pbReview.com / Tippmann US Army Alpha Black Tactical / Tippmann US Army Alpha Black Tactical / Tippmann US Army Alpha Black Tactical / Tippmann US Army Alpha Black Tactical
Manufactured by Tippmann Sports, U.S. Army Paintball markers and accessories are designed to help you take your game to the highest level of realistic play possible at a great value. At home and abroad, the U.S. Army has utilized Tippmann paintball markers in its training to emphasize the importance of fire-control measures and cover and concealment procedures. No other training device can replicate this sense of combat realism in a totally safe environment. With these markers, you will be able to play smart?and play strong. Army Strong.
Features:
Officially licensed product of the U.S. Army
Realistic military appearance
M16 style six position collapsible stock
M16 style shroud with built in sight
High performance 11 inch barrel
Integrated carry handle
Removable magazine that doubles as a tool kit
In line bolt system
All aluminum die cast receiver
Stainless steel gas line
Quick release feeder elbow
Product Availability
The Tippmann US Army Alpha Black Tactical 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.
Tippmann Bravo One -- aka Us Army Alpha Black -- Red Dot Sight
Recommended Upgrades:
Red Dot Site
Remote Coil
Strengths:
- Very Accurate
- Great MilSim Look
- Reliability
Weaknesses:
-Weight
Review:
I Tested out a mate of mines Bravo One and the accuracy and overall experience was pleasant. I purchased one shortly after as it makes a great addition.
I would say that the most important aspect for me is the reliability. I have used over 2000 paintballs through this marker and to date i have not broken a single ball.
Accuracy = 10
ROF = 10 (even though its mechanical)
Weight = 9
Milsim look = 10
Lets hope that tippmann will bring out some add on's
Conclusion:
Its not a bad purchase at the price and I would recommend it to anyone that might be interested in purchasing one.
tippmann 98 custom response
16' boomstick
tapco car stock
double trigger
evlution 2 w/ y-bored
rocket cocker II
drop forward
Recommended Upgrades:
a new barrel
response trigger
Strengths:
Tippmann made
Cheap
Has the m-4 look
98 internals
98 custom treads
Weaknesses:
Loud
Heavy
Review:
My friend bought this gun and i ran in the field with it for a few mins its a good gun its a 98 custom pretty much just with a shell cheaper its already got most of the things you need a stock a clip a rail and a shroud you just need an e-grip or response trigger and a new barrel and it takes 98 custom threads
tippmann 98 cust.
spyder tl-x
spyder victor
tippmann a-5
tppmann x-7
brass eagle hunk o' junk
Marker Setup:
ab with remote
Recommended Upgrades:
longer barrel (stock is loud). i added a homemade shroud to hide "flash"
i want a q-loader but not sure if it would attach properly
Strengths:
doesn't chop
Good with co2
Accurate
Comfortable to hold
Fast
Weaknesses:
Loud
Heavy
Review:
i got this gun after noticing the advertisement on tippmann.com i looked up reviews and discovered it to be well liked. i had previously been using an okay tippmann 98 custom, but sold that because of the wasted co2. so i went and got the alpha black.
Chopping: didn't chop a single ball for me. i truly believe ball chops are caused by the hopper and rate of fire at which someone attempts to pull the trigger though.
Co2: i around 700+ shots with a 12 oz. tank. tippmann 98s for me would leak air. the ab also doesnt spill many ounces of air like the 98 does when taking out the tank.
Accuracy: i shot 1 foot spread from 40 yards. the gun was sitting a gun mount. i think the accuracy had to do with the cheap and super oily practice balls i was using, a flatline would be nice because after a certain distance the balls would spin towards the ground.
Weight: to me it didn't matter. it is NOT made of plastic like i've read on reviews and from friends.
ROF: i easily got eight balls per second like adverstised.
Field performance: it was a hot muggy day in the woods. i didn't get hits because i couldn't see out of my goggles and it was dark (9 30 at night) but the balls definitely hit where i was aiming. i could comfotably manuevre on the groung with it.
Price: i got only the marker for 99.99 dollars.
