Last year when I was getting back into the sport of paintball, I went out and purchased a Tippmann A-5 paintball gun. These guns are purely mechanical and are very durable and simple to maintain. I reasoned this would be the best type of gun to use while playing paintball in the woods, especially since I had been using an older Tippmann, the 98 Custom.
I used this gun for a little over a year and had some up and downs with it. Through that year I purchased and installed many upgrades and the most prevalent one was an air-through stock. This adds a stock to the gun and it allows for a remote air line to be used so you don’t have to carry the air tank on the gun itself. Instead you wear it on your back with a vest or harness.
A lot of the time I was struggling with this A-5 breaking the paintball while it was still inside the gun. This caused the following paintballs to fly less straight and accurate. Not to mention it would require an immediate cleaning, so the barrel would need to be removed and cleaned. I installed some “cyclone” upgrades thinking this would help. I filed down the feed guide and this helped a little. Eventually the ball chopping lessened but was still hindering my play.
Eventually I reasoned this paintball gun was too heavy, and too unreliable on the field with the accuracy of each ball. I began searching for a replacement. I asked some teammates of mine and I found the Invert Mini to be a acceptable replacement. The Invert Mini uses electricity along with compressed air to function. I reasoned the benefits of the Mini to be better air efficiency, more compact, lighter, more gentle on the paintballs and faster rate of fire.
I am not too concerned with rate of fire so I purchased and used the Invert Mini with semi rate of fire instead of auto. I found the Mini to be an immediate improvement. Even though I used the air tank on the mini it was extremely lighter than the A-5 and much quieter. I have taken opponents by surprise because they could not hear my gun fire. Not only were these benefits impressive, but to date I have never broken a paintball in that gun.
Overall I am very impressed by the Empire Invert Mini and I have just purchased my second one. The Tippmann line of paintball markers is great for beginners, but I think the more experience you have in the sport of paintball the less likely you will be to use the Tippmann line. I always believed I would stick with the mechanical markers because the electronic ones were too complicated and not durable enough for the woods. The Mini changed my mind and I doubt I will ever need a different gun for as long as I play.