|
General Description Surge Paintball is a brand new company out of Ripon, California. They currently offer two guns for sale in the paintball market; the electronic 04 LCD Bonez and the Mechanical Bonez (a non electric version of the LCD Bonez.) You can check out their Web site at www.SurgePaintball.com.  The 04 LCD Bonez is an entry-level electronic marker. It is available in three color schemes; Black, Blue, or Pewter, and looks great. Plus, it comes with quite a few features for a $285 gun. The 04 LCD Bonez comes with pretty much every feature on the Mechanical Bonez. The 04 LCD Bonez features an LCD screen and has both semi and full auto capabilities (adjustable anywhere from 4 to 20 balls per second.) The LCD display features a shot counter, a countdown timer, a power function (giving you the option of having the gun automatically turn off after 30 minutes of inactivity,) and an on/off for the break beam eyes. The break beam eyes prevent the gun from firing until a paintball is fully seated, preventing you from chopping paint.Features Both the 04 LCD and Mechanical Bonez come with a drop forward, a .45 grip, a two finger trigger, gas-through grip, vertical feed, and a two piece 12" barrel. They accept Spyder threaded barrels and weigh about 4 lbs (minus the tank and hopper.) Both guns are top cocking with removable pull-pin bolts for easy cleaning. They also feature a rear velocity adjuster with a tournament lock. This is important for anyone interested in playing a tournament, because a lot of tournaments have rules preventing a player from competing if a player can adjust his/her velocity out on the field. The tournament lock prevents this, making the gun legal for tournament play. The 04 LCD and Mechanical Bonez are high pressure guns, operating at input pressures around 800-850 PSI (pounds per square inch). Surge recommends using a 9.6v battery to power the 04 LCD Bonez's electronic functions. These can be hard to find (I had to order mine online) and are a little expensive, but a regular 9v battery will work, you will just run out of juice sooner. Also, I found that when using the 9v battery, I would start to skip shots, so even though I was pulling the trigger 10 times a second, I was only shooting 5 or 6 balls a second due to lack of battery power (this occurred only after going through a little more than 2000 paintballs.) Whichever battery voltage you go with, I recommend getting rechargeable batteries, they will save you money in the long run. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly There are many good things to like about this gun, but a couple disappointments as well. First off, there are quite a few features on this gun for the price. $285 is not a lot of money, and this gun has the features of a marker with a much higher price. Also, the gun looks amazing. It is very sleek with 3D milling and has a very catchy and unique design. For example, the 04 LCD Bonez model I reviewed was pewter. It had a pewter body, a pewter and light bronze barrel, and smoke colored gel grips. The way that the gun brings all these colors together is beautiful. The Bonez looks very professional and I received numerous compliments on its appearance from people at the store to other players on the field. Another visual advantage of this gun is that, being relatively new, not that many people have seen them, so the gun has a special attractiveness to it, much like "the new kid" in school. (Be warned, however, that with all the attention the gun draws you should be prepared to answer some questions, because they are sure to follow!) The stock barrel is decently accurate but like most stock barrels it should be replaced when possible. Unfortunately the trigger is loose. There is a lot of side-to-side sway (which some people find really annoying) and a little too much forward slack for my taste. However, the gun shoots like a champ, very fast and pretty quiet. A large part of this is due to the trigger frame design. I am not the fastest trigger walker (shooting the gun on semi using your index and middle finger) in the world, but I can hit about 11 balls per second on this gun, not bad at all! The LCD is easy to read and I had no problem working with all the different functions. The break beam eye is pretty nice too. Out of the 2000 balls that I shot, I only broke one, and that is when I tried to go full auto 20 BPS without remembering to turn on my electronic hopper. Other than that, I didn't have a single problem with it the whole time I tested it. Also, the feed for the hopper is adjustable, so almost any size of hopper will fit nicely. As an added bonus, the gun is comfortable to hold, with the gel grips making it easy to keep a good grip on the gun and the gas-through chamber grip is comfortable and easy to maneuver. While the gun does have quite a few advantages, there are several areas where it is lacking as well. I was disappointed that the 04 LCD Bonez did not come with a built in battery charger. A lot of electronic markers come with adapters that allow you to plug one end into the gun and the other into an electrical socket in order to charge the battery in the gun. I realize that this isn't a huge issue, but it is another item I needed to add to my list that Surge could have put into the gun and saved me some money (and the fact that it is a pretty common accessory to include with other electronic guns.) I would also recommend a regulator, (the Surge website says it comes with one, but it is actually just a gas-through chamber.) A regulator will help to keep your air pressure consistent, minimizing the velocity changes that almost every paintball player is familiar with. It will also help you to keep your gun in its "sweet spot," which will allow you to get the most shots out of your tank. Another major problem I had was with the complete lack of support from Surge Paintball. This began when I opened the box and found three sheets of paper held together by a lone staple. Apparently this was the owners manual? Now I'm not the most difficult person in the world to please, but I expect a little more effort than this to be put forth for people who purchase their product. Not only did that show a minimum of concern for the customer, but also the manual only instructed me on how to operate the electronic functions on the gun. If they can't get the manual together, what should convince me that they put the gun together right? There was no mention of how to conduct troubleshooting or how to clean the gun. I realize that knowing how to turn on the shot counter is important, but more important is understanding how to properly clean the gun. The manual did not include several of the specifications for the gun and what to do if something isn't working right. There was not even a customer service number or website listed in the manual in case the buyer has questions. Scary! This lack of support continued when I tried to both email and call Surge Paintball on several occasions and have not gotten a response. I have heard about this same problem from several other Surge marker owners. This is a huge flaw, because no matter how nice the gun is paintball players want support from their marker's manufacturer. I am concerned that buying this gun may be a risky way to spend your money. Since the company is new and doesn't have much of a track record at all, it is impossible to predict how many aftermarket products are going to be available for this gun and if they are going to come out with any accessories. Since this gun hasn't seen tons of widespread use yet, there is no guarantee that many upgrades will be made for it. The Short Story Firing Rate (LCD Model): 4-20 balls per second Input Pressure (Max): 800-850 PSI Power: CO2 or Compressed Air (Compressed Air Recommended) Weight (marker only): 4 lbs Pros Great looks Break Beam Eye High rate of fire CO2 or Compressed Air Not very heavy Cons High Pressure System Zero support from Surge Paintball Range inconsistent No built in battery charger Better guns now on the market? (Smart Parts Ion same price better gun!) Recommended Upgrades A regulator ($40+) A new barrel ($40+) A trigger with less side-to-side movement and less slack Overall All in all the Surge Bonez is not a bad buy, but I hesitate to call it a good one. It is a decent gun for a low price. It has a lot of features found only on more expensive guns, and out of the box with no customizations it is still a descent tourney gun. Though there are some shortcomings, the biggest one (lack of support) can be partially sidestepped by putting a little extra work into finding the solutions to any of your problems, or asking some of the more experienced players. I would not recommend this gun. I would instead steer people to look towards the brand names we have all heard of; Piranha, Spyder, Tippmann, Smart Parts etc. I rate the 04 LCD Bonze a 6 out of 10 for low-end electronic markers, with the lower score due mainly to lack of support from Surge and the fact that new markers are starting to emerge in this price range with better support and features. If anything before spending $285 on the Surge LCD, consider purchasing a marker like the Smart Parts Ion or a comparable Piranha or Spyder. At roughly the same price the Ion and a few other guns look like much better markers for the money. Reviewed by, Jim Carrow IV Copyright DirectPaintball.com 2005 |
|
