I came back to paintball after about twenty years away. A local player was getting out the same weekend I was getting back in, so I bought a lot of his equipment. My son was part of the return. Before long, there were more markers than we needed.
My son had his own ideas about the equipment. The Tippmann Alpha Black Elite carried a US Army emblem; he removed it to suit his own style.
The used gear came with things to sort out. I rebuilt an old Smart Parts Impulse, cleaned and lubricated it, and got it cycling without leaks. Its feedneck threads were nearly stripped, though, and one of the ball detents needed replacing. I considered making the feedneck a permanent attachment before selling it, then decided to describe the problem and leave that choice to the next owner.
A D3FY D3s looked promising at home. I cleaned it, fitted new ball detents, tested it, and brought it to the field. After the chronograph, my son turned it off. It would not turn back on until the battery was disconnected. It also drained batteries too quickly. I had meant to keep it for guests or as a backup; instead, I listed it for parts. Being able to make it fire was not enough to call it reliable.
There were smaller distinctions too. A hopper’s cracked feedneck did not fit every marker equally badly: the Tippmann held it deeper, beyond the damaged ring. A barrel shroud came along with the equipment, but I could not get it to fit and did not promise that it would. The listings had to say what I had actually tried.
The Empire Axe 2.0 was a different problem. It shot well. I had bought it for my son during the spree, used it for a day, and had nothing substantial to fix. In my sale description I admitted why it was leaving: it had become my fifth-nicest marker, and I had promised my wife I would keep only four.
Four was apparently restraint.