For the first time ever, I went paintballing with a group of my friends from college today (November 20, 2004).  We went to Skirmish USA near the Poconos in Pennsylvania.  Skirmish is an unbelievable place to paintball.  After going to Skirmish and having the chance to experience the thrill and skill involved while paintballing, I am extremely interested in paintballing.  I have always had an interest but not the way I do now.  Unfortunately, I am very oblivious to paintballing equipment.  I wouldn't know where to start looking for a marker.  As a beginner, I want a gun at an affordable price but I also want it to be dependable and well-manufactured (no crap).  I know there are tons of variations and ways to customize, which makes the researching process more difficult.  I would appreciate it if you could provide some advice to what guns would be good starter guns for me. Thanks a lot.

Bryce Plummer

98 custom....If you can take really good care of you gun and play speedball, get a NEWER spyder.

I would't get into anything High End until ur better and get into it more.

Go for a Tippmann or a E-Spyder (if u want something a little faster)

I would get a Electric Hopper too.

and go Air, and a barrel is always good.

(some ideas for upgrades)...

Alright, so the Tippmann 98 is a good gun.  What about barrells, triggers, LED's, etc?  Should this be a concern at this point or not?  I read on the forum someones post regarding CO2 verses Compressed Air; which is better?   I've heard CO2. 

Where's a good place to order paintball guns from (Tippmann 98)?

I'd recommend renting a 98 to make sure you like it.  Play with (rent or borrow) a Pro-Carbine or an A-5.  Try them out and see what you like better.  Why pay for something that you'll eventually not like or won't feel right. 

After that... Play.  Don't go out buying junk you don't need.  Learn the game first. Learn the communications, the tactics, the movements.  Then check out new barrels and chrome do-dads.

haha, u herd wrong my friend. HPA is wayyy better then c02 in many reasons.

but just play, have fun, and dont worry about all that yet.

and when u do ask questions, please search, this forum is too repettive.

What about paintballs?  Which brands should I avoid?  And what size is needed for the Tippmann 98? Also, with the Air tank, what should I stay away from?

i would get this for a set-up:

Tippmann 98 Custom

12" J+J Ceramic Barrel

Drop Forward

New Hopper

R/T if they allow it or you could go the extra mile and get the E-Bolt(it is A LOT more expensive though).

if you stick with CO2 i would get an expansion chamber. if you want HPA then you dont need an x-chamber.

ill pm you a good list of upgrades for stuff and what they do. it is mainly for wodsball but there is some speedball upgrades in there too.

Good Place to buy guns- ProShops, Internet (alot of sites are all good).

Paintballs- Any paintball will fire threw a 98custom and come out good, you MIGHT want to try to stay away from Walmart paint. Zap is cheap rec paint that shoots nice.

Air Tanks- Try to go with a Crossfire, there the best. Stay away from PMI tanks, they got a few problems with the regs...3A tanks are nice and cheap priced, Nitro Ducks are okay, mine took a crap on me, but it was old.

Right now, thats all you really need to worry about. When you get a firepower upgrade such as a response trigger or e-bolt, you would want to worry about a Electronic Hopper. But I would go with a Barrel first before any firepower upgrades (search). You do not need a expansion chamber if you go with Air (a expansion chamber turns the liquid c02 into gas before it enters gun) seeing hpa is compressed air and not liquid, you dont need one. Although you can get a Regulator, you really don't need one.

I hope that helped.

Smitty wrote: i would get this for a set-up: Tippmann 98 Custom 12" J+J Ceramic Barrel Drop Forward New Hopper R/T if they allow it or you could go the extra mile and get the E-Bolt(it is A LOT more expensive though). if you stick with CO2 i would get an expansion chamber. if you want HPA then you dont need an x-chamber. ill pm you a good list of upgrades for stuff and what they do. it is mainly for wodsball but there is some speedball upgrades in there too.

everything in there sounds good except i would get a 14" boomstick if he has enough $$$ and for a new hopper a revvy

  Here's my storyline in paintball... I went paintballing with friends (rented a gun). I liked it. so far same as you right?

