| 68Caliber.com Reviews
VL continued designing loaders to succeed the Revolution, with mixed results. The EVLution was almost universally despised by players upon introduction, and was quickly replaced by the EVLution 2, affectionately called the "Egg" due to it's ovoid shape. More recently the Vlocity has stepped up as high-speed replacement for the Revolution, and despite its' angular appearance, it's been well received by the playing public. The VL I-Force and Force loaders are more traditional looking loaders, while retaining the high speed of the Vlocity. At first glance you could possibly mistake the I-Force for a Revolution, but upon closer inspection one notices the Ruebenesque behind and the wider profile on the bottom portion of the loader overall. The materials are different from the old Revolution as well, with a smooth high-gloss finish to the top portion of the loader. The design of the I-Force and Force loaders takes a departure from contemporary loaders by eliminating the battery door altogether. Instead, to install batteries in an I-Force/Force loader, you loosen 3 screws, one at the front of the loader, and two on the bottom of the loader, where the running gear and electronics reside, to install batteries. For testing, we used rechargeable NiMh 9 volt batteries as well as high-end alkaline batteries. One advantage to how the I-Force/Force loaders are designed is that it allows easy cleaning of the top portion of the loader where the paint is stored. Loosen three screws, dunk the body into soapy water or hose it out, let it dry and you're good to go for the next time. Eliminating a battery door also eliminates a potential weak spot in the shell, which can lead to some seriously embarrassing moments on-field if the door fails and your battery pack falls out. The motor and board that actually run the I-Force/Force loaders is a one-piece unit, using direct internal gear drive to turn the paddles. There's a spring-loaded collar underneath the paddles that acts as a friction clutch to prevent a jam from damaging the motor.
Drop testing paint through the loaded varied depending on the batteries installed. With the NiMh batteries installed, the loader would run through 150 paintballs in 9 seconds, giving a speed of 16.7 bps. Installing high-end alkaline batteries, which can put out more current than a NiMh battery, improved performance markedly, pushing speed up to 18.75 bps. The real test was on the Review Crew's markers, which in this case included an Angel One, an Ego 7, and a Marq Series Closer. Review crew members commented on how the I-Force was noticeably lighter than their usual hoppers, and during actual on-marker testing using PSP mode, we noted that the I-Force seemed to be straining a bit to keep up with the markers, especially during long, extended bursts. This was especially noticeable in the Closer, which has an extremely low and short feedneck. Josh commented that it felt like the loader was straining to keep up with his Closer, while it seemed a bit more comfortable on the Angel One and Ego 7 markers, which have somewhat taller feednecks and thus more of a running start for paint to go into the marker's breech. The VL I-Force/Force loaders sit on-marker at about the same height as a Vlocity but visually it appears lower, due to the more curvy construction of the I-Force/Force over the Vlocity. The lower-end Force loader couldn't keep up with the markers on PSP mode, but seemed to fare well when the markers were in semiautomatic. In a world where spending $120-150 on a loader is considered the norm, the I-Force comes out of the gate at a reasonable street price of $69.95, and the Force at a bargain price of $34.95. The performance of these loaders is close enough for most players out there, and the more traditional looks will keep the more snobbish among us happy as well. The I-Force is available in black, smoke, and camo, while the Force is available in black only. For more information, check out www.viewloader.com © Copyright 1999 - 2006, 68Caliber.Com |
