ActionVillage Barrels?

[AoDAzrael]

I'm planning on getting one of the following as my first gun:
Spyder - Xtra
Victor II
TL-X

And as I've heard all around, the first thing I should do is to get a new barrel. Well, I went to ActionVillage's website and found that they were having this big sale on a lot of their barrels, and I was looking at the Dye Xcel 12in barrels, specifically.

I also noticed that there were no Dye Xcel 12in barrels for sale that specifically said "Spyder".

Now call me stupid (cause I'm a newb, no ifs ands or buts about that - especially when it comes to marker modifications and etc.) but does that mean that the Xcel 12in Indian Creek, Automag, Inferno, Angel, etc. barrels that ARE on sale for about $20 American or less won't work with any Spyders?

And before someone berates me and tells me to put this in the "barrel" forum, in my defense I would like to say beforehand that my question seemed more like a plain Newb question more than a true-to-heart customization/parts type of topic.

[coolrazer]

different types of guns have different threading for the barrels so if it isnt made for a spyder it wont screw in. You cant take a spyder barrel and expect to use it on an angel or vice versa.

Its all a scam for the paintball companies to make tons of money(its not like they dont make enough already...1400 bucks for a DM4, you've GOT to be kidding me)......WHY CANT WE ALL JUST GET ALONG AND HAVE ONE UNIVERSAL BARREL THREADING!!!????!!!! :mad:

[coolrazer]

this is the best spyder barrel for the $$$$$
http://www.actionvillage.com/012-3500.html

[AoDAzrael]

I guess that would explain why they would be on sale for such a cheap price...

I mean, why wouldn't someone spend more money to get a kit or something like a Boomstick if they've got the money to get an Automag, Cocker, or an Angel?

[AoDAzrael]

Sry for the double post, but the link above goes to a 14in barrel...

Wouldn't a 12in work better? From what I've heard, extra length on a barrel can actually be more detrimental for perfomance that a shorter one...

[coolrazer]

unless a barrel is rifled, the length of the barrel shouldn't effect performance. I think that a 14 inch barrel is best because it is long enough to push bunkers in speedball and short enough not to catch the ground while running in woodsball.


EDIT: Crap... i meant to say Shouldn't effect performance...not should

[HurleyHero67]

After 8-10 inches, the ball is finished propelling and anything more than that just increases drag. The only reason to get anything above that is for pushing speedball bunkers around or for asthetic reasons.

[AoDAzrael]

Is the drag as bad if the barrel is ported for the last 4 inches on a 14 inch barrel?

Lotta questions, I know... =P

[HurleyHero67]

Not neccissarily, the drag thing isn't a big deal, I was just dismissing any thoughts if you thought a 12 or 14 inch barrel gave you maximum performance. The porting will make it quieter, and use more gas. That's about it. What type of paintball do you play?

[AoDAzrael]

Well, I'm just starting so basically just about everything...

CTF/Elimination games, Speedball, Hyperball (are they the same thing?), Airball/Sup Air, Woodsball, etc.

So far, I've been playing with rental equip, but I pretty much decided that I'm going to get my own equip soon. And since one of the most important upgrades to a gun that most people suggest getting first is a barrel, I thought that getting a good, general purpose barrel would be a good idea.

One thing, though, could you guys suggest a barrel that has a good bore for cost-effective paint? I don't want to go with cheap stuff like Brass Eagle, but on the other hand I'd really prefer to not have to spend big bucks on Marballizers and Evil all the time.

[Silverbolt]

http://www.pbreview.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=229906

[HurleyHero67]

The barrel is pretty important, yes, but very overrated IMO. No reason to waste money on barrels like Boomsticks that are pushing $100 for a minimal performance gain.

As far as paint goes, for just regular week-end play I usually use Zap Spank or Zap Primer and it's great. At the fields it runs for $45 a case, but I get mine for $30 a case, but that's beside the point. You can actually get Ghetto paint for $30 a case online, a friend of mine used some last weekend and went a whole case with only one break, so it's obviously not that bad. It's a good idea to get a place/supplier to get your paint from and get the same stuff every time, find out the bore of it, and then buy your barrel accordingly. CP one pieces tend to come in a very good variety of bores, other barrels that would suit you fine would be a J&J Ceramic, Lapco Bigshot, Smart Parts Teardrop, the Xcel, etc.

As far as speedball goes, speedball is any type of game that's not woods, you could say. Supair ball, hyperball, a supair type game but with wooden bunkers or couches would even classify as speedball. If you play a lot of supair, it would be wise to look into getting something as high as 16", you'll find you can push around the bunkers very easily, especially if you're a frontman.