So I've come to think about exactly what got me into getting the Tippmann in the first place. I can't help but think about how getting the Mini made too much sense. But the first thing that really makes me think back to what started it all was when I was younger....

I was obsessed with being a soldier....and now that I am a soldier I love it. But I wanted to look and act like a soldier on the paintball field. I didn't realize that you didn't need the looks and bulkiness of a paintball marker to actually function like a soldier.

So when i was building my gun I saw how I could have the same functions that an electro could do I made my decision based on that. But I left out one huge factor, weight....The weight slows down your ability to react to fire.....but i noticed it most in speedball.

Using a speedball gun i hope to improve my performance vastly....well you know the story....anyhow how did you guys actually come across your invert mini.....

Well, it started out when my dad and I would play. I used the X7(e-grip), and he used a 98 custom. He felt like he was getting the short end of the stick, and he said "go find a gun for me to buy myself that is good" I ended up choosing the invert mini, he went out and bought it. We had air tanks, but he also bought a halo. At this point he brings it home and we have a kickin' marker. And of course like the father that he is he lets me use it almost all the time And he used the X7. Now he always takes the better gun, and better mask because "he is old and he needs all the help he can get", yes.... he admits it.

I got tired of not being able to consistently put a paintball where I wanted it with my a5. And I put a bunch of money into it to get it where I could and still wasn't able to. I was able to try a pimped out Shocker for a game and instantly knew electro was the way to go. I liked the looks and feel of the Mini and especially the price. So that's what I got.

Pretty much the same for me. Got tired of my X7 making soup all the time, and no matter what upgrade or mod I tried for the cyclone I couldn't keep it from destroying paint. It was also heavy, bulky, and so God awful inefficient. I tried a teammates PM7 and fell in love with the space guns. Put my X7 up for trade, and was offered an Olive Mini with a ReloaderB and an Empire barrel kit, and I haven't looked back. I do kinda miss the whispers at the field though... "look at the assault rifle..."

like you, Rev, i was into the A5 and X7 for the mil-sim thing. i only went electro b/c MJ is the devil and he convinced me to do it!

Similar story here too and sorry for the long story.

All of my 2 paintball friends had A5's and were pushing me towards one. Then I saw an X7 with the egrip selector and that's what made up my mind for me. The ability to "pretend" I was a soldier with the ability to switch from semi to full-auto on the fly was irrestible.

I then found myself fully consumed in the race to achieve the highest bps w/o chopping paint. I was able to shoot full-auto 25bps with no chops at all (thank you X7OG). As I slowly grew out of my noob stage I realized that as fun as it was to shoot that fast it was more of a waste of paint. I sold the egrip and replaced it with a responce trigger. I began to realize that it was my skills vs. my equipment that mattered the most so I began trying to come home with more paint than last time but also have more kills than last time.

Skills such as speed running from bunker to bunker, snap shooting, crawling quietly, and remaining hidden after firing became important to me and I realized that the X7 was a slight hinderance. It was also two years after my first game and I was becoming curious about all these other markers out there. The Mini, its positive reviews, and its olive green color caught my attention and the rest is history.

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Don't worry, tigar, my story is going to be longer, lol.

I've had an A5 for years, and when the X7 came out, I knew I had to have one. It was just so much easier to get the milsim look I wanted with the X7. I waited, though, until the UMP stuff was available and then picked up my first one, with an Egrip. 6 months later, I picked up another, standard grip this time, at a great deal, so I thought I was done. Then, I become friends with T and have to hear all about his Ego (no pun intended, lol) and how his days playing with his X7 were numbered. I agreed with him that we aren't getting any younger, lol, but I do love my milsim stuff. I am also a big guy, so toting aroung 8-10 pounds of marker didn't bother me much.

Anyway, early this summer, the family and I were in Bel Air, Maryland for a horse show and as my son and I were running errands for the wife, he noticed a paintball shop. Now, we can't drive past any type of paintball related business, so we stopped in and shot the bull with the owner and employees for about 45 minutes. One of the guys had his Ego8 hanging on the wall and let me fondle it, lol. As soon as I held it, I was in love.

I told the wife that I had found my next marker, but that when I was ready to buy, I would hit up T to find me a good deal. Little did I know that I would be buying T's Ego8, lol. So, no Mini for me, but I am loving my Ego! I do intend to keep my X7's, but the Ego is my primary for the foreseeable future.

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Friends don't let friends go to the 'Nation...

^^^I feel the same way about the tractor beam of PB stores. LOL

I wonder if there are any players out there who started out with a space marker like all of their friends, "fondled" (thanks Big Daddy, sigh) his first milsim, and fell in love?

I wonder if he would get a cookie for doing that??

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My story is pretty much the same as many above. I started out with a brand spanking new A5 and only played a few outlaw games with it before I thought I needed more firepower. Enter the Egripped X7. It looks bad arse and can be modded to look like pretty much anything. It works great in the warmer months but makes slushies in the winter. I was going to buy blizzard paint for our winter outlaw games and then I saw the light * Queue angels singing* the electro..... aka Invert mini. That's all I'm gonna say.

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Electros just seem to do what they are supposed to do all of the time.....