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TS-1 from Tagline

The TS-1 Select is a new semi/fully automatic paintgun manufactured by Tagline Inc. of Cucamonga, California. The Tagline TS-1 is completely unique in design from both an engineering point of view as well as mechanical point of view. We met with Brian Sullivan of Tagline and he explained, "The TS-1 is designed and marketed for two completely different groups. We designed this gun as a recreational/tournament paintgun as well as a tactical training tool. We anticipate that the TS-1's market will be about 80% tactical and 20% paintball." With that in mind, the TS-1 will be rated as both a paintball gun and a tactical training tool. Each category rating reflects the usefulness of the TS-1 in its respective market. The TS-1 Select comes with a removable barrel, twelve-ounce regular (gas) tank, two 60+ round loaders, gun oil, velocity adjusting tool, two 'breach sizers', two 'cassettes, and a custom hard plastic carrying case. An instructional video tape and owners manual will be included with the TS-1 Select soon. The suggested retail price of the TS-1 Select is $549.00

Design/Construction:

The TS-1 Select is manufactured from a variety of materials including hard anodized aluminum, stainless steel, and a durable carbon fiber material. The gun weighs two pounds, five ounces (with the magazine and cassette) and is about twenty-two inches in length. The TS-1 Select has a flat black finish.

The TS-1 Select's barrel is manufactured from hard anodized aluminum, is spiral drilled and includes a muzzle break (similar to the Tru-Flight Trracer barrel). A sixty-round feeder attaches to the barrel shroud and has a push-button release. The feeder door can be closed so that the player may carry several extra full feeders in a harness. The feeder works in conjunction with a chain-driven cassette to feed paintballs into the breach from underneath the gun, rather than from above (ie. gravity fed hopper).

We've already seen a prototype bulk loader that holds two-hundred rounds for tournament play. One of the excellent features of the gun is the breach sizers. The breach sizer is placed between the barrel and the breach of the gun. They allow you to 'size' the barrel to the paint you are using.

The TS-1 has a three-way lever that allows the user to operate the gun in full or semi- auto mode, or put the gun on safety. A locking device is already in the design stage that will enable the user to lock the gun in semi-auto mode for tournament play. Also incorporated into the TS-1 Select is a fixed front sight and a unique rotary rear sight that allows the user to quickly set the sights for four different target distances.

The TS-1 Select uses a standard Euro-Grip that can easily be set up for bottom-line C02. In addition, Tagline has machined a C02 port in the gun's frame that will let the user adapt a bottom-line grip with no external hoses. This will be available by next spring. Standard M-16 grips can be installed on the TS-1 as well.

The TS-1 Select uses allen wrenches for break-down...quick field stripping down to the bolt and valve is not an option. There are no seals in the three-way valve, so if liquid C02 enters the gun there are no o-rings to be damaged. Although the TS-1 Select will fire through liquid C02, and anti-siphon tank will give you best performance. Velocity adjusting is done via a 'down the barrel' adjustment tool.

Tagline also has a tactical version of the TS-1, called the T-16. The T-16 is almost identical in look, feel, and function to the M-16 used in tactical warfare training. The T-16 will use twenty-five round clips...when the clip is empty, the gun will not dry-fire. Just like the real thing.

Design/Construction rating

Tactical (4)

Paintball (4)

Accuracy:

Procedure: With a securely bench-mounted gun we fire 200+ rounds of each brand of paint (three brands) at four target distances. At 125 and 100 feet the target size is 22" x 22". At 75 and 50 feet the target size is reduced to 8" x 11". All accuracy testing is performed indoors at 60-80 degrees (f). For this test we used RP Scherer (regular), Proball, and Zap paintballs.

At 125 feet, the accuracy ratios were 68% for Proball, 57% for Zap, and 69% for RP Scherer. At 100 feet, the ratios increases to 92% for Proball, 81% for Zap, and 85% for Scherer.

With the smaller target size the 75 foot ratios were 74% for Proball, 71% for Zap Advantage, and 75% for RP Scherer. All 50 foot ratios increased - Proball hit the target at a rate of 97%. RP Scherer followed at 92%, and Zap hit the target at a clip of 88%.

125 feet hits/shots

Proball 68% 129/190

Advantage 57% 107/188

RP Scherer 69% 139/201

Precision 62% 96/155

100 feet hits/shots

Proball 92% 177/192

Advantage 81% 150/185

RP Scherer 85% 173/204

Precision 86% 143/166

75 feet hits/shots

Proball 74% 144/194

Advantage 71% 143/200

RP Scherer 75% 106/189

Precision 71% 139/196

50 feet hits/shots

Proball 97% 200/206

Advantage 88% 167/190

RP Scherer 93% 186/200

Precision 90% 181/201

We fired more than 3000 rounds during accuracy testing and encountered no ball breaks. All accuracy testing was done using a regular gas C02 tank (twelve-ounce tank).

Accuracy ratings

Tactical (4)

Paintball (4)

Performance Tests: (Field Testing, Maintenance of Velocity, Velocity Consistency, etc.)

Out of the box the TS-1 Select chronographed only in the 240's. We adjusted the TS-1 as high as it would go and only were able to get the velocity to 270 feet per second (fps). We received a new replacement valve from Tagline, installed it and were able to easily get velocities to 300 fps. For anyone that is encountering low velocities, you can send your gun back for the new upgrade valve at no charge.

