RMR Intimidator upgrades
By Andrew C. Syren
The Bob Long Intimidator has become one of the most renowned paintball markers in the sport of paintball today. Since it’s debut, paintball players ranging from recreational all the way up to the most aggressive tourney ballers in the sport today have used the Timmy. With Bob Long keeping busy making his conception better day by day, these guns have become a phenomenol icon.
With the Timmy being one of the few markers today that come ready to rock right out of the box, are there many options as to after market parts? Oh yeah, and with that we introduce one of paintballs rising stars for Timmy upgrades – RMR Paintball.
Recently, I was given the opportunity to talk with Randy Marchetti, owner of RMR paintball and he agreed to send me samples of their Intimidator upgrades. Upgrades such as the Kill Stick (bolt), Ramrod (ram), Lock Down (adjustable ram cap) and the Spike (bolt pin) were sent to me for review. In receiving these upgrades, I asked myself what best describes an upgrade to a gun that many would deem the best out of the box contender made to this day?
RMR’s RamRod bumper is inset to the back so it may never need replacing.
In answering this question I came up with a few simple thoughts. Any upgrade for a gun of any type should extend the life of the marker and help improve the performance as well as the efficiency. The upgrades should also look better than stock parts as we all know most stock parts look as though they come off of an assembly line, less concerned about looks rather than performance. Comparing the upgrade parts sent to me by RMR to the existing parts on the Timmy, I can safely say that the product is of high quality and looks great.
Outside of the looks to the RMR upgrades for the Intimidator, the design intent of the parts was to create an efficient upgrade that would closely resemble the stock parts in weight and yet redefine the standards in efficiency and product life. Testing the upgrades I found that these parts were indeed true upgrades to the already awesome performance of the Timmy. The test marker was the Texas Storm Intimidator equipped with the WAS 2.7 board. Other upgrades used to compare the testing were the ShockTech Supa Fly bolt, KAPP Thumper Ram and the KAPP Adjustable Ram Cap.
Comparing upgrades to upgrades is a true test to the RMR products and the R&D that went into them. As it seemed, the RMR ram was much more efficient as it was made in such a way that the weight of the product matched the stock ram and yet the ram bumper was unique. Unlike the KAPP ram and the stock ram having external bumpers, the ram bumper on the RMR ram was inset to the back of the ram. This was great since the stock ram bumpers have a tendency to wear quickly and need replacement. When the ram bumper wears, the Intimidator will experience a problem with the ball dropping into the bolt face causing the gun to double feed. With the new design of the RMR bolt this problem will never happen. Any Timmy owner can appreciate this, since with a gun as fast as the Timmy, double feeding can shift a game win to a loosing situation fast.
The RMR bolt was close to the stock but felt lighter and much more smooth. The surface being as smooth as it was would help in efficiency due to less drag. Also, the bolt shared the design with the stock, containing front and back o-rings but the RMR bolt had a much better design to the flow port. Compared to the ShockTech design, the RMR bolt seemed to score an even vote. With the lack of ball detent slots on the RMR bolt, the ShockTech bolt gained and the RMR bolt lost. However, the fit and finish of the RMR bolt was superb and in some cases the ShockTech bolts have required a slight sanding down to fit the guns breach perfectly. In the end the two after market bolts were far better than stock but compared similar to one another.
The next in line of upgrades was the adjustable ram cap. The RMR cap was another product much like their ram that proves these guys are on top of their research and development. Machined out of stainless steel and built to allow for a seal to the ram sleeve the RMR adjustable ram cap is one of the best built products I have seen for the Timmy yet. The greatest feature to the RMR cap is the two setscrews that allow you to tighten the ram cap down and prevent slippage. This cap will not come loose during the game. Adjust the cap to your desired setting then set the two allen screws. With easy installation this upgrade makes the non-adjustable ram cap found stock on our test Timmy to be a throw away part. If you do not have one of these yet then you do not know what you are missing.
The last upgrade sent in was the Bolt Pull Pin. The RMR Spike was nothing special in way of performance but one cool looking upgrade. The Spike is made of stainless steel and matches the finish of RMR’s adjustable ram cap. With simple instructions for installation the bolt pull pin by RMR was easy to install and looked good. Any Timmy owner that likes the look of a hardened Intimidator with stainless steel upgrades will enjoy the looks of the RMR upgrades.
After receiving the upgrades and testing them I decided to email Randy a few questions. Here were his responses,
PBT – How long have you been associated with the sport of paintball?
Randy – I have been playing for 4 years and I am the owner, captain and back player of the 2003 NPPL rookie champions Team RM. We now have sighned on to Ricochet Hoppers as their factory team for the 2004 NPPL season.
PBT – When and how did you get started with RMR Paintball?
Randy – I own a company called RM Racing. We build high-end performance parts for sports cars. I basically started building these Intimidator parts about 8 months ago out of frustration with the currently available parts or with problems I knew I could fix on the guns. We are a Bob Long sponsored team so we have used the Intimidator exclusively for the past 2 years.
PBT – Do you presently or have future plans for producing aftermarket parts for other style markers?
Randy – Sure I am always open to ideas or suggestions of parts that can be improved on.
PBT – Are there any teams sponsored by RMR Paintball?
Randy – My Team Ricochet factory. I would like to get some other top-level teams on board.
PBT – Has there been an industry leader or professional player that you consider an influence to your company or product?
Randy – Not really. It’s all based on the problems we have had with the Intimidators over the past few years.
PBT – What are your goals for the RMR Paintball? Future goals for both product and company growth.
Randy – To keep building the highest quality parts available.
PBT – Lastly, what pro team would you consider to be a “personal favorite” of yours?
Randy – Not sure…I guess I will have to go with the Naughty Dogs.
With a single-minded goal to manufacture the highest quality products available, RMR Paintball is well on their way to a bright future. After seeing and experiencing the product that they create I would say that their future is indeed looking good.
Special thanks go to Randy at RMR for sending us the free samples of his product for testing. Please feel free to visit RMR Paintball at www.rmrpaintball.com
