boards:
Well there are of coarse options here and they change so much that I'm not gonna bother listing what boards to get. When you get to this stage read up a bit, and ask questions. The big in board for right now is the Virtue Board. You really can't go wrong with a new board but trust me it's usually not a needed option for a beginner.
That about explains the bulk of your need to know options. If you go cheaper at first you may be spending more money in the long run when you buy the gun you really wanted. So think before you buy.
