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View Full Version : Need help....breaking paint badly


Pitbull_1973
02-02-2004, 05:22 PM
Hey guys. I'm a complete newbie here, so please, be gentle.

My setup:
Tippmann 98 Custom with Flatline Barrel
Nitrogen tank
Shocktech Drop Forward
Draxxus Blaze Paint

My Situation:
I just bought this marker from a friend who absolutely loved it, but upgraded to a Autococker. The marker is only about 2 years old, and has been used less than 10 times. Before selling me the marker, my friend cleaned the marker completely, replaced all the o-rings and lubed the bolt. He keeps all of his equipment completely emaculate, so I'm not worried about any mis-handling on his part.

I used the marker this past Saturday for the first time at the Paintball Central Park in Sedalia, NC and the first few games went really well. The marker performed exceptionally well. However, after the 3rd or 4th game, a ball broke in the marker. I don't know if it broke in the breach or if it broke in the barrel (How do you tell?), but for the rest of the game (since I didn't take a squeegie with me onto the field) I was shooting through paint so my shots were way off.

I went back to the staging area and cleaned the barrel as thoroughly as I could with a pull-thru squeegie, and joined in another game. This time, after about 5 shots, another ball broke. This is how the rest of my day went. I would clean the barrel, but in less than 10 shots another ball would break. The temperature was about 40 degrees (not sure if that's too cold or not).

My questions:
1) Is it possible I was trying to fire too fast with the flatline system causing the balls to break? If so, why do I see flatline systems couple with response triggers?

2) Was it too cold for the Draxxus Blaze paint? (Paintball Central requires you to use Draxxus Blaze or "whitebox" paint on their field)

3) I have seen that ball size can have an effect on causing breaking. Is the Draxxus Blaze the wrong size ball for the flatline?

4) I did not get my marker chronoed before playing. Could I have been shooting too fast?

5) What are some additional things to look for to try to prevent breaking balls? Are there any upgrades anyone can suggest that might help? I'm already thinking of getting a motorized hopper (the marker came with a plain hopper) to see if that might do something, but I honestly don't see how it would.

Any and all suggestions/comments are welcomed

Coenen
02-02-2004, 06:08 PM
Originally posted by Pitbull_1973
4) I did not get my marker chronoed before playing. Could I have been shooting too fast?

Cold weather + High Velocity + Flatline = broken balls

If they are breaking in the barrel try lower velocity or thicker shelled paint. Also find a traditional(straight) barrel to use when conditions do not favor the Flatline.

If they are chopped slap a Reloader on top of that puppy

You'll be able to tell the difference b/c you will see pieces of shell and paint in the bolt and feed neck if you are chopping.

sniper222
02-03-2004, 02:12 AM
I agree. with flatlines you need to match the right paint with the right velocity.

dbs1054
02-03-2004, 03:57 AM
You might not have gotten the barrel clean, once the first ball breaks the rest will follow. There are different types of solvent that help, I ended up buying a barrel mop because the Armson stealth is hard to clean and any left over paint in the grooves will break paint. With the flatline not being smooth you could be running into the same thing. The reason I say this is because your day was going fine til the first break. Just check everything and cover everything.

CountyPaintball
02-03-2004, 08:13 AM
How cold was it? In cold weather (usually below 50 degrees F) paintball shells become brittle and break in the barrel much easier. Since a flatline barrel applies additional friction to the paintballs, they would be more likely to break. You may want to consider a different barrel for cold weather play. I would recommend a Lapco Bigshot.

Mike

RFCViper
02-03-2004, 10:41 AM
I'm putting a Lapco Big Shot on my A-5 for Winter play, just because of this....

My Flatline is breaking all paint like crazy....Well, not too bad with Big Balls and Evils (only 1 per 200 shots), but Afterburners are breaking after about 20 shots...

I tried working with the velocity, but they are still breaking like crazy.

It is just too difficult to shoot people when I'm just spraying paint out the end of my barrel... :(

And the Lapco Big Shot was recommended to me by yakitori, so I'm going with it! :tup:

Pitbull_1973
02-04-2004, 09:46 AM
Thanks for the suggestions guys. I'm going to thoroughly clean the barrel before I play again and get the marker chronoed to see how hot I'm shooting. Then I'll try adjusting the velocity to see if that helps.

Pitbull_1973
02-05-2004, 10:11 AM
Are there any solvents or cleaning solutions that you would recommend for cleaning the barrel and marker, or should I just use water?

RFCViper
02-05-2004, 10:47 AM
I just use water....Sometimes warm water and a squeegee....

Or sometimes I use a battle swab. :)

Turambar
02-05-2004, 05:15 PM
Water and a squeegee is the best way to go. Solvents or other things may leave a residue on your barrel, which in turn could effect performance.

p8ntba11dude89
02-05-2004, 06:37 PM
they sell some barrel cleanin stuff at countypaintball, but just use some warm water:D