Paintball Gun Buying Guide
 |
Most people starting to play paintball start out by renting paintball guns or paintball markers. Incidentally, the term paintball gun or paintball marker can be used interchangeably. Both terms mean the same thing. After playing a few times one quickly discovers that it won’t take very long before you could have purchased your own paintball guns and equipment instead of throwing away your money renting. This article will help narrow the choices for your research.
The first thing we usually ask people is where are you going to play? Will you be playing on an organized field or will you be playing around your own land or a friends land in the woods? The answer to this question will guide you to certain models of guns due to the air supply. If you are going to play at an organized field, they will have resources for compressed air or CO2. The type of air you have access to, will lead you to choosing an applicable gun.
If your paintball gun choice is limited to using CO2 tanks, then you should stick with paintball guns that are happy using CO2. Care must be taken to choose paintball guns that are made to run on CO2. CO2 is a liquid gas and is damaging to paintball guns or paintball markers that are not made to handle the liquid. You could buy an expensive paintball gun and damage it beyond repair with just a few uses. We recommend sticking with good quality name brand paintball markers that are made to run on CO2.
If CO2 is your air, then we recommend using paintball markers that are designed to run on CO2. Spyder guns from the non-electric and budget conscious models would be the Spyder Victor, Xtra, Sonic. With a bigger budget moving up to the electronic, Spyder Pilot, Electra, VS1, VS2. Smart Parts has excellent mid range CO2 models designed to run on CO2. New technology and easy to maintain are the Smart Parts Vibe.
CO2 paintball guns with a military look are the Spyder MR1, MR2, MR3. Smart Parts has the SP1 model designed to run on CO2 and a military scenario look. New releases from Tippmann are the Tippmann Alpha Black Series. These paintball guns are loaded with features. Tippmann is the champion of CO2 military markers with several models in each series that will match your level of play and features you may desire. The main paintball gun series Tippmann manufactures are the Custom 98 Platinum Series, A5, X7 and all Tippmann paintball guns are backed with a 2 year warranty.
If you decide on compressed air, you will have so many choices. The features desired and the reliability, quality of parts and weight of the gun all play a factor. The high end paintball guns can sell for $2000.00. Is that what you need or want? Take a look at the main features and decide what it is that you really want. Some people choose an entry level budget paintball marker that is really cheap. Then they use it for a while until they know what it is that they really want. Then they set that paintball gun aside, or sell it to upgrade to a more feature packed gun.
One of the basic decisions is if you want an electronic paintball marker or not? Then, an extension of this is what kind of electronic firing modes and speed of firing are important. Single shot, 3-shot burst, semi-automatic, and fully automatic are some firing modes that are popular. Like adding new clubs to your golf bag, each added feature will add cost. There are some great values out there, so do your research and you will find many of the same features at lower price points.
Maintenance of your paintball gun is also very important. Proper care, cleaning and lubrication is a must for all paintball markers. Does your paintball marker come with a squeegie for cleaning? Is it easy to access the internals for cleaning and lubrication? If ease of maintenance is a concern, we recommend the Smart Parts paintball guns along with the Tippmann 98 Cutsom Platinum Series. Both of these paintball gun models or series are very easy to maintain and clean. Don’t be fearful of the maintenance on paintball guns. The manufacturer’s websites are very helpful. There is a large amount of help videos on their sites or also on Youtube.
Paintball markers can usually be upgraded. However, some a lot more than most. A Tippmann X7 paintball marker can be upgraded in several ways. Triggers, barrels, sights, magazines, foregrips, stocks and more. The Tippmann X7 paintball marker can be changed from an M16 to an M36 with a few upgrades. If upgrading is important to you, please research your model of paintball marker to see what can be added after purchasing. For example, the Tippmann Alpha Black Series are very economical to buy. They are meant to be starter guns. You cannot upgrade a Tippmann Alpha Black Basic to an Egrip because they have not made an upgrade for it. Instead, Tippmann made the Egrip model inexpensive so that you would buy the paintball gun with the electronic upgrade in the first place.
This article was the beginning of the fun involved in finding out what you really want and need. Decide on the air you have access to and match your style and type of play to the paintball guns you are interested in. Compare features and price ranges. Narrow in on your choices and finally buy a paintball gun and take out your friend or enemy in style!
GoPro HD HERO2: Outdoor Edition (2011 Model)GoPro cameras are used by more professional athletes, sports filmmakers, and core enthusiasts than any other camera in the world. The HD Hero 2:... Read more...
Little Tikes TotSports T-Ball SetA Little Tikes toy is always a great investment. However, if your child aspires to become the next Alex Rodriguez or Ryan Howard, then the T Ball Set... Read more...
Related Videos:
A Dandelion Heart’s Delight
Miscellaneous Feed
What do you think about this write-up?