I think the title of the post should be pretty self explanatory. There is not any science or magic behind any of the choices that I made, Its just a small list of a few main categories and my opinions on then.
Gun of 2009 – Eclipse Etek 3
Really picking a gun that stands out above all the rest really doesn’t seem that difficult of a task, it seems obvious. There are a few criteria I had to take into account to make the choice, gun reliability, maintenance requirements, size, cost, and increasingly more important these days company reliability. I’m not going to get into rate of fire or efficiency, these both just don’t seem to be huge factor in picking guns anymore as most guns in the the $300 price range are very similar. When looking at all these things I feel it comes down to two guns, the new Etek 3 and the G3. Both guns are rather different, the G3 being a mid level spool valve entry leve style gun and the Etek 3 is right on the verge of being a high end gun pop valve. Spending the extra $175 for the Etek 3 is well worth the money. With that you get a far superior build, more reliability and the backing of one of the largest most successful companies around, Eclipse. Look for the Etek 3 to start dominates the local fields.
Tank of 2009 – Ninja
Ninja. They are really the only company that did anything as far as tanks go with year. They are cheap, reliable, easy to repair, and have great customer service. The paintball tank isn’t really the hardest thing to make but hands down Ninja has done the best job this year.
Mask of 2009 – Dye I4 Pro
When the original Dye Invison came out in 2004 it redefined what I paintball mask was. It was light, comfortable, and had bold styling. The Dye I4 Pro brought this back. It is everything that the original Invision was but in an updated smaller and lighter package.
Playing Apparel of 2009 ( kinda)
This is hard for me to write, or even decide on a winner. Im just not a fan on anything out their today. Everyone’s pants are to heavy and baggy, and all the paintball jerseys are just lame looking or fit really weird. So I’m not going to choose, I’m going to go with an old time classic the Smart Parts RASE pants. They aren’t made anymore, well unless you order custom ones anyway. They are light weight, you wont have a heat stroke if you wear them in the summer, and they last FOREVER.
Loader of 2009 – Dye Rotor
This shouldn’t come as a surprise. The Dye Rotor handily takes this category. What is there to say, other then it is the best loader ever made. There is no other option out there unless you are trying to stay cheap then I would suggest the Invert Halo Too. Over the last 8 years loader build quality have gotten very very cheap. This is what makes the Rotor so attractive it is made of very high quality, durable plastic. I could careless if you can take it apart in 15 seconds (which you can), I just want the thing to last longer then a few months. I have had mine from the day it came out and it is feeding strong and holding up perfectly. Easily the loader of the Decade
