Paintball Buyer’s Blog

Every time someone tells me that the blowback marker is dead, I laugh and think of Kingman. The Spyder line of paintball markers became an institution, quality semi auto at a price anyone could afford. The key is in its simplicity and efficiency. A stack-tubed blowback typically requires about two minutes of maintanence after playing. Less o-rings, less fragile wires and connectors and not finicky over the proper amount of grease makes it easier for kids and beginners to maintain over spool-valve markers. At approximately 100 shots per oz of CO2 or 30 shots per cubic inch of 4500psi HPA the average player can play all day on one air fill! Based on the number of Spyders sold it has been estimated that 33%… a full one third… of all the paintball players in the world either use or have owned a Spyder in the playing career. How’s that for a success story?

This month Kingman is releasing two new models, the 08 Spyder Electra with Eye and the 08 Spyder Pilot with Eye. Both models feature changes that have been suggested for some time now, significant improvements instead of cosmetic.

Their first major feature is the new LEAP board designed by Tadao. The new electronics and solenoid means you can now use a standard 9v battery instead of the once required 9.6v rechargeable. No more under or overcharging… you can just toss a new battery in there and go. You can carry a spare 9v in your gear bag and have plenty of juice with no worries. There is still a charger jack if one wishes to purchase and use the Kingman rechargeable 9.6v battery but these are no longer supplied with the marker. The CAMD (Color Access Mode Display) is a bright and easy to navigate readout to see what mode you are in (Semi, PSP or Millennium Ramping) protected by a clear panel. The two mode buttons are covered with a rubber membrane. They have a nice ‘clicky’ feel to them, easy to manipulate but not so clumsy as a slide switch. The red lockout plug is still there if one needs to lock the marker into semi-only mode.

As the name implies, the new Electra and Pilot both feature breakbeam anti-chop eyes. When activated, a paintball has to drop completely into the chamber before a signal sent to the circuit board allows the bolt to come forward. This helps to prevent “chop”, or the bolt slicing the paintball in half and requiring a full breakdown to clean. Dual rubber ball detents prevents double feeding and the bolt is a non o-ring type with a captured pull-pin. That means the pin has a detent to keep it in place and you don’t lose it. Non o-ring bolts cycle faster and are less maintanence because they require no lubrication and no o-rings to get shredded passing over the breech. However, they do tend to have a bit more ‘blow by’ into the feedneck. That means air pressure forced back up into your hopper, pushing your paintballs up instead of down and slowing your feed rate. To combat this, I suggest using a fast forcefeed loader like the Kingman 18v Fasta or the VL Vlocity Jr… but really, good loaders have come so far down in price there is no reason not to have one!

The trigger is a sweeping arc of aluminum using magnets to return the trigger to rest. Triggerpull weight, pretravel and overtravel are all externally adjustable so you can set up the trigger exactly how you like. The gripframe is still a bit larger than most markers because it needs to house the board, battery and a large pancake solenoid but they did redesign it to become progressively slimmer from front to back for better comfort and smaller hands.

Both the Electra and the Pilot will accept CO2 or compressed air (aka nitro or HPA), with compressed air being the preferred pressure source. It doesn’t freeze up like CO2 during periods of heavy shooting and remains consistent through the day in any weather conditions. Notice there is no more LPC, or Low Pressure Cel, forward of the valve under the barrel? Kingman’s new valves made it unnecessary so its been replaced with a flush valve plug. More aesthetically pleasing, less weight and more comfortable for players who like to wrap their thumb over the barrel for stability when shooting. The vertical ASA is standard tank threaded so if you want to replace the foregrip or regulator with your own favorite model you can without an adapter.

Barrel covers, not barrel plugs! Thank you, Kingman!

There you have it… two new Spyders with the improvements we’ve all been wanting. Hats off to Kingman, they know how to make a solid, good looking marker loaded with features and still make it accessible to every player out there

The 08 Spyder Pilot with Eye features a composite gripframe and eye covers, angled bottomline ASA, vertical foregrip, 1 piece 12″ barrel and vertical feed with plastic elbow. The 08 Electra with Eye features an aluminum gripframe and eye covers, on/off ASA, vertical regulator with tournament lock, 2 piece 12″ barrel, clamping vertical feed and more 3D milling.

