Coming back after 15 years, and then some.. I'm so lost.

[romeoecho84]

So, I did the thing: Made a shopping list on ANS (including knee pads) and ordered everything except the marker. Scored a 2nd hand Midnight LV2 - I wanted that ultra crisp, snapshot feel. Everything should get here in time for next weekend. Going for a Stormtrooper theme, swapping out accent parts to really capture that white with black. Feels good committing to the sport again. Appreciate everyone's feedback and help.

To quote the great Bender Bending Rodríguez: I'M BACK BABY!

[ChoSanJuan]

"I'm Going To Build My Own Theme Park With Blackjack and Hookers"

[Chuck E Ducky]

You get the LV2 from the FS section here? That was a pretty good deal I almost pulled the trigger on that one.

Don’t get caught up in the hopper craze get a $99 LTR rotor and call it a day.(Lithium Ion battery’s) get the cheap exalt speed feed.

[romeoecho84]

Not here, just missed that one. Picked it up from Reddit. Hopper, I went with a CTRL. I like the smaller profile and , aesthetics.. it was white

[Chuck E Ducky]

Sounds like a nice setup

[Trbo323]

You get the LV2 from the FS section here? That was a pretty good deal I almost pulled the trigger on that one.

Don't get caught up in the hopper craze get a $99 LTR rotor and call it a day.(Lithium Ion battery's) get the cheap exalt speed feed.

I agree on the hopper. I'm more partial to the virtue offerings but the LTR is good too. Look at the LTR and IR2 (or is it 3 now?) and compare. Can't really go wrong with either

Sent from my motorola edge 2024 using Tapatalk

[cellophane]

To quote the great Bender Bending Rodríguez: I'M BACK BABY!

woo!
I <3 Futurama

[Cyberpyr8]

I have a black LV2 and a ctrl, it's a great setup and will work well for you. Put the light rammer in it and drop the dwell a few points and off you go. Welcome back!

[romeoecho84]

I have a black LV2 and a ctrl, it's a great setup and will work well for you. Put the light rammer in it and drop the dwell a few points and off you go. Welcome back!

Really excited to be back. I swapped in the light rammer as I really want that snappy shot (it's never been used), but still have dwell, HPR and LPR at factory settings for now. Sunday morning is going to be "Tuning time" at the field. That said, I did pickup a Ninja ultralite and removed the 3 shims from it to reduce the input pressure. I haven't built a reg-tester yet, but that should be good to go for pressure settings? I think I should be sitting at ~350-400? Or should I just leave a single shim, or maybe the default 800 from the tank and let the marker internals "take it"? I did read the manual, but testimony and practical experience will always take priority for advice

[Cyberpyr8]

The LV2 will be fine anywhere from 450-800. I have shims out of mine to get them down to 450-550 range. But they run ok on my 800 3k tank for testing too.

I run my dwells around 7.5. I could get it lower but it ran ok at 7 but I went back up to 7.5 to be safe. I went down as low as 4.5 but it got sideways a few times. I felt better at 7.5 and knew no matter the weather (in SE GA), it would be good to go. Just FYI these LV2's really don't need to have the LPR adjusted with a pressure tester like the old LV1's.. If you adjust the SFR's and dwell it should be good. With the light rammer it will give you a snappy shot and good feedback.

[Daltech]

Ye gotta test the reg, I put a 1500k gauge onto an old simple duckbill asa and it works great. I test all my tanks and regs now. The regs pressure is all over the place and not simple as remove “x amount of shims” equals x pressure. Close, but it’s best to make a reg tester and take guessing out of the equation.

[Hp_lovecraft]

The biggest single change in the last 15 years is that most fields have stopped using co2.
And there are some good reasons to not use co2, but pretty much all of my 50 or so guns are co2-only.

I mostly travel to a couple big games a year, and I'll call ahead to see if they do co2 fills, or if they will allow me to come with pre-filled tanks.
But I don't think there is a field within a 100 miles of me that still does co2. Granted, part of that is that most fields within 100 miles closed during covid.... so that didn't help.

another big change is that most fields I know had to diversify to stay in business. ie offer airsoft, lasertag, and varieties of "low impact" paintball, like using 50cal, or low fps, or gellyballs.
On a positive note, the milsim trend pushed many fields to open, or reopen woodsball courses

[nerdcore]

My longest gap in paintball was 3 yrs and that threw me off. I can't imagine FIFTEEN+ years!

[Daltech]

I think we scared him away again. 😳


Bro’s we gotta chill out on the guy, he’s gonna run out of money before we get him to start complaining about paint quality! Lol.

