Danny Love
Danny Love is an American paintball marker designer, airsmith and former tournament player best known for his work with Shocktech and Bad Boyz Toyz. He has been involved in the design, customisation, machining and servicing of paintball markers, particularly the Autococker and Shocktech SFL product ranges.[1][2]
Love is a co-owner of Shocktech USA, where he is responsible for paintball engineering and manufacturing. His work includes custom versions of the Airgun Designs E-Mag, Matrix and Autococker platforms.[1][3]
Paintball career
[edit]Bad Boyz Toyz and Shocktech
[edit]Love became associated with Bad Boyz Toyz and Shocktech during the development of customised tournament paintball equipment in the 1990s.
The businesses were closely connected to the professional team Chicago Aftershock and supplied customised markers and aftermarket components.
Love's work concentrated on marker modifications, pneumatic components, body machining and technical servicing.[2][3]
Custom marker development
[edit]By 2001, Love was developing Shocktech versions of several established paintball marker platforms.
Contemporary reporting by WARPIG from the 2001 International Amateur Open identified Love as the airsmith responsible for Shocktech's custom marker development.
Products exhibited at the event included:
- Shocktech SFL Autococker – A customised Autococker incorporating extensive body milling, Shocktech pneumatic components, a modified bolt and trigger work.
- Shocktech E-Matrix – A customised electronic Matrix incorporating body milling and a volume spacer intended to change the marker's operating characteristics.
- Shocktech SFL E-Mag – A prototype developed from the aluminium-bodied Airgun Designs E-Mag platform.[3]
The SFL designation became particularly associated with Shocktech's lightweight customised markers.
SFL E-Mag
[edit]Love designed the prototype Shocktech SFL E-Mag displayed by Bad Boyz Toyz at the 2001 International Amateur Open.
The marker used a customised aluminium body based on the Airgun Designs E-Mag platform.
An account published by the Automags.org community in 2014 documents the prototype and its subsequent association with Team Maxim, a paintball team sponsored by Maxim magazine and Bad Boyz Toyz.[4]
The SFL E-Mag became a limited-production custom marker.
Return to production
[edit]On 11 February 2014, Shocktech announced that it was resuming production of selected custom Autococker components.
The initial product was an SFL Autococker body kit.
The announcement also confirmed that Love would resume marker tuning and servicing for customers.
The company's stated intention was to return to smaller-scale custom marker production.[5]
Shocktech USA
[edit]Shocktech USA identifies Love and Mark Van Drunen as its co-owners.
According to the company's official history, Love contributes more than 20 years of paintball engineering and manufacturing experience, alongside his background as a tournament player.
His responsibilities include technical development and the production of customised markers and components.[1]
Shocktech's continuing product range includes SFL Autococker models, mechanical marker components and aftermarket equipment.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- Shocktech USA, "About". Official company information identifying Danny Love as co-owner and describing his paintball engineering and tournament background.
- ZDS Paintball, "Shocktech USA – Manufacturing in Paintball". Technical history of Shocktech's customised marker manufacturing.
- WARPIG, "International Amateur Open: New Product Introductions", August 2001. Contemporary reporting identifying Danny Love and documenting the Shocktech E-Matrix, SFL Autococker and SFL E-Mag.
- Automags.org, "Prototype SFL E-Mag Story", 9 March 2014. Historical account of the SFL E-Mag prototype and its development by Danny Love.
- Social Paintball, Lawrence Abernathy, "Shocktech USA Releases SFL Autococker Body Kit", 11 February 2014. Contemporary announcement of Shocktech's return to production and Love's servicing work.