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pbReview.com / Tippmann A-5 / Tippmann A-5 / Tippmann A-5 / Tippmann A-5
Tippmann A-5 Reviews
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Number of Reviews: |
1347 |
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Average Rating: |
9.2 / 10 |
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Manufacturer Website: |
Click here |
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Suggested Retail Price: |
$272 |
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| The All New Tippmann A-5 is a high performance paintball marker with the patented Cyclone Feed System. The Cyclone Feed System Links the Feeder Sprocket to the Air System. The Faster you shoot, the faster the Tippmann A-5 feeds. Pull the Trigger 15 times a second, and the Tippmann A-5 feeds 15 balls per second. The Tippmann A-5 is also easy to clean and maintain with its no tool field strip feature. Innovative technology, maximum firepower, unsurpassed accuracy and Tippmann durability are the core foundations of the all new Tippmann A-5. |
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| Product Availability | |
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| The Tippmann A-5 is newer, so it should be commonly available, both new and used. Check out the Places to Buy links below for places to purchase it new. |
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| Places to Buy | |
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rdoll |
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Wednesday, January 19th, 2005 |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| 3 months | 11 of 12 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
2 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
none |
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| Marker Setup: |
A-5 with... flatline barrel, DOP drop-forward, expansion chamber, SIG stock, E-grip, dbl finger trigger and C02 |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
E-grip with dbl finger trigger, flatline, drop-forward and expansion chamber |
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| Strengths: |
no chopping, great distance/accuracy w/ flatline, consistency,awesome look, and very tolerant of C02 |
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| Weaknesses: |
None that i can name. |
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| Review: |
I have been doing novice tourneys for 1 year now and this gun is great. The cyclone is the strongest and best feature on this gun. The feeder works a lot better than the other guns i have fired and the A-5 gives me the consistency that i need. The E-grip is essencial for tournament play because the stock trigger pull is pretty tight. and if you plan to go pro a flatline is the key. The flatline lets me hit hoppers all the way across the playing field without having to aim high and without having to lob them over either. The flatline is a main component. if you are shooting C02 the expansion chamber is needed for better consistency. But the A-5 by itself is a great investment. I have a $700 A-5 which you truely get what you pay for...preformance. So if you are a beginner or even a novice or pro if you want preformance with a n intimidating look... go for the A-5, its worth it. |
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| Conclusion: |
I would recommend my set up for anyone who likes to do tournaments because in the tournaments i have been in it proves its self worthy of tournament classification. This marker also is an awesome woods-playing gun because of its scenario look. |
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| Rating: |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| Less than a month | 10 of 12 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
1 year |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Tested a Spyder Pilot, Tippmann 98 Custom |
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| Marker Setup: |
Tippmann A5 with stock parts as of now |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
New Barrel, R/T (or E-grip, anything to up the rof), remote |
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| Strengths: |
Durability
Design
Cyclone Feed System
Field Strip Capability
Upgradeability |
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| Weaknesses: |
Price
Weight |
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| Review: |
The Tippmann A5 brings you the latest and greatest in paintball technology. First of all, allow me to discuss the pros and cons of the marker.
Pros:
Durability: Everybody knows that Tippmann Pneumatics make the most durable paintball markers available on the market today. It is no joke that you could literally bang it on a rock and still expect it to function normally. Tippmann has the reputation for making markers that are virtually indestructible.
Design: When you see a Tippmann paintball gun, you know that you're not holding any other piece of equipment. You know it is a Tippmann; it is authentic. With the A5, the marker closely resembles the H&K MP5-K.
Cyclone Feed System: this almight ball loading system feeds balls at a rate of 15 balls a second. And, like they say on the ads, with the previous Tippmann model, balls were being shot at a faster rate than they were being loaded. However, to reach speeds like 15 bps, you must get a r/t, or egrip (basically anything to upgrade the rof).
Field Strip Capability: being the mild paintballer that I am, sadly I have never field stripped this marker. I will eventually get around to it, when I literally have a minute to spare. That is all it takes is a minute to strip everything and put it back together.
