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The original Ion revolutionized paintball. It was the first true fully electropneumatic marker in that low of a pricerange. However, it is far from perfect. It uses a horrible feedneck, standard duckbill ASA, and the trigger is sloppy, badly designed, and cheap. The BIGGEST issue with them, however, was the design of the body/bolt. Because you had to take the ENTIRE marker apart to get to the bolt to do routine maintenance, breakage was EXTREMELY high. The newer XE, and other aftermarket bolt-out-back (BOB) bodies made fixes this. With the BOB upgrade, a Q-lock, any decent on/off ASA, a trigger, and a QEV, the Ion shoots VERY nicely. WHile it's still not the most efficient marker made, it isn't bad by any means. Most people that hate on BOB Ions only do so because it's Smart Parts, since many people despise Smart Parts for their rather poor business practices in paintball world.
In truth, a BOB Ion isn't bad at all. They're dependable, fast, smooth, easy to fix, and inexpensive. They're a FANTASTIC marker for anyone who wants something nice to go play with, but doesn't want to break the bank. They're also great for someone who wants to personalize their marker, as there is literally a TON of aftermarket junk for them (many of it useless, but that's secondary).
If you're looking for an inexpensive hopper, go with an EyeForce ($50 new) or a Invert Too ($60 new) over the Egg. Not that much more expensive, and MANY, MANY, MANY times better both of them.
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