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pbReview.com / Real Action Paintball RAP4 / Real Action Paintball RAP4 / Real Action Paintball RAP4 / Real Action Paintball RAP4
Real Action Paintball RAP4 Reviews
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Number of Reviews: |
19 |
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Average Rating: |
6.8 / 10 |
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Manufacturer Website: |
Click here |
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Suggested Retail Price: |
$499 |
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The first real action paintball marker that is identical to the legendary M4 rifle used by SWAT Teams and the U.S. Military. The RAP4 shoots 40 or 43 caliber paintballs wrapped in metal or plastic shells. The RAP4 automatically ejects the
shells in rapid-fire succession just like a real M4 rifle. There are two types of ammunition: metal-shelled and plastic-shelled (for environment protection the plastic shells are biodegradable ).
Although the RAP4 is an automatic paintball marker, it only uses 1.5 joule to launch a 0.029 oz. projectile a distance of 33 meters. With this power, the RAP4 can be fired 50 times with only 0.4 oz of CO2. RAP4's Co2 cylinder is ingeniously hidden inside the butt stock. The RAP4 is a marvel of engineering!
The world's first paintball marker designed like a real assault rifle. Features include:
Adjustable for semi or fully automatic fire
Shell casing ejected after each shot.
Clip fed 20 rounds magazine.
Low pressure or steady pressure launch
Gas exhaust through flash hider-type muzzle
Low gas consumption
Can be fully submerged in water without harm.
Velocity 250 to 450 fps (adjustable)
Simple to operate & easy to maintain
The RAP4 allows you to enjoy War Games like never before! It looks and feels like a REAL M4 military assault rifle. Casings are ejected out the side in rapid-fire succession just like a real M4 rifle! Safely experience the excitement and heroism of real war combat! This is as REAL as it gets!
Unlike traditional paintball markers that rely on gravity and a hopper for reloading, The RAP4 loads through a bottom-mounted magazine just like a real M4 rifle! This gives users an incredibly "realistic" feeling for War Games and SWAT simulations.
Due to these many outstanding features, the RAP4 is undeniably the best non-lethal assault rifle in the world today. Many branches of the U.S. military and local law enforcement use the RAP4 in their training camps and simulations. The RAP4 is a 1000 times better than a cheap aluminum marker because it is designed and built exactly like a real M4 assault rifle. This makes RAP4 the PERFECT marker for military training, SWAT simulations, and competitive War Games. Best of all,
the RAP4 is extremely safe, highly affordable, and more fun and excitement than anything you've ever experienced
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| Product Availability | |
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| The Real Action Paintball RAP4 is newer, so it should be commonly available, both new and used. |
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| Places to Buy | |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| 6 months | 28 of 32 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
I have never used a similar marker line to these. |
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| Marker Setup: |
I own a store. |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
More Magazines. |
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| Strengths: |
Most realistic paintball gun ever made at this time. Period
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| Weaknesses: |
Smaller size paintballs |
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| Review: |
So I managed to get my hands on one of the notorious 43 cal shooting rap4’s. I had heard many mixed opinions about them, but I will try to remain as unbiased as possible and just review it.
First off no other marker I had shot up to this point had used .43 cal, or expelled a shell for that matter, so it was interesting.
I will break this review down into 5 categories (Looks and cosmetics, Features/special attributes, Shooting and related, Air and related, and Durability and maintenance), each with a potential of two points to be given or taken away.
-<LOOKS>-
At a glance it is impossible, and mean impossible unless you are a ballistics expert, to tell the rap4 from the real M4. The manufacturer (Asian paintball supply) paid great attention to detail. It is a 1 to 1 model.
+1
Everything on it has some depth to its design instead of being pointless or just a plastic piece (which there is very few of, this marker is almost 100% metal) For example the bolt assist on a T68 is a piece of plastic, on the rap4 they at least make it a spring button. The cocking lever opens the shutter door, and all of the buttons basically do what they would have done on the real thing only they are adapted to a paintball marker.