Notes:

- The feedneck threads on both models is the same threads as the older Ion theading if one wishes to change it.

- The eye covers house the ball detent and the eye sensor with channels under the body for the eye wires. I found squeezing the covers in place the easiest way to align the wires when reassembling to prevent the wires getting crimped.

- That little red o-ring that comes with the spare seals pack? That is the striker o-ring. Even though it works as a tank o-ring you better not use it for that, because a tank o-ring does not work for a striker o-ring. Save the red one for when your striker does need a replacement.

- As always, please read the manual!

We just got in the new EPS Sic Series Spectra Goggle Frames from JT Sports. Debuted at the Huntington Beach NPPL event, these will fit any JT Spectra mask, be it a Proshield, Proflex, nForcer, Flex 8, or Flex 8 Full Head Shield. These feature the ever classic banadana print in blue, red or yellow to add a touch of style to your favorite paintball mask as well as come with a smoke thermal lens. Coming soon will be the Dynasty Dragon print and Miami Rage patterns as well.

Site Mfg is a company that makes OEM carbon fiber products for industrial and miltary equipment, and a few years ago they broke onto the paintball scene with Stiffi Carbon Fiber Paintball Barrels. In the quest for lighter weight aluminum can only be shaved so far down before it loses its structural integrity. Carbon fiber is so featherlight it has to be held to be believed yet still rigidity and strength. It is resistant to thermal expansion, meaning expansion or contraction due to heat or cold is negligible.

The carbon fiber barrels have a slick finish internally and are step bored with a smaller bore towards the breech for compression to get the paintball to velocity, then expanding to .695″ at the muzzle. This boring creates less drag and friction on the paintball and combined with the smooth finish helps shoot through broken paint. Often it just takes a couple of shots to blow most paint splooge out the muzzle so you can get back to reasonable accuracy without stopping to squeegee out the barrel, keeping you focused on your opponents and not your marker.

The carbon shaft are attached to precision machined aluminum backs. For the one piece barrels the shafts and backs are permanently attached and the back is machined to a stated inner diameter such as .689, .691 etc. For their multi diameter Stiffi Switch Kit the backs are machined to size and threaded to accept the Switch tip fronts. Even with the aluminum backs Stiffi barrels are insanely lightweight… the 23 inch model is only 3 ounces!

One common misconception about carbon fiber barrels is they crack or that the muzzles can get easily damaged. Well, I wouldn’t say its impossible but you would have to go way out of your way to damage a Stiffi… basically, you’d destroy any barrel with what it would take! One thing you do not want to do is use a fluffy swab or other fiber squeegee, as the carbon tends to grab the fibers and the results will be a permanent fuzz on the inside of your barrel! Only use rubber or silicon pull throughs and stick squeegees… however, given the nature of the finish and step boring you won’t need to do this too often.

We currently have Stiffi Carbon Fiber Paintball Barrels for most popular threads and diameters in 12, 14 and 16 inch lengths. There is also the crazy long Stiffi Carbon Fiber 23Inch Tippmann Sniper Barrel… don’t laugh. These are only 3 ounces and are truly one of the most quiet barrels I’ve ever heard! I have always said that 20+ inch barrels do have a specific advantage in many situations and one is to be able to spear the barrel through branches and leaves to take stealthy shots while remaining hidden and behind protective cover. This is the ultimate barrel for that role.

We also have the Stiffi Switch Kits in several popular lengths and barrel threads. Pick the overall length and thread that you desire and you get 4 sizing breeches to match up any paintball you need to shoot, ensuring the best possible accuracy.

If you already have a pre-existing Custom Products or Smart Parts Freak Barrel Kit and want to lighten up your marker you can get a Stiffi Stif-Tip for Custom Products or Smart Parts barrel kits and 2 piece barrels.

