Ion (paintball marker)
The Ion is an electropneumatic paintball marker manufactured by Smart Parts. At the time of its release, the Ion was the first fully electropneumatic marker to target entry-level players, at a price point previously inhabited only by Spyders and other mechanical blowbacks. The Ion has generally been credited with making high-rate-of-fire electropneumatic markers available to the masses, at a time when electropneumatic markers were considered out of reach of most casual or budget players.
The original Ion was released in 2005, and soon soared in popularity, though it was often criticized for being difficult to disassemble and service. Smart Parts addressed these concerns in 2007 with the release of the Ion XE, which features the ability to remove the bolt from the back of the marker. .
Features
The Ion's receiver consists of a breech and firing chamber, both hard-anodized. Its grip frame and ASA are both made of die-cast aluminum and are powder-coated. The outer shell of the Ion is polymer. The Ion includes the Vision system,or eyes, an infrared emitter and receiver on either side of the chamber. This prevents the Ion from firing when a ball is not fully loaded in the chamber, reducing the number of "chopped" balls.
