| Re: The Tippmann A-5 For Dummies + Some General Paintball Info
II. The Tippmann A-5a. Washer, O-Ring, Tombstone
Washer first, then the o-ring; the tombstone holds them in place. If you don’t know what I’m talking about now, you will soon…b. How it Works
The Tippmann A-5 is an open bolt blowback marker. The below diagram will give you a good illustration to follow. I will try to make this as simple as possible. When you cock the marker, you are pulling back the both the (front) bolt and the hammer (rear bolt). These two parts are connected with a linkage arm so they travel together. The hammer in the cocked (open) position is held this way by the sear. In the cocked position, a paintball is allowed to fall into the breech resting in front of the bolt. When you pull the trigger, it trips the sear which releases the hammer. The Hammer and front bolt move together so that at the exact moment the hammer hits the valve the bolt has pushed a ball into the barrel. The gas travels through the now struck valve and launches the paintball. The valve besides allowing air to travel forward also diverts some air backwards to re-cock the marker. This process takes a fraction of a second. In the A-5’s case, some extra air is diverted into the cyclone to allow it to function as well. That is a brief, and probably confusing, explanation of how the A-5 works. The linked diagram does a great of showing the firing process.
c. Cleaning/Maintenance
i. Quick Strip
Cleaning the A-5 is simple. There are two ways to do it. One is the “quick strip” method that doesn’t involve taking apart the receiver halves. To do this, you must first turn in the FVA so the internals will slide out. Then, take off the end cap and the hammer, power tube, and bolt should slide right out. The hammer and bolt will be connected with the linkage arm. Rinse out the receiver and then wash off the bolt, linkage arm and hammer in warm water. Then, make sure everything is dry and lightly oil the bolt o-ring. After that, oil the linkage arm and hammer. Make sure the o-ring on the hammer is well oiled. When finished, connect the bolt and hammer with the linkage arm, put the power tube in the middle and then slide the internals back into the marker. Now, all you should have to do is swab out your barrel and rinse off the cyclone to be done.ii. Full Breakdown
The other method is a full breakdown of the marker. For this, you will need to disconnect everything from the marker and then unscrew all the Allen Wrenches and pull the receiver halves apart. Rinse off everything except the power tube and then lightly oil the bolt o-ring. Oil the linkage arm and hammer and then reassemble the parts. Put everything back together and you’re done. This method is preferable as it allows you to clean out every nook and cranny of your marker. You also won’t have to adjust your FVA leading to less fiddling when re-chronoing your marker. Always be sure to re-chrono your marker before playing after you clean it! d. The Cyclone
The Cyclone is the centerpiece of the A-5. Without it, the A-5 would just be a glorified model 98. The Cyclone works by having extra air from the cycling process of the A-5 diverted to a piston that rotates a ratchet which connects to the stars feeder that feeds the paint into your marker. The actual process is a little hard to describe so just like with the cycling process of an A-5, I am going to divert you to the below diagram:
e. Troubleshooting
i. Low Velocity Issues
This is usually caused by low CO2. But, you probably already know that so let’s look at the other causes. There is always the possibility of a bad drive spring. If you ever left your marker cocked over an extended time in storage, then that could have caused your drive spring to be compressed which will cause the hammer to hit the valve with less energy resulting in less air released and thus, a lower velocity. Some fixes for this include ordering a new drive spring by calling Tippmann or ordering one from TippmannParts.com. Or, you could shim the spring with a washer. Or, if you have an RVA, you could just turn it up all the way. Please note that with the Flatline, you may not be able to achieve velocities above 280fps. Also, if it is cold outside, CO2 may not have enough energy to give you a good velocity due to the nature of the gas. A compressed air tank will fix this problem. Another fix for low velocities is polishing the inside of your marker. See sections IIIfi1.ii. Inconsistent Velocity
Inconsistent velocities do not include a +/- 10-12 fps. With an open bolt blowback marker like a Tippmann, this is to be expected. Even using Compressed Air, you are still likely to have a difference of up to 8fps between shots. A good regulator such as Palmer’s Stabilizer will help lower velocity fluctuations. And with that out of the way, we can address some real things that may be causing problems. If you have recently polished your internals, and are now having issues, then you most likely didn’t polish them evenly. If there are some rough patches, then that is most likely causing the parts to wear randomly against them which will lead to a random force that the hammer hits the valve with and thus, random, inconsistent velocities. Another issue that may cause inconsistent velocities is a problematic regulator either on your tank or marker. If there is even a small leak in the regulator, it can cause random fluctuations in the pressure. I do not suggest taking apart an air tank regulator by yourself. Get a qualified air smith to do it. A regulator such as the Stabilizer can be taken apart and cleaned much easier. Do a search on the internet or call up your regulators manufacturer for directions on how to correctly disassemble, clean, and replace o rings in your reg.iii. Breaking Push Pins
Some people experience problems with the push pins breaking that hold their stock in place. If you are suffering this problem, I suggest you contact the manufacturer of your stock and get a new one. Stronger push pins are not the answer to your problems. I owned an A-5 with a stock for roughly 2 years with no issues. It is not a problem with the push pins or A-5 but a poorly designed stock or “lemon” from the factory causing too much stress on the pins.iv. Accuracy Problems
If you are using a stock barrel, then that’s what is wrong. Tippmann’s stock barrels are a joke. A new barrel such as Palmer’s Brass barrel or a Dye Boomstick will fix your problems. If you have a good aftermarket barrel on your A-5 and you are having issues, then it is most likely due to inconsistent velocities caused by inconsistent pressure to the marker. A good regulator or HPA tank will fix this. If you are using a Flatline, do not expect accuracy any better than the stock barrels. While the Flatline does add distance to your shots, it is pretty inaccurate, even at short ranges. v. Chopped Paint