+1
Now before you start screaming “ It looks to real, people are going to think bad things about paintball!” you must first take into consideration that these markers were intended for police and military training, they are only sold for paintball sports on the side. They are a Tool and then a Toy, in that order, not the other way around.
2/2
-<FETURES / SPECIAL ATTRIBUTES>-
They key thing to the rap4 is its realistic operation.
Each .43 caliber paintball is put into an alloy or biodegradable shell. Each shell is put into a spring fed magazine that holds 20 shells. The magazine is loaded into the marker basically exactly the same as the real M4. When the gun is shot the ejection arm in the chamber pushes the spent shell out making a realistic shell expel effect, and if you are using the alloy shells it makes a cool “ting” sound on the floor, ground, or what have you.
+1
Just like the real thing it has a Mode selector switch with SAFTE, SEMI, and AUTO modes. Fully automatic rate of fire and velocity were adjusted by two parallel set screws inside the body. Fully auto was adjustable between 1 and what must have been 20 bps at its highest setting. I liked to keep it down around 10-14 for a more realistic rate of fire. Velocity was adjustable between 250 and 360 fps (couldn’t quite get it to 400).
The iron sights were 100% authentic with small and large peep holes and wind adjustment.
The marker utilized the bolt free operation so chopping was physically impossible.
Co2 tank is hidden in butt stock.
METS system makes the gun stop cycling if the mag is empty saving you gas and making it more realistic.
+1
2/2
-<SHOOTING AND RELATED>-
First thing that happens when you shoot this gun: a shell comes out the side. Now that is cool. Second thing you will notice is the ball is .43 cal, and unless you are shooting at 400 feet per second it does not have the same range as a .68 cal, meaning unless your field makes acceptations for smaller caliber speed limits you are tactically ineffective and will have to rely on skill instead of firepower ( oh no!) unless of course you are playing against other .43 cal markers.
-1
The accuracy was pretty good, all shots at a target at 50 feet were within a 1 foot group in semi, in fully auto it was usually a 2-3 foot group.
Reloading was very cool, you just press the mag release button and put a new one in.
Unfortunately it is a big hassle to put each ball into a shell and each shell into a clip, it is the price you pay for wanting the most real marker you can get, it comes with all the fun things the real one has, and all of the strenuous boring things to.
-1
0/2
-<AIR AND RELATED>-
Many people ask me “Where does the tank go on that gun?” and I point to the butt stock. The co2 tank is a reliable 45 or 60 gram co2 with a built in on off. These tanks are low profile and fit into either a collapsible stock or solid stock concealing it from sight. I use a 45 gram, the efficiency of the rap4 is good enough to propel 6 magazines worth of paint, roughly 120-140 shots per 45 gram. There really is no need to walk on the field with more than 6 mags, but if you feel there is you can always get the 60 gram which can probably put out 10-12 mags.
+1
Consistency was about + - 10 in full auto, which is good for unregulated co2 at high rates of fire. VERY good.
+1
2/2
-<DURABILITY AND MANTINENCE>-
The maker field strips just like a real m4 with no tools. This makes it simple to clean and maintain. It is allot like a Tippmann in the since that it will work every time you screw the tank in if you keep it clean and oiled and don’t screw with it.
+1
IT is built of pretty much the same exterior materials as a real m4, if it is durable enough for the military it is durable enough for me. Everything is either metal or high impact plastic ( handle, stock housing, ect).
+1
2/2
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| Conclusion: |
This is a one of a kind line of markers. For military training or scenario play I recommend them above all others for looks and function. For woods ball with friends on the weekend you are better off saving money and buying an A5 and a high pressure air tank for half the price.
In short they are the coolest, but at a price.
8/10
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| Rating: |
| 8 out of 10 | Last edited on Tuesday, September 19th, 2006 at 5:04 am PST |
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Mogley |
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Thursday, October 28th, 2004 |
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The accuracy of this review is disputed. Please see discussion on the comments page.
