Everything comes in cycles, and what is old will eventually become new again. Seems like everything in life follows this… paintball is no exception. Paintball started with pump action markers, where one had to manually pump the marker like a shotgun to cock the action and load the next paintball. This style of marker was eventually eclipsed by semi and full autos, with most companies either switching to semi models, making other products or simply drifting away.
LAPCO (did you know that stands for L.A. Paintgun Company?) innovated several products for paintball such as the bottomline… but the product that put them on the map was the Grey Ghost. It is often considered to be the finest pump marker ever built. While they were in production they were hard to get as each one was hand finished and tested. When the industry switched to semiauto and LAPCO concentrated on barrels and accessories the Grey Ghost became a sought-after collector’s item. Well, now you don’t have to watch Ebay everyday or trade away your first born… LAPCO has brought back the Grey Ghost and is available through us! They are not cheap… but its one marker you’ll never want to part with!
Today’s Ghost keeps the awesome features of the original and adds a few modern conveniences. They decided to go with a stockclass configuration, meaning the paintballs are loaded horizontal to the barrel and must be tilted to chamber the next ball when pumping (there are more requirements to be stockclass legal but that is the biggie!). Custom LAPCO fingergrooved grips fit like a glove and the marker features the classic slide trigger which makes for a butter smooth pull without being too light. The pump is ribbed for a sure grip and has an internal return spring so you don’t have to hold the pump handle forward the whole time while playing.
Feeding gas to the Ghost is a bucket-style 12gr quickchange adapter, hung vertically from the front of the triggerguard. Stainless steel hose runs on the right side of the marker to the valve and they even did a trick Ive been doing for years… installing a quick disconnect fitting at one end. It makes maintenence quick and easy. Luckily for today’s players, LAPCO utilized the same innovative internals to deliver excellent gas efficiency. The Ghost averages 40+ shots per 12gr cartridges so you are not constantly changing 12 grams and wasting money!
The fit and finish is phenomenal, from the tight tolerances to the LAPCO Bigshot barrel in Spyder thread to the brass quickstrip screws. The classic grey anodizing is flawless. A T-Stock ships with the Grey Ghost for those who want to steady their aim…. yes, this marker is one that you actually do aim and with great effect.
Its great to see an old classic come back to life and a new generation of players have access to a marker that really is an investment… timeless old school cool!
