Now.. for anyone who knows me, you know it's a small miracle I even shot an Angel let alone owned one! From previous experience, I always believed these markers to be overpriced and over hyped. But for a few months I did own one, and I'll have to admit it did change my opinion of them!
Now there's two ways to look at a marker:
It's good because it has a large upgrade and accessory path.
It has a low upgrade and accessory path because it doesn't need anything.
While there is a good amount of accessories available for the Angel, very few (if any) actually improve performance. For example, the Volumisers - while they improve looks - have been proven useless on an Angel (as well as on a majority, if not all, of other markers out there). Majority of the accessories on this Angel (Dye VAA, DYE Volumisers, DYE Sight Rail, DYE Breech Knob) were all cosmetic. Items like the DYE trigger did help with the firing a little but the benefit vs. cost is still debatable. The Twisted Low Rise was partially cosmetic and preference. I never did like high rises and it did look good on this Angel. :) About the only accessory that did improve performance was the DEZign Bolt I had in it. By far one of the nicest bolts on the market for the Angel. Expensive, but worth every penny.
A MUST HAVE for every Angel owner is an Angel Tool Kit! 90% of any Angel problems you will encounter can be fixed by the owner. It's also good to have for taking apart the marker and cleaning, although even this only needs to be done once a year (maybe) to remove old lube and make sure everything is set properly. This is by far one of the lowest maintenance markers I've ever owned. Oiling is a couple drops every 3-4 cases, so basically when you think about it!
While I found the trigger not as light or as easy to pull as the Matrix I had, the Angel still has a very nicely adjustable trigger allowing for how long or short you want your pull. I had both the Lasoya - now called the "Element" since Chris is no longer with Avalanche - and DYE trigger on it (and no, it's not on backwards! You can't put an Angel trigger on backwards!!!). While the Lasoya did have less side-to-side play, I preferred the feel of the DYE for walking the trigger.
Now, the only reason I had sold this marker is I just didn't care for the way it shot. It's got an arch or a drop on it's trajectory right at the end of the shot, similar to an Automag (I'm sure I'm going to get flack over this statement). While this can be a great asset if you learn how to play it as a front or mid player, as a back player I never could get used to it. I'm too used to a long, straight shot; and although the accuracy was decent, the lack of range wasn't up to my standards.
In the end, I can honestly say that after owning this one, I'll never bad mouth an Angel again.
SNIPER BOB, 2000-20010