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Period of
Product Use: |
| 1 year | 18 of 24 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
2 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Tippman 98, Tippman A5 |
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| Marker Setup: |
Real Action Marker LE Version |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
LE upgrade for v3 and v4 markers. |
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| Strengths: |
Exact 1:1scale replica, no other marker is this real. Not armotch, at4, sim4, none. |
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| Weaknesses: |
Uses .43 cal paintballs made by nelson, some fields wont allow .43. |
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| Review: |
This is the M4 Ram v4 LE with single shot and full auto modes. For those out there looking for the most realistic markers these cant be beat. So real swat and military orginazations prefer to train with this marker. NO HOPPERS!!!!! This uses real 21 round magazines loaded with paintballs in shell casings that eject when fired and that must be reloaded to provide the real wargame experience. I personally have owned the v4 marker, and now I just bought the latest version of this marker the LE. This new version addresses flaws with the original versions. Has 400fps and as accurate and as much range as a Tippman A5. Capable of 13bps on full auto, and the bps is adjustable. |
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| Conclusion: |
Great marker for those looking for realistic 1:1 scale replicas. The LE version now puts the range and accuracy in the same range as a Tippman A5. |
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| Rating: |
| 10 out of 10 | Last edited on Thursday, October 28th, 2004 at 5:43 pm PST |
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The accuracy of this review is disputed. Please see discussion on the comments page.
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Period of
Product Use: |
| 6 months | 16 of 40 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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| Marker Setup: |
RAM, Red Dot Site, .43 barrel, Two mags, mag cinch |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
Don't buy one get an AT-4 |
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| Strengths: |
The RAM is an extremely realistic Marker, is select fire, and runs off magazines. |
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| Weaknesses: |
Poor quality, magazines not reliable, not allowed on most organized fields, limited selection of paint |
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| Review: |
On initially receiving the RAM, I was impressed by the overall realism of it. If it was not for the brass ring on the CO2 tank and the orange muzzle it would be an exact copy. Unfortunately that is where the markers pro's stop. First off upon taking it out of the box, I noticed that the barrel was very loose and required quite a bit of disassembly to tighten. Next I inspected the magazines, and found that one of them broke after only being wound a couple of times. The magazines have a spring that is coiled around a guide wire that is made up of what appears to be thick fishing line. This line snapped in two, which makes the magazine useless. I was going to test range and accuracy, but I was shipped the wrong barrel, by the dealer RAP4.COM. Attempting to dry fire the marker was problematic at best. It would either not fire, or fire continuously, and no amount of adjustment seemed to rectify the problem. I contacted the dealer about fixing the barrel issue and was told to ship it back to them at my expense. Additionally the paint I did receive seemed to be brittle and of low quality since I had numerous breaks when I opened the boxes they were in. |
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| Conclusion: |
Overall the RAM is a great looking marker, but looks don't eliminate the other team. Its appearance is hampered by a lack of performance, and quality. Service by the dealers is also a big issue, and very lacking. The magazines are frail, and are heavy even when empty. Their low capacity of 20 rounds will create the need to carry a large number of them to maintain any sort of long term play. Though I did not get to range test mine, other reviews from the RAP4.COM forum run rampant with players being able to hit out to only 40 or 50 feet with any accuracy. The .43 and .40 caliber paint these markers run on is not accepted at most fields, and must be purchased at the dealer, so buy in bulk or you'll be waiting a week to go play while your paint is shipped to you. Since what attracts people to the ram is the lack of a hopper I would suggest getting a AT-4 which also runs off magazines. I would suggest this only if you want an expensive tinker toy. |
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| Rating: |
| 1 out of 10 | Last edited on Sunday, May 27th, 2007 at 10:07 pm PST |
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fox4 |
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Sunday, March 27th, 2005 |
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The accuracy of this review is disputed. Please see discussion on the comments page.
