tacticool marker recommendation

[nighthunter]

So I've found myself really enjoying playing in the woods more of late, and while I have magfed and mechanical guns which are fantastic for battling the renters, I'd like a gun with an electronic trigger for when I'm battling the regular/advanced players and don't want to be always "fighting uphill."
What are my options for a milsim-flavored space-gun that is still in production or was produced recently enough to have a ready supply of spare parts? I'd probably even settle for something like a 3d printed body kit for a regular space-gun if such a thing is available, but I'm not seeing a lot.

Is there anything still being made other than the Defender (which looks weird?)

PS: I know a regular speedball-style gun would work totally fine, I just like the tactical-larp-cringe flavor!

Edit: I just recently noticed the "Tippmann" Stryker appears to be a modified Ion/SP1 bolt system in a very larpy-cringe body. Has anyone actually tried them?

[Trbo323]

Oh man. Random thought but I wonder how much work it would take to put a etha electronics package in a emf .

I'm wondering if you can basically get a etha 3 frame and cut the trigger guard down and it would swap right on. That would be a pretty cool setup because you could retain the ability to be mag feed if you ever wanted to try it down the road

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[nighthunter]

That's a thought. It's a shame PE didn't make the tactical body kits for the Etha 3 (to my knowledge.)
I already do play some magfed/pistol, and have borrowed an EMF a few times. it shoots really nice, but I wasn't impressed by the mags one bit.

[Frmrspec]

Not as easy as you’d hope since the stock electronics almost run the full length of the body..

[Cdn_Cuda]

Etha2 with their tactical body kit?

[Cdn_Cuda]

https://badlandspaintball.com/planet-eclipse-etha2emek-pal-cqb-emc-kit-black

[nighthunter]

is that adaptable to the etha 3?

[Daltech]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/365121353509?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=fjebzkd0ttu&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=fgBI51UmSzi&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

[Daltech]

I’ve never heard good things about the DYE DAM or the Empire Defender.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/386810726736?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=ebp-iceirbi&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=fgBI51UmSzi&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

[Carp]

So I've found myself really enjoying playing in the woods more of late, and while I have magfed and mechanical guns which are fantastic for battling the renters, I'd like a gun with an electronic trigger for when I'm battling the regular/advanced players and don't want to be always "fighting uphill."
What are my options for a milsim-flavored space-gun that is still in production or was produced recently enough to have a ready supply of spare parts? I'd probably even settle for something like a 3d printed body kit for a regular space-gun if such a thing is available, but I'm not seeing a lot.

Is there anything still being made other than the Defender (which looks weird?)

PS: I know a regular speedball-style gun would work totally fine, I just like the tactical-larp-cringe flavor!

How about just a RT 98C Mag-fed(pz98), stock elbow and 12v Revy, cyclone feed with Apex barrel? 🤔...😎 I can add a collapsible Car-15 stock if desired. 🤷♂️

[nighthunter]

I’ve never heard good things about the DYE DAM or the Empire Defender.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/38681072673...mis&media=COPY

That's not electronic, and as I already said, I'm not inclined toward the EMF because the mags are.... underwhelming.

[Magmoormaster]

Yeah, I think the etha 2 and EMC kit is the way to go. AFAIK they never made an etha 3 version, and they probably wouldn't be compatible. But realistically the only difference between the 2 and the 3 is that the 3 is toolless, so even if the 2 isn't in production anymore it'll use most of the same parts.

[TKcustoms]

Used Tm7 or Tm-15? I believe they both are just axe's in a milsim shell.

[Ecapnation]

There's zero spares for those and they use slightly different solenoids and boards vs the mini and axe. When they break they are boat anchors

[iamthelazerviking]

Tactical Angel lol

[Trbo323]

Used Tm7 or Tm-15? I believe they both are just axe's in a milsim shell.

15. I've worked with both. The plastic clamshell on the 7 is really infuriating to work with. The 15 feels much better in the hands

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[Frmrspec]

That and the body of the 15 acts as a suppressor around the barrel.. it’s stupid quiet

[Psycho91]

What about an sp1, it's basically a simplified tactical ion,, only downside is it's single trigger, it is electric though and you can get one with an aftermarket board to get all the modern modes, it has semi, 3 shot, and full auto on the stock board, shoots 11 bps max on stock board, doesn't have eyes it uses low force tech, they did make the blackheart kit with a breach and eyes for them, and you can find them used for $100 or less

[nighthunter]

I had a vibe back in the day. I'd go for an SP1; but are the solenoids still available? Would it be possible to cannibalize one of the GoG guns if not?