Upgradeability: like it's predessor, the 98 custom, the a5 is also upgradeable. With so many things to choose from ( wide selection of barrels, drop forwards, sight rails, stocks, kits) and not to mention performance enhancers (response trigger, e-grip, bta, flatline, comp air, etc.) this marker can grow with you as a player.
Cons:
Price: yes it is expensive for just a blowback gun. I bought mine for $250.00 at a local paintball store. Although it is a little pricey, it is much better than beating yourself up for buying a piece of crap. Basically, in the long run, you will be glad you went the extra mile.
Weight: this marker is one heavy mofo. It weighs in at like 3 1/2 pounds without the tank. Many people do not have a problem with this, and I, for one, do not either. It is just a little bit heavier than I would like it to be.
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| Conclusion: |
I highly recommend this gun to anybody who wants to upgrade into a better gun or even start paintballing. This can be a beginner gun or an advanced gun, it just depends on the level you want to take it to. It can do anything you want, just put in some time, money, and effort, and you will have one kickass gun. You guys are just jealous that you spent so much money on a hobby and you regret it.
Oh, and by the way, this marker is not that much worse than an Angel, Autococker, etc.
They are way overrated, and I could care less of what you high end semi owners think. Don't leave stupid comments saying that I am stupid for thinking that. Us A5 owners could care less of what you guys say. |
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| Rating: |
| 10 out of 10 | Last edited on Thursday, June 10th, 2004 at 12:13 am PST |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| Less than a month | 9 of 10 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
3 months |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Brass Eagle- Maurder
Tippmann-Custom 98 |
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| Marker Setup: |
Stock right now and still works awesome!
I plan to get a flatline soon however. |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
•From what I've heard, definitely the flatline. ( I have played with a Custom 98 with a flatline, man does it ever go straight and far. )
•Low-pressure air system
•You can keep it stock and it will still blow you away, it did me. |
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| Strengths: |
•Stock Accuracy
•Cyclone system
•Durable
•Quality
•Looks Sweet
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| Weaknesses: |
•Cyclone system has one loose part (normal)
•Cyclone system takes small amount of Co2 |
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| Review: |
When I bought this gun online I couldn't wait for it to come.
As I opened it out of the box it glistened in the sunlight like an angel ( not the gun ) was trying to steal it because it looked so cool.
I didn't get to test it out until that weekend.
Friday night came around, my best buddy and I were shooting Mountain Dew and A&W Root Beer cans. He had a Custom 98 with a flatline, I had my completely stock A-5. He has been paintballing more than me and he hit 1 out of 9 cans. Me the rookie took aim hit the remaining 4 missing only one from 80 feet away. We set them up again he shot, I shot, he shot, I shot and so on and so forth, I hit all 5, he hit none. The reason it is nine cans is because one can flew up and went in the water and we didn't want to get it.
This gun is amazing, it is accurate with a stock 8 1/2 inch barrel, fast shooting, I was getting 16 bps stock!!!
•• Gun ••
It is an amazing peice of mechanical genius. It has a great everything about it. The bolts, the response the re-cocking it's all paradise. Although I was a little skeptic of the loose Cyclone CO2 chamber thing however. It seems like it could break off if it got snagged on something, but that is the only downside about the body. The body of the gun has a great durable finish on it also, and the shiny, silver TIPPMANN *A-5* really accents it too.
•• Barrel ••
The stock micro-honed 8 1/2 inch barrel is great. 8/10 for accuracy, but not so awkwardly long like those sniper barrels, but than again whatever floats your boat, if you want dead on accuracy get a 12-14 inch barrel. (come on guys a 21inch barrel is a little over kill, can I get a woot woot)
•• Cyclone Feed System ••
This is one of the most ingenious things about the gun. It holds 5 balls ready to fire. It spins to load balls as fast as you pull the trigger. My buddy and I went through a 2000 case and it didn't chop a ball once, ever, never ever. This system can load balls faster than you need them.
•• Other ••
The sights on this gun are great too. You can adjust it to be a wider square for a faster more general aim or to a smaller square for more kill hots but a bit longer to aim.
The gun comes with all the tools you need to adjust the velocity, parts etc.
You can also field strip it with no tools, (tip: don't do it outside, You WILL lose parts, do it on a table in the garage or something)
There are also so many different ways to customize it. |
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| Conclusion: |
I would recommend this gun for anybody who loves every kind of paintball, it's great for woodsball, speedball anything. Its for newby's to pro's. It is extremly customizable.
