Basic Guide To Paintball.

1) What is paintball?

It's a sport in which a bunch of adults (loosely defined) go out in the woods and relive our childhood by playing capture the flag. Only, in this game each player has a gun that fires gelatin capsules filled with a water-soluble marking dye. If you're shot and marked, you're out of the game and have to wait until the next one starts. The most common variation is two teams at opposite ends of a 5+ acre section of terrain, each with a flag hung at 'home base.' The object is to go get the other team's flag and bring it back to your base. When you encounter people on the other team, you try to tag them out before they get you. Pretty simple and lots of fun.

2) How can I play?

Almost all paintball 'fields' rent guns and welcome new players. Fields can be found using yellow pages (look under 'Firearms' or 'Sports Equipment'), local newspapers, or ads in a number of the paintball magazines.

3) What kind of Paintball Field should I look for?

For the first few games you should play on a well organized field.Size is not the best way to judge the field. The things to watch for are the number of referees on the field for each game and the explanation of the rules. The rules of safety and specific rules for the field/game should be clearly stated by a referee before anyone steps foot on the field to play. There should also be a sufficient number of referees for the number of players, one referee can not handle a field with fifty people on it. If these conditions are not met, you should seriously consider waiting for your first day until you find a field better suited to a beginner.

4) How much does it cost to play?

The average field in North America will cost approximately $15-25+ for 1 day rental of goggles, gun and some, usually 30, paintballs. Extra paintballs are usually 10 cents or less. Better guns and facemasks are usually available at an additional cost. A beginner should plan on using 100-200 paintballs for the first few days with rental guns. A day of play is usually 4 hours of play.

5) What do I need to bring?

The field owner may not supply food or have facilities where food can be bought so a lunch and snacks should be brought just in case. Bring water, lots of water. Bring old, sturdy, dark clothes and shoes or boots with some sort of ankle support.

Safety

1) How dangerous is paintball?

Like all action sports (football, basket ball, etc.) paintball is very dangerous unless adequate protection is worn and safety rules understood and followed. Even if adequate protection is worn there are still risks associated with running around in the forest or inside a building. Bruises and welts caused by ball impact are common place. However, Paintball has had less recorded injuries than Ping-Pong.

2) Where can I buy guns, balls etc. in North America?

Local stores are difficult to find. Sometimes sporting goods stores will have them. Places to play and some stores may be listed in the back of the magazines. There is not a separate listing for paintball in the yellow pages; typical listings for paintball equipment include sporting goods, amusement, guns. Also see my listing for local Paintball fields. 75% of them have a pro shop at which you can purchase what you need.

4) How many paintballs will I need per game?

Depends on the type of gun used. Players using semis tend to shoot 30-100 paintballs per game, those with pumps 10-50 per game. Players using fully automatic guns tend to use a lot more.These assumes games that last 15 minutes. Playing style, terrain, and number of opposing players will influence the amount of paint used.

6) Can I get the paint out of my clothes?

Paint is water soluble and should wash out as normal. California Magnums (a brand name) contain iodine which may not wash out completely.

Technical Questions

1) What is the difference between a pump and a semi?

A pump gun works much like a pump action shotgun, working the pump loads a paintball into the gun and prepares the gun for firing. After this pulling the trigger will fire the gun. Some pump guns have an option called an auto-trigger. This means that, if the trigger is held, the gun will fire every time the gun is pumped. This allows a greater rate of fire.Semi-automatic guns use the CO2 that shoots the paintball to also re-cock the gun.This means that after an initial manual cocking that the gun will re-arm itself upon every shot without needing to be pumped. This allows a greater rate of fire than an auto-trigger.

Do head shots count?

Some fields allow it, some don't. Regardless of whether it is allowed or not, it will happen, and not infrequently either. So be sure to wear goggles and face protection at all times during play.

3) How do I stop my goggles from fogging?

There are various methods:
1) Spittle. Spit onto the lens and rub with finger to cover the lens.
2) Dish soap. Put a drop on the lens and wipe over lens with soft cloth.
3) Commercial anti-fogging products. Follow instructions on bottle.
4) Buy a bunch of little fans ...
5) Buy some Thermal goggles

It is suggested that spittle and dish soap be tried before the commercial products as they work fine for most people.

Goggles

Do not use goggles that are not specifically designed for the sport of paintball. This includes shop goggles, ski goggles, and racquet ball goggles. UVEX 6800 These commonly used goggles are NOT recommended for paintball. The manufacturers of UVEX were sued after an incident in California when the lenses of a pair of UVEX goggle shattered during a game. UVEX has withdrawn from the paintball market and disavows anyone using UVEX for paintball. UVEX never warranted their goggles safe for Paintball.

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