Paintball is one of the most popular amateur sports in the world. Millions of paintball enthusiasts live in dozens of countries all across the globe and it just keeps on getting more popular.There are an enormous variety of guns, or markers as they are also known, available for today’s paintball players to choose from. These range from the basic pump paintball markers that need to be pumped after each shot to the compressed air canister paintball markers, to even larger (and expensive) mounted paintball machine guns that can be hooked up to giant compressed air tanks. This game really is war-as-sport, and although this is only a game there is one more similarity to war that shouldn’t be overlooked: no matter what your weapon of choice is, if you don’t perform proper maintenance it will eventually fail on you when you need it most.

OIL – This is an important step that many people fail to consider and take proper action on. Theoretically, your paintball gun could break instantly the first time you use it if it hasn’t been oiled. Typically there will be some oil from the factory, but as the owner of a paintball marker it’s important to take the initiative and oil all the necessary parts regularly. Without oil, the moving parts in the paintball gun can grind together, deform and even lock up permanently, ruining the marker.

Take off the barrel and the hopper, turn the gun barrel end towards the floor and put a few drops of a paintball maintenance oil onto the threads where the CO2 or air tank screws in. Screw on a CO2 cartridge or your air tank and fire a couple of shots. This can lubricate the system. If you have a pump paintball marker you might also want to lubricate the pump action.

CLEANING – During normal use paintball guns tend to get filthy. Two main culprits are to blame: dirt and paint (from the paintballs themselves). This needs to be cleaned off after each use. If allowed to sit, it can damage the gun and hurt accuracy or speed, or even stop the marker from working altogether. In general, not cleaning your paintball marker will result in a much shorter useful lifetime for the paint gun.

HARDWARE – Whether you have a pump paintball gun or a compressed air canister model, your marker likely is held together by screws. These can sometimes come loose and if this happens and the weapon is fired it could cause damage to the weapon itself. Certainly if screws fall out altogether that’s not good at all. Regularly check the screws and tighten any ones that are loose. Do not overtighten screws, that can break them or the gun. Just make sure none are loose each time you perform standard maintenance.

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There are many people who are interested in paintball, but not interested enough to make a big investment out of it. Many people have friends who play and would like to participate in the pastime for social reasons but aren’t convinced that they’ll love it (or know they absolutely will not) enough to spend hundreds of dollars on top of the line paintball gear. Luckily you can get a decent pump paintball marker for under $100 and other gear and safety equipment for not much more. There are also additional options for even tighter budgets.

One of the more popular companies, especially for entry level priced gear, is a company called Spyder. They’ve got a full lineup of inexpensive paintball markers and accessories, though they specialize in mostly compressed air canister paintball markers. If you’re more interested in the traditional pump paintball guns those tend not to be overly expensive though, but you may not be able to take advantage of package deals. Spyder has a number of package deals that include safety mask and other essential gear. It makes a great purchase for someone just getting into the sport because you can make a single purchase and have everything you need for less than the cost of most bicycles.

It’s possible that you may just not be sure if you are going to be “into” paintball. You might want to just try it out once and see how it goes. Some people might simply be in a situation where maybe their company is hosting a match for employees, or maybe a group off co-workers are just going off by themselves and you want to join in but are pretty sure it’s going to be a one time thing. In that case your best bet is probably rental. There are paintball stores that also offer rentals, and you may be able to find good rental rates this way but many paintball venues also offer their own rentals. Since you’re usually being charged by the day, even a cheaper daily rate from a paintball supply store might end up costing more money if you can’t return right away (like you can if you rent from the place where you’re having the match).

Whether you get your own compressed gas, CO2 powered or pump paintball marker and gear, or decide to rent, be sure to get something you’re comfortable with and practice a bit before the match to get the hang of it. Also remember to always wear your full safety gear, and especially the protective mask at all times.

Tags: pump action paintball markers, pump paintball, pump paintball gun, pump paintball guns, pump paintball marker, pump paintball markers

Paintballing is an exhilarating experience that many find to be unmatched by any other sport. It is, in essence, a sort of live battle simulation. First person shooters like the Call of Duty series are very popular among PC and console gamers alike, and if you count yourself among their many fans you’ll probably love paintball. Especially in games of pump paintball, where automatic and high powered paint markers are disallowed, you will find this is a sport of skill, and a sport of war.

The first time you play you’ll want a bit of practice with your pump action paintball marker. Fire some test shots to get a sense of the range and adjustments for gravity (aiming high for longer distance shots). If you’re using a pump paintball marker you probably have a little gravity hopper on top of the gun that holds the paintballs. Practice removing and reattaching this, as well as reloading it. Get the hang of how your paint marker works before you go out on the field.

When you first get out there your instinct may be to hide and stay there. That’s only natural but you have to remember two things: It’s just a game, and You can’t win by hiding. It may feel like you’re in the middle of a war zone, but unlike a real war this is all in good fun and the winners can go out for a beer afterward with the losers. Take some risks and don’t be afraid of being shot. It may sting a little, but as long as you’re wearing proper safety gear you shouldn’t be at risk for any sort of serious injury. Remember also that when expose yourself you aren’t just a target to the enemy, you’re also a potential aggressor. You may stand up only to find some other players duck behind a tree or otherwise hide out of sight for fear that you’ll shoot them. Don’t be foolhardy and make a target of yourself, but don’t spend the entire match under a log either.

Once you’ve gotten comfortable with the flow of the game you can start to develop and implement strategies. It’s always fun to try and come up with a game plan before each match to try and outflank, outmaneuver and outthink the opposing team. If you’re playing pump paintball rules against the same team for several matches in a row that’s a really fun situation because the flow of the game allows for effective use of strategies and you can try to adjust your team’s plan after each match to adapt to your opponents.

Tags: pump action paintball, pump paintball, pump paintball gun, pump paintball guns, pump paintball marker, pump paintball markers