Site Mfg has been producing and refining the Stiffi Carbon Fiber Paintball Barrels over these last several years and have created one of the most desired barrels in paintball today, used by recreational, woodsball and scenario players like the Psycho Clown Posse as well as top tournament teams such as Stockholm Joy and Miami Rage. Yes, they are not cheap… but the most advanced toys in life seldom are !

Perhaps the most annoying piece of paintball equipment to pack up and look after are your pods for carrying paintballs. They take up a large volume in your gear bag of what is basically just wasted space, but you have to have them! If paint breaks inside them they are not the easiest thing to clean because of their long shape unless you have a pod squeegee… but then that’s yet another piece of equipment to have to pack and lug around. I personally like to take at least double the pods of what my harness can carry so I can fill them all at once and be ready for a quick turnaround between games if I’m running late. That means I’m cramming 8-16 pods everytime I go play, practically a whole seperate backpack just for my pods!

Not any more.. I have found the pods to use for the rest of my life! The Smart Parts Transpod Paintball Pods are now my paint storage of choice on the field.

The concept is a 3 piece tube set nested within each other that opens with a quick flick of the wrist. Molded tabs snap into place with a simple twist and the pod is ready for your paintballs. Each pod when nested is about 1/3 the size of a standard 140 round tube, which means you can fit 3 pods in the space that one used to take up. In the space that used to hold 4 pods you can now easily fit a whole dozen Transpods!

If you get broken paint or dirt in a Transpod, simply slide all the sections out the front and now you can swiftly and easily wipe them clean between games… no more trying to wedge a towel or shirt in a long narrow pod with a squeegee trying to get all the paint out.

Transpods are tough and the lids are secure yet open easy. The only issue I can see one having with them is getting water seeping in between the sections in wet conditions. However,  if rain looks like part of the day’s forecast then a quick wrap or two of black electrical tape (which should be in every paintballer’s tool kit) will keep the water out yet remove easily at the end of the day.

Smart Parts Transpods do cost more than standard paintball pods, but the space savings and fast  easy cleaning make them worth twice as much in my opinion!

The ability to accept so many mods and accessories is one if the hallmarks of Tippmann paintball markers, with the most popular being the shoulder stock. There are many styles to fit anyone’s specific need and look. Stocks require the marker to be taken apart to install. While Tippmann 98 Customs and Custom Pros are simple in their design they are a little bit of work to disassemble/ reassemble and can be a bit confusing to the beginner when doing maintenance or installations for the first time. Since one of our most common tech questions we receive via phone and email is how to install a 98 Custom stock I decided to try out my new camera and do a photo breakdown.

First, do go over the exploded-view schematic of your particular model in the owner’s manual. These can be downloaded and printed from Tippmann’s website if needed. Familiarize yourself with the parts and names.

Second, prepare your work area. I like to lay down an old bedsheet or towel to work over. It keeps oil stains and grease stains off the table and prevents small round parts from rolling off onto the floor. Have some rags or paper towels handy to wipe up any oil. Make sure there is plenty of light and have all the tools you’ll need handy. The less you have to keep getting up the less chance you will bump the table and have parts go everywhere! Safety glasses are not a bad idea either. I’ve had a small spring pop out and nail me in the eye before so its better to be safe and not need an eyepatch.

Most important… MAKE SURE YOUR MARKER IS COMPLETELY DEGASSED! Remove your air or CO2 tank and dryfire the marker one or twice to ensure there is no pressure in the valve. I cannot stress that enough.

Disclaimer: I am not responsible for any damage you may do to your marker by accident. Go slow and take your time, not forcing anything that seems stuck. If you are unsure what to do, please take your marker to your nearest friendly neighborhood paintball shop!

Note: The marker in the following photos is a 98 Custom ACT with Response Trigger

Okay, got your work area set up and the marker degassed? Take off the barrel and any other bolt-on accesories like sights. Leave the feedneck latched in place, it will help hold the frontsight latch spring in place later. With your 1/8th Allen key remove the ASA screws from under the bottomline ASA and set them aside.