Please note that breaking balls in your barrel is different than chopping paint. If you are breaking balls in your barrel, it is most likely a badly honed barrel or if you are using a barrel kit, then your inserts or backs and tips are not lining up properly. Chopping paint involves having a ball not getting loaded completely into the marker so when the bolt fires, the half loaded paintball is chopped. If your marker is chopping paint, then you most likely are having Cyclone issues. Please not that if you are low on CO2, the Cyclone does not always get enough air to spin all the way which can cause this issue to arise. If you are using a full tank, then it is likely that your ratchet is wearing out. To fix this, you will first need to buy a new ratchet by either calling Tippmann direct or ordering one from Tippmannparts.com. You can also order a Vortex ratchet or the new JCS ratchet. These ratchets are metal, increase the speed of your Cyclone and never wear out. However, they come with a hefty price tag of about $30(USD). I currently do not own an A-5 so if someone could post up directions on how to replace a ratchet that would be great. I only had to do it once so my memory of it isn’t that great. Thanks! vi. Cyclone Not Spinning
See section IIIeii.f. Modifications
Mods are things that you do to your marker that help its performance. It is not something that you buy. It is something that you make or do to an existing piece to alter your marker. This is different than buying an upgrade such as a regulator or RT, or an accessory such as a new shroud for your Flatline or a sight rail. i. Internal
These are mods that you do to the inside of your marker. They affect the cycling of your marker. I am not including trigger mods (even though they are internal) to avoid confusion.1. Polished Internals
Polishing your internals is one fix for low velocity issues. Some also feel that it helps creating a smoother action and better consistency. However, if not done correctly, it can actually do the exact opposite. Some also feel that it is completely unnecessary as Tippmanns are designed to run even if full of water or dirt and by making the action more precise, it is easier to be affected by the before mentioned. Polishing your internals is easy, but takes some time. You can either use a Dremel tool or metal sandpaper. I prefer metal sandpaper as you are less likely to take too much off of one spot. The entire point of polishing your internals is to remove the overspray from the factory paintjob. To do this, start with a medium grit paper or Dremel attachment and take off as much overspray as you can. When finished, get out a finer grip and lightly sand to a smooth shiny finish. You may want to use a couple different grits along the way. Be very careful to not take off to much metal or polish one spot more or less than another. This will just lead to cycling issues and the only fix is ordering a new receiver which will cost you a pretty penny.
EDIT: Found a great link for this! How-To: Polish Your Internals
2. Full Auto
NOTE: This mod is only for mechanical markers. Okay, I know I said that I wasn’t going to put trigger mods in the internal section, but while this mod deals with you messing with your trigger assembly, it ultimately affects the cycling action of your marker and not the feel of your trigger. Before I tell you how to do this though, there is a WARNING: This mod will wreak havoc on your internals and may cause uncontrollable firing. A RT is recommended to be used as it will help reset the trigger but you have a RT, you probably don’t need this mod. Okay, with that out of the way, we can continue. Basically, this mod keeps the sear from having to be reset before the marker can fire again. If you look at your sear, you’ll see that the hole cut in it for it to be in the trigger assembly isn’t round but more of an oval. This is what makes it so that the marker doesn’t fire fully automatic. All you have to do know is put something such as a small piece of a toothpick or a piece of the ink holder on a ball point pin in there. This keeps the sear in the forward position so that when you pull the trigger, instead of the sear being reset, it stays pinned up so it won’t catch the hammer allowing it to cycle freely. Heed the warning above though, this mod will kill your internals and it may become uncontrollable. This is why an RT is needed to help reset the trigger as you may be unable to do it yourself.ii. External
1. Custom Nameplates
You can order custom nameplates, or, make your own using a wood burner and a craft stick. You can add some interesting finishes using different wood stainers. The stock nameplate just peels off.2. Front Grips
There are some people that dislike the stock front grip on the A-5 as it is pretty short and small. You can always buy an aftermarket grip such as one made by the Underground Mod Shop, Lapco or Special Ops, but it is quite easy to make your own. To make a front grip that looks like the ones Special Ops makes that are horizontal, all you need is a big round piece of wood, a power drill and a sander. The best way to do this is to first measure how far forward or back you want the grip situated. Then, where you are going to want it, mark where the grip extends past the front lip of the A-5. It is here that you want to drill out an area for the front lip to fit in. This will help keep the grip from sliding around. Know with that finished, you should be able to drill a big hole wide enough for the nut that holds your stock grip in place down where you want it. Only drill this down far enough so that the bolt that screws into the nut hidden in the receiver will be able to reach into the nut. Then, drill out a hole the size of the part that actually screws into the rest of the way through your grip. Now, feel free to stain the grip any tone of your choosing or inlay it with a different kind of wood. I’ve seen some really cool jobs done with Purple Heart highlights. If the grip feels too heavy, you can drill out the inside of it to take off some weight.3. Custom Milling
It is possible to get custom milling done to your marker to radically change the look. Unless you have good machining skills and a lathe or other necessary machines to do the work, I highly suggest paying someone to do it for you. Contact either the Underground Mod Shop or White Wolf Airsmithing for an estimate of the price it would cost to do what you have in mind. |