I give it a 9.9999/10. I loved it, you probably will too. And if you are thinking of getting one DO IT RIGHT NOW, GET IT, GO BUY IT, SELL YOUR CAR ,YOUR TV IT IS SWEET!!! |
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| Rating: |
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Zinger |
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Thursday, December 16th, 2004 |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| 3 months | 9 of 11 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
6 months |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Piranah rentals |
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| Marker Setup: |
Tippmann A-5 (ditched the fore grip, Krylon-camo'd the hopper)
14" 32* Night Stick barrel
Tapco car stock (sometimes)
IYF offset rail & high rise sight (when using car stock)
some impacted dirt |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
barrel, any good quality barrel |
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| Strengths: |
Rugged, reliable, doesn’t chop.
Many aftermarket options.
Easy field strip.
Flat-out WORKS. |
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| Weaknesses: |
Stock barrel is loud & inaccurate.
Weird rear sight. |
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| Review: |
There have been a zillion glowing reviews of this marker so I won’t repeat all the praises, I’ll simply back them up with my experiences so far. In about 5000 balls shot to date, I haven’t had a single chop. The cyclone feeder really is that good. About the only thing bad to say here is that when it gets down to the last half-dozen rounds, the manual plunger needs to be worked between shots or you may get a few “blanks” when an empty cyclone arm swings past. It is fun to shoot, easy to maintain, reasonably priced, and works well as an all-rounder. That’s my take on it. Now on to some points not usually covered in reviews.
The all-black H&K MP5 inspired design will give some soccer moms pause, but then shiny markers aren't some people’s style. Just use discretion and go have fun. (And don’t make any sudden moves when the police show up at a neighborhood woodsball game.) The push-out pins and slide-out bolt and trigger groups are clearly adapted from the H&K family of firearms, which have a long history of reliability and were designed for ease of maintenance in adverse conditions. The A-5’s resemblance to the MP5 is more than skin deep. For some people this is creepy, but I look at it and think “Cool!”
But don’t field strip it in the woods. Wait until you’re back at the tables, because there are small parts to loose. As a side note, I do have to tap the rear of the receiver a few times on a table to get the bolt group to slide backward enough to grab it to pull out. It doesn’t just slip out the way the instructions imply, but the thing’s tough enough to take a little banging around.
Some reviewers have complained about it being a gas hog, but I don’t have any gripes there. Cost? When $3 of CO2 will shoot $20 worth of balls? Pfft, that’s nothing. Or is it having to swap out tanks in the heat of play a tad more often? I don’t see either of these as a real problem. And these concerns absolutely pale in comparison to the pleas I hear of “Hey, you got a spare 9 volt you can loan me?” I’ll take a gas actuated feed system over an electro hopper any day.
Accuracy with the stock barrel is enough to get you started but not much more. At 25 yards mine will group just over 10 inches. After I added an aftermarket barrel (32* Night Stick, 14”) the group size dropped to half this, small enough to make cross-field shots feasible. Honestly, the stock barrel is so nicely machined and finished that I can’t figure why it doesn’t perform better. Must have to do with the length and porting. I wish Tippmann would either go the extra step of making this barrel actually usable, or just put on a real piece of junk (knowing that everyone’s going to replace it anyway) and drop the price $10.
Back to the sights, the rear drum sight is useable and accurate enough, but the variable width notches are weird. Tippman could’ve put in variable depth notches calibrated for, say, 0, 100, 150, and maybe 200 feet and made the thing a good deal more useful. At least it’ll be an easy swap out if anyone ever comes out with an aftermarket sight.
Speaking of aftermarket, every option under the sun is available for this marker. You can trick it out to be anything from a stubby full auto machine pistol to a long range sniper tool for the “One shot 1-- one elimination” crowd. Pretty versatile, and the parts won’t cost you an arm and a leg either. (Mine? All-rounder.)
