After
buying some 2-pod pouches and some 100 round loaders, see my review
Of Newbie gear when I get it done, I figured to
get some harnesses that can hold some paint.
I first bought a REDZ 4x140 pod + 1 to hold my
68 CI air tank. By this time I already
had
4 markers and I was trying to get my friends
involved. I figured I needed another
harness
so we both could look cool. I ordered a JT system early in March. It wasn’t available then
and I figured after 30 days it was
cancelled. So I ordered another one
from REDZ because
I liked the first one. Then in May the Slammer system showed up. Now I have 2 REDZ and
The JT system.
I’ve
been playing with the Slammer system the last couple of weeks because
I just got an ANGEL. That is what I have been testing it with. I’ve used and my
Friends have used the REDZ system a couple of
times.
Essentially this is a
three-piece unit. The pods, the speed
collar and the slam pack.
You can add the timer to that if you have to
have it but it’s worthless. More on
that later.
The
speed collar fits on the Viewloader Revolutions. Both 9 and 12 volt. I
suppose
You could put it on a non-motorized one but why
bother? To attach it you need to remove
Some screws and drill a hole through the
Viewloader. Then use a bolt supplied to
attach.
It is very secure and I’ve experienced no
problems so far. The lid just flaps
close and does
NOT snap.
It is spring loaded. Inside are some
one way angled pieces of plastic that prevent
The paintballs from falling out. I have demonstrated this to anyone who asks
and I have
Not had any problems what so ever. You could go so far as removing the lid.
The
major down side I can see is it adds another oh say 3-4 inches to the hopper.
But I have not taken any hits on it yet. If you play gun hits than I would say it
makes you
A bigger target. Could be good for your back players as you can dump paint w/ it.
Once
this is attached to your hopper you have to use the JT pods to load it.
Regular pods and hand loading your hopper is
just not practical. The one-way valve
prevents
you from loading it as well as keeping the
paintballs from falling out. You can
hand load the hopper
now, I don’t mean to imply you can’t because you
can. If you bend one of the pieces of
plastic in
you can get the balls in. I’ve done it at the chrono station and to
top off a hopper, but in the field,
you’ll be tagged before you can do this
effectively.
The
pods are kind of unique. You slide the
top down and it opens up by spreading the top
Into several parts. The top is held on by little black rubber bands and keeps the top
together
In the closed position. The pods are absolutely needed to load the
hopper w/ the collar. You can
use them with out the collar and with any
hopper. It’s not pretty but you just
put the pod against your
Knee and slide the collar down and load as
usual. You do lose some balls this way
but they do work.
They
are not cheap by pod standards. Around
7-9 bucks a piece. The rubber band that
holds
Them together would be questionable for
durability. I have not seen
“replacements” for them. They
Are made of black rubber and not the cheap
office brand yellowish ones. Not being
a rubber expert
Only time will tell. But I would bet they would break at the wrong time so carry a
couple of those cheap
Yellow ones for back up. I haven’t checked what size is best yet but
when I lose one I’ll let you know.
I
have had a hard time loading the pods with enough balls to prevent
rattling. If any one has
Found a better way let me know. I was wandering around the brush one game
and came upon
My buddy suddenly. Scared the shit out of me but he said, “I knew it was you I heard
you rattling
Way back there”. So they make noise when you run.
I have broken more paint in them than
Regular pods.
The
pods hold 120 rounds as purchased. You
can get extenders for another $10 a pair
that will give you 150 rounds per pod.
The
Slam Pak is pretty cool. It’s
comfortable if not hot at times. It is
made from a durable
Cordura and soft neoprene pod holders. It has a barrel plug pouch on the right
side.
WARNING:
Don’t use Viewloader pods in the Pak.
They will pop open and you’ll dump 150 rounds.
I lost 3 pods before I wised up. You’ve been warned.
At
$40 bucks for the pack I would say it’s worth it. I’ve gotten some bounces off the back
That I am pretty sure would of broken on my REDZ
or any other system. I find it pretty
Easy now to pull and replace pods. Took a little bit of practice but I like not
having to flip a flap
As the pods are held in by friction. I have dropped some empty pods when sliding
into some bunkers
But that’s because I forgot to put them in all
the way in the Pack.
You
don’t need the pack. You can use any
pack that can hold 150 round pods. You
can
Use the pods with out the collar. If you have the collar you need the pods.
The
timer has 2 functions SET and START/STOP.
You cannot program it to do seconds
Only minutes. So you can’t put in the 20 second
count down. I find the lack of this
feature makes
It kind of useless. It attaches by a little pressure sticker that didn’t prevent mine
from falling off.
I removed that and put on a piece of Velcro and
it works fine now. I would recommend
Radio Shacks
talking timer over this one. It just is too basic and at $15 bucks there
are better alternatives.
Then again it does fit on the collar and if you
gotta be cool? Then be cool.
But it’s useless in my opinion.
