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R E M A N Y L I K E I T , B U T T H I S O N E I S M I N E …

BY dave porter M4
HPA

TIPPMANN VERSION 1 AND VERSION 2

I
BAT TERIES NO T NCL UDED

A COUPLE OF ISSUES AGO, I GAVE YOU THE RUNDOWN ON THE V2 TIPPMANN Although I do know of some people who had a
great amount of success with the Shapeways
M4, THE CQB MODEL, AND BEFORE THAT, I TOOK YOU THROUGH MY EXPERIENCE nub system which is similar to Tippmann’s
original, but with a flat-hopped design that had
WITH THE ORIGINAL TIPPMANN M4, AND THE MODIFICATIONS AND UPGRADES a larger surface area and made better contact
SHE’S ENDURED OVER THE YEARS. THIS PARTICULAR ARTICLE WILL BRING with the bucking, my biggest problem was the
hop up keeping its position. I found myself
TOGETHER MY THOUGHTS ON EACH RIFLE, THE SYSTEM AS A WHOLE, AND having to readjust it constantly. The new hop
up though, is a markable improvement on the
WHETHER THE TIPPMANN IS A WORTHWHILE PURCHASE IN COMPARISON TO original, and not only have I achieved far greater
consistency, the general performance is also
OTHER PLATFORMS. FIRST, A QUICK ROUNDUP BETWEEN EACH VERSION. much improved. I do however have one caveat,
and that is that aftermarket options are still
There are three main differences as far as I can a stronger recoil than the version one. This is better than the version two’s TDC. The fitted
see, between the original and second version referring to both rifles using stock components, TDC is reliable, holds its position well, and is
of Tippmann’s M4. The first is the aesthetics, of course. I had to reinstall the original bolt from very stable, however, the amount of hop you
where they have moved with the times and my version one to test this, as not long after can apply is lacking just a little bit. I found with
improved the appearance by adding a free float purchasing it I upgraded to the aftermarket testing that any BB’s over 0.30 grams suffered
MLOK rail system. The original rail system was, heavy bolt. The kick from the version two feels slightly from under-hop, and this was with the
well, in my opinion, hideous! I know, I know, just a little stronger, and slightly more ‘snappy’, hop fully applied. I know this is splitting hairs
it’s all down to personal preference, but I’m but that being said, I’ve been spoilt from the slightly, but DMR builds for example, where you
yet to find anyone that disagrees with me on headache inducing heavy bolt, and both stock may wish to use heavier ammo, might also need
this one. The version two has a much improved versions, unfortunately, pale in comparison. This an aftermarket hop system. Luckily, this is a
rail system, that’s far more pleasing to the is again where personal preference comes in, relatively inexpensive part. If however, you plan
eye, however, even though I like the styling, as the recoil may be more than enough for most to run the Tippmann as a fully automatic and
and I especially love the low-weight and slim to bring that sense of realism to the skirmish, in regular skirmish rifle, the standard hop system
profile, I have to say that hand on heart, I would which case the version two takes the lead. should work just fine.
much prefer a metal handguard. When you are The third and final prominent difference is the As far as differences go, that’s pretty much it.
dropping nearly half a grand on a new setup, hop system, where Tippmann have migrated I like to think of this as ‘if it’s not broken, don’t
you want to know that every square inch is as from the 3D printed hop up nub which was fix it’! Tippmann has taken what I believe to be a
robust and reliable as it could be. I also think adjusted from the side to the TDC (Top Dead phenomenal system, listened to their customers
that the majority of players who have invested Centre) version which now adjusts vertically. For on what they’re not overly keen on, and
in this system would change out the handguard me, this was the single most important upgrade launched a second version that tackles some
for an aftermarket option. between the two editions, as I had nothing of those issues. There are, however, still a few
The second noticeable difference is the recoil. but problems with the original stock hop up tweaks I would love to see, and this brings me to
Tippmann marketed the version two as having system, until finally building my own TDC hop. my list of necessary and unnecessary upgrades.

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