The price for this marker is reasonable. There are less expensive markers out there that work well, but none of them come close to the A-5. There’s a certain price in any outdoor equipment (tents, mountain bikes, etc.) below which you’re just buying junk, but at or above that you’re OK. Somewhere around twice the “junk line” price is the Real Deal, and that’s exactly where the A-5 lies. It’s definitely in the sweet part of the price/performance curve, so only a little extra cash to jump up to this marker buys a lot more performance and reliability.
I’ll finish with the best feature of the A-5: it’s always ready to play. Show up at a field, screw on a 20 oz. tank, chrono the beast, and I’m on the field in 5 minutes. Then it works, without complaint, for as long as I want to play. There are lots of markers that can shoot more balls per second than an A-5, but not many markers are this easy to use, maintain, and buy. |
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| Conclusion: |
Not a flyweight speedball competition marker, it’s the ultimate woodsball brawler. It is fun to shoot, easy to maintain, reasonably priced, and just WORKS. |
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| Rating: |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| 3 years | 9 of 13 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
98custom, Spyder Kingman |
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| Marker Setup: |
I've tried various different setups, I customize my gun for whatever Im playing.
Right now ive got a collapsible stock, proteam xchamber (just for the improved tank positioning it really doesn't change the performance of the gun), 12" barrel, tactical riser mount, offset hopper adapter, and a red dot. I am actually on my second
A5 and I have used many different setups including RT, Egrip, flatline, flatline of 98c modded for use on the A5, gas through stock kits, xchambers regulators ect... havent used low pressure though. |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
Any accessory really will make it more fun, but I'm really big on upgrading the barrel. Flatline works good for the most part, but right now im using a Lapco 12" Bigshot. You will find that accuracy vs distance is the choice that your making when deciding to use a flatline or a straight barrel. |
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| Strengths: |
Its totally customizable. You can mod to improve performance or make your marker look MilSim. |
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| Weaknesses: |
Accuracy, rate of fire. |
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| Review: |
A5s are great for beginners; but the gradual progression of any paintball player is toward high end markers. You just cant compete. I still use my A5 because I like it for woodsball and ive grown attatched to it.
If you want to know more about the rate of fire read tippmanns website. Its pretty plain and simple, the cyclone feed rate is 17BPS period. The firing rate is 8BPS, which you can improve with an RT or Egrip, but your not going to get past 17BPS with the cyclone. Ive seen some outrageous claims about 25 BPS out of an A5 and I have to wonder why anyone would believe that. That being said it is possible to achieve really high rates of fire with a qloader and an egrip but i have no experience with that setup because I cant justify spending that much. At that point your just trying to turn a tippmann into something its not meant to be anyway.
My experience with accuracy is mixed. As a beginner at paintball i am still learning what I can and cannot expect from a paintball gun. I am a firm believer that your barrel matters probably more than anything else on your A5. Using a good barrel will improve your accuracy. So will practice because you need to get used to the feel of shooting an A5. It doesnt really recoil, but it isnt smooth either. My biggest issue with accuracy comes at higher rates of fire. It works fine taking a single shot or snapshooting, but when your firing quickly it can be a challenge to shoot accurately.
A word about flatlines. You have the distance to hit people without flatlines before you are in they're range. In theory you should own, but i cant tell you how many times i've shot about 100 balls to hit something like at a hopper or a barrel or a leg or whatever it was that was sticking out. Sometimes you just cant hit your target with the flatline. The distance you will achieve is impressive; but accuracy at those distances is unpredictable even with the best paint. Also, if you break a ball, you may have to stop using it until it has been properly cleaned. Im at the point where i just want an accurate barrel.
A word about the cyclone. My first A5 worked better for some reason. I do believe people have ball chopping problems with the cyclone because my new A5 has chopped marbs and i dont know why. |
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| Conclusion: |
This is a decent gun for anyone, but great for begginers. Experiment with different barrels. A flatline will put a smile on your face! I have had alot fun using an A5.
