| E-Mag
FAQs: |
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Why
didn't you come out with a whole new gun? |
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Because
the RT engine is still the fastest recharging and shooting
system in the world. It seemed clear the need was for an
E trigger that was reliable and easy to fix, which is what
this valve system offers.
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Will
it come with a straight feed? |
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The E-Mag
is available with a Vertical Feed mainbody. However, when
we developed the Warp Feed we realized that anyone with
a vertical feed would have a hard time getting balls into
the gun. You will have to switch mainbodies to go with the
preferred setup on the Warp Feed. You will also need our
extended nose bolt (now standard in all our guns) to reduce
blowback.
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Does
it come in a lefty version? |
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Yes,
all of our guns have had a left-handed version. You have
to ask your dealer to order it straight from us, because
most distributors do not carry them.
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Why
does it look the same as the RT? |
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There
are some changes from the RT, but we are considering this
the technical introduction for players to understand how
it works. We are smart enough to know that we couldn't possibly
give you the variety in the looks department that custom
airsmiths can, so we intend on working with customizers
to give you different up-to-date looks. We have intentionally
left meat on the frame and battery pack and are considering
additional mainbodies. Pro Team Products is the first in
what we hope will be a long line of customizers.
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The
battery pack is UGLY/COOL. |
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The battery
pack may not fit your style, but it can be moved to any
place on the gun as long as you can still run a wire to
the board. You can then substitute the front grip of your
choice. This, too, is something we see as a good thing to
leave in the hands of the customizers.
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Does
the gun have manual mode? |
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Yes,
a flip of a small lever with your thumb switches it to manual
mode, and you have all the advantages of an RT trigger system.
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Does
it have an LCD? |
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Not exactly.
It has an LED readout that lights up and can be read in
the dark. Ours is programmable, so if the software changes,
so can the display.
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Can
I upgrade my RT/Automag? |
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Yes.
We will have an E-Grip Update Program, but you will have
to see your dealer to send it in. They will be in limited
supply until we get up to speed, and the program is not
yet available.
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What's
with the magnetic trigger? |
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There
are two "magnetic" features to the trigger. First, a magnet
in the trigger is used with a magnetic sensor in the grip
frame (Hall Effect Sensor) to trigger the gun. We did this
because the sensor can be switched out to have more or less
hysteresis which is the distance between on and off. This
is what ultimately defines the length of your trigger pull.
With a Hall sensor that can be anything down to zero, a
feature not found in any mechanical switch. Besides that,
it can never break or wear out. The stock sensor in the
E-Mag can adjust down to around 0.3 mm, and the trigger
is completely adjustable. The second feature is the magnetic
trigger return, which uses a different magnet in the top
of the trigger to pull against a stack of magnets in the
frame. This gives the unusual characteristic of a trigger
pull that starts firm and gets weaker with distance. To
change the pull, use fewer magnets or space them out farther
from the trigger. All of this was done for maximum reliability,
since the trigger system these days takes a lot of abuse.
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Is
the gun's firing rate restricted? |
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Yes,
ALL the major E guns are software-limited to 13 balls per
second by manufacturers' agreement. This includes semi auto.
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What's
this about 20 BPS? |
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We demonstrated
the maximum firing rate of 20 balls/sec. at the tournament
to show that the gun will have no problems keeping up at
the restricted rates. We will only sell restricted guns.
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Why
is the RT capable of 26 BPS and the E-Mag only 20? |
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We added
extra weight to the sear with the solenoid plunger, so that
slows it down some. We have not actually had the time to
explore the upper reaches of the performance envelope, but
we think it might be some where around 25-30 balls out the
barrel per second.
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Are
you trying to displace the Angel? |
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No, we
know from the decade-long Autococker/Automag debate that
eventually everyone will own both, so it doesn't matter.
Jon Rice and the team at WDP have done an unbelievably good
job on that gun, and it deserves all the success it gets.
We actually get along with those guys quite well and expect
to for a long time!
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Is
it called WarpED Feed? |
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NO NO
NO, it is WARP FEED!!! Like in Warp Drive, the faster-than-light
engine of Star Trek fame!! Warped Sports makes cool guns
and we want them to put Warp Feeds on them, not get mad
at us for confusing the name.
