Are you looking for the right paintball which you can use for paintballing? Or you are looking for a way to know and choose different types of paintballs, as well as insights?
Then, you are probably on the right track.
Paintballs play a vital part in your game, cause, nothing means sense if you can’t shoot while playing. And, it is not very comforting when it comes to running out of paintballs and your shooting being awry.
There are several different types of paintballs based on different sizes and calibers which are required on different occasions. Now, in the case of tournaments, some special and thick graded paintballs are used. But, for indoor or casual gameplays, other paintball types are used.
From the looks of it, these paintballs come in different colors and have a gelatin structure which may cause the paintballs to grow in damp areas and they are not consistent in sizes. So, you must get the exact sizes that fit your barrel.
In this article, we are going to go over the tips on how to choose different types of paintballs, get to know them better, and get to know the types of paintballs.
What Are Paintballs?
Before jumping on to the types of paintballs, it is important to know what exactly these paintballs are. Paintballs are gelatin capsules having polyethylene glycol and water-soluble dyes inside them, which are biodegradable and non-toxic.
The paintballs are made in a way that breaks on heavy collision with the surface. One thing to note here, paintball’s color doesn’t match with the insides of it and paintball stains can be removed easily by normal washing.
Paintballs tend to become swollen when it is dropped on the ground, as it can damage your gun on the inside. So, never use those paintballs in your paintball marker.
3 Different Types of Paintballs: Recreational, Tournament, and Reusable
Now, coming on to the types, there are 3 different types of paintballs used in this game. They are:
- Recreational grade
- Tournament grade
- Reusable Paintballs
Recreational Grade paintballs
It’s generally used for less intimate, friendly, and casual matches which are purposed for commercial fields. Now, for simulation games, recreational can be good in terms of quantity and pricing.
Recreation-grade paintballs have a thicker, firm shell and can be used in any paintball guns or markers, but they do come in inconsistent sizes and shapes which causes inconsistent shots at targets. These paintballs can be bought in bulk at nearby wholesale prices in different colors.
Tournament grade paintballs
Go through strict checkups and testing, and they are the highest quality paintballs purposed for professional tournaments and designed for high-quality paintball guns. It comes with consistent size and shapes which includes better accuracy.
As it produces shots at straighter flight with improved accuracy than other paintballs, they are quite expensive than others. These paintballs have bright colors, so they can mark the opponents well when shot.
Reusable paintballs
These are just foam substitutes of normal paintballs with no fillets, generally low and on price, and are used for indoor purposes and areas where paintball paints are no go.
Reusable paintballs can be a way for teams who want to save on ammunitions and reuse them for practicing, they tend to get cheap in this case. As this paintball doesn’t leave marks on targets, players can easily cheat on this game.
Some paintball hubs have dedicated reball paintball fields and reball are to be fired at a lower velocity than the regular ones for not breaking the paintballs at impacts. Read our best paintballs review here.
Paintball Caliber
The caliber of a paintball indicates the size of paintballs in inches, which is also the measurement of diameter. And, paintball calibers are to be matched accordingly with the guns’ caliber while choosing and buying.
Paintball comes in two types of calibers generally.
.68 Caliber Paintballs
These are the industry standard paintballs extensively used by the very pro players of paintball. The .68 caliber paintballs fall on the heavier side a bit and the guns for them are a bit heavy too.
For its size, not all rounds of it fit the hopper exactly. It may sting a bit with the pain, but it does give the immersive feel of the paintball game.
.50 Caliber Paintballs
These types of paintballs are the low-impact ones that can be useful for kids, beginners, friendly matches, and casual indoor plays. 0.5 inches in diameter, these paintballs don’t sting much compared to .68 caliber ones.
The shooting range and velocity of the shots are quite low that they won’t even break on impact. As for its size, more rounds can be fired and fitted into the hopper than the other ones.
These paintballs are cost-effective and offer higher rounds of the shot at a low price. Also, these paints do not require compressed air tanks for firing.
Choosing Paintballs – Buying Guide
As you go through these different types of paintballs, you might have some lead about which paintballs you should get for your paintball gun. But, if you are unsure about the caliber of your gun, it will be a good choice if you go through the user manuals of it.
Ammunition is one of the most important facts in paintballing where it should not fail you when you need it.
Now, every paintball does not come inconsistent size and shape, and to check that you should try barrel bore sizing. What it does is that it matches paintball to the barrel by dropping through it. By going through this process, you can ensure which barrel you must use for a consistent pace.
If paintballs are correctly chosen, you can ensure greater accuracy and minimize error to a greater extent. Paintballs sometimes break up while exiting the gun, which can be very messy and troublesome. Even it can jam up the whole gun in the process.
9 Things to Consider Before Buying Paintball
- Firmness all over in size and shape
- Should be Rounder
- Shells of those which can break on landing on target or impact
- Fills inside should be very visible and bright
- Fills inside should be thick
- Fills from shots on target should be very hard to wipe
- Fills need to be neon colored and bright.
- Fills need to be going against background image and wearables.
- Pricing should be affordable as much as needed in order to buy in bulk.
Now, some of the manufacturers have gone through your homework before even you did, so can try to consult the specialists at stores.
Among the different types of paintballs in the market, you can try out the Valken Infinity, Veska, May Vary, GI Sports Xballs, or DXS Basic ones if you’re going for Recreational grades.
On the other hand, for Tournament grades, you can try RPS Empire Marbalizer, Valken Graffiti, Tiberius Arms FS ones. Whereas, for Reusable paintballs, you can try “Reball”, GXG Rubber, etc.
Additional Paintball Questions
Can you freeze a paintball?
Yes, it can be frozen like some cherry theoretically. But the glycol which consists of the fill that stays inside the paintball lowers down the freezing point which hardly freezes on the inside instead of becoming a cool and cold paintball.
But, for getting extra brittleness on the paint, some professionals freeze them up before a team match.
Can I reuse a paintball?
No. You do not want your gun to jam up in the middle of the fight. Fresh paintball can ensure a good shot, but as it is biodegradable, it may certainly collect moisture on its surface or may soak up. So, reusing a paintball is a no-go.
How bad do paintballs hurt?
Not everyone has the same pain threshold. Some players find it as a small sting, while others may find it very painful like some nerves are burning. But, these shots do leave a mark like red dots all over the body. So, you should cover up your body as much as it needs.
How long do paintballs last?
3 to 4 hours in gameplay, with 500 paintballs. But, depending on your shooting style it may be less or more. But, paintballs can last longer about a year if properly stored along with the packaging.
Verdict
In the game zone, both outdoors and indoors, paintball is an important piece in the puzzle. Without proper paintballs, you cannot fully grasp the potential of your game. Cause, it does carry your accuracy and emotions alongside you in the field.
Now, as the industry holds different types of paintballs out there for you, then you need to have an understanding of the types of paintballs. And, with a proper paintball, you can turn it into the best offense for yourselves, regardless of the circumstances.
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