Paintball Buyer’s Blog

By far the blog post that has received the most traffic has been “My Tippmann 98 Custom Scenario Marker Project”… and its been receiving a lot of my attention as well. Here’s where it is at today…

I decided to put the BT Sight Rail on another marker and bolted on one of NC Star’s Trimount Flattop Rails. I really like these. This gave me a raised sighting plane for mask clearance and more rail real estate if I feel the need for more accessories later. Just because they’re so cool I also added a 25mm Red/ Green Dot Sight. The lighted dot is also raised up a bit higher so its easy to sight in on my target when wearing my mask.

With a Response Trigger on there I needed a fast feed system to keep the paint flowing to the breech. I tried both my Empire Reloader B and Viewloader Vlocity on there and while both loaders fed more than fast enough they really made the balance of the piece very side-heavy. I decided to go ahead and add the Cyclone Feed Upgrade which would forcefeed every shot, not need batteries and was MUCH lighter weight! I also added the X7 Hopper on there. Even though you can use a dot sight behind a vertical feed or loader (just leave both eyes open when you sight in… try it sometime), I wanted to have a clear view down the top of the marker. These two items accomplished that!

I’ve always had a things for bipods and if you notice on the X7 AK47 Frontsight there is a small section of tac rail molded into the bottom. Perfect! We carry a few models of bipods so I chose the Folding Bipod for Weaver Rail because it was the lightest one we carry. Attached to sweep back, it resembles the business end of a Russian RPK machinegun.

Last thing, I needed a sling because a) while this beast is lighter than it looks its certainly no Ion and b) if I need my hands free for a second its a pain to set it down while hooked up to my remote. I have both the standard and quick-release models of 3 point slings we stock but tried out and really liked the new Spector 1 Point Tactical Sling. Its easy to shoulder the marker from a rest position and I can just let go if I need my hands free in an instant. The buckles and straps used are really tough!

A few weeks ago at the Salem Supergame I put this project to the test. In our booth in the staging area it got A LOT of attention. Most were about the looks of the SP 16″ Tactical Barrel/ front sight/ bipod combo. Some thought the bipod was overkill but that still didn’t stop everyone from pantomiming the classic “machinegunner” pose.

Hopper and pods loaded with CORE Paintballs and my DXS 68/4500 tank filled, I went out onto the 400+ player big game field ready to rock. Right from the start I had to start blazing away just to get on the field, and the Cyclone Feed/ Response Trigger duo put a lot of paint downrange in a hurry to get their heads down. I was snapping out from behind an inflatable can bunker, shooting here and there at a trench filling up with red team players, when I noticed that the bunker was juuuuust the right height. Flipped out the bipod legs, assumed machinegunner pose of one hand on grip, one on the stock, and let’r rip. I was at just the perfect angle to drop paint into the trench, smack onto the heads of the opposing team in there. I admit I was laughing because it was so much fun and everyone who didn’t care for the bipod suddenly wanted to try shooting it from that bunker!

I must say, I’m very happy with where this marker is going and I hear Tippmann has something new to announce at World Cup…