Uber Upgrades & FAQ: Please Read!

easier way to fix hopper wobble:

take off the feed elbow and stretch a standard tank o-ring around the bottom of it. thats it.  (this mod may need replacement every once in a while)

What order should I upgrade???

Well, here's a good plan for starters:

1. The barrel, the barrel, the barrel. Although it's not the most necessary, it's the most common first upgrade. This upgrade procedure is so common that paintball marker manufacturers (like Tippmann) don't even waste time selling a gun with a "good" stock barrel. A "pipe with threads and holes" is a good description of what stock barrels are, so the first upgrade should be/ usually is a barrel. For range, a Flatline is the only way. It's got a pretty decent accuracy, but it's pricey. Other good choices (cheapest to expensive) are the J&J Ceramic, Lapco Bigshot, Smart Parts All-American, Dye Ultralight, Freak Barrel Kit. There are many many more, but these are a few favorites among the forum users.

Here's where it gets kinda shaky- depending on what type of air you have, your route will be different. Nitro users, skip down to the Nitro Upgrade path. CO2 or those doing nitrogen/ HPA later, proceed as planned.

NOTE: CO2 is stored in tanks (yours and filling stations) as a liquid. Now realize when you exhale, that's CO2 (carbon dioxide). In order to store that gas and pressurize it effectively, they have to make it a liquid. To do that, they freeze it so the gas molecules are moving so slow they can't "fly" through the air. And it's very very very cold. What happens to a cold glass of soda when you sit it down? Water vapor condenses around it. The same will happen inside your gun and barrel- the o-rings can freeze if they get too cold and bust, and water will build up in the gun and in the barrel (and even the hopper) and can cause the gun to rust (when the bolt gets scratched up enough) or your paint to become brittle (paint is water soluable) and break in the gun/ barrel.

2. Since you are using CO2, it's a good idea to protect your investment. You can do this while improving your gun's consistency by a little under 10 percent. Why now? Well, before you start shooting your gun 15 times a second with firepower upgrades, you don't want to bust any o-rings or damage your gun/ paint. You can either purchase an Expansion Chamber (gives more room/ time for liquid CO2 to warm up enough to expand to gas where it's safer to use in the gun) or a stabilizer (works like x-chamber but also regulates the amount of pressure entering the gun). If you plan to upgrade to Nitro, it be best to purchase a stabilizer, since it can be used with both (note: only certain ones work for both- Bob Long Torpedo and Palmer Stabilizer just to name a few) CO2 and HPA. The Dead On Paintball 8 Chamber X-core expansion chamber and the Palmer Stabilizer are favorites of most of the forum users.

3. Next is firepower, regarding the Response Trigger or the E-grip[A-5 only]/ E-bolt[98 Custom only]. There are other posts that explain these, but I'll do a little bit of detail. The R/T uses excess gas, and to go full-auto you have to sweet spot it, which can be difficult to get used to. R/Ts are also banned on some fields because they are uncomfortable watching players get hit by full-auto bursts of 15 balls when it takes only 1 to call them out. The E-grip/ E-bolt are electronic (9 volt battery) and are easier to use and have different modes of firing (semi, full, 3-rd burst, turbo[E-grip]), thus making these legal at all fields (certain modes of fire can be banned, but semi-auto cannot be banned, as all guns are [usually]). The E-grip is a sear tripper (metal rod electronically thrown up to shoot the gun, think really fast finger) and the E-bolt is an elctro-pneumatic bolt (much more complicated). Both E-bolt and E-grip are capped (shoot no faster than) at 15 bps, while R/Ts are known to go above this when tuned correctly. Most will suggest the E-grip, due to its ease of use and versatility, plus it's average $30 more than R/T. The E-bolt, however, is much more pricey at about $145 more than the R/T.

4. Now here's the fun part. This point of upgrading is based solely on what you want. I'll cover a few basics-
Drop Forwards- they move the ASA (tank screwy-in thingy) down and forward.
Stocks- a device attached to the back of a gun to steady the gun and reduce recoil by bracing it against the shoulder. There are fixed stocks (non-moving), folding (can move out of way when you don't want it), and adjustable (slides forward or back to adjust length). Generally, a remote line is used since tanks usually interfere with stocks.
Milsim Accessories- these range from new Grips, fake mags (like AK-47 mags), all the way to launchers, sight rails, bi-pods, etc. etc. These are completely your call, since it's your gun.

5. Now here's when I suggest mods. I think it's best to wait to get over the sticker shock ("I just drilled a hole into 260 dollar gun!!") before doing anything that could screw up the gun. Mods include painting, trigger mods, air vents, etc. Check out this site for some ideas. http://www.model98.net

Nitro Upgrade Path

2. Firepower is your next upgrade. Choose between the R/T or the E-grip/ E-bolt. The R/T uses excess gas, can shoot faster then E's, is more difficult to use, and may be banned at your local field. The E's are easier, use batteries, are legal at all fields, have different modes of fire, and cost more ($30-$145 range) than R/T.

3. Now you may want to increase the consistency of your HPA. Get a regulator next. The most common on these forums (and favorite) is the Palmer Stabilizer.

4. Next is open upgrades. This point of upgrading is based solely on what you want. I'll cover a few basics-
Drop Forwards- they move the ASA (tank screwy-in thingy) down and forward.
Stocks- a device attached to the back of a gun to steady the gun and reduce recoil by bracing it against the shoulder. There are fixed stocks (non-moving), folding (can move out of way when you don't want it), and adjustable (slides forward or back to adjust length). Generally, a remote line is used since tanks usually interfere with stocks.
Milsim Accessories- these range from new Grips, fake mags (like AK-47 mags), all the way to launchers, sight rails, bi-pods, etc. etc. These are completely your call, since it's your gun.

5. Here I'd suggest doing your modding, since by now your wallet is recovered from those expensive upgrades. You can find good mods at http://www.model98.net There are other mods out there, those you'll have to find/ discover, or come up with your own mod and post it.

I hoped this helped out. I've seen many of these posts and most people give half answers and never really explain why they said get this or that.

Quick Review:

CO2 or future Nitro:
1. Barrel
2. X-chamber or Stabilizer
3. Firepower
4. Accessories
5. Mods

Nitro/HPA:
1. Barrel
2. Firepower
3. Regulator
4. Accessories
5. Mods