During the field test portion of the TS-1 Select evaluation we fired about 3,000 rounds of three brands of paint. We encountered no ball breaks. When you're using the TS-1 Select in full auto mode you'll encounter a few mis-feeds. To remedy this you need to rock the gun gently forward and backward one time. This drops the balls into the cassette feeder. However, we were consistently able to get 15-20 round bursts without misfeeds. The 60 round loaders (also acts as the foregrip) will fit into any 100 round loader pouches.

We sampled the prototype 200 round feeder which really cut down loading time. The flip- top lid made it simple to load paintballs from any 100-round loader. The larger loader did not add much bulk to the guns profile.

We dry-fired the TS-1 Select straight down at the ground pouring liquid out of the barrel. A small leak developed for a few seconds but the gun continued to operate flawlessly, although in full auto mode the cycle rate slowed down momentarily. In semi-auto mode, the TS-1 Select has a fairly long, soft trigger pull. With some work the TS-1's rate of fire could probably be comparable to the Autococker or Automag.

Velocity Consistency: All shots are fired at a slow rate (read from left to right).

288 fps 287 fps 289 fps 284 fps 286 fps 288 fps 290 fps 290 fps 288 fps 289 fps 291 fps 285 fps

Maintenance of Velocity shows a gun's ability to maintain it's velocity during rapid fire situations.

1st shot 290 10th shot 289

1st shot 287 10th shot 292

1st shot 289 10th shot 284

1st shot 291 10th shot 290

Observations: Using a regular gas twelve-ounce tank the TS-1 Select gave us 825 good shots in 60 degree (f) temps. After almost 6,000 shots we have still not encountered a single ball break. Every so often (about every thousand rounds or so), the TS-1 will stop firing. If you push the cassette disconnect release and lower the cassette slightly, then push it back into place, the gun will continue to fire. It would seem completely possible to incorporate a 'VL' type of agitator into the larger tournament feeder. This would make the feeding system much more tournament ready and would easily increase the Performance Test Rating to four.

Performance Test rating

Tactical (4)

Paintball (3)

Maintenance:

The TS-1 Select cannot be field cleaned...tools are required. To disassemble the TS-1 down to the bolt, two allen wrenches are required (this will soon be changed to one wrench). Once familiar, break down and reassembly takes less than five minutes. The TS-1 Select requires normal lubrication, but use only KC Trouble Free Oil or oil purchased only from Tagline. designer Brian Sullivan states, "only these two oils will not break down the seals in the gun. We will have factory oil available at a very reasonable price." There are no o-rings that will freeze and cause leaks if CO2 gets into the valve.

The conveyor lugs in the cassette the feed paintballs into the breach have a tendency to bend and will prevent balls from feeding smoothly. Usually, they can be carefully bent back to their original position and will continue to operate. The side cover assembly will probably wear after about 100,000 rounds. This can be replaced by the user easily and should be very inexpensive.

Maintenance Rating

Tactical (3)

Paintball (3)

Versatility:

The TS-1 Select is a very versatile paintgun. You already know that the TS-1 is available in an M-16 style configuration and you also know about the larger tournament feeder that will be available in a few months. In addition to those items, the TS-1 Select can be easily set up for bottom-line CO2. The TS-1 Select will operate at pressures as low as 150 psi (pounds per square inch), with lower velocities for cold weather use. Adding a sight or scope is a simple task because the TS-1 had a built-in dove-tail sight mount. Once the semi-auto locking device is available, the TS-1 will be allowed to be used in most tournaments.

Versatility Rating

Tactical (4)

Paintball (4)

Warranty/Customer Service:

The TS-1 Select comes with a one-year warranty on parts and labor. Tagline's President Brian Sullivan's track record when he was with ACI, the manufacturer of the Trracer and Tagmaster was excellent. Although Tagline is a new company, Brian Sullivan has been in the industry for almost ten years. Tagline also has an '800' customer Service line that will help you with technical problems and questions.

Customer Service Rating

Tactical (4)

Paintball (4)

Price:

At $549.00, the TS-1 Select is priced in the high-end of the semi-auto spectrum, but this is the only useable full-auto paintgun available. The Tagline TS-1 Select is a very good value.

Price Rating

Tactical (3)

Paintball (3)

Conclusion:

The TS-1 Select is a brilliantly designed paintball gun that has several uses. For tactical use the M-16 version is ready to go out of the box. For recreational paintball the TS-1 Select is also field ready. However, for tournament use the TS-1 falls short in a few areas. The trigger pull in semi-auto mode needs some work. The feeding system is good, but could be improved to help prevent mis-feeds. One the positive side, the TS-1 just doesn't break balls...period. Many players would consider ball breakage the most important factor in choosing a paintgun.

PCRI IS PLEASED TO AWARD THE TS-1 SELECT OUR FOUR STAR SEAL OF QUALITY FOR TACTICAL USE AND THREE STARS FOR PAINTBALL RECREATIONAL AND TOURNAMENT USE.

Second Runner-Up

"Paintgun of the Year" - Semi-Auto The moral issue...With any new major change in Paintball equipment, there are always the Paintball purists that insist on keeping the game simple, and sometimes for good reasons. The TS-1 could change the nature of the game if the consumer supports the product. Our job is not to decide if a fully automatic paintball gun should be allowed in Paintball tournaments, or at your local recreational field. Our job is to tell you, our readers if the product safely lives up to the manufacturers claims, and at a fair price. Only you can decide to use constant air, double triggers, or full automatic paintguns.