The biggest thing i wanted to bring up is that in paintball fire superiority is the name of the game. If your bunkered down you dont have time for accurate, consistent shots that we woodsballers like to claim we are capable of. You dont have a whole lot of time to do anything and you need to react before the opposition gets position on you. You need a HIGH RATE OF FIRE marker if you want the best chances of eliminating your enemies, so get the best gun you can afford. That being said I can count the number of speedball games ive played on two hands. I love woodsball and my tippmann, If this is you then you will be happy with an A5. |
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| Rating: |
| 5 out of 10 | Last edited on Sunday, April 23rd, 2006 at 5:10 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: |
| Only tested | 9 of 93 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
6 months |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Spyder TL-X-Alot Better |
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| Marker Setup: |
Spyder TL-X
9oz Co2
200 Hopper
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
Barrel
Electro hopper-not cyclone feed |
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| Strengths: |
Can look down gun to aim
lots of upgrades
hard to break |
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| Weaknesses: |
Cyclone Feed-A Gas hog
Barrel |
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| Review: |
This review is on the stock gun. My friend owns an A-5 and we go paintballing. He wants to use my Spyder so we trade guns for the day. We are using Anarchy paintballs. I start shooting and at about 6bps-one chops. I know it cant be the paintballs. I am shooting some more and it chops even more. I am angry and want to know whats happening. I take off my hopper, and there are some paintballs in the cyclone. I shoot and the cyclone feed is chopping the balls! So I give it one last chance-A few balls go straight. The accuracy is decent, but not as good as my Spyder. It gets to about only 35ft, with a stock barrel (not a flatline) but the accuracy is good. It is also big and bulky |
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| Conclusion: |
I do not reccomend this product with my bad experience with it. I reccomend a Spyder TL-X or Imagine if you want electro |
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| Rating: |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| 6 months | 8 of 8 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
2 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Tippmann 98 Custom, but the A-5 blows that out of the water |
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| Marker Setup: |
Tippmann A-5 w/ RT
Tippmann X chamber
Rufus Dawg venturi bolt
18" Dye Boomstick |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
Definately a new barrel (stock barrel isn't terrible, but it is LOUD)
Response trigger if you buy one without it already installed
Ricochet Hopper
Expansion Chamber / Regulator
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If you have the money (which I don't) the low pressure kit so you can use compressed air to it's full potential |
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| Strengths: |
Cyclone Hopper
Easy to Upgrade
Easy to Clean/Maintain
LOTS of available upgrades
DURABLE |
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| Weaknesses: |
Consumes LOTS of CO2
prone to gun hits
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| Review: |
First of all, I'd like to say the this is a fantastic gun for rec ball, woodsball, and scenario games. I've seen alot of comments on various threads that are along the lines of "the A-5 sucks....get a <insert $1000 dollar electronic marker> instead." If you're interested in rec play and woodsball, you should probably ignore comments like this. If you're in to speedball, you're in the wrong marker category to begin with. There is a reason that pbreview breaks up markers into high-end/low-end and electronic/mechanical. I hate to be cliche but it's apples to oranges people....
That being said, the A-5 is in my opinion the best gun on the market for the committed woodsballer. Here's why:
PRICE: It may be more than a 98 Custom, but is still comparably less to other scenario guns (ex: Ariakon's newer SIM markers). I've found that the quality of this gun is well worth the price tag.
UPGRADE-ABILITY: There are TONS of mods out there for the A-5. Many of which include milsim body kits and tactical rails which are great if you're hard core into scenario games. Personally, I'd rather not lug around all the scopes and lasers and such on my marker, but to each his own. I've also found that installation is very easy. I'm not very mechanically inclined, and i was able to install an expansion chamber and upgrade bolt into mine without much trouble, something i would not have tried with my 98 (vertical adapters and power-tubes and what-not).
DURABILITY / MAINTENANCE: Tippmanns are pretty much no-hassle guns. If you oil them up before you play and clean the internals every once in awhile, they will last you almost indefinitely. The A-5 is exceptionally easy to clean because of the "field-stripping" design (BTW, they advertise that it can be field stripped and reassembled in 30 seconds or so, but I suspect that's after 15 years of doing nothing else with your time...). All you have to do is pop out a few bolts and you have access to all of the internals and the trigger parts.