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Is
it a vacuum feed? |
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No, it
is a friction drive. Two flexible urethane disks wedge the
ball gently between them in the spinning wheel. A single
ball is grabbed so gently that it can not push the stack
by itself but needs 4-5 balls in the wheel to stack up and
give the pressure needed to feed. If something blocks the
balls, like a closed bolt, the disks slip on the balls in
the wheel insuring that they can not break or jam. Even
if there is slime in the wheels they still feed. We want
to stress that there is no way for the wheel in the system
to jam or break a ball.
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What
if my batteries die in a game? |
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In reality
the batteries don't just quit all at once. As they get weaker,
the motor spins slower and this becomes obvious when you
watch the wheel spin. In the worst case the battery gets
too weak to keep up with full speed shooting and you slow
your shooting rate down. From noticeably slow to dead batteries
is more than a game's worth of shots.
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Why
do they change the rules for AGD when the Tagline gun was
illegal? |
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Rules
are set to make the playing field even and not give an advantage
to one gun over another. Because the Warp Feed can attach
to almost all guns, it has an easier time being accepted
without giving one gun an unfair advantage. There have been
several unsuccessful attempts in the past to come up with
a force feed loader, so they knew the idea was coming. The
old timers in the game have been waiting ten years to get
the hopper off the gun!
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It
sucks because I can't shoot out of the left side of the
bunker. |
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Not true,
you have to change your way of thinking about keeping the
gun straight up and down. You simply roll the gun over to
your left side at a 45-degree or more angle WITHOUT changing
your hand position. This is impossible now because your
hopper sticks out too far and would be a big target. Try
this with your current gun without a hopper and you will
see that there is little difference between shooting left
and right. Players that have used it are excited because
they DON'T have to shoot left-handed. We have pictures on
the site showing left and right shots.
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It
sucks because that big bulky thing will get in the way. |
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The system
is versatile enough that the hopper can go anywhere (yes,
even on your back). We put it where it is because that is
the most convenient place to have it over all. In most shooting
positions there is a hole between your elbows that the system
fills in. We tested the setup with many players from pros
to amateurs. They all said upon first view that it was bulky,
but once they played with it, they never knew it was there.
Please take our word for it on this one, try it and see!
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It
sucks because it's a big target. |
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The hopper
is a bigger target because it sticks up above your head.
With the Warp Feed, the hopper is now in front of your chest,
and if it gets hit there, you were doing something wrong
to begin with.
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It's
really ugly. |
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Well,
think of it like a big supercharger sticking out of the
hood on your race car, ugly but effective. (Funny, no one
calls the blimp on top of the gun ugly...)
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There
seem to be two different pictures of the Warp Feed - one
is clear, one isn't? |
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The first
picture we showed on the site was a mock-up that had a prototype
housing. Yes, we all agree it was REALLY ugly. The pics
from the tournament show the final clear housing where you
can see the wheel, and we hope you like that better. If
you paint the inside of the housing you can match it to
your gun, and the Warp Feed is now available in colors.
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How
does it attach to the gun? |
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Currently
we will sell it with a plate that bolts to the bottom of
the trigger frame.
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Am
I stuck with the under-barrel feed? |
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No, if
you want to change back simply put the power feed plug in
the opposite side, put on your hopper and elbow, and you
are back to good old gravity feed.
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What
speed will it feed? |
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It depends
on battery voltage. With 6 volts it feeds a gun at 12-13
balls a second, at 12 volts it feeds over 20 balls a second.
In testing we have spun it up to 75 balls a second with
no problems. Most players will do fine with the 6-volt system.
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Will
it be allowed in tournaments? |
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Yes.
The systems were on the field in the 10 man at the Amateur
Open, they are allowed in the Lively series, and NPPL will
be voting on 8-7-00. From our discussions with Bill Cookston,
we don't think there are any issues - they are more concerned
about the semi only rule.
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Has
anyone commented on how it plays? |
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Here
is a telling post from Paintball City's message
board:
"You guys will probably change your minds on the warp system
once you see it in action. I watched Todd from Pev's Paintball
take it out in the free speedball, and he ended up shooting
beneath a spool with gun almost completely upside down.
Quite awesome." Todd owns an Angel and Autococker, is a
certified Angel Tech, and manages Pev's Paintball. He wants
a blue/yellow fade E-Mag with WF ASAP!
