product review
When we asked Frank Connell what the main
reason was for the drastic change in the marker’s bolt system, he didn’t pull any punches.
He wanted to remove the problematic QEV
from the marker’s equation, which would
quickly improve reliability for everyone. The
new bolt, which can be retrofitted by Vanguard into existing guns and is now standard
in new markers, both eliminates the QEV and
lowers the marker’s operating pressure to
approximately 100psi which, according to
Frank, makes for a more accurate and quieter
marker with even less recoil or “kick” than the
already smooth-shooting previous models exhibited when firing. All that having been said,
we were excited to cut open the box when the
UPS guy handed our Demon back to us.
Upon airing our newly upgraded Demon
up and putting some shots downrange, it
became pretty apparent that the marker,
with its new modifications, certainly performed as Connell told us it would. The
marker was, in-fact, very quiet, but it was
always quiet. Quieter? Maybe by a few
decibels. The marker shot very smooth, but
ours always shoot smooth. Smoother? Maybe a little. The upgraded Demon definitely
shot accurately, with shots out to fifty feet
landing in one ragged splat (using Valken
Redemption paintballs) and staying in tight
72
streams and predictable groups out even
further. Our Demon was always accurate.
Is it more accurate? With paint variations,
barrel length and bore size variations
and weather concerns being what they
are, we’re not sure the already-accurate
spool-valve Demon is noticeably more
accurate. But it really doesn’t need to be,
as it was already accurate. Then there’s
the air efficiency. We tested our Demon
at the office with a prototype test hopper
we’re not allowed to talk much about and
a Ninja 77 cubic inch bottle. When filled
PAINTBAL