CYCLONE FEED: This is one of my favorite things about the A-5. The stock A-5 comes equipped with a pneumatic hopper that feeds paint with every cycle of the gun. You literally can't out shoot this hopper. I honestly don't know why they haven't applied this same idea to speedball. It's pure genius! It does use a bit extra juice though, which brings me to the next portion of the review:
-THE CONS-
AIR CONSUMPTION: The A-5 is a definite gas-hog. This is of course, due to the gas fed hopper. All in all it is fairly efficient, but when you get to the end of your tank, the hopper starts to skip. I've found this happens in about the last 10-12 shots from your tank. If you know your hopper is full, but your not shooting any paint, then you're about out of gas hos...Tippmann has compensated for this with a manual feed button. you get one shot per click. This is slightly annoying, but if you're that out of air, then you're close to being out of the game anyway. I can live with pump action for 12 shots...
GUN HITS: The stock hopper for the A-5 has a large flat area in the front of it. It's basically a bull's-eye. Absolutely no hope for a bounce on this puppy. If you're out from a gun hit with an A-5, then chances are it was the hopper that got splattered. For this reason I recommend getting a ricochet hopper. It's much more low-profile and angular so it's less of a risk for a hopper hit.
other than these few things, I haven't found anything else to complain about |
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| Conclusion: |
If you're into rec ball, woodsball, and/or scenario games then I strongly suggest you buy an A-5. It is a great gun that is easily affordable, upgradeable, and maintainable. At times the gas-consumption can get a little annoying, but nothing is perfect. I give this gun a 9 out of 10 |
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| Rating: |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| Less than a month | 8 of 9 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
4 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
RT Mag
Custom made Autococker
Autococker GXE
Tippmann 98c |
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| Marker Setup: |
Tippmann 98c w/ upgrades, though i have fired others and at times borrow my friends' for a few games to try theirs out |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
flatline barrel if you have the money |
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| Strengths: |
accurate
durable
can compete and hold its ground with the mid range markers (~$500 markers) |
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| Weaknesses: |
a bit noisy
heavy, but not as heavy as some other markers out there |
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| Review: |
PROS:
accuracy - in my last game, i tried this out for a game and i find it more accurate than the autococker, though im comparing it to the ~$500 and below autocockers since i never tried the highend ones personally as of yet. i was able to shoot through brush without the paint popping on twigs, which is something i havent been able to do SO EASILY AND CONSISTANTLY on any gun (minus the overpriced $1,000+ guns though those guns are on a league of their own).
theres a myth about it being a gas hog... it can go through 2 bags of paint w/o refill, thus the gas thing is a myth, unless the people who used this didnt have an expansion chamber.
it's good for back and mid play, not so sure about front play. the setup i tried had a flatline on it so it would have been pointless for me to play front since i can snipe people off without having to go far to begin with.
you cant break this thing. seriously. i know someone who never maintains his gun and owns one. it lives up to tippmann's trademark indeed.
i felt no difference between nitro and c02 on this gun. it seems to be consistant with both.
the sight is a big improvement over the 98c
has VERY LITTLE PARTS TO LOSE when field stripping!!! BIG IMPROVEMENT ON TIPPMANN'S PART! their website is right when they claim you can take it apart and put it back together in a minute!
CONS:
a bit on the heavy side but i've found electro guns and RT Mags to be heavier than this
with the flatline on, it seems a tad loud, though it's hard to figure out where the sound is coming from for some odd reason. i mean, i can tell who has a 98 custom by the sound of the bolt and i can pinpoint where they are, for example, but i cant do so with the A5 w/ flatline. however, having any other barrel changes the sound issue.
the front handle i quite small. i can only grip it with half of my hand. |
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| Conclusion: |
unless you have a lot of money to spend on a gun that costs more than $500, i'd say this gun is ideal. i've read many people saying how this gun chops balls, but i never had that experience with Diablo paint. the stock barrel isn't all that inaccurate but changing it is a must. The thing i love most about this gun over electroguns is that it performs just as well without the hassle of batteries, which, speaking from experience, IS A PAIN!!! nothing is worse than being in the field and having your revy shut down on you or having the gun misfire because the battery went dead. it performs consistantly no matter how much you torture the gun, which, once again speaking from experience, cant be said for many other guns. i've watched this one guy bang his gun into a tree when he slipped and fell and there wasnt a single defect in his gun afterwards. i must say that it is louder than an autococker, cant deny that one, though i've outshot a few people with autocockers over the weekend with this gun since the flatline made it all that much better, so i guess noise is a worth sacrifice in this case. im more of a woods baller than a speed baller so im not sure how well this would do in speed ball. the gun that i can compare this to the most is the RT Mag. That gun costs a lot more than this yet i still cant find any significant difference between the two except for the fact that the RT Mag shoots twice as fast.