I bought a 98 custom power pack(comes with everything you need)

i got to know my gun, inside and out, knew how to work it.

then i got lil more serious and formed a (kinda) paintball team

I wanted better performance so i got a new barrel- J&J Ceramic 14"(my first upgrade, about 1 month since i bought my gun.

then i got a (in order): double trigger, Overdrive E.hopper,red dot sight, pen spring mod, Response trigger.

i bought everything from my good old hometown paintball shop. Now im as happy as ever with my paintball gun. IM SOO GLAD I DECIDED NOT TO BUY A SPYDER IMAGINE. i was going to buy an imagine, but a friend told me not to. my other friend bought one and now he doesnt look that happy with his gun.

Compressed air is much better than CO2, but for a beginner the prices are a little high if you don't see yourself getting that deep in the sport. For a good starter gun I would recommend getting any Tippmann, also I would advise you to avoid Spyder markers, no matter how shiny they are. For paintballs I would say something like Zap Rec Paint or Draxxus of any kind. If you get a Tippmann I recommend either the E-Grip or the Responce Trigger, but the Response Trigger will use more of your precious CO2 or HPA. The #1 thing I would suggest to any beginner is... Find out how you play, don't buy anything unless it is useful to you, you will never forgive yourself if you spend your money on a nice shiny speedball get-up and find out you enjoy woodsball more! All of your equipment needs to revolve around you and your playing style. Good luck!!!

ok here is the perfect setup if you have 200-250 to spend

1.tippmann 98         &nbs p;   $132.00

2 cmi tru flight barell      $20.00

3 2 16 oz tanks co2        35.00

double finger trigger     20.00

nice mask thermal $40 -80

As someone earlier pointed out, your best bet is to go out and play a few more games.  Use rental markers (Usually they are Tippmanns and for good reason) or see if your friends will let you use their markers for a game to two. (If they are real friends they will)  You'll find there are some things you like about certain markers and other things you don't like.  Keep these things in mind.

If you still want your own equipment (and if you like the sport, who doesn't?) Then research it a bit more and get a marker you like...not what everyone else tells you to get.  Also, don't worry about upgrading your new marker just yet.  The marker, whatever one you get, will be far more capable of playing the game than you will if you are still just starting out.  Playing as often as you can will do more to improve your game than HPA, a new barrel, or anything else you can bolt onto your marker.

For beginner markers though, the Tippmanns are hard to beat.  You can go out, play, come home, throw them in your closet then a few weeks later take them out, put a few drops of oil into the ASA, and you're good to go.  Very reliable even if not properly maintained. I would suggest though learning a proper maintenance schedule anyway so that way if/when you decide to get a different marker you are already familiar with the maintenance it will require.  Just a good habit to get into.

Spyders are also good markers however they require you do the maintenance that you SHOULD do on a Tippmann.  If you don't, you will have problems.  Most of the time when I hear of people having problems with their Spyder marker...especially those that say they have parts falling off...I feel that the major problem is lack of proper and regular maintenance.  Again, Tippmanns are far more forgiving in this aspect.

scubaman2151 wrote: Keithypoo wrote: go for the tippmann 98 custom.  Its a very reliable gun and it requires little maintanance.  It can also be upgraded.  couldnt agree more

Me three. Also you don't really need any upgrades.

 I'd just get the 98c power pack (you might want to make sure you don't grab a regular 98) It comes with the gun, a nine oz tank (you might want a 20 as it gets anoying to keep filling it), mask, and butt plate. Stay away from walmarts prices. They may be good on other stuff but not paintball, and I really don't like brass eagles quality

because if ur a snipe get a tippman 98 custom

a flatline barrel system

a collapsible stock

and a remote line

but ur looking at about 230 just for upgrades then about another 160 for the 98 custom power pack so its a bout 390 for the gun

this is wat the gunll look like if u get the gun with all the upgrades