Nope. I started playing paintball the summer I graduated from Auburn, in 1983. Recent histories of paintball claim that was right at the very beginning of the sport, though some list 1982, or even earlier. At any rate, I started playing at a field in Suwanee Georgia run by a fellow named Dave Ellis.   [Update - 2005: I know this info is getting pretty long in the tooth, but with moving to Charlotte and various job dramas I really haven't had time to play paintball in several years, much less add much to this page. I apologize to folks that were expecting more from me, but I do plan to keep this up here in the hope that I will be able to return to the sport in the future...]   Back in the 'old days', we played with oil-based [permanent] paint with bolt-action Nel-spot pistols. Capture the flag games were played on a huge field, more than 50 acres, with teams of 20 or more on each side, and usually lasted 2 or 3 hours each. The basic tactic was 'run like hell'. The guns weren't very accurate, and took so long to re-load that people rarely got off more than one shot at you.

An aside here. There's a common misconception that paintballs go 'splat'. This is not true. Paintballs look like they go splat. They actually go 'thwack', and hurt like a sum'bitch if they hit bare skin.   In 1983 we wore goggles but no masks. Getting hit in the face feels like being stung by a bee. Ouch.

Time passed. In 1988, I first saw a Bushmaster pump gun.   Shortly thereafter I bought my first paintgun, a clone bushmaster 'Assasinator' from I&I Sports. I played a lot of games with that gun, upgrading it with a constant air and honing the internals, I even made a nice pair of rosewood grips for the Nelson frame, but, again, time passed.

The Bobcat

In 1995, I first played against serious semi-auto paintball guns.   Shortly thereafter, I bought a semi-auto (fires each time you pull the trigger with no pumping or cocking required), an Indian Creek Design (ICD) Bobcat. This turned out to be a good choice. With a few upgrades, it's still kicking along.   I like the Bobcat. It's reliable and accurate, and quiet. It's a tough little marker. It has decent rate of fire. I use a remote CO2 from a 4+1 pack, and it's very well balanced and quick to point that way. And they've dropped in price to almost half of what I paid for mine in 1995. Efficiencies of production, ugh.

pRCarter (ICDOG #013) 1995 ICD Bobcat ICD New Style 10 inch Barrel VL Revolution 'Ghillie' Loader Cover Green VL'bow ICD Sight Rail ICD 45 Grip Custom Oak Grips Gas Thru Stock ACI Disconnect/Slide Valve 20 Oz Remote CO2 with X-Chamber Polished Hammer Trigger Job ICD Double Trigger

Top to Bottom: 14" TASO Pro-Series SS 12" J&J Ceramic     with Lapco Adapter 12" SmartParts Teardrop ICD 7" ICD Bobcat Barrel

Links: 'Cat info on this Site

ICD 'Cats: Main Page Getting Started: Tips for a New Owner    Bobcat Exploded View and Schematic    Puma Exploded View and Schematic    Thundercat/Alleycat Exploded View and Schematic 'Cat Theory of Operation and Differences    'Cat Theory of Operation    Differences: The 'Cats    Differences: Other ICD Markers 'Cat Trigger Work and Bolt Polishing    Trigger Work    Bolt Polishing    Adding a Rear Trigger Stop Accessories: Aftermarket Parts for the 'Cats

The Phantom

Time passes. I stopped playing for a couple of years. So now it's 1998. Why would I go backwards and buy another pump paintball gun?   Well, it's complicated. I miss pump guns. I miss the challenge of sneaking up on folks and aiming carefully. I fear high rate of fire guns and getting hit by a train of 8 paintballs when someone wails away with an Angel or Automag RT.   There's been a resurgence of interest in pump-only and stock gun paintball play. Several of the fields here in Atlanta offer pump-only games weekly now. It's a slower game, more suited to 'old guys' like me.   The Phantom is, well, awesome. It's light, accurate, sneaky quiet, and stone reliable. It's a highly evolved version of the bushmaster pump I still have, but beyond the similarities of function, there is no comparison. The fit and finish of the Phantom are of the highest level.

Phantom Gravity Feed Pump 14 inch Grey Anodized Phantom Barrel VL 200 with Neoprene Cover Clear VL'bow Crosman Red Dot Sight Benchmark 45 Grip Adapter Uncle Mike's 45 Grips Vertical Gas Adapter Microline Gas Fittings D-Lab Gas Thru Stock ACI Disconnect/Slide Valve 20 Oz Remote CO2 with X-Chamber Grey Anodized Trigger Shoe

The Desert Fox

Urk. It's 1999, and I've bought yet another paintball gun. This time I bought another ICD gun so I could use the same barrel collection, a 1998 model Desert Fox. I was doing online research on suggested markers for a fiend when I found a price at Skanline I could not refuse. It had to be a database error, since the price went up two days after I bought it.   But, this gun must have been a return, since it arrived without the ICD box or a complete parts kit, and covered inside and out with a fine coating of grey grit. The gun was also bone dry, so I had to do a total teardown and rebuild/relube to get it to work.

1998 ICD Desert Fox Macroline Gas Fittings Lapco ICD to Spyder Barrel Adapter 12 inch J&J Ceramic Spyder Barrel ICD 45 Grip Hogue Wraparound 45 Grips Gas Thru Stock ACI Disconnect/Slide Valve Macroline Gas Fittings Polished Bolt Trigger Job Pro-Line Double Trigger

Links: Desert Fox info on this Site

98 Desert Fox: Main Page Getting Started: Tips for a New Owner    98 Fox Exploded View and Schematic    Classic Fox Exploded View and Schematic Fox Troubleshooting    Troubleshooting: Air Leaks    Troubleshooting: Cycling Problems    Troubleshooting: Ball Breaks Tweaks: Things you can do for your Fox    Regulator Theory and Tuning    Trigger Work and Bolt Polishing    DIY Dial Velocity Adjustor Accessories: Aftermarket Parts for the Desert Fox History: A Bumpy Start   ICD Aftermarket Barrel Review Basic Airsmithing Links: ICD Info on the Internet

More Web Stuff

With my re-entry into paintball, I started looking into information on the web. Wow. There are a lot of great paintball sites. I've been contributing to a couple of them:   I.C.D.O.G. (the Indian Creek Design Owners Group) I.O.N. (the ICD Owners Network)   And I worked up a re-design for the CCI site, manufacturer of the Phantom, but it looks like that will not work out. Too bad too, I don't have space to house the new design here for long, but the thing is complete: Old CCI Homepage Redesigned CCI Homepage

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All Graphics and HTML Copyright © 1999 pRCarter and Cognitive Event Horizon. All Text Copyright © 1999 pRCarter and Cognitive Event Horizon, except as noted. All rights reserved.   Indian Creek Designs, and the Panther, Puma, Bobcat, Thundercat, and Alleycat are registered trademarks of Indian Creek Designs of Nampa, Idaho. Phantom is a registered trademark of Component Concepts, Inc.