By Kyler Zaugg
The Alpha Black, a Tippmann product of the U.S. Army Series, is a hopper fed, .68 caliber paintball marker that has the external body of a M4 Carbine assault rifle.  This is a rifle that is commonly used not only in the U.S military but world wide.  The U.S. Army has even given this gun their seal of approval and use it themselves for training exercises.

A stock Alpha black comes with an 11in. barrel, tactical shroud and an M4 crane stock.  After the first couple of shots with the Alpha Black, you will quicly agree this paintball marker is a force to be reckoned with on the woodsball field.  The built in iron sights may pose a problem when wearing a paintball mask but a red dot scope with an offset mount will clear up this problem and step up your game.  The built-in sights do give this gun unparalleled accuracy if you can line them up with your mask just right. 

The built in sights, stock barrel and steady stock give the Alpha Black great potential to be a great mid-range sniper straight from the box.  There are also numerous after market barrel upgrades available for this paintball marker.  The recon rifled barrel or tactical rifled barrel are excellent and the rifling will add more distance and accuracy to your shot.  The Alpha Black paintball gun is compatible with most accessories also compatible with the Tippmann 98 Custom.  This means there are many Alpha Black accessories to upgrade, modify and customize this marker.

The carry handle on the Alpha Black is great to attach an M4/M16 carry handle mount - accepting most sights and scopes.  Make note however, the position of the hopper on the receiver of the Alpha Black puts the hopper in line with the scope view if attached directly to the carry handle.  If you also attach an offset mount to the carry handle mount, you can attach nearly any scope/sight and have an excellent view, unimpeded by the hopper. 

An excellent product to accomplish this is the Offset Scope Mount Kit; a kit that comes with the carry handle mount and the dual universal offset mount.  The dual universal offset mount will also allow you to attach your scope on the top or side; both working well with the hopper.  You can also add an offset clamp style feed neck to the Alpha Black.  This part will offset the hopper a bit more to the right of the gun; further moving it out of the way from the view of a scope or sight attached to the gun's carry handle. 

To attach an M4/M16 carry handle mount to the carry handle on the Alpha Black, realize you will have to drill a small hole for the bolt to fit through.  Also realize the receiver of the Alpha Black is made of die cast aluminum.  The carry handle of this gun is attached/molded to the receiver; you will have to use a metal head drill bit to create the small hole for the carry handle mount to bolt to.  It's easy to find metal head drill bits that fit into your hand held drill and making the hole is not technical or difficult.

You can also attach a vertical grip to the Alpha Black's M4 handguard.  First you will need to install a 20mm rail to the underside of the shroud.  This is also a very easy task and the materials needed are cheap and readily available.  There are numerous different handguard/barrel combinations available for the US Army Alpha Black marker.  M16, M4 and RIS handguards are offered in different packages combined with rifled barrels and muzzle brakes; all excellent for giving your Alpha Black a most awesome tactical look.

Make the fastest change to your Alpha Black by purchasing an upgrade kit.  These are packages of different related parts to give your gun a brand new look and modified/upgraded performance.  Kits for this marker include the Frostbite Sniper, Tactical Super Sniper, M4 Carbine and Enforcer kit.  Not only is it fun to be able to change the look and feel of your gun, upgrade kits are also a great way to save money, as they are cheaper than if you bought the parts separately.

The aesthetic value of the Alpha Black is invaluable on the field.  This mean looking marker will have the other teams shaking in their boots when this marker is placed in capable hands.  The intimidation brought by this marker also seems to give a sense of professionalism on the field.  The size, weight and feel of carrying and shooting the Alpha Black really feels like it's an actual firearm.  Add a sling to comforably carry this gun around your back or side; quick draw it up to your shoulder, aim through your scope and place a series of accurate shots directly on your target in a flash!

The Alpha Black comes stock as a semi-automatic firing paintball gun.  You can upgrade your marker with an electronic or response trigger for less than $80.  These upgrades are also easy to install and come with simple instructions.  The electronic trigger for the Tippmann Alpha Black will allow a selection of semi-automatic, 3-round burst or fully automatic firing.  Even without the e-trigger, this tactical paintball marker still has a fairly sensitive response - allowing you to fire extremely quickly and accurately by simply pulling the trigger rapidly.

The Alpha Black is a hopper fed marker, so you will still get the reliable 200 rounds that every other hopper fed marker on the field has; however you are able to out shoot any magazine fed marker, when they can only shoot 18 rounds per magazine.  If you're searching for more realism in your game, there is a magazine conversion kit for the Alpha Black being released in April 2011.  You can also upgrade your Alpha Black with a Cyclone Feed System that will not only improve your gun's efficiency (further reducing ball breakage and increases ball feed speed) but allow the gun to operate with a wide mouthed hopper.  This will allow the use of larger hoppers to carry/hold more paintballs.

Overall, the US Army Series Alpha Black tactical marker is a great gun for woodsball, scenario type play; excellent for the beginner or advanced player.  It handles well, is easy to operate and maintain and shoots accurately right out of the box.  This gun is also fun because of how compatible it is with a virtually endless supply of paintball gun accessories and mod kits.  The best thing about the Alpha Black paintball gun is the price.  At only $129, this gun is affordable for anyone's budget.