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How
can it feed 20 BPS when the Rev. only drops 10-12 BPS? |
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This
is a very intelligent question. The Rev. will drop balls
out the bottom faster than 10-12 - it's more like about
15-18. The problem is that in all guns the bolt is closed
for some period of time, and in that time the Rev. does
not feed, so basically everything comes to a stop and waits
for the bolt. When the bolt opens, the feed system has to
hurry up and feed the ball in before it closes again, so
any feed system has to feed faster than the rate of fire.
The Warp Feed will continuously accept balls into the wheel,
and if there is a gap between the balls, the wheel slips
and all the balls catch up and form a continuous line. You
cannot shoot the E-Mag at 20 BPS with the Rev. continuously;
you can only burst out what's in the wheel and then wait
for it to catch up. For testing we put a long tube between
the WF and hopper to get long shot strings; this is what
we did at Am Open.
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You
DON'T NEED THE VACUUM FEED when you have a hopper that will
do 18 BPS!!! |
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That's
not the point. You don't need a target on top of the gun
that gets hit 50% of the time. The feed rate is just a bonus,
in this case.
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What
about fitting the Warp Feed to other guns? |
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In the
works. Angel is working on a small software mod to drive
the system with the Intellifeed port; Indian Springs and
Bob Long are on it, too. You will be seeing all the guns
with Warps soon.
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General
FAQs:
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I
bought my Mag used and it didn't
come with a owners manual. How can I get one? |
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Manuals
can be downloaded by going to our Manuals and Diagrams page or to our Internet Store's Technical section.
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How
can I contact Airgun Designs if I have questions about my
'Mag or if I want to order parts? |
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Call
our office if you want to order parts or if you need general
product and pricing information. You can reach the office
by calling (847) 520-7507 and then pressing 1 followed
by the pound sign. Our office business hours are 9:00 a.m.
until 5:00 p.m. (Central Time) Monday through Friday.
If you have technical questions (for example, your 'Mag
is leaking down the barrel, what do you do?) or if you need
technical information, please call our Tech Support department
at (847) 520-7225. Their business hours are 9:00 a.m.
until 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. until 4:30 p.m. (Central
Time) Monday through Friday.
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What
do I do if I need to send my 'Mag into Airgun Designs for
repair? |
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Please
call us BEFORE you send your 'Mag to us! Calling first gives
us the chance to take care of the following:
Maybe you don't really need to send your 'Mag in. Maybe
we can help you by sending you some parts.
We need to issue a Return Authorization number for the repair
work to be done. We WILL NOT accept a package that comes
in without a Return Authorization number written on the
outside of the package.
Please call our Tech Support department at (847) 520-7225
if you're having a problem with your 'Mag and think you
might need to send it in for repair.
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How
much does an Automag cost? How much do parts cost? Can I
buy these from Airgun? |
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As a
manufacturer, Airgun Designs does not sell its guns to the
general public. Please contact a dealer near you if you
are interested in purchasing one of our products.
Once
you've purchased one of our products and have registered
it with us
you may purchase maintenance parts and accessories from
us. Please check the retail
price list posted on our site or you can call our
office at (847) 520-7507 for pricing information.
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Will
you send me your latest product catalog? |
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Sorry,
we don't have any catalogs at this time. However, you can
view our available product brochure online here.
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I
just bought a used Airgun Designs paintball marker and some
of the original equipment is missing. Do I have to pay to
get these parts? |
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We're
happy to send out an instruction manual at no
charge (except for a $5 postage and handling fee) to anyone
who purchases a used 'Mag. However, we are unable to
send
out the other items (such as tool kit, feeder elbow, loader)
at no charge.
You can request the instruction manual and video by putting
your request in the "Comments" box when you register
your used 'Mag online or mention it when you phone in your
registration. If you have previously registered your used
'Mag but now wish to request the manual and/or video, you
may contact us by phone or mail. To order other parts and/or
accessories, call our office at (847) 520-7507 and
press 1 followed by the pound sign.
By the way, since we no longer include bumper stickers with
new 'Mags, these are also unavailable to owners of used
markers.
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Can
any 68AUTOMAG parts be used in the AUTOMAG RT? |
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Not really.
There are only a few interchangeable parts (the bolt and
a couple of O-rings).