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Period of
Product Use: |
| Less than a month | 11 of 16 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
1 year |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Tippman 98C, A5, Spyders |
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| Marker Setup: |
Rap4 LE, 12 magazines |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
None, Do not purchase this marker, use your money on something slightly less cool looking but actually will shoot well and provide you with a fun paintball experience. |
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| Strengths: |
Looks great- that's it. |
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| Weaknesses: |
Poor quality, expensive paintball/shell combo, expensive magazines |
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| Review: |
This gun is absolutely the most realistic thing you can purchase and is undoubtedly the reason some people are duped into purchasing it. The marker itself is about $450, but by the time you buy enough gas canisters and magazines to bring 200 rounds into a battle you will easily have $1000 into it. Save your money and purchase something a bit less real looking but actually practical.
The smaller caliber paintballs are only available from one source, are useless in woods ball, and are far too cumbersome to use. The ball must first be loaded into a shell, then placed into a magazine one by one. You can only fit 20 in a magazine and if you remove the magazine before it is empty 4 rounds fall out of it wasted.
The effective range of this caliber paintball is not even close to a .68 caliber. It's muzzle energy is almost half that of a .68, so there is no way you can penetrate any kind of brush. This is not a function of the gun, but the shear physics of a smaller paintball. Don't believe the hype on the manufacturer's website. The paint also seems quite brittle as barrel breaks were common.
I was under the impression that the quality and durability would be similar to an actual AR15. Not even close.... this is a cheap made in China knock off. It feeds the rounds into the gun very fast and the shells getting ejected are very realistic, but the whole thing is so complicated that we had a malfunction the first time out. The second time out, some of the thin aluminum frame broke.
The manufacturer only gives you 7 days to return the gun for a refund... I know why now- they would get almost every one back if they really stood behind this product.
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| Conclusion: |
Do not believe the great videos and text on the website. This might be OK for a military or police dept. that wants to look real cool, but for anyone that wants to enjoy the sport of paintball this will be a complete waste of their money. |
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| Rating: |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| Only tested | 10 of 16 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
3 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Brass Eagle Eradicator
Ariakon Sim-4
Armotech WG-365
tournament markers don't compare |
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| Marker Setup: |
MacDev Sonic
70/45 CF Nitro
rail on/off
empire reloader |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
60g tank
preference things |
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| Strengths: |
Very Realistic
Good for Mil-Sim |
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| Weaknesses: |
Not a tournament marker
.43/.40 cal |
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| Review: |
my friends and i used a few of these for some mil-sim scenario fun as a break after a tourny, and they were awesome. Extremely realistic, i am personally rather interested and have much experience with real weapons, such as the m4 and i do not believe that the real weapon image shold mix with tourny paintball, but if that's what you're into, this rocks. it loads fast, shoots fast enough, the barrel matches well, and it feels very sturdy in your hand. the bad thing is that .43 paint does not exist outside rap dealers. |
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| Conclusion: |
I'd say get it if you're into scenario and mil-sim. |
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| Rating: |
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The accuracy of this review is disputed. Please see discussion on the comments page.
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Period of
Product Use: |
| 3 months | 7 of 9 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Trracer, Stingray 2, Tippman 98 |
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| Marker Setup: |
RAP 4 LE with RIS sight rail, red dot sight, shell catcher. Other than that, stock. |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
None |
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| Strengths: |
It looks amazing. That's ALL there is to this gun. |
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| Weaknesses: |
Velocity, durability, customer service. See below. |
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| Review: |
I'm editing this due to comments made (correct comments) about this marker and it's review.
This weapon simply looks awesome. It's the most realistic looking marker on the field. But, that's about all it has to give you. Looks. Kind of like a stripper in a dark bar. Looks great. Turn on the lights, run for your life.
The marker. Cheap metal. Low grade aluminum, easily dented or damaged. Actually had a piece break off the charging handle. Pulled the charging handle, and *snap* came off a piece. Now the handle's useless. Poor O rings, damage easily and strip themselves if you try to work with them.
