a simple non-motorized hopper but may
find an occasional “shake and bake” may
be needed to keep up. To shave even more
weight off and take full advantage of long-
range accuracy and consistency (and so I
could stick my barrel through brush in the
woods) I also replaced the marker’s stubby
stock barrel with a carbon fiber Freak. With
air topped off and paintballs in my loader I
was ready to play.
Over the chronograph the EMek is consistent,
not surprising considering its compressed air
propellant, regulator and Gamma Core drive
train. Using paintballs much too small for its
stubby stock barrel I found initial results of
264, 266, 263. A quick turn of the included
Allen wrench to the velocity adjuster at the
bottom of the bottle adapter got things up
to 276, 270, 274. Paint was small enough that
groups were a little loose at medium ranges
so I swapped over to my sixteen inch Freak
barrel with a properly bore-sized insert, and
immediately the marker transformed from
solid to impressive. Velocity shot up ten feet
per second consistently with 286, 284, 286
082
paintball.media magazine
over the chrono and groups near and far were
predictable and very tight. In addition, the
sound of the firing gun changed, becoming
quieter – ideal for woodsball where shooting
might give away a position. Finally, there’s
the trigger pull. The EMek’s pivoting single
trigger is easy to learn to shoot fast and has
a surprisingly clean, crisp break.
The Eclipse EMek is a impressive mechanical
paintball gun. Extremely light, easy to shoot,
consistent, well-made, delivered with plenty
of standard features and, obviously, that
incredible price, not to mention the backing
of Planet Eclipse, makes this marker an ideal
choice for a player on a budget, players
looking to try mechanical paintball without
dropping hundreds or even thousands, or
even for serious mechanical paintball players
due to the competitive performance of the
marker! Whether you’re looking to ditch the
batteries on purpose or simply want a great
paintball gun at a great price regardless of
how it goes bang, put the EMek on the short
list!