The Empire Mini GS is one of the most sought-after paintball guns among the paintball players nowadays. It is actually the successor to the original Empire Mini Paintball Gun.
It is a high-quality gun that is suitable for amateurs, as well as beginners and experienced players who love playing in the paintball arena.
The gun is lightweight and easy to maneuver, making it an excellent choice for those who want to play paintball without feeling weighed down.
The Empire Mini GS is also affordable, another factor that makes it so popular. It is an excellent selection for those looking for a good quality paintball gun without spending much money.
This review will take a closer look at the Empire Mini GS and what makes it an excellent choice for paintball players. We will also provide a brief overview of the gun’s features and performance.
Empire Mini GS Paintball Gun: Detailed Features Review
Empire is a trusted name in paintball, and this gun is no exception. The Empire Mini GS has everything you need to dominate your opponents on the field! Let’s review some of its prominent features in detail:
· Design:
The Empire Mini GS is a .68 Cal Paintball Marker (Fully Automatic Electronic) featuring a lightweight (1.86 lbs.) yet sturdy design with a metal body, 14 inches long barrel, and wrapped around rubberized fore grip for better handling, comfort and protection from the elements. It has a better trigger and a smaller overall profile than the original Empire Mini paintball gun.
The gun has a mini and lightweight design, yet it is strong enough to withstand intense uses and minor abrasion. However, it’s small (mini) frame might become uncomfortable and difficult to handle and shoot for tall people with large hands. Such people are advised to go for alternatives like The Empire Axe.
It should also be noted that the Empire Mini GS is only designed to work with Compressed Air or Nitrogen, so the player should avoid using CO2 as it may damage the paintball equipment.
· Performance:
The Empire Mini GS Paintball Gun is great for a high-performance paintball gun. It is lightweight and easy to maneuver, making it a great choice for amateurs, as well as both beginners and experienced paintball tournament players alike. It features a Pressure controlled poppet engine and Integrated break-beam anti-chop eyes, along with multiple firing modes for outstanding performance and thrilling gameplay.
The gun is also very accurate and has a high rate of fire with minimal recoil, making it an excellent choice for both close-quarters combat and long-range engagements. At the start, you can expect the fire rate to be around 275 FPS, but it will increase to about 290 FPS after a few uses. On top of that, you can further improve it by tuning it using an Allen wrench. However, a few reviewers did complain about below-normal FPS and solenoid breaks right after unboxing. So, if you face the same, get it replaced immediately by the manufacturer.
This incredible firing speed would have been useless with less-capacity air tanks. To counter this, Empire Mini GS is highly air-efficient and comes with a 45/4500 HPA tank that allows you to shoot up to 0.1 million paintballs before you need a refill. This capacity is impressive compared to many paintball guns available on the market. However, some reviewers also faced HPA tank leakage, significantly affecting the gun’s performance.
The Empire Mini GS paintball gun is also ideal for stealth playing as it is almost silent, and you won’t be noticed by your opponent while shooting. Furthermore, its versatile design, makes it equally suitable for left-handed players and right-handed alike.
To further enhance the shooting experience, the Empire Mini GS has also introduced a self-lubricating trigger that reduces friction for smoother trigger pulling.
Overall, the Empire Mini GS Paintball Gun is an excellent choice for anyone looking for a high-performance paintball gun that is also affordable and easy to use.
· Durability:
The Empire Mini GS Paintball Gun is highly durable. It is made of strong metal, which means it will last for years to come, withstanding players’ abuse, as well as being easy to clean.
The Empire Mini GS Paintball Gun has a high-strength Aluminum frame that makes it amazingly lightweight and allows it to withstand high-impact shots without breaking.
The trigger is significantly improved compared to the original version and gives easy adjustment per the player’s requirement. The gun’s trigger is designed with an ergonomic design with ample space around the trigger that allows it to be used by even chubby fingers easily.
The original Empire Mini gun didn’t feature rubber grips around the weapon, which led to difficulty handling the gun due to slippery, oily, and sweaty hands. Fortunately, the Empire mini GS has a rubberized foregrip that provides adequate grip to the equipment, making it easy and comfortable to hold, even with gloves.
