I always do a full tear down and rebuild on everything anyway. When you think about how long an "O" Ring was sitting on a shelf before it was placed in a marker, then how long it spent sitting inside the marker, then the somewhat extreme pressures and conditions a paintball "O" Ring is subjected too, it's not really surprising that they fail as often as they do.
Add in a several thousand cycles through it, and then storing it in the garage, where there are usually some significant temperature and humidity swings, even the best gun is going to develop a leak eventually. I think the maximum expected shelf life of a Buna "O" Ring is only 15 years tops anyway in perfect conditions so if it's older then 2008 it's going to need to be replaced. You also have to think about how in 99% of field repairs, you only replace the problem "O" Ring, you aren't doing a full rebuild for a leaky ram, you just pop a new #010 in there and hope everything holds up well enough for you to make it through the day.
A full rebuild as soon as it comes through the door just makes the most sense.
One thing I have noticed though is that guns that get used more frequently tend to need their seals replaced less often. When it's just sitting there the rubber can dry out and becomes a lot more brittle. That's why I tend to rotate my collection, every gun needs to see at least a little bit of air and oil every 6 months or so, or it's going to probably need a seal.
When buying used gear locally, always bring an air tank. When you show the Craig's list seller that his "LNIB" Impulse that has "only" seen 3 games does not in fact function at all, you can usually get them to drop a good chunk of change off the price. Smart sellers will either include a fresh rebuild kit with their guns or factor in the need for one into the price of the marker.
Add in a several thousand cycles through it, and then storing it in the garage, where there are usually some significant temperature and humidity swings, even the best gun is going to develop a leak eventually. I think the maximum expected shelf life of a Buna "O" Ring is only 15 years tops anyway in perfect conditions so if it's older then 2008 it's going to need to be replaced. You also have to think about how in 99% of field repairs, you only replace the problem "O" Ring, you aren't doing a full rebuild for a leaky ram, you just pop a new #010 in there and hope everything holds up well enough for you to make it through the day.
A full rebuild as soon as it comes through the door just makes the most sense.
One thing I have noticed though is that guns that get used more frequently tend to need their seals replaced less often. When it's just sitting there the rubber can dry out and becomes a lot more brittle. That's why I tend to rotate my collection, every gun needs to see at least a little bit of air and oil every 6 months or so, or it's going to probably need a seal.
When buying used gear locally, always bring an air tank. When you show the Craig's list seller that his "LNIB" Impulse that has "only" seen 3 games does not in fact function at all, you can usually get them to drop a good chunk of change off the price. Smart sellers will either include a fresh rebuild kit with their guns or factor in the need for one into the price of the marker.
) before I do anything with them. I treat this sport just like I do used cars and trucks, I am buying someone else's problem and need to be aware there may be issues.
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