Hey guys, not really a tech tip of any sort but just a suggestion.

Make sure you dont have any large paint colored stickers on your hopper shells.  They can be mistaken for hits and you can get pulled for it.

Also unlike myself, keep your hoppers in good maintainence.  I am horrible for this on account of diving and getting shot in the hopper.  Also, when diving dont be like tyler dom at CCPL and break your feedneck off of your buddies ION....Haha

PLay safe keep it real later.......

Hey guys...I know alot of you are getting into the speedfeeds...(I know I am)

Make sure you have a nasty weather hopper too though...I know the speedfeeds are nice but they are in no way weather proof...also for all you tourny ballers and anyoe in general....Keep enough batteries on you for yourself and sometimes your friends or teammates...We almost lucked out on hoppers this weekend at carls...my battteries were all but dead by the end of the day and I had no backup plans...So Make sure you have the power...

Good luck to all you guys in the upcoming year...Good Ballin'

So the Epiphany is out now and it is to my knowledge the first gun to be made out of primarily Magnesium as opposed to Aluminum.  This got me wondering, why would Smart Parts do this?

Aluminum is the most abundant metal on the earth, so in terms of availabilty it beats out Magnesium.  This makes you begin to look into other properties of the metals, and into the history of Smart Parts themselves.

There are several different grades of Aluminum used in paintball.  The standard seems to be 6061-T6, which is used by nearly everybody.  AGD makes their Mag bodies from 7075, the strongest of the aluminums, and Smart Parts seems to be the only major manufacturer using the 2011 series.

2011 Aluminum is softer & easier to machine than standard 6061.  This cuts costs on milling as your bits & machines will last longer.  Another quality of this metal is how well it anodizes, however it is more prone to fading than 6061 or 7075.  It is also more likely that guns using this type of aluminum will experience stripped threads.  Holds better tolerances than 6061.

7075 Aluminum is a both stronger & harder than 2011 & 6061.  Both the raw material and machining costs are higher with 7075, which is why AGD's ULE & Slug bodies (from which the Deadlywind bodies are machined) are so expensive.  7075 is harder to anodize, but holds its finish better than 2011.  Holds better tolerances than both 2011 & 6061 series.

6061-T6 Aluminum is the "aircraft grade" aluminum you always hear about.  It is right in the middle, easy to anodize, relatively strong and cheaper to machine than 7075.

Magnesium is more expensive in terms of raw material but is softer than 2011 Aluminum, and easier to machine on top of that.  It cannot be anodized, but is 33% lighter than aluminum.  It does hold tolerances as well if not better than 7075 Aluminum.

Just something to think about when considering the Epiphany...

Well seeing as it's turkey month, Dont eat too much turkey befor you play paintball.  This is also the start of hunting season so all you woodsballers out there, be careful.  Also Lube your bolt more often and keep your gun more clean in the winter, the cold does wierd shiot to those markers gents. 

Well since it is getting rather chilly in a hurry, I decided to run a thread on WINTER FILL PAINT....YAY.

No really, this is serious.  I notice a real big performance change just from going from 60-70 degrees out to 40-50 degrees.  I was shooting Heat, and most of the time it shoots like a charm.  This weekend I shot Heat at outlaw when it was 45 degrees, and it chopped like a freaking wood chipper.  I think it may have made a difference if i would have used origin classic winter fill.  Actually I know.  So yea just a tip for those of you who play all winter long.  Have fun and be safe this winter, and I challenge you all individually to bring a new person into the sport this winter and teach them a few things about paintball.  C ya...