Now remove the five body screws… one at the base of the grip, two by the reap cap, one just forward of the trigger and two at the frontsight and foregrip. Slide the foregrip out from the bottom and set aside.

Now comes the tricky part of the procedure. Gently separate the two body halves and lift the top one away. Don’t yank them apart as this tends to dislodge parts and send them flying.

Take a look at the front sight area. Remember how I told you to leave the feedneck attached? Thats because the little horseshoe-shaped spring under the frontsight latch (circled in blue) is easily the most lost Tippmann internal part. The ball detent (circled in red) should be in place as shown. If installed backwards the marker will cycle erratically or not at all.

Take a good look at the sear and trigger group. That big silver cylinder behind the trigger is the piston for the Response trigger system. Note the placement of the silver pins through the trigger and how they guide the sear. There is one black pin (circled in red) that the sear pivots around. Always make sure the black one is in this location because it is hardened steel, designed to withstand the abuse of the sear slamming against it. If you put any of the other pins here they will eventually bend and break from stress. See the sear sping circled in blue? Pay close attention to it because it has a tendency to pop out of position. It should be seated down snug in its guides.

Since this is an ACT (Anti Chop Technology) model there is a second spring set between the rear bolt and reap cap. Note the placement of all springs, pins and the linkage rod. Lastly, note how the square bottomline nuts sits snug at the base of the grip.

Next, wiggle the springs and spring guide rod out of the rear cap and replace with your new stock. See how the rear cap and the stock fit into the grooves molded into the body? I like to prop the marker up with the rear cap like a sawhorse in the middle of my work. Don’t forget the guide rod or your springs will get destroyed! Look everything over and make sure all parts are snug and in place.

Now gently place the top body half back, slowly working it down into place so the internal parts do not dislodge. Screw in the frame screw through the frontsight first, snug but not so tight that the latch cannot be depressed, then the other screws. The two screws by the stock are the hardest to do because the plastic of the stock is typically a bit oversized to ensure a snug fit. Give it a squeeze if the screws do not catch at first. If hand pressure is not enough, simply clamp it in a bench vise or use a padded pair of vice grips to press it into place.

Reattach the bottomline ASA and viola…. you’re done!

If you have the new Platinum Series 98 Custom the whole procedure is even easier. The Platinum is designed with three pieces to the clamshell body so only one section is lifted up so there are less pieces to be dislodged.

Note: An Ultra Basic Non ACT model is used in the following photos.

You do not have to take off the top rail and you can take the feedneck off if you wish because only the rear body section is being removed. Otherwise the internals are the same and follow the instructions above.

Hope that helps. Many people are intimidated by Tippmanns due to the number of parts but really they are a very simple machine. Just go slow and remember how everything goes into place. Tippmanns amazing reliability and build also means that you don’t need to do a complete strip down maintanence after every day of play like other markers! Any other questions about Tippmanns just give us a call.

Something that has been in stock for awhile but proving extremely popular is the new Camo FS Goggle from Proto. The new ‘wrap’ technology where patterns on a film can be cleanly and seamlessly transferred to surfaces is one of the best thing to happen in a long time. Now extremely durable yet intricate visual patterns can be added to virtually any hard good piece of equipment without the hassle and expense of anodizing. Dye/ Proto are utilizing it quite creatively! They took their successful long-running FS Paintball Goggle System and gave it a fresh look featuring a vibrant camo that slyly works the Proto logo into the pattern and it doesn’t cost anything extra. Great field of view, an easy to change thermal-cured scratch resistant lens and a flexible visor to keep out the sun and rain yet encourages bouncers and ricochets over the head. Check it out if you’re looking for something stylish that still blends into the greenery.

All the original Special Edition Rails in Blue, Red or Clear are gone, gone and gone. Taking their place is the latest Special Edition Proto Matrix Rail, this time in a camo wrap. The Camo PMR SE again features the metal Lever-locking Feedneck, Aluminum Vertical ASA, Edge Trigger and Edge Triggerguard upgrades, plus a finely detailed camo wrap over the body. The camo colors are in the same shades as the popular ACU camo, with the pattern looking like a mix of paint smears and drips. Sounds weird but trust me, the effect is awesome! One of the more original camoflauge ideas I’ve ever seen.

