When I first started playing paintball and I was using my spyder, I thought I would never have to get a motorized loader. Then after I put a double trigger on the gun and did some trigger spring work, I was out-shooting my VL-200 loader. I had to constantly shake the hopper while I was firing so my balls would keep feeding. Even if I shook my gun, occasionally I would chop balls. After a few days of this, it was time to invest in a motorized hopper.
If you are unsure whether you need to buy a motorized loader, ask yourself these questions:
1. During rapid fire, do I shoot blanks? (IE: not fire balls)
2. During rapid fire, do I chop balls?
3. Do you ever have to shake your gun to feed balls quicker?
4. Do you play tournaments? (you tend to shoot more paint during tournaments)
5. Do you play speedball? (speedball usually makes you fire more paint)
If the answer is yes to any one of these questions, you should probably consider a motorized loader. The 9V loaders run about 40 dollars. This loader only uses 1 battery. The 12V Revolutions cost about 55 dollars. These loaders have 2 batteries. The VL3000 is also an option when searching for hoppers. This loader also uses two 9 Volt batteries, but holds 300 balls.
Since I first wrote this article some new loaders have entered the market. These new loaders include the Ricochet 2k, the Warp Feed, and the eVolution. These loaders are more pricey than the loaders they are intended to replace. The cheapest of these loaders is the eVolution which sells for 65 dollars, followed by the Ricochet 2k which sells for 90, and the most expensive loader on the market is the Warp Feed which sells for 185.
If you are interested in purchasing a loader for your gun check out XPaintball.com