Now, I had ordered a RAP 4, they sent me a RAP 4 LE. When I spoke to the techies at RAP4 before purchasing, I was told yes, it'll fire under 300fps. Which is where the fun began.
Customer service. Oh, I forgot...WHAT customer service. I contacted the company about several issues. The broken part, the velocity, the cheap stock. Know what I was told? Buy the replacement part even though it's the same cheap POS they sent you, buy an upgraded stock since they didn't send a quiality one in the first place, buy a new core even though they sent me the wrong one in the first place. Generally ignorant people with little or no customer service skills. For what they charge for thier markers, you'd think they'd have people with some people skills. Guess what...no. Sure, they were peaches and cream with me until they got my money. Then it was "what, give service? are you kidding? hahahahahaha" all the way to the bank. I asked specifically...can the marker have the velocity brought down to about 260-280fps. I was told flat out...yes it can. It can be brought to as low as 200fps. Lie. I couldn't believe it either. When you pay $700.00 for a mechanical marker, you'd think they'd tell you the truth. Suprise!! |
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| Conclusion: |
If you're buying a marker, DO NOT buy this cheap POS. It's not worth it. It's WAY over-priced, the marker itself is a piece of junk, the customer service sucks.
The bottom line is this....spend the money on a suicide kit instead. Because after dealing with RAP4.com you're going to need it. |
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| Rating: |
| 1 out of 10 | Last edited on Wednesday, June 20th, 2007 at 4:23 pm PST |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| Less than a month | 7 of 9 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Icon E, Black Dragun, Tippmans (all kinds), Autococker, Angel |
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| Marker Setup: |
Rap4, Bilevel mount, Red dot scope, Laser Sight, Shell Catcher, Fake Silencer, basically all the goodies |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
Well, you really don't need anything else but the shell catcher, i put everything else on for looks. You want the shell catcher so you don't have to pick up all the shells. |
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| Strengths: |
Most realistic, same accuracy and range as all other guns (LE version) |
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| Weaknesses: |
Make sure you get a shell catcher, they are a pain to pick up |
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| Review: |
Good points- Shoots the same as all other markers eventhough it is a .43 caliber, Its insanely accurate and fast. SUPER realistic, i have handled the real m4, and the only difference is it shoots paintballs, if someone just walked up to it and saw it, they would have no idea that it wasn't a real gun. The thing i love most about this gun is the clips, I've used all other kinds of paintball guns, everything from tippman to angels, and thats all fun and stuff, but i got sick of it. So I decided to go into milsim. I tried the at4, it was extremely expensive, not worth the money, it was a great gun but just not worth it. The Tippman A5 is also a great gun, but doesn't use a clip. So for being realistic it IS the closest thing to it. I also love the air tanks, they are small and with a 1.4 ounce i can get about 120 shots off of it. I wonder how many shots i could get if i used a remote line with nitro, i might try it. Just make sure that when you buy this gun, you buy the paint in the bottles, it is slightly larger and doesn't break like the kind that comes with the gun.
Weakness- Well, i got this gun from a guy on ebay, and from the very moment i had problems with it. I think the guy accidently did something to the gun and messed it up, so i ordered another one and got it in and it works great now. But with the first one, it chopped balls, air leaked, everything that could go wrong with the gun did. But the new one works great now. |
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| Conclusion: |
Overall, this is the most realistic paintball gun i have ever used, probably why the military and police train with it. I highly recommend this gun if you are getting into milsim, just don't use it on an airfield, u'll get slaughtered (i've tried it, managed to get about 4 people out of a total of 5 games. This gun is excellent, highly durable, realistic, and accurate, just make sure you get the good paint. The only thing i didn't like about it, was that when something was wrong with the first gun i had, it was a pain in the ass to fix. |
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| Rating: |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| Less than a month | 7 of 10 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Pretty Much Every Scenario Gun There Is....