The Camo SE Proto Rail’s first production run is sold out from the factory but will be back in stock in about two weeks. I predict they will burn through them again in a crazy short time so get a pre-order in now!

The last post mentioned BT Apex Barrels, which have been a very popular paintball barrel system for the last few years for its ability to provide adjustable backspin for long flat trajectories and trick shots. However, one thing many players wished they had was a different base barrel for the system when they have the rubber ramp “dialed open” for close range play. Many wanted a barrel with a bit smaller bore and better finish or inserts for better gas efficiency, noise reduction and to prevent rollouts on markers like Autocockers.

Well, now players have options!

The first to step up to the plate is LAPCO. The have made their excellent Big Shot Barrel available with a machined groove at the muzzle to accept your existing Apex tip. The LAPCO Apex Ready Paintball Barrel is available in 12″ Spyder, Autococker, Impulse/ Ion, Model 98/Custom Pro and A5/ BT-, plus a shorty 8″ in A5/ BT-4 threads. These barrels have been flying off the shelves for us, a sure sign that they work and work well!

Smart Parts heard the wishes of players and have released an Apex Compatible All American Barrel Front. This is not in itself a complete barrel, it is a 6″ front (for a total barrel length of 12″ not including the apex tip) to fit your existing All American, Freak or Freak Jr. barrel back. Its ample spiral porting makes this the quietest backspin system ever, and combined with a Freak or Freak Jr. kit you get the maximum versatility virtually any barrel system in the history of paintball!

BT, or “Battle Tested”, has come out swinging with another entry into the ever growing scenario paintball market. Last year they released their walkable double trigger BT Electronic Gripframe, followed by the BT Rip Clip Electronic Loader to feed the insane rate of fire that the e-frame could put out while still maintaining a low profile. Then, they really upped the ante with the BT-4 Delta paintball marker. This MP5 A3 look-alike threw the proverbial monkey wrench into the market by providing sweet looks and features below some competitor’s base model price. I discussed these in a previous post here.

Unfortunately, to put the popular Apex Barrel on the Delta took some tooling around and did look a bit awkward. The submachinegun effect just isn’t the same without burst/ full auto, but once you put the Electronic Frame on there you needed the Rip Clip or else your marker would just be chopping paintballs like a deli slicer. All of a sudden the marker got very expensive compared to its low starting price.

Well, not anymore… BT listened to the customer’s wants and have released the BT-4 Delta Elite Paintball Marker.

The Delta Elite resembles the famous MP5SD, one of the most common sound-suppressed submachineguns used by SWAT, Navy SEALS and other elite forces around the globe. It still features the awesome retracting stock, removable mock magazine and top shroud over the body and barrel. An Apex Barrel is standard and a new shroud resembling a sound suppressor fills out the front end so the Apex tip looks more an integral part of the marker. An Electronic Gripframe offers faster rate of fire and burst/ auto modes with the sound-activated Rip Clip loader feeding plenty fast.

Best part is the price. The already costs much less than outfitting a standard Delta with the e-frame and loader separately… AND you get the Apex with the sweet-looking shroud! The player saves over $100 and gets what I feel is the most intimidating full-production milsim paintball marker yet.

My spies at BT have told me of yet another marker in the works that is bound to make as big a splash as the other BT paintball guns have. Plus, I’ve already seen prototypes of other future BT products that are in the final testing stage. Their big rollout is going to happen at Oklahoma D-Day… and I’ll be there to see it!

Added… read about the other BT products in this article from my previous post.

Let’s face it… no one likes to run out of paintballs on the field midgame. To carry the paint on field you put it in pods (also known as tubes or pots) and to carry the pods you need some form of harness or pack to stick them in. There are lots of styles so which one do you choose? Well, it depends on your style of play, how much you need to carry and what else you might need to haul around as well. The four main types are the belt pouch, horizontal, vertical and tactical vest.

