Feb 11, 2012

Paintball is an adrenalin fuelled sport/pastime where players play individually or as a team, using a paintball marker (commonly referred to as a paintball gun) and ammunition known as paintballs to eliminate their opposition. Paintball is one of the fastest growing sports because anyone can play the game, Male or female, Young or old its a very simple game to play. Even though the rules can change from game to game, they are always stated before the games starts.

SpeedBall Player

Quotation from Wikipedia ”In 1981, Charles Gaines and eleven others played the first game of paintball, using Nel-Spot pistols which were intended for marking trees and livestock by ranchers. This initial game was a capture the flag style scenario. Later, Bob Gurnsey formed the National Survival Game company, which was the first firm to sell paintball equipment.”

Paintball Equipment

There are lots of different Paintball equipment depending but i am going to only explain a few of the important ones needed to play paintball.

Mask – The mask is the most important piece of equipment a paintballer will ever need. In my opinion is the first item you should look into buying.

Paintball Marker – (also referred to as a paintball gun) There are a few types of marker to choose from.

Pump action – manually re-cocked after every shot, not used much now but some some people still love to use them.
mechanical - uses a sear to lock the the hammer in place and a spring to drive it forward. The hammer collides with the valve releasing c02 or air from the external pressurized tank into the internal bolt chamber which propels the paintball down and out of the barrel.
electric - instead of the spring and hammer used to actuate the valve and cycle the bolt assembly in mechanical markers, Electric markers use the rerouting of air to different locations in the marker. This rerouting is controlled by a solenoid that is activated by the trigger.

Air System – The most commonly used is HPA (High Pressured Air) . Co2 is still used, but most sites now use HPA.

Hopper / Loader – This connects to the top of your marker and holds paintballs whist feeding them into the chamber ready to be fired. There are a few types to choose from.

Gravity feed – These are simple and the cheapest option, the balls fall into the marker with help from the sloped sides of the hopper.
Agitating – These use a spinning propeller inside the loader to help stop the jamming of the balls and allow a faster feed rate than gravity fed hoppers.
Force Feed – These use a impeller to capture the balls and force them into the marker to allow an even faster feed rate.

Paintballs – These are not actually paint. They are a non-toxic, water soluble substance in a gelatin capsule. are should easily wash out of clothing. there usual a .68 calibre and are environmentally friendly.

Paintball Variations

There are different Variations of Paintball, but all have the same goal, Eliminate your opponents and win the game.

Punter Days – (Also known as rental/ Corporate events) These are what most people think of when someone mentions paintballing, great for work days out, Stag days or simply just to try paintball. These sites rent you all the gear you will need and can choose whether to play half day or a full day. Some sites also have characters such as The Predator that can enter your games at any time and will try and hunt you down. The Games are mostly played in woodlands but some sites can have a field with wood or inflatable bunkers.

Walk-ons - These are a dedicated day for players with there own equipment to play on the rental sites at discounted prices. Some sites will also provide rental equipment so players can fetch friends that don’t have there own equipment, a great way for people to see if they will enjoy playing with more serious players before going out and buying there own kit.

Scenario -These games usually have a theme to them and start to become bigger events. Player numbers can easily reach into the hundreds, Can last anywhere from a day to a week!. They are mostly played in the woods but can also be played in building, disused villages and even deserted islands! Some organisers offer kit hire.

Tournament – (Also known as SpeedBall) These are usually played on fields with inflatable bunkers and games are very fast and can last only a few minutes. Usually played in teams of three, five, seven, and even ten players.