Conclusion:
i dont think to give this gun a ten, but it's hard to want to bring down the total rating for this excellent product. i liked it a lot more than my old 98 custom. anyone looking for a low-end marker should get this one OR an a-5 (for different kinds of players), the alpha black is good for strategic players. a-5 is for those pray and sprayers (only cuz its fast. it is a good solid gun too)
JT tac-5 recon (sucks compared to this gun)
JT tac-5m recon (better than the original, but still not great)
Tippmann Pro Carbine (great older gun)
Tippmann 98 custom
Tippmann custom pro
Tippmann A5
Tippmann x7
Marker Setup:
tactical setup
9.6v rechargeable battery (had to do some modding for this to work)
E-trigger
cyclone feed (modded a 98 custom cyclone to fit this gun)
remote line
Recommended Upgrades:
E-grip is a must for all major woodsball or mil-sim players
9.6v rechargeable battery (if you dont want to waste money on a lot of 9v)
cyclone feed (they havent made one for this gun, but you can mod a 98 customs to fit)
Strengths:
Great price
very accurate
gets good power
very sturdy
very reliable
Weaknesses:
Maintenence is tricky
Review:
Price- This gun is priced very good for the quality of gun you are getting
Accuracy-This gun is probably the most accurate stock steup i have ever seen. i was firing this gun and all the balls were hitting in a 3"x3" area from about 60 feet away. this is the first gun that i have no immediate plans to swtich out the stock barrel.
sturdiness- This is the first thing i noticed when i pulled it out of the box. this gun's body is constructed out of metal coated with a textured polycarbonate or teflon exterior. this gun is definitely not gonna break if you drop it.
weight- A lot of people have said that this gun is heavy. if you are a regular woodsball or mil-sim player, you wont think that this gun is very heavy, at least, i don't think so.
maintenence- This is my least favorite part of the gun. this gun is like the old 98 custom about maintenence. you have to take off the whole side of the gun to properly clean it. if you have any experience with mechanics, then this shouldn't be too big of a problem for you.
Conclusion:
This is the best stock gun i have ever used. no matter if you're a beginner or pro to woodsball or mil-sim, this gun is a great buy, no questions asked.
Rating:
10 out of 10
Last edited on Sunday, September 21st, 2008 at 5:19 pm PST
The accuracy of this review is disputed. Please see discussion on the comments page.
Period of Product Use:
Less than a month
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.
Paintball Experience:
3 years
Similar Products Used:
I have used a Brass Eagle Avenger that I have borrowed from my brother in law
Marker Setup:
Alpha Black Tact stock
Recommended Upgrades:
I like it the way it is
Strengths:
Durable
Accurate
Loud so it scares the heck out of your opposition
Weaknesses:
Weight
CO2 hog
Review:
I am a newbie at all this so bare with me. I bought this marker because I liked the look of it. I found it to be pretty accurate. I went through my 12oz of CO2 pretty quick but that could be because I will fire as much as I can to get you out. So that is not the guns problem more a user problem. The effective range might have been less because I was using it in a heavily wooded area as well so that is not the markers fault. Overall, it is a good marker.
Conclusion:
I would recommend this marker for someone who is just starting out because I feel the weight of the marker would turn off some players who have more experience and prefer lighter markers. Also for the price you get a very good low end mech marker.
Just the way it is right out of the box with a 20oz tank.
Recommended Upgrades:
Remote line. I also plan on adding rails and a vertical foregrip.
Strengths:
Accurate & reliable. Seems to have very good effective range. It also looks really cool.
Weaknesses:
Hard to use sights with mask on.
Review:
After three years I finally grew out of spyder I rec'd as a hand me down when my buddy upgraded. I wanted a mil-sim style gun and originally had my sights set on an A5. Although The basic gun was reasonably priced I was a little discouraged by the clost af the upgrades & mods. I would not really be able to afford to set the gun up the way I like. Then I found the Alpha Black.Tactical. It already looks the way I want right out of the box and the price is very reasonable ($139). I read alot of good reviews on this site and decided I would buy it.
So my first time out at the PB field with it went well. I got some oohs & ahhs which was cool. As far as performance goes it kicked ass. No chops all day. It was very accurate and had a great effective range. Normally I will have 3 or 4 kills all day. This day I came home with over 10 kills. I think that the accuracy and ease of use combined with my confidence in having a quality marker really helped my game that day.
It was a little heavy, but it didn't bother me one bit. It gave it a more "authentic feel" I guess.