The simplest form is the basic paintball belt pouch. These are attached to a belt and usually hold two or three pods. They have a velcro affixed flap that holds the pod in place and often have an elastic ejector to help ease the pod into your hand. The advantages are pretty simple. They are lightweight, unobtrusive and affordable for any budget. The downside is the limited capacity and the tendency to flop around noisily.

Gen X 2 Pod Pouch NXe 3 Pod Pouch

A very common harness is the horizontal harness. These strap around your waist carry pods horizontally on your lower back. These often include a large pouch to carry a tank for use with a coiled remote hose. If the harness has this pouch it is designated as “+1″, so if a harness is referred to as a “4+1 Horizontal” that means it carries four pods horizontally plus a tank. These harnesses are generally secured around the waist by a strap with a buckle or velcro. Harnesses can get very heavy when loaded with full pods and a tank so many have attachments points for suspenders or come with suspenders as part of the harness.

CORE 4+1 Harness

Horizontal harnesses have a few advantages. Pods are easier to reach than in a vertical harness for most people and are easier to slide back in. During ’speedball’ games on concept fields players typically drop pods and pick them up afterwards but this is not practical in woods and big games so the ability to quickly and easily put empties back into your harness is a big plus. Horizontals also tend to fit the larger, plus sized players more comfortably. The downside to a horizontal is that because they are so wide they tend to stick out on the sides, making you a bigger target, and forget about trying to roll when on the ground. Most horizontal packs carry half the pods to the left and half to the right, which means you’ll need to switch hands or reload with your awkward offhand half the time.

This leads us to vertical harnesses. These are harnesses that carry the pods straight up and down across the small of your back. Vertical harnesses evolved with the rise of tournament-style ’speedball’ games to fill the demand for as low a profile as possible and to access all pods with either hand.

Designs vary but the one feature virtually all vertical packs have now is the elastic waistbelt that stretches around your waist like a back support belt, fastening with velcro in the front. This keeps the pack snug to your body and also can give some support to your back. Pods are worn pointing down for quick and low profile removal. Most have formed slots for your pods with a velcro strap to keep them in place. Others like the Empire Hinge Pack have flexible slots without retaining straps, instead utilizing a strong elastic band creating tension to hold the pods in place. As pods are pulled away the harness collapses on itself, thus reducing its target profile with each reload.

CORE 5 Pod Slam NXe Alex Fraige Edition Empire Hinge Pack

Often a harness has extra loops of elastic that is sewn between slots. These unfold past the slot and can fit a pod snugly. If a harness just has x number of slots for pods… lets say three for example… then it is simply referred to as a 3 Pod Harness. If it has the extra loops… for example two… then it is called a 3+2 Pod Harness

Proto 4+3 Pod Harness

The plus side to vertical harnesses is that they offer minimal profile and ambidextrous access. The downside is that empty pods are slow if not very difficult to slide back into place midgame. Dropping the pod and collecting them later is fine on speedball fields but not so much in the woods where pods are sure to be lost or picked up by others.

The last category is the tactical vest or “tac vest” for short. These are incredibly popular in scenario/ big games or for outlaw rec games where you might not be heading back to the staging area for long periods of time. Copied from equipment worn by police and military, they’re typically a full vest or belt/ shoulder harness combo with a variety of pouches, pockets, clips and other anchor points to comfortably distribute weight when carrying lots of gear.

Gen X Tactical Spec Ops Broadsword NXe Light Infantry Vest

Some vests have pouches sewn permanently in place. While you can’t rearrange the layout these hold your gear most securely. Others have large sections of velcro backing so pouches can be arranged and oriented as the user desires. More and more vests are utilizing the military’s MOLLE system. Short for ‘MOdular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment’, these are rows of webbing sewn in increments to form a base for MOLLE-compatible accessories to be secured to. These accessories have straps that thread through the MOLLE webbing and snap into place, offering more versatility since many army surplus and other specialty pouches can be used as well.