[romeoecho84]

I think we scared him away again. 😳


Bro’s we gotta chill out on the guy, he’s gonna run out of money before we get him to start complaining about paint quality! Lol.

I'd be lying if I didn't already commit myself to buying the "Good Stuff" even for my rec ball play. Nothing against the low/mid tier field paint, but, might as well go for consistency, right? So much to update and it's been very interesting month+.

Getting out there with the LV2 was such a treat. I took the time to make a custom splash screen, swapped in the light rammer, tuned the SFR's and got REALLY precise on setting dwell when chronying. All of the extra options for tuning just felt fun to work with.. much more inviting than the previous "turn the pressure screw, hope for the best".

I did acquire a plain black Angel LED with Single Gold trigger. This was my intro to competition marker so many years ago, and having it back in my bag and taking it to the field was a cathartic experience. Unfortunately, the ASA line blew shortly after chronying (it had rubber fittings), but I swapped in a new ID ASA and we're good to go now.

I also picked up a 04 Prostock cocker as a "project" just to see if I could figure it out, as cockers were a dying breed when I started, let alone when I began my hiatus. Sure enough, got it working again (it sat previously for who knows how long), but decided to give it a full cleaning and tuning, with internals rebuild (last of parts arrive tomorrow). This was something I never would have done or considered way back when, but the game and sport feel different, like "It's ok to take your time off the field to enjoy the sport". I appreciate my legacy markers more, as well as enjoy the engineering around all the modern markers (I've done so much absorbing of information spool markers).

I even had the opportunity to help a guy troubleshoot his Etha 3 (his valve chamber had globs of grease all over it, but the bolt and bolt guide we're extremely stiff/dry). Cleaned and regreased, Chrony time, and we're out to go play for the day. That was something past me only did out of "Oh we have the same marker"; If it wasn't a Tippman 68 Carbine, a 98, Spyder or Angel LED.. I was no help to anyone back then. Helping others in the pits, that comradery.. man it hits WAY harder this time around, and it feels excellent.

What caught me off guard is how much I am having (struggling) to hold back on is the "Support stuff"; buying set screw packs, tools, spare parts (because 2 is 1, 1 is none, right?), built a regulator tester (I'm within ~50 PSI of each tank as I guessed by shim removal), getting both Freak and PWR barrels & inserts (barrel tip shopping is addictive), getting a proper gear bag, building up my own customized JT Proflex (It's both appreciated and frustrating how difficult getting lenses into JT masks STILL are), proper cases for markers (no more wrapping markers in towels and shoving them in a duffel).. countless other small things that just feel not necessary but help drive in more appreciation for the sport.

Getting back out to the field and at my workbench has been a fun experience but everything about the sport feels more appreciated, I guess? Don't get me wrong, I do still enjoy a good Speedball game, and post-field cleanings, but playing with rec ballers (old and new), helping others in the pits, on-field coaching (If I see a young buck shooting out the left of a prop, right handed, leaning their hopper to make a shot.. I can't help myself to offer advice) all have a different, stronger intensity to them for me now. The whole sport feels like it's leveled up for me in appreciation. Affording myself the time and patience to the sport is adding a different level to it that 15+ years ago, I just never considered as part of what the sport is/was (or for that matter when I started back in 98).

[Cyberpyr8]

As my kids have all grown up and started their own lives, I now get to play a different way. I can go to the field and stay as long or as short as I want. I don't have to worry about getting everyone else setup and playing. But that's given me time to help others out and get to know the players around me. I often say I'm the social butterfly of the paintball field when I go. But I enjoy getting to know the other players around me and I enjoy the social aspect of the game more now. It's nice being able to help others out and keep them in the game. I have started loaning out equipment a lot more and it's great to see a rental player get to use a $5-600 or even $1200+ setup and go play. They get a taste of what competitive play feels like. I'm glad you are back and enjoying it!

[Trbo323]

You have your cocker fix but to really do the era justice you have to have an automag as well

Not going to lie, I built my cocker into something pretty wild but I actually enjoy my mag more these days

Sent from my motorola edge 2024 using Tapatalk

[romeoecho84]

I hear you on the automag, and the thought has crossed my mind. I just rebuilt my Air America Apocalypse regulator last night, so.. sticking a mag on it would be the right move I think. Mags the only period marker I’ve never really used. I only ever fired them at the crony (as a ref)

[Myrkul]

I also second getting a mag. Once you figure out how to set them up for smaller modern paint they are amazing. AGD is still around for parts. Honestly I've been so happy with my classic valves I've never even felt the need to get the higher end ones.