(TIppmanns, Airsoft, ATS, RAMs, & Some Spyders) |
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| Marker Setup: |
RAP RAM-4 LE A1, 5 Magazines, 1 45g Cylinder, 1 60g Cylinder, Tactical Sling, Commando Birdcage Muzzle, Shell Catcher. |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
Do Not Get Anything Below The LE Versions!!!
Your Marker Comes Stock With A 45g Cylinder, Get A 60g To Be Safe!!!
Get 5-10 Clips, 5 Is Fine, Just Be Conservative!!!
Buy A Shell Catcher, It Saves Money And Hastle!!! |
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| Strengths: |
Some Accuracy
Very Compact
Clip Fed
Select Fire
CO2 Powered
Shells! |
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| Weaknesses: |
Poor Build
.43 Cal. Ammo
Expensive
Low Range
Again, Poor Build |
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| Review: |
Ok, The Marker Is Full Metal, Very Durable, Very Stable. Shoots Straight And Dead-On At About 50 Feet Max. You'll Hardly Use Auto In An Open Field Skirmish, But When Your Team Is Contorolling Over 60% of The Field, And You Need To Get Up On The Enemy, The Auto Is There For You. The Forward Asist, Bolt Release And Cocking Handle Don't Actually Do Anything (The Handle Opens The Ejection Port For Shell Release) But They All Move Stable. The Rifle Weighs Almost As Much As The Real One When Fully loaded, So Mil-Sim Is Somewhat True To Life. And The Shells Are Very Cool When Playing In A Place Where You Dont Have To Collect Them, Or you just have alot of them. The Paintball Break A Little Tuffer, But Work Well Enough In CQB. Been Using My RAP4 LE For About 2 Months And Have Had Several Problems of Velocity Adjustment And Accuracy, The Gun Is Not An Open-Field Skirmish Gun! Use Only For CQB! |
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| Conclusion: |
This Is A Good In-Door Training Gun, But Complicated Core Breakdown, Not That You Need To Do It. Not Very Reliable As The Mags Release Ammo Un-Willingly And Somtimes It Will Misfire And You Need To Tild The Upper Receiver To Adjust A Little Pin. Better Than E-Markers And More Compact Than Most PB Guns. Only Get It As A CQB Primary, I Must Stress This! |
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| Rating: |
| 6 out of 10 | Last edited on Wednesday, September 14th, 2005 at 2:57 am PST |
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The accuracy of this review is disputed. Please see discussion on the comments page.
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Period of
Product Use: |
| 3 months | 5 of 7 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
3 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
No other .43 Gun. I have used many .68 scenario guns, such as a Recon E5, as well as upgraded/custom 98C and A5's. |
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| Marker Setup: |
Tippmann A5
Hk33 Handguard
G3 Stock
Hk33 Mag Kit
12" Werks Barrel or 16" Progressive
Howitzer Bolt
Rap4 LE
3 Mags
Vert. Grip
Silencer |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
The LE is a MUST! I cannot stress this enough! The version4's just don't cut it anymore. The LE can be bought as an upgrade kit for $150, a whole new core for $290 or a new LE gun, $550 (same as a Rap4 standard). LE increses velocity with new internals, replaces the mono-filament ball detent with a rubber grommet (also increses reliability, less/no jams). A new barrel. (LE is discussed further in body)
More mags are a must for any sort of decent play. As many as your budget will allow. Along with mags is a shell catcher and a solid remote adaptor or a portable refil kit. This way you can keep the stock on. |
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| Strengths: |
Realism
Accurate
Range
Reliable
Looks/feel
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| Weaknesses: |
Weight for some
High velocity
Rare parts
Rare paint |
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| Review: |
To go into detail with the strengths and weaknesses:
Strengths: Well, if you like realism in you paintball, then this gun is great. When i say realism, I mean it. For some, it will be too realistic to handle. They will tire of loading each paintball into the shell, then each shell into the mags. The 21 round mags will be a burden on those trigger happy players. That's why you must be weary of this. Everything that comes with the real gun, you get with this. Goods and bads.