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How
come there's no information about the MICROMAG on your website? |
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The MICROMAG
is not made by Airgun Designs, the MICROMAG is made by Pro-Team
Products in Florida. The telephone number for Pro-Team Products
is (386) 437-3375.
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Will
Airgun Designs sponsor my Team? |
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Probably
not. We currently have as many sponsored teams as we are
willing to support.
If all
the players on your team use Mags, we suggest you keep
a careful record of your wins and participate in the Automags
Online forums frequently. Tom Kaye hand-picks all
sponsored teams, and a winning team of Mag users that
is active on AO has a better chance of being noticed.
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How
do I tell a left-handed from a right-handed setup? |
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Many
people are confused about this! In fact, we have changed
the way we talk about this several times over the past few
years. We no longer describe our product as right-handed
or left-handed. We now describe our product by the type
of feed it has (standard or power feed) and by the hopper
setup (Hopper Left or Hopper Right). If you have a Power
Feed and the Hopper sits on the left side of the gun you
have a "Power Feed Hopper Left." If you have Power
Feed and the Hopper sits on the right side of the gun you
have a "Power Feed Hopper Right." We also make
both Standard Feed Hopper Right and a Standard Feed Hopper
Left (please note that the Standard Feed Hopper Left is
a special Order item).
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What's
the best barrel to use? |
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Many
people have asked us this question. It's just about impossible
to name one barrel that is the best for every paintball
player. We suggest that you talk to friends and other players
and listen to what they have to say about the barrel that
they use. If possible, borrow a barrel from a friend and
try it out. See if it suits you and the way you have your
'Mag set up.
There are many companies who make barrels for our products:
DYE, J & J, and Smart Parts are just some of them. Call
some of these companies and ask them for information about
their barrels. Also, you might want to check out the various
paintball publications (Action Pursuit Games, Paintball
Sports, Paintball 2-Xtremes, Paintball Sports International
and PCRI) for articles about barrels.
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I'm
going to start using Nitrogen with my AUTOMAG instead of
CO2. Do I need to change anything on my AUTOMAG? |
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You might
need to purchase a new Regulator Piston Assembly and, if
your Automag has a serial number lower than 28500, you might
also need to purchase a new Spring Pack. Call our Tech Support
department at (847) 520-7225 if you'd like more information
about this.
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What's
the recommended input pressure for a 68AUTOMAG or MINIMAG
when using compressed air or Nitrogen? |
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800 PSI
is the recommended pressure, although a bit higher doesn't
seem to cause any problems. Lower pressures tend to create
rapid-fire velocity drop off. Remember that most gauges
are +/- 10% of face, which means that a 1200 pound gauge
may be off as much as 120 pound PSI. Gauges should be used
as a starting point/reference. Individual style of play
should also be taken into consideration.
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I
heard that Airgun Designs has a new On/Off Assembly. Is
that true? |
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We redesigned
the On/Off top piece in the On/Off Assembly so that it can't
be put in upside down: now, any way you put it in is okay.
This design change does not change the way the On/Off top
works. NOTE: We redesigned On/Off top in late 1996.
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How
long should the on/off pin be in a 68Automag? |
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0.750"
+/- 0.003"
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How
thick should the on/off pin be in a 68Automag? |
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0.117"
to .1185"
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How
long should the trigger rod be in a 68Automag? |
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1.988"
to 1.990" in a metal frame
1.980" in a carbon fiber frame
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Is
Airgun Designs still offering the bolt exchange program? |
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Sorry,
no. That program ended December 31, 1998 after running for
four years.
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I
heard you had a pump conversion kit. Is it still available? |
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No, it's
not. We discontinued the pump kit in December 1997.
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I
heard the AUTOMAG RT was banned from a tournament. Is this
true? What's going on? |
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There
was a one-tournament ban on the RT, but the National Paintball
Association (which provides insurance for paintball fields)
has finished its review and has lifted the ban. The RT is
legal while operating in semi-automatic mode. It's illegal
only when it is operating in full-auto mode and this usually
happens only when modifications have been made to the RT.
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Is
it possible for me to upgrade my 47 cu in FLATLINE to a
68 cu in FLATLINE? |
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No, it's
not.
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For technical help visit http://www.AutoMags.org
and post any questions or comments you might have in the
forums. Your questions will be answered by Airgun Designs
Master Techs and fellow Mag shooters.
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