************UPDATE*************
I took this apart to clean & oil it. It not really that hard. When you first open it up you'll be like "holy crap" but if you don't panic and follow the manual that comes with it it is actually prety simple. Once I reviewed the manual so I could make sense of everything I think it took me about 15 or 20 minutes to put it back together. I would say it could be taken apart, cleaned and oiled in about an hour. No big deal and much better than I expected.
Conclusion:
It is a great gun!
Rating:
9 out of 10
Last edited on Thursday, August 14th, 2008 at 4:40 pm PST
Better carry handle for mounts
Better fore grip to be able to mount grips
Strengths:
Very light
accurate
price
feel
Weaknesses:
No way for mounts
Review:
I have mostly use the RAP 4 and have to say the Alpha black feels just as good and is just as accurate as my RAP 4. It is also very intimidating looking also for MIL-Sim. As for the wieght issue this one is VERY light compared to my RAP 4. The RAP 4 wieghs in at about 15 to 20 pounds depending on what scenario I'm playing. The AB fully loaded wieghs just as much as the main body on my RAP 4 without the barrel, stock, and loaded hopper. MY wife couldn't believe how light it was compared to her loaded 1911 45 caliber handgun. This the reason I bought it. I bought it for a secondary weapon because at the park I play at there is some water crossings and dense heavy woods and with me being guillied up and trying to move like a snake the RAP 4 has been a little hampering on me. I needed a shorter barrel, less weight, full-auto capable but still be just as accurate as my RAP 4 and the Alpha Black was the ticket.
The price is what floored me. I spent around $300 for the RAP 4 but for $150 less I got the same quality with the AB.
Maintance was about the same as my RAP 4 so to me it was fairly simple.
Conclusion:
I highly recommend it for MIL-Sim players who don't want to spend a fortune on a gun that they want to be very intimidating and accurate with. Buy the one with the E-trigger already installed it will save you money and is already set up.
Rating:
10 out of 10
Last edited on Thursday, June 12th, 2008 at 10:16 am PST
Egrip/ response
Cyclone feeder
remote hose
maybe a longer barrel
Strengths:
Accuracy
durability
the feel
the price
Weaknesses:
Not to many add ons
Review:
This gun is prob the best deal for someone if they are just starting paintball or if you have been playing for years. If you are looking for a good military sim gun for a cheap price, i suggest getting this gun. I used this gun for about 9 hours straight of playing paintball and i had only one ball break!
As i said earlier it might be a good idea to get a remote hose and a egrip w/ cyclone feeder. If you have those this gun is perfect for woods ball.
Conclusion:
I would for sure get this gun if im just starting paintball. You can always count on the Alpha Back for accuracy and durability.
All stock parts
Modified VL 200 with vibrator attached
Recommended Upgrades:
None really if you're just starting out
Strengths:
Cheap
Gas efficiency
Accurate!
Weaknesses:
Haven't found any yet
Review:
Let me just start off by saying that this is my first gun and my first venture into paintball. When I gassed it up and took some shots I was amazed how accurate this gun was. I was shooting a pipe that had a 4 inch diameter from 60 feet within 3 shots. Also a 710 mL bottle off my fence at 60 feet in 3 shots.
Now for inexperienced shooting hands like mine I think that's pretty damn good. I tried to shoot fast with this marker and broke a ball (cheap walmart paint) and it still shot within 1 foot of the target from 60 feet away. Not sure if this is good or not, but it was easy to adjust as this gun is VERY! consistent with shots.
Right now I can't afford a real tank (laugh at me, whatever) so I bought an adaptor to run the gun off of 12g's. I had a nearly full VL200 and it was almost empty with 4 of those.
Anyways I was invited to go out paintballing with some friends at a field but the booking was screwed. Anyways what really made my day was that some 13 year old kid with (yeah, laugh again) with an A5, cyclone and all was immediately impressed. Lets just say that's what I bought this gun for :)
I don't know what a "good" gun is but this one is doing exceptional for me so far.
Conclusion:
This gun is good if you're just starting out, or are into milsim and want a cheap gun that preforms. Then maybe either upgrade it (cyclone, egrip, etc) or get a better marker. But to start out this is exactly what you need.
Rating:
9 out of 10
Last edited on Wednesday, June 4th, 2008 at 7:03 pm PST