i find people who spend more than ~$500 for a gun is wasting their money on useless electronics. i mean, come on, sure an angel and other high end guns have these features such as an LCD screen, full auto, different shot bursts, etc. but nowadays, most fields ban those features, so it'd be like saying "i own a ferrari and can do 200+mph easy"... it's cool to have the feature but you know you cant ever use it, so what's the point other than to show off!!?!?
all in all, and after polling the opinions of the 40+ people in my group (we play at Pinelands Paintball (Cousins Paintball) @ manchester, NJ most of the time), this gun is more favored ever since it came out. well i guess it's obvious now how i've tried other guns, i play with a large group constantly. and for all those people who plan on saying "he's bias; he's a tippy lover; ____ ARE THE BEST!" or any of that sort, you're missing the point of this review.
once again, all in all, i find this to be a good buy. it competes with autocockers definitely and if you dont want to go through the pain of losing parts when field stripping or high maintenance, then this is the way to go. tippmann was smart in that they designed it to have very little parts to lose when field stripping, which was a pain in the arse with the 98custom. as of rate of fire, aint blazing fast but i dont know why people complain about it because honestly, why would you want to use 20+ bps in the first place unless you're missing a lot and your finger cant even pull a trigger that fast to begin with. i was planning on buying an RT mag or an autococker, but when it comes down to it, this would be a better buy. mind you, i'm a mag fanatic but that RT mag kills a hopper way too fast if you're not watching your paint.
oh, and i give this a 9 instead of 10 ONLY BECAUSE it is a tad noisy, which sorta gives away your position but from experience, people usually know where you are to begin with if you're shooting at them. heh |
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| Rating: |
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Meph |
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Monday, March 24th, 2003 |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| 1 year | 8 of 11 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
Tippmann Model 98 (98Custom) |
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| Marker Setup: |
Tippmann A-5
E-grip (has a custom blade trigger)
Flatline barrel system
PsychoBallistics RVA
Omega Cradle |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
A better aftermarket barrel !!
Flatline barrel system (for certain woods occasions)
RT or E-grip
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| Strengths: |
Built in force feed system, and field strip in 60 seconds ! |
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| Weaknesses: |
People don't like some plastic parts, stereotyped as bad for speedball |
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| Review: |
Positive...
- Weight. The weight of the A-5 is quite light. It's not like a feather, but it isn't like carying a boulder. Gives it an overall good balance.
- Firepower. Stock is nice. 2 1/2 pound trigger pull, for a mechanical marker this is nothing. It's light and short. Easy to get a good string of paint. And for upgrades the RT system or E-grip fit right into place and will have you slinging so much paint that you're going to have to invest in a nice harness.
- Field strip ability. With only 4 push pins you can completely disassemble and reassemble the A-5 in just 60 seconds. And that's without practice, we've had races at the proshop and fastest time was 39 seconds (apart / back together). Don't be fooled by 'cocker owners saying "I can field strip my bolt with one push pin in 2 seconds" or Spyder owners "I can also field strip mine in less then 60 seconds." Because only the A-5 can field strip EVERYTHING. Hammer, bolt, AND valve. Good luck getting an autococker valve out, you have to buy a special tool!
- Cyclone. The cyclone and A-5 is the fastest force feed system on the market. Period. 17bps people have been getting with their RT systems on the A-5. And unlike some other force feed hoppers, the A-5 is more consistent and it doesn't crush paint or push it past the ball detents leading to chops. Not only that, but this is at least 2-inches shorter than other hoppers on the market (even shorter than some like eVLution).
- Price. It dominates in the price range. For 200-300 price range nothing even comes close. There is not a marker out there that can fire as fast, as consistent, field strip as quick, built even close to as reliable / durable, and come STOCK with a force-feed hopper system. There is no comparison.
The negative side of things...
