Parts / Regulators

Aftermarket Regulators

See Regulator & ASA for how the stock regulator actually works and how to rebuild one. This page is about replacing it entirely.

A note on "Max-Flo": you may see Ion regulators or listings referencing "Max-Flo" online. Smart Parts did build a real Max-Flo regulator family — but zdspb's own dedicated comparison page for it lists the Ion's regulator as a separate, unrelated product line, not a Max-Flo variant. The retailer listings claiming otherwise read like generic cross-posted product copy rather than anything specific to the Ion. Treat "Max-Flo" and "Ion regulator" as two different things. There's a second wrinkle worth flagging separately: "Max-Flo Micro," listed below, is a distinct product from the Max-Flo R above — an ASA-mounted external tank regulator rather than a vertical swap for the marker's own regulator — so don't assume every "Max-Flo" mention is the same part.

Stock regulator

A vertical regulator that threads directly into the grip frame's built-in vertical adapter — see Regulator & ASA for the full rebuild procedure and the reverse-threading that trips up almost everyone the first time.

Aftermarket regulators

Currently sold Discontinued Unclear / not confirmed

2-Liter AKA The single most-recommended regulator swap in years of aftermarket-Ion community discussion — it comes up more often than every other regulator on this page combined. AKA Paintball is still an active manufacturer and currently sells a "2-Liter + Low Pressure" regulator, so the part itself is real and current. But AKA's own product catalog only frames it alongside Autococker/WGP-family and Intimidator-family markers — nothing on AKA's own site names the Ion specifically, and no manufacturer source confirms Ion fitment. Treat the Ion application as a well-established community practice (likely via an aftermarket vertical-adapter thread swap) rather than an AKA-documented one.
Inline Regulator — Long Custom Products (CP) CP's original, longest inline-reg body — 4.125"–4.5" depending on whether it carries the optional side gauge port (photographed both ways here). Works the same as every CP inline reg on this page: 1/8" NPT threaded input, threaded output for straight or elbow fittings, mounting externally between the ASA and the marker rather than into the frame's vertical adapter. Cross-referenced across several sources to confirm; the linked listing is a probable match, backordered there and shown in a different color than pictured here, so treat it as a lead rather than a confirmed purchase link. See Shorty and V2 below for the shorter bodies CP moved to later — this Long body is the one that predates both.
Inline Regulator — Shorty Custom Products (CP) CP's original compact inline reg — retailer copy for the V2 above explicitly calls it "their classic Shorty Inline Regulator," which V2 was designed to replace. Roughly 3.5" body length, no gauge port. Same 1/8" NPT threaded input and straight-or-elbow threaded output as the Long and V2 above. Sold at E-Paintball as "Shorty Style," in Blue or Dust Clear Silver — but that store is dormant, so this is a historical reference, not confirmed current stock.
Inline Regulator — V2 Custom Products (CP) CP's redesign of the Shorty below "to be even more consistent and easier to service," per retailer copy — same 1/8" NPT threaded input and straight-or-elbow threaded output as every CP inline reg on this page, at roughly 3.75" body length. Went through at least three internal hardware generations (Gen 2, Gen 3 being the most recent found), each iterating on rebuild-friendliness — the Gen 3 body splits into two pieces specifically to make servicing easier. Existing stock and rebuild kits are all that's left.
Hyper 2 Dye Also referenced as "Hyper II" — same product, just different digit notation; no independent source uses "Hyper II" as a separate name. Mounts inline (between the ASA and marker via macroline), the same architecture as the CP inline reg above, rather than threading into the vertical adapter. Fits standard ASA threading per Dye's own manual, but no source confirms Ion fitment specifically — treat as plausible, not confirmed. E-Paintball's listing is a dormant-store reference, not confirmed current stock.