With the LE Upgrade, the range and accuracy is no longer an issue when playing against .68 guns. The accuracy, if tuned exactly, and using good paint with the LE barrel (copper lined barrel) you can match that of a .68 gun with a 1-piece barrel. Range is slightly less than that of a .68, but it is a sacrafice you have to make. Also, the smaller ball seems more prone to the wind, so be aware of this.
You need to reflect on your playing style when buying this gun. Are you a rusher or back? Do you like to sprint with your gun blazing and bunker people, or lay down cover? Dont get this gun. Period. The small magazines will not allow you to use cover fire, no will it allow you the freedom to make rushes with multiple enemies around. For those who are more of the flanking, stealthy or ambush players, this gun MAY be suited for you. The adjustments in playing style and mind-set is very different with this gun, more different than the gun itself. You may see someone and have surprise, but you will have to think not once but twice before going into the kill. You cannot just jump into the action, you need to plan things out. Although the full-auto can be very fast and help you get that extra step up on the enemy, you'll be hearing the click of death (empty mag) and need to reload fast.
My personal experiance with RAP4, the gun and company:
I've heard, said and believed the old saying that RAP=CRAP, but when i got the chance to trade old A5 parts for a RAP4 i jumped at it. The gun itself looks and feel awesome. The internals are on the rough side, especially the trigger. The trigger pull is heavy and rough, but you get used to it after a while. The gun takes tinkering, keep this in mind. Most of the tinerking for me was the velocity, rate of fire, barrel and mag catch/release. Upon getting the gun, the mag catch would not return when the release button was pressed. I filed this down on many occasions and had to replace a screw in the release button. The velocity is a must! You need to use about 200 balls to tune it for maximum performance, possibly more. Target balls would be a good buy for this if you have the money. You shoot a grouping, open the gun and adjust slightly until you get the best groupings. The barrel is a little fidgety, at least mine was. The previous owner had tightened the set screws too tight so the barrel was really hard to move. Its nothing major though, especially with the LE upgrade.
Trust me when i say you need the LE upgrade! I got this gun as a version 4, and it was jamming every other shot, range was bad and accuracy was worse! I don't know why, but casings would not eject for 3 shots, or shoot a dozen meters. I purchased the LE Upgrade Kit ($150) and basically recieved a new gun. RAP4 sent me a whole new LE core with LE barrel and grommet because the kit was out of stock. They sent me nearly $300 worth of parts when i paid for $150. This was a very great thing to do on their part. I was very pleased. Only thing that sucked was that i needed a new barrel adapter for the rubber grommet to seat properly. I called RAP4 wondering why and they told me the problem quickly and politely and after telling them my order number they sent me a new barrel adpater free. I have nothing but good things to say about their customer service thus far, and KT Tran, the owner, is a very polite person and very helpful through e-mail.
There is a noticeable differance between the LE and version 4. LE shoots 350-450fps, when the version 4 tops at 280. Be careful though, fields will most likely not allow the smaller paint size, and those that do might have a chrono limit of 300fps even for the smaller paint. It is safe to shoot the gun at 450fps however, because of simple physics. The mass of the ball is less, and thus the energy of the ball (even at 450fps) is still considerably less than that of a .68 at 250fps. No comments on the pain of getting hit though, have yet to experiance that. I'd assume that it would welt more because of the harder shell, but not hurt as much initially. I shot my brother from about 40 meters and he had a silver dollar size welt where it hit a minute after once i upgraded to the LE version. When i had the version 4, my friend shot himself in the bare foot point blank and didn't seem to hurt.
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| Conclusion: |
Is this gun for you? I'd say it probably isn't. It takes a special type of player to want the gun, and an even more unique player to use it effectively. When used right, it can be just like a .68 gun, plus the looks and realism that cannot be achieved by them. The paint can be ordered for about the same price as a average .68 paint (15-20 dollars for 500). It really comes to $30 with 500 casings however, thus a shell catcher is good. The AG1 forumula paint from RAP4 and its dealers works the best.