Common pouches for paintball tac vests include GP (General Purpose) pouches, pull-down pouches so you can show refs your ID/ Mission card, elastic loops for 12 grams and ten round tubes, ones to hold a tank vertically or horizontally and large sturdy areas to hold a hydration system bladder. When choosing or setting up a vest, make a list of everything you have ever used on the field and then visualize where it will go. The most used items like pods and squeegees should go in the more easily accessible locations… your energy bars, rags, spare o-rings and cel phone can go into the smaller pouches off to the side. Leave your shooting shoulder clear for the marker’s tank or stock to sit and remember to test it with your paintball marker going from a carrying to firing position. Any pouch that interferes with this motion is going to drive you nuts by the end of a long game day!

That should help you pick out what kind of harness you should get. Just consider your playing style and the type of games you plan on playing. Here are some more tips:

- Make sure you snap the lids of your pods securely. Nothing is more frustrating or embarassing than pulling down a strap for a pod and having paint dump down your leg.

- Orient the thumbtab of the pod’s lid when you load up your harness so that the tab sits where your thumb is when you grab the pod. This saves you valuable time when reloading under stress.

- Some harnesses feature ejector loops of elastic material that help push the pod out a bit, making them easier to grab. These speed up reloading.

If you’re like me you have a whole closet full of hooded sweatshirts. Living in the Pacific Northwest of the United States they are one of those necessities when the thermometer starts to drop in the fall and they don’t come off till spring. They are also on every paintball manufacturers list of must-have casual wear for players to show their love of the game everywhere they go. Traditionally just a silkscreened logo, Empire/ Invert decided to mix it up this year with some pretty interesting new designs.

They do have some standards, like the the zip up Empire Thornside and Invert Grenade and Invert Heart……

and pullovers like the Empire Bladestar, Empire Crack, and Empire Graphiti.

They are all great quality sweatshirts, thick and soft with big hoods that fit over your hat. All the Empire models have the trendy thumbhole in the cuff that is actually a nice feature, covering up your wrist for that extra bit of warmth.

Notice I said ’standards’… the next few are really creative departures from the usual”let’s just slap our company logo and be done with it” paintball sweatshirts.

I’ve seen full-zip hoodies around town lately on a lot of kids. The zipper zips all the way to the topof the hood so it actually forms a mask keeping your entire headwarm. Ones I usually see are of skull faces or Mexican lucha libre wrestling masks, though a designer at Empire thought a gas mask would look perfect on there. Thus the Empire Gas Hoodie came to be. I bought one of these and standing at the train platform with it zipped up all the way does get some stares!

The Empire Gambler Hoodie seems plain and innocent enough, being bright green with sewn red letters on the front. However, zipping it open and laying it flat reveals a craps table on the inside! Perfect for those late night dice games when you’re away at a tournament.

The Empire Hounddog Hoodie fulfills two trendy fashion needs… houndstooth and the look of all over company logo, a la Gucci or Louis Vitton. From a distance, the Hounddog looks like a houndstooth-pattern sweatshirt, but on closer inspection the pattern is actually Empire logos. Available in black with white or white with black, these are lined with a thick thick thick acrylic fleece pile that feels like you’re wrapped up in your bed, they are so warm and comfy.

Lastly, there is the Empire Soft Shell Hoodie. Why its classified as a hoodie in their catalog I don’t know because this thing is a very lighweight and comfy windbreaker. They are windproof and water repellent with elastic cinch cords for the hood, wrists and waist. A thin layer of acrylic fleece inside keeps you warm and are roomy enough to fit over a sweater or hoodie underneath it for even more insulation. This is my new favorite coat… warm and dry enough for most conditions, light and compact for going in luggage and looks snazzy and sharp for meeting with company reps. I saw a similar jacket at North Face the other day that cost twice as much, so this piece of apparel is one of the smartest purchases you will make all year.

In my opinion, these are the best looking and functional sweatshirts and jackets from any of the paintball manufacturers so far this year!