First Barrel Kit or Barrel in Different Sizes?

[nak81783]

What was the first barrel kit or barrel available in different sizes?

[Alexndl]

Edited my response it seem I read too quickly. Though it was suggestion for a first kit to buy...

[gabe]

There's been barrels of various sizes around since the early 90's. Smart Parts offered the original all american barrels in 3 or 4 sizes. AKA offered the Javelin which was "small bore" at .687 or so. Lapco offered barrels of different sizes as well. Even before changeable barrels you had custom sheridans coming with barrels that ran on the small side.

As far as "kits" the way we know them now the Freak was pretty much the first in about 2001.

[scottieb]

It's my favorite barrel, the OTP G-1 barrel. They were the first as far as I know and were out in the latter mid 90's.

[Memornix]

Wow, I remember when these came out, my mind was blown

[nak81783]

Thanks. I was thinking Freak for kit and All American for barrel in different sizes. However, this forum never stops reminding me how little I know about paintball history, so I thought I’d better ask.

According to this,

http://www.zdspb.com/tech/misc/spbarrels.html

the All Americans came out in 1989 in three sizes. It’s always been my favorite barrel. I just picked up all three sizes in 14” and a black (.689”) 16” for twist-lock Automag.

[DocsMachine]

Yep. The All-Americans were probably the first to come in specific bore sizes, though they were not generally sold in "sets".

The OTP was the first where one barrel had an interchangeable bore. Can't recall when it originally came out, but pretty sure I had one when I launched this biz, and that was '98.

I remember a big chunk of the reason I wanted to get a lathe was specifically to make my own OTP inserts, and mod some of my own barrels to accept them, since I was too poor to be able to afford the real thing.

At first, they just came with three inserts- I'm not sure anyone even specified a bore, they were basically just small, medium and large. Later (still in the 90s) OTP started offering a wider range- the first inserts were, as I recall, something like white (clear) red and blue, with the later ones like purple, green and a different blue- the ones shown above are the later kits.

The Freaks came out about then- '97/'98 ish, maybe? Can't recall precisely when.

And the first "kit", with multiple backs and multiple tips, was either the Kaner or the Matchstik, I think. I may be off on that one, too- I remember having both back in the day (I think I still have the Match around here somewhere) but really, I can't positively say which came first, or even of those were the first "kits".

Doc.

[XEMON]

When did ATS cam out with the sizer?

Originally it was 3 different sizes, then the unisizer came out with soft rings inside.

[Cunha]

The ATS unisizer is the best thing in paintball and should replace all junko sizers that work inconsistently with inconsistent (all) paintballs.

[XEMON]

The ATS unisizer is the best thing in paintball and should replace all junko sizers that work inconsistently with inconsistent (all) paintballs.

Ive been looking at a way to make new unisizer ... so i can put them on every barrel!

ATS has a lot of amazing things going for them and it feels liek they are a bit forgotten nowdays ...

[MrKittyCatMeowFace]

Aradus barrel and ones like it that had the dial on them to set the bore size. Idk when they came out

[flyweightnate]

The Aradus was mid- 2000s IIRC. By then, J&J, Redz, Powerlyte, Equation Designs, and several others all had their kits.

Lapco was somewhat early on the scene with sized barrels, too, but I don't remember them having kits for quite a while.

I feel like I'm missing an early, two- piece kit, though... I refused to buy a Freak kit, and the J&J was too pricey at the time; I had a few different Sanchez/ OTP kits that were excellent, but somewhere in there was a kit that was a fair bit less than the others.