- Plastic. Grip frame and hopper are made of plastic. I may not mind (no problems yet) it being plastic personally, but there are some people who would. So for them they might shy away.
- Grip frame. People are obsessed with aftermarket grips (DYE Stickies). And since they can't put any on, they're upset. Afterall, those DYE stickies really do make it so you can grip a marker SO much better! (note: sarcasm)
- Hopper. Bad design idea, Tippmann admitted. A flat surface right on the face of the hopper. Although I made the best of it by putting a "bullseye" sticker on the front! Quite fitting I thought. |
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| Conclusion: |
Tippmanns' finest craftsmanship in one sweet package. A great marker for those wanting to upgrade from their beginning talon or Stingray II. Or even those that have the $ is great for beginning marker.
But for those of us who actually realize that it doesn't matter what equipment you use it's how you use it, the A-5 is a very nice marker any wheres. Even speedball / tournaments.
Dollar for dollar, this is one of the top choice markers on the market today. |
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| Rating: |
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Unregistered User |
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Monday, May 20th, 2002 |
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Period of
Product Use: |
| Less than a month | 8 of 33 people found this review helpful.
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Paintball
Experience: |
3 years |
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Similar
Products Used: |
98 custom, Spyder TL & Shutter, a borrowed Autococker. The A-5 is a good gun but I found that the other less expensive guns that I've owned was overall more reliable. Definately not as good as the Autococker. |
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| Marker Setup: |
Stock A-5: coil remote......Shutter: Lapco Bigshot, Ricochet 2K, trigger job |
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Recommended
Upgrades: |
New Barrel or just about anything you would do to their 98 custom whenever they make the parts available. |
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| Strengths: |
First off, I bought it for the looks-not an original look but at least they copied the looks from one of my favorite guns (HK MP5PDW). The Feeding mechanism/design, I thought it was a good idea (turned out not so good) and it would save money from not having to buy another electronic hopper. It has a very fast, crisp trigger, it shoots great. Paintballs are always in place and ready to shoot. Compact with a overall low profile. |
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| Weaknesses: |
This gun isn't all that for what I paid for it. It shouldn't be sold for as much as I paid for it (about $330) First off, in my opinion, its got too much plastic on it and just today while playing, I got shot on the flat front part of the hopper and it left a hole-yes a hole, in the hopper the size of an egg. Is that sort stuff covered under warranty? From what I hear around that's not uncommon. The flat front of the hopper may look cool but it was a bad idea. Also, it doesn't really want to load when you're down to a low amount of balls. I don't know if its just this gun or all of the A-5's but mine breaks about 1-2 balls out of a hopper full, and i do use premium balls, i've checked the velocity to make sure it wasn't excessive too. That might not seem like alot but thats way more then what my Shutter breaks, if it ever breaks any. And also, its not as easy to completely disassemble then most of the other guns I've own. I wouldn't take this gun apart in a field or without a good source of light either. I won't comment about the stock barrel cause i think most stock barrels suck anyways. |
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| Conclusion: |
At first I bought a 98 custom then sold it after a few days because I came into some more money so I decided to shell it out for what I thought would of been a better gun. I got rid of the 98 cause it was kind of plain lookin but now that I think about it, it probably was overall a better gun then this A-5 I have. For the money I spent on this A-5 I coulda got a basic Autococker to modify later which is a way better gun for the about the same price. I was really disappointed whenever I got that hole shot through the hopper of my A-5. I heard of this problem before but just thought those were freak incidents but now after seeing this happen, I'm not too hot about this gun anymore, I just can't run out and grab a replacement top half of the hopper at the local shop anytime i want after all. Before that incident I might of gave it a rating of either a 7 or an 8. Probably the 7 cause it somewhat breaks alot of balls. Now after the hopper incident I have to give it a 4, even thought that happened, the trigger is still fast, clean, and shoots without any problems most of the time so I won't go below a 4. Like I said before I am going back to my Shutter. I think I'll offer my A-5 for sale to the next guy that compliments me about it. Maybe then I but the Autococker. Overall, the money I spent on both the tippmans, I should put if into one real nice Autococker instead of wanting to own a selection of guns and keep my Shutter as a back up. I wouldn't get this gun if I were you-you can do better for the money. |
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