IS HIGH TECH A FORM OF HERESY?

I have been to my fair share of pump and stock class events. I have also met my fair share of stock and pump players and one thing I have found universal amongst both. High tech is heresy. Many events ban pneumatic assist markers. These markers still have a pump, but it activates a pneumatic switch that operates the movement of the bolt. Like the pneumatic assist phantoms built by Doc's Machine and the pump action Autocockers (I have no idea who makes them, so don't ask).

I honestly can't see what stock and pump players or event organizers have against this system.

Technology, in and of itself, is not evil. We need to get out of the Eighties mentality of the stock class purists if we want more people to start playing stock. We need to learn to look at new technologies for ways of improving our class of paintball and to make it more appealing. I have always said that if they made pump markers as sexy as semis, more people would play pump and stock class paintball. Many players do not want to give up their high tech toys and play with what is essentially a marker based on technology that's two decades old.

I know of at least one enterprising person who is planning on making an electropneumatic based stockgun. (Which can be converted into a direct feed pump and a semi -- but not in a way that it can be done during play, on the field.) I have been sworn to secrecy on who this person is (and what their design will eventually look like), but from what he has told me, it looks like this may be the next stage of stock class markers. I've already put in MY order for one.

Another thing that bothers me is the fact that the original stock class rules do not allow vented barrels. This is mainly because the rules were written so the markers will reflect the technology available when paintball first started. It's time to move on, people. We need to embrace new technologies, we need to keep up with the times. Besides, do vented barrels REALLY make a difference?

In another field of stock class, the power system, I am presently doing research into a refillable 12 gram system that uses high pressure air. This system was originally developed for airguns in Britain. They are the size of twelve grams and are rated to about 1200 psi (time to put a regulator on the stockgun, folks!) I'm only in the initial stages of research and testing so don't send me e-mail asking about them, I want to throughly test this system for at least a couple of years.

What it all boils down to is this: What many stock players don't seem to realize is that a lot of stock players routinely use their stock class markers in semi games, large format games and scenario games. We require technology to even the playing field a bit and give the stock player a technical advantage. If you are doing this on a regular basis, I have no problems with you running constant air or even high pressure air on your stockgun. Get as much of a technological advantage as you can and go out there and start nailing these smug semi players to their bunkers.

As far as I am concerned here are the four things that makes a stockgun, well, a stockgun.

A stockgun must be manually operated, pneumatic or electronic assist is allowed (this is so long as it cannot make the marker easily converted to a semi on the field.)
A stockgun can only be powered by a SINGLE 12 gram powerlet. It can have a drop out slot, so long as the marker is only powered by a single powerlet. For safety reasons, the knob must be turned at least one and one half full revolutions to remove it.
The paintballs are gravity fed from a tube that is parallel to the barrel.
The feed tube can not hold more than 20 paintballs either capped or with a tube inserted.

All the rest are just extra rules, in my opinion.

All of the articles in the website "www.DURTYDAN.com" are free to use for webpages, school projects, reference and to promote paintball to players and the non-playing public. Please give credit where credit is due and (where possible) provide a link back to the www.DURTYDAN.com website.
© Durty Dan 2000. All rights reserved. All works contained in the website known as "www.DURTYDAN.com" are under copyright of the author Durty Dan. While the Terms of Use are broad they do not include the right to republish this work in any publication (hardcopy or electronic) for the purposes of personal financial gain.