[Dusty Bottoms]

An SP1 made me give up 'upgrading' my Tippmann A5, and going over to Automags. I had several duels in the woods with a guy using a stock SP1 one day, and was just blown away by how quiet and ball on ball accurate it was. I thought "wtf did I put so much into this A5, only for it to be clearly outclassed by this milsim Ion!?"

[Psycho91]

Yes you can still find solenoids, it's the armature and a rubber disk that usually goes out but there is a guy on FB and ebay that sells replacements, plus there were literally thousands and thousands of ions out there so parts are still available, there's a group on fb for sp guns

[Arthur]

Your best option is a PE Etha 2. I play with mine in the woods and deserts of Oregon (and SG). Someone posted a link to the tacticool body kit. Seems to fit your bill.

If you want to take things to an even more tacticool level, I’d suggest a PE EMF100. It has box mag and hopper options. I run mine exclusively magfed.

I’m glad someone addressed the Dye DAM. Don’t waste your time. I’m a long time owner and it hangs on the wall.

The Empire Dfender is a solid shooter imo. My buddies run them into the ground. It looks like a turd but it feels great in the hands. They are back in stock selling for 8 hundo. I’m thinking about buying one.

BT TM-7 / BT TM-15… parts availability is becoming less and less but these are great wood electros.

Bob Long Tactical G6R…

[Trbo323]

What about an sp1, it's basically a simplified tactical ion,, only downside is it's single trigger, it is electric though and you can get one with an aftermarket board to get all the modern modes, it has semi, 3 shot, and full auto on the stock board, shoots 11 bps max on stock board, doesn't have eyes it uses low force tech, they did make the blackheart kit with a breach and eyes for them, and you can find them used for $100 or less

I wouldn't recommend a sp1. While it does fit the criteria for what you are looking for the real problem is the manifold cap. Sp in their vast and superior knowledge used plastic and shockingly they are pretty much all cracking now which causes a pretty good sized internal leak. Since everyone has this problem they are hard to find consistently at this point. They pop up here and there but it's also that smart parts also just listed the whole manifold and solenoid as one part. This guy

https://tippmannparts.com/collections/smart-parts-sp1-parts-and-diagram/products/smart-parts-sol3lo-solenoid

Realistically you only need the top cover in that photo. If you are forced to buy the rest of it just to get the cover you are spending more money than you really need to

Your best option is a PE Etha 2. I play with mine in the woods and deserts of Oregon (and SG). Someone posted a link to the tacticool body kit. Seems to fit your bill.

If you want to take things to an even more tacticool level, I'd suggest a PE EMF100. It has box mag and hopper options. I run mine exclusively magfed.

I'm glad someone addressed the Dye DAM. Don't waste your time. I'm a long time owner and it hangs on the wall.

The Empire Dfender is a solid shooter imo. My buddies run them into the ground. It looks like a turd but it feels great in the hands. They are back in stock selling for 8 hundo. I'm thinking about buying one.

BT TM-7 / BT TM-15… parts availability is becoming less and less but these are great wood electros.

Bob Long Tactical G6R…

For the most part I agree with aurthurs list here. The etha 2 with the tacticool body kit would do well for you.

The emf100 is mech that's why I was wondering if a etha frame could slap onto it.
Even in mech though, you can do a ssc double trigger, put a DW hair 45 in it and you can walk the trigger all day long.

Arthur what's wrong with the dam? I have no real experience with them. Fairly small crowd that owns them so I haven't really heard much negative.

The defender on the other hand, buddy of mine has one. It's caused him a lot of problems. He won't admit it because he is a diehard fan but it's just seemed to have a lot of little things go wrong. Nothing catastrophic but just more than I would expect out of a $800 platform

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[Arthur]

I ran the DAM for years. Even had it anodized. I sometimes take it out and shoot FS with it.

Dye got around to finally fixing and releasing an update breach circa 2022. Running a DAM prior was inconsistent. Some people would just give up. For the price point it’s was more work than it was worth.

With the updated breach it shoots FS marvelously.

With the updated breach you can get the box mag running good but you have to adjust the tension screw +/- depending on the paint your shooting. Even still it’s not impervious to a single chop. And one you chop there goes your eyes.

It’s the last platform I’d recommend to the OP based on what he’s looking for.

It’s olddddd Dye tech, lots of orings, prone to leaks, irritating disassembly/maintenance too.

[nighthunter]

Has anyone used the Tippmann Stryker? It seems like it's just a modified Ion/SP1 bolt system. Is it a flaming dumpster fire, or do they actually shoot? lol