The Basics

Paintballs are gelatin caps filled with paint, being fired at high velocity.  Please remember that any projectile being fired can cause serious injury to a person.  That being stated, here are a few tips you should always keep in mind while using your paintball marker.

Safety

1)  Masks.  Masks should be worn at all times when dealing with any paintball marker that is pressurized and is loaded.  Even if your simply practicing in the backyard, trying to chronographing (setting up firing velocity) your marker, or showing your friends how fast your marker can fire, always, Always, ALWAYS make sure that you and all those around you have masks on.  A person’s nose, eyes, ears and mouth do not need extreme amounts of pressure to damage them, and a paintball is more than capable of doing this.  So please, be considerate, and remember to wear your mask.  We are happy that you joined the paintball community, and want to make sure to keep inviting you back out.  We do not want to lose you do to an unforeseen injury due to carelessness of handling a marker without the proper facial protection.

2) Barrel blocking device.  All markers come with a Barrel Plug or a Barrel Sock (barrel socks are also called barrel condoms, sleeves, covers...etc).  Plugs are devices that are shoved down the barrel, and Socks are devices that cover the barrel.  The reason for these devices is to make sure that in between playing, or practicing, or even testing your marker, that if your marker fires on accident, you have something to block it from traveling out of the marker.  This will stop a lot of accidents from happening.  Always make sure to have a plug or condom available to you.  If you forgot your barrel blocking device, ask a friend, or even ask the field you are attending.  They are more then happy to hand you one if it means that everyone can be safe.  If there are no extras, then grab your cleaning swab and use that to block the barrel.  Something to ensure safety is better then nothing.

Sportsmanship

Good sportsmanship is just as important as safety, and can be explained on many levels. Being a good sport will make a good impression on most serious players. Being a bad sport, and unfortunately, there are a lot of them will get you shunned from communities at best. And at worst may go so far as to discourage new players from returning.  Here are some key ones that you always want to practice.

1) Injuries.  If a person gets injured, help them get off the field.  You will have the remainder of the day to shoot people, so take a bit of your time to make sure your teammate, or opponent, is safely off the field if an unforeseen accident happens.  They will remember the good deed, and be more likely to show up at the field for "a next time" because of your kindness.

2)  Rate of fire (ROF).  If your gun can shoot 30 Balls Per Second (BPS), there is no reason to hold the trigger down if you already hit someone.  This is what is referred to as over-shooting, or bonus balling.  Easiest way to put this, how happy would you be if someone shot you with 50 shots when you only need 1 to be out of the game?  Be considerate to your opponent.  They are there for the same reason you are; to have a good time.  If you do get overshot, let it go.  Perhaps the person was caught up in the moment.  A lot of times people will apologize for doing it and let you know they were just into the fire fight.  If it happens continuously, then let the ref know, and the staff will deal with it accordingly.

3)  Honesty.  Honesty is important in the game of paintball.  If you get shot, tell the person who fired upon you nice shot and head off the field.  Do not wipe (trying to remove the paint from your clothing) and continue firing.  This is probably the fastest way to get kicked off fields, or at the very least, being shunned by other players.  Sometimes you will get shot at and not be sure if the paint actually broke, or maybe it hit you on your pod pack and you didn’t feel it.  You can ask the referee, or even a team mate for a paint check.  They will give you a quick glance over to let you know if you’ve been hit or not.  If not, then game on, but if so, make sure to raise your gun in the air and walk off the field.  You can get the person next round. 

Also make sure to call your teammates out if necessary.  If they take a shot somewhere they would not feel it, and you’re a witness to it, then call them out.  It’s not the greatest thing losing a teammate for a round, but at least you know that people can trust you and will always want to invite you along to play next time.

Other Points to Remember

1)  Visit your Local Paintball Stores & Fields to purchase your paint.  The biggest downfall to huge retail chains selling paintballs is the storage.  Paintballs must be stored at a constant temperature to ensure the paint is still good.  Sitting out in constantly changing temperatures will cause your paint to go bad.  This will result in the paint becoming to hard, or too brittle.  Too hard of a paintball is bad because it will seem like your shooting rocks at the opponents, and the paintballs will not break.  This of course can be frustrating, and painful (check with your local fields to see if they have banned any particular paint.  Remember, safety first).  Too brittle is no good because there’s a good chance that the paint will break in your marker.  Your goal when out at the field is to play the game, not sit on the side lines constantly cleaning your gun.

Most local Paintball Stores & Fields order on a weekly, to bi-weekly basis which means the paint they get is always fresh.  This ensures that you have good paint that will perform well.

If money is tight, remember that Local Store & Field Owners carry a variety of paint which range from $30-$70 a case. This is very comparable to the prices you would get in a retail chain.  The difference is the quality is always better at your Paintball Local Store & Field.

2) Clean and maintain your gear.  We here at Throwing Paint have tech’d a lot of markers over the past 18 months.  The primary reason for repairs was that customers simply never bothered to clean and lube their markers.  This is normally a process that only takes a few minutes to do. Review your owner’s manual for the step by step general maintenance your marker will need.  If you play regularly, a simple bi-weekly overhaul will make your marker not only perform flawlessly each game, but will keep it from needing any serious maintenance for extended periods of time.

Hope these simple guidelines help make your paintball experiences more enjoyable.