I've used this quote before, but it works in this situation: Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. – George Santayana
Now, I use this quote because lot of players don't seem to know one simple yet critical fact: we've had .50 cal before, and it never caught on because the .68 cal was better. There are a few people in the industry that are relying on the fact that most new players don't know their history and that this ball is being marketed as something "new and better" when that's as far from the truth as you can get! Many of the .50 cal's "attributes" are misleading at best. There are a few people poised to make a LOT of money off of this if it catches on, and considering who some of them are, it should be a clue that the masses are about to be fleeced.
Despite the few magazine articles praising the .50 cal, consider who advertises in most of these magazines; Gi Milsim and Spyder, who are boht producing .50 cal markers. NO magazine is going to run any article that says anything negative about any of their advertisers! I was once told flat out by APG to not send in any reviews that were negative (you have no idea the amount of BS'ing I had to do on my review of the EVLution when it first came out!). Most of the stories out in print (and some online) are nothing more than propaganda between buddies in the industry. I'd trust the accuracy of any article about the .50 cal by any magazine as much as I'd trust BC Premiere Gordon Campbell to look after my best interests!
There are a few individuals out there doing independent tests with interesting results. I did see a video from MCBtv where they did a comparison between the 50 and 68. The 50 had slightly tighter groupings (but only slightly) after you factored out the "oddball" shots from both groups. However, the 68 has less drop over a distance (75 feet) than the 50 cal. One shot from the 50 never made it on to the bottom of the target. The guys doing the video also admit that the 68 cal paint they were using was very old, and that the test should be done again using newer paint, perhaps showing better results. Here's the link to the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0E4GVUI8 ... re=related In my opinion, I think it's interesting to note the drop on the .50 cal especially since this is a projectile with a smaller surface area and should have less air resistance.
Here's a couple other videos of interest:
.68 and .50 flight times over 125 feet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2FHpqKy0h0
MCBtv GIMilsim 50 vs. 68 Caliber Accuracy Test:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZabfFBZ0bQ&feature=related
In all fairness, I'm going to include this video of Mike from TechPB. It's one of the more objective views of the topic that I've seen, and although I may not agree with all his views, he does make some good points. Just skip past the first 5 minutes past his rant about the guys over at MCB. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0LiXrraJdE&feature=fvw
I've heard the .50 cal being described as being "revolutionary", but how can something be revolutionary when we've had it before? That would be like calling a car revolutonary after we've been flying everywhere. Personally, I don't like it, and I think it's an attempt to fleece a lot of people in an attempt to control the industry by a select few who have already tried and failed. I haven't heard of any places planning on carrying it and I hope that none do.
May 13/11: Well it's been well over a year since I wrote this, and things are pretty much the same as they were before. Most manufacturers are still making 68 cal. The manufacturers who were bringing out the 50 cal are still in it and making the 50 cal, but I don't think it caught on like they hoped it would. Eclipse is still making Ego's and I haven't heard much about their 50 cal conversion kits, or any marker of theirs designed specifically to shoot a 50 cal. I should note, that in talking to a field owner, he did mention that he uses the 50 cal for his younger rentals since it doens't hurt as much, and keeps them interested in playing. Okay, I'll give credit for that one.
SNIPER BOB, 2000-20011