I'd say join the forums at www.rap4.com/forum and ask a bunch of questions. The folks there are great and very helpful. If you plan on using this as a primary, don't. It IS prone to breaking and parts are rare. Not that it breaks more than any other gun IF TREATED PROPERLY! but parts take longer to get and are more expensive. Get a reliable .68 that you can use any time, then get this gun. This can be a primary easily when it's working, but it will require proper care and tinkering to keep it going.
The gun is great fun to shoot, hold and play with. Its a really awesome gun for those who can use it and afford to use it properly. Really for the die-hard woodsballer or scenario player. It can be used in outlaw skirmishes too, just don't expect to use it all the time, especially at fields because most don't allow the .43 paint.
Keep in mind your playing style and reflect on the changes that will have to be made, THEN get the gun. Its a great gun if used to its potential and for this to happen it will be expensive and time consuming. The reward for this is the most realistic and cool gun ever built with accuracy that meets a .68cal gun and the range just short of it.
8/10 because of the fact that paint and parts are rare and it requires tinkering and tuning. Other than that, perfect in almost every way! |
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| Rating: |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| 2 years | 4 of 6 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Tippman 98, Tippman A5, Akrion SIM 4, AT-4, T68, T16
My RAM is better, and more realistic than all of these |
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| Marker Setup: |
M4 RAM METS, 11 magazines, G27 First Samco pistol grip, C33 handuard, Holographic red dot on handguard, Forward grip with rubber slip, 2-6x 30mm scope on carry handle, OD sling.
RAP17 |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
More magazines, or Co2 canisters if you do not go remote. |
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| Strengths: |
Realistic
Accurate
Intimidating
Low profile
High BPS |
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| Weaknesses: |
Durability |
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| Review: |
I have had my RAM for a little over 2 years now, and let me tell you it is the best marker I have ever shot/owned. T
he customer service for RAP4 is great and the owner KT will help you out in any way possible.
Whenever I go to my field all I get is questions about it, and comments about how people want to be on my team. There is a big intimidation factor with this gun.
The ejecting shells are wonderful, but I recommend a shell catcher if you will be sniping. Because there is no hopper, you don't have to worry about those annoying hopper shots, or your hopper giving away your position.
The RAM also has a VERY high rate of fire IF adjusted correctly. I can get my marker up to 26 BPS per second. I consider that extremely fast for a low end mechanical marker.
I do not recommend it for speedball though. The mags only hold 21 rounds, and the gun and load out is a bit heavy.
Let's talk about the accuracy. This is one of the most accurate markers I have ever shot, and with 7 years of paintballing experience, I think I know accuracy. When prone I get head shots on my man shaped target at distances of 150'. The balls do get blown around a bit on a windy day, but when its a nice day out, this thing is STELLAR. That is once you get it tuned right. Most people don't take the time to tune it.
Another thing I like about this gun, is that it can be submerged in water, and still shoot perfectly. The paintballs are another matter, use 'em quick before they swell up.
BAD THINGS
Reliability: Lets just say when I first got mine, it was like a school lunch. It looked good on the outside, but on the inside it was just crap. I sent it to get repaired 3 times, and had many problems outside that, that I fixed on my own. This thing is a hassle to tune once you first get it. It takes a lot of tinkering and patience, but once you get it, boooyyy do you get it.
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| Conclusion: |
I would not trade my RAM for any other marker in the world. It may be a hassle when you first get it, but keep with it, and you will be VERY pleased with the results.
One final not, a lot of fields do not like the different caliber paint, but if you just show up, they are usually so stunned by the looks and operation of it, that they let you play anyways.
It gets a 9 out of 10 because of the durability. |
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| Rating: |
| 9 out of 10 | Last edited on Tuesday, June 13th, 2006 at 3:50 pm PST |
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