The mini GS also comes with a clamping feedneck to allow easy mounting of the hopper to the gun, creating better alignment of the hopper with the gun and increased overall durability.
· Air Source Adaptor:
ASA On/Off Switch is one of the unique features of Empire Mini GS that only a few competitors offer. This functionality enables the player to easily degas the tank and remove it without damaging the O rings of the gun or causing thread issues.
· Easy to Use:
Most reviewers loved how easy the Empire Mini GS is to use. It only requires 10 minutes to personalize it according to your shooting style. It won’t be wrong to say that using the Empire mini GS is as easy as using ultra-sophisticated and expensive paintball guns.
Besides the setup, the rubberized fore-grip, improved trigger with self-lubrication, ASA adaptor, and clamping feed neck further ease the gun’s usability.
That is not all! The gun also features a micro-switch trigger feature that offers multiple firing modes, like Semi-Auto, Ramping, PSP, and Full-Auto modes, to make you tournament-ready. Besides, this feature helps you feel each shot you take so that it is easy to master every following shot.
· Maintenance:
The maintenance ensures the gun performs the best every time, with the same accuracy and consistency. Luckily, maintaining the Empire mini GS is as easy as its usability. It features an inline poppet bolt system, making it easy to clean and maintain. It also comes with a maintenance tool kit for further assistance. However, that doesn’t mean that you can easily dismantle, clean, fix, or modify it without following proper instructions.
It is composed of tiny components, including bolts and springs, so you must be careful dealing with it and learn its maintenance techniques by watching YouTube videos for the best results.
One of the reviewers also pointed out that it is quite challenging to clean the eyes of the gun, for which you have to disassemble the gun completely. It isn’t hard but takes too much time, especially if you are into cleaning the gun frequently. Moreover, a few players also find it extremely difficult to replace the ASA adaptor in case of a leak or malfunction.
Pros and Cons of the Empire Mini GS Paintball Gun
Advantages:
- They are reliable, sturdy, durable, and amazingly handy for small to average-height players.
- It is air-efficient, wastes less paint, and offers a fairly good Firing rate.
- It comes with 14 inches long barrel that contributes to better accuracy and performance while shooting at your paintball target.
- Its rubberized fore grip makes the gun easy to handle and use, even with slippery hands or gloves.
- It is amazingly silent with little recoil making it ideal for stealthy gameplay.
- Its On/Off ASA adaptor makes tank removal and replacement relatively easy.
- Its micro-switch trigger system with multiple firing modes enhances the shooting experience.
- It is overall easy to use, maintain, and clean, and it comes with a maintenance kit for further assistance.
- Its lightweight design, anti-chop eyes, and self-lubricating trigger are worth admiring.
- Available at a reasonable price tag of under $300. Provides excellent value for money.
Disadvantages:
- Difficult to clean the eyes and replace the ASA adaptor.
- Its mini or small frame might make the gun uncomfortable to use for tall people with large hands.
- A significant number of complaints about tank leakage, lower than standard FPS rate, and solenoid breaking.
- It might come defective out of the box, so you have to get it replaced.
- Not designed to use CO2 as an air source.
- No OLED board.
- Poor quality packaging.
- Sub-standard user manual.
Final Word, Is Empire Mini GS Paintball Gun Worth Buying?
The Empire Mini GS paintball gun is an excellent gun for beginners. It’s easy to use, has many features that make it fun, and is lightweight enough for anyone to pick up and play if they’re interested in getting into the sport.
It’s also durable enough that you can take it with you on your next trip to the woods or fields, making it a great choice for those who want to get into paintball but aren’t sure where their first game will be held.
The only downside? If you are someone with tall height and large hands, it might be uncomfortable for you to hold, and you have to go for other options like Empire AXE – an enlarged version of Empire Mini GS with almost the same features and performance.
FAQs
How long is the Empire Mini GS’s barrel?
It is 14 inches long.
Does Empire Mini GS come with an OLED board?
No, but you can attach the OLED board easily without switching the foregrip due to its special design.
Is Empire Mini GS full auto?
Yes, it is fully automatic and electronic.
Can you use CO2 on Empire Mini GS?
No, it is only designed to use with Compressed Air or Nitrogen.