INTRODUCTION
Like the other quality tests, this one also has a dual purpose. You can also use this list when you are shopping for a marker, be it new or used.
QUESTION # 1. DOES THE MARKER PERFORM REASONABLY WELL WITH ANY BRAND OF PAINT?
There are markers out there that work well with certain brands of paint. This is fine if you can guarantee you're going to get the brand of paint your marker likes. However, you are a victim of circumstance when it comes to paintballs. The marker should also be able to function without breaking "less than superior quality" paint. Many other markers won't work unless the paint is fresh out of the encapsulator.
QUESTION # 2. DOES THE MARKER REQUIRE FEW AFTERMARKET ACCESSORIES?
After shelling out two to four hundred dollars (or more) for a marker, you shouldn't have to spend another couple of hundred bucks to make it function well. You can buy all the aftermarket accessories you WANT, as long as you don't HAVE to.
QUESTION # 3. IS THE MARKER MECHANICALLY RELIABLE?
Parts should work right, fit right and be durable. The marker should not need to be "baby sat" constantly. You should be able to load paint, charge it up with air and not worry about things breaking, falling out or not functioning at all.
QUESTION # 4. IS THE MARKER SIMPLE TO OPERATE AND USER FRIENDLY?
You shouldn't need a two hundred page user manual and a degree in astrophysics to learn how to use the marker. You shouldn't have to use more than one tool for adjusting velocity. You shouldn't have to take the stupid thing apart to adjust the velocity, either. It shouldn't need to be oiled after every 100 balls. The marker should have such a basic operating system that a plant (or I) could use it.
QUESTION # 5. IS THE MARKER LIGHT ENOUGH FOR YOU?
You are going to be lugging this thing around with you all day. You're going to be running, jumping over fallen trees and dodging paintballs. You can't do that when your marker weighs more than a blacksmith's anvil.
QUESTION # 6. DOES THE MARKER HAVE SOME SORT OF MECHANICAL SAFETY?
You shouldn't totally rely on this safety mechanism, but the marker should have some sort of device to render the marker impossible to fire, should you accidentally pull the trigger.
QUESTION # 7. IS THE MARKER REASONABLY PRECISE?
Notice I didn't say "accurate"? Accuracy is the product of the shooter, that is to say the person holding the marker provides the accuracy. Precision lies in the area where if you clamped the marker to something solid, and fired a dozen rounds, the balls would impact within a ten inch circle at seventy five feet.
QUESTION # 8. IS THE MARKER EASILY MAINTAINABLE?
It should come apart with little fussing. It should be able to be cleaned easily. The marker should not require two hours of maintenance after every time you play, to be ready for the next time.
QUESTION # 9. IS THE MARKER ROBUST?
Look, we're running around the woods, diving into bunkers, crawling through brush and generally knocking the poor marker around as if it were indestructible. Direct feeds shouldn't snap off if you have a fully loaded feeder on it. It shouldn't stop working if you drop it accidentally. Knocking it against the tree shouldn't make it start hissing gas out every hole. This is a rough and tumble game sometimes, and the markers have to keep up.
QUESTION # 10. IS THE MARKER INEXPENSIVE?
When I say inexpensive I mean under $300.00. Yes, there are some nice markers out there, but who needs to spend $600.00 for one? As far as I am concerned, any marker that costs over $300.00 should allow you to sit back in camp and go out and play the game FOR you.
SCORING:
1 point for every "yes" answer. If you answer "no" to Question # 3, the marker is not mechanically reliable and the score is zero.
THE MARKER'S SCORE:
0-1, you'd be better off with a slingshot. 2-4, so it works okay. Maybe it's time to start shopping around for a new marker. 5-7, well, you didn't get lucky, the majority of markers on the market today fall in this scoring category. 8-10, having this marker makes your paintball day more enjoyable, doesn't it?
CONCLUSION
Some may say my criteria is too harsh. Some may say that no paintmarker could meet up to my standards. Well, I don't think so. There are dozens of markers that fit the criteria.
Some may say that I didn't mention "the marker should shoot fast". Well, that's not an important criteria. Replace any of the above ten criteria with "shoots fast" and you will have a marker that will not work properly, is too heavy, is hard to maintain, costs over $300.00, isn't very user friendly or whatever criteria you chose to replace.
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