Hyper 4 Dye Fits "all standard ASA ports" per its own retailer description, and explicitly does not fit DM8/PM8/SLG the way Hyper 3 does (see the warning below) — the more Ion-plausible of the two, architecturally, though no source confirms Ion fitment specifically. Same inline mounting as Hyper 2 above and the CP reg above that. Only found as a dropdown option on a combined E-Paintball listing (also covering Hyper 3) — a dormant-store reference, not confirmed current stock.
Fatty Stabilizer Palmer's Pursuit A genuine vertical-regulator swap, not a different mounting architecture like the CP reg below — Palmer's own listing names the Ion directly alongside the Autococker, Impulse, Matrix, Dye Proto, DM4/DM5, ICD Freestyle, Bushmaster, Shocker, and Odyssey as compatible markers. Adjustable 0–400 psi, runs on HPA or CO2, and can serve as either a primary or secondary regulator. The linked listing is the nickel finish — a brass/black version also exists, per a separate listing that doesn't repeat the marker compatibility list. If this exact input threading doesn't match your tank valve, Palmer's also sells Male, Female, Direct, and Inline variants with different input fittings — same regulator, different connector.
EOS Smart Parts Officially called the "Max-Flo R Vertical Regulator" per Smart Parts' own EOS parts diagram (part #14, paired with an EOS-specific reg cover) — confirmed directly from the manual, not just a retailer description. Adjusted with a 5/32" Allen wrench on the bottom, clockwise to increase pressure. The EOS itself is an evolved Epiphany, sharing parts with other Ion-based markers per Smart Parts' own documentation — but that lineage doesn't confirm this specific regulator threads into an Ion's vertical adapter without checking, so treat it the same as the Shocker entries above: same manufacturer, plausible swap, not a confirmed one.
Max-Flo Micro Smart Parts Not the same product as the Max-Flo R covered in the warning above — the Micro is an ASA-mounted external tank regulator, typically fitted to a drop forward or the bottom of the grip frame, rather than a vertical swap for the marker's own internal regulator. Confirmed as a real, distinct product (preset, sold in 3000 psi and 4500 psi versions, HPA/nitrogen only, no CO2) — but it's listed under E-Paintball's discontinued items, and other retailers list it the same way. Existing stock is the only way to get one now.
Shocker NXT Smart Parts The stock vertical regulator off a Shocker NXT, per zdspb's own NXT documentation — adjusted with a 5/16" open-face wrench on the large hex nut at the bottom, and notably reverse-threaded: screwing the nut in increases pressure rather than decreasing it, the opposite of most regs on this page. Same manufacturer as the Ion and the same general ASA-threaded vertical-adapter style, but Smart Parts never documented cross-marker fitment — a plausible but unconfirmed swap, same caveat as the AKA and Dye entries above.
Shocker SFT Smart Parts The stock vertical regulator off a Shocker SFT — same manufacturer as the Ion, and the same general style of ASA-threaded vertical-adapter mounting, but Smart Parts never documented cross-marker fitment between the two lines. The exact adjustment mechanism on this specific unit (a side-mounted knob) isn't something documented in any source checked, so treat this the same as the AKA and Dye entries above: a plausible swap given the shared manufacturer, not a confirmed one.

One that doesn't fit: the Dye Hyper 3. Confirmed via retailer variant copy to use DM8/PM8/SLG-specific threading rather than a standard ASA port — Hyper 2 and Hyper 4 above use standard ASA threading instead, so those are the plausible options if you want to try this regulator line on an Ion.

On the AKA and Dye entries above: both makers are confirmed still in business and still selling current regulators in these product lines — but neither one's own site names the Ion as a compatible marker. Ion fitment for both is a well-established community practice, not a manufacturer-documented one, so double check the specific part before ordering. A few other brand names (MacDev, Bob Long, and others) also turn up repeatedly in search results as supposedly "compatible," but every source repeating that claim traced back to either a paywalled forum thread I couldn't read or generic listings that don't specifically confirm Ion fitment by name — left those out rather than guess.