My
first “good” harness was the REDZ pack I ordered. It is modular so you can buy
A belt and add one of something like 27
combinations of pod holders. It has 3
components
to it. A
belt, which comes in 3 sizes, the pod holders in lots of sizes and suspenders. The system
Comes in Henry Fords color. Any color you want as long as it’s
black. They do not make the
camo version any more.
The
belt comes in small, medium and large sizes.
Do not be fooled. I am a 38 inch
waste and
The medium is big enough. Youths could use the small and “normal”
adults the medium. The large
Would be for those big boned people. Check the sizing first.
The
pod holders slide on the belt and fasten with Velcro. They come in all kinds of sizes
And hold all sizes of pods (they also hold the JT pods easily with the
140 round size). They are
Very securely attached to the belt. I like this feature but have yet to use
it. I bought another
Set for my friend to use.
The
suspenders, which I have on one of my belts, are really good. They only have four
Little plastic pieces so you can adjust the
straps. They Y in the back is
sewn. Compared to some
Other one’s I have and seen there is a minimum
amount of hard points on the complete system.
I think you only need them for the Super hero
type pod holders and with remotes.
Altogether
the system is very comfortable and modular.
If you play a variety of games like
Rec ball and tournaments than this is
great. You can buy one belt for around
$40 and a couple of
Different size pod holders to suit your game
play. Good use of dollar to value here
(as with all of
The REDZ equipment, top of the line).
My four-pod system
with out the suspenders is very comfortable.
I also have a 4+1 as mentioned
Above with the suspenders and it’s comfortable
too. I’ve used them all and so have my
friends.
We all like them.
I
do have a problem (as I’m writing this) with both my belts. The good news is they
Will be repaired or replace free of charge. “Red” stands behind his product.
Here’s
a clip from his email to me:
We have a great return policy!
If we can't fix it, we replace it!
So Call us toll free to receive a return # from Erica and we will be glad to
take care of ya:-)
Greg"Red"Hastings
Redz Comfort Gear
Toll Free: 1-877-873-3432
Gotta
love this guy!
Oh! The problem is the nylon liner on the inside
of the belt on the right side broke
a seam.
Not really a problem per se and doesn’t have any negative effects. Belts are
still useable.
I think it comes from folding the belts up and the Velcro grabbing the
nylon
and pulling it loose.
Overall
I like the system. I highly recommend
it to anyone in search of a new system.
You can get a multitude of different sized packs
to meet any need. They have also just
come
Out with a low end system and gun “condoms” for
lack of a better word. I have not
looked at them.
Check
them out @ http://www.redzcomfort.com/
Comparisons
JT
Slammer System
Pros:
Fast
loading
Slam
Pak is comfortable and is easy to use.
Pouch is a nice touch.
Cons:
Pods
rattle and break paint easily
Pods
expensive
If
you have the collar you need to use the pods.
Could be a problem
On
the field if you run out of paint and no one else have JT pods
(Suppose
you could dump it into the JT pod and then the hopper
but
that defeats the purpose – Speed)
If
you don’t have the collar you’ll lose paint when you open the pod up
manually
– Of course if you get you paint for free - not a problem
but
for the average Rec player waste of money
Only
one configuration available – 4 pod holder
REDZ
Harness and Pack system
Pros:
Very
comfortable and hard point free
Excellent
Quality, Service and Value for the money
Extremely
flexible system to meet any need.
Cons:
Cost
– at about $80 for one compete system it’s about twice the price of
Other
systems like the new RASE and Unique products.
Personally I think the
Cost
is more than offset by the quality, service and return policy.
Final Notes
I
think the JT Slam system is innovative.
It is very fast in reloading at the cost of
Exposure due to the collar extension. I don’t like the pods. They rattle and break paint
Because they can’t be packed as tight as
“normal” pods. If you’re a back player
and need
To shoot paint than this would be a good
option. Then again you’ll be limited to
600 rounds
Max with the Slam Pak. Which brings us to.
The
REDZ system. With this system and the
JT pods and collar now you can carry
Some paint.
For those of you that need to carry half a case or more around you can
combine
The two (or some other harness system) and wail
on the trigger. The only down fall is
the JT
Pods are still there. Oh well.
If
you don’t need speed loading or want to be small in a bunker than go with the
REDZ
System, any system. You won’t be disappointed.
Quality gear at a fair price considering what
you are buying – service, quality, and
value. REDZ gear WILL last you a long
time.
UPDATE 4/16/01
Well,
much to my chagrin, I have been using the JT pods and harness for sometime now.
I seem to use this versus the REDZ system. The pods are way over priced by twice the
amount but I still by them for some reason. I think this year I will not buy any
more. I have some
Planet Pods coming and will probably use them
eventually. Recently I have developed a rip similar
to the REDZ belt I have. I suppose I like the comfort and ease of
use. I will continue to use this belt
for tournaments. I just purchased one
of REDZ new Dimension packs. It only
holds 2 + 1 in an external
loop. I
will use this for walk on play as soon as my new Planet pods arrive.
Last updated 4/16/01
© 2001 By Wayne Perry