P… is for paint.
Obvious right? But paint choice can really make or break your day. Literally.
This could be a very long article because paint is a much more complicated subject than you’d first think. When you’re new to the sport you use what you’re given, then you’ll use what you can afford and that may be as far as your thought process goes on the paint subject. And there’s nothing wrong with that. But if you want to take things a little more seriously then choosing the right paint is essential.
We won’t go into the variety of paint that is available. We won’t focus on brands or even paint ranges because you’ll find your own favourites as you progress however, we will give you some simple insights into how paint varies and how you can test paint before you buy it, to ensure a good day of fun.
What you’re typically looking for is balance. Not too hard, not too brittle. A hard paintball may seem like a great idea because you won’t get any accidental breaks in your loader, but a hard paintball won’t break on your opponents so often either, which means they won’t be called out and they could shoot you instead, which sucks. There are benefits of a hard paintball though; some very low end markers can be quite hard on paint which can result in paintballs breaking in your marker breech leading to more time cleaning than playing. Most newcomers to the game will buy low end markers to test the water, so a harder paint can help the player focus on learning the game, playing and having fun. And when you’re throwing yourself around the field your paint will rattle around inside your loader causing more potential breaks. Harder paint tends to be easier on the wallet, so most players will use a lot of it in their early playing days.
Brittle paint may seem like a weird concept for new players. It breaks very easily and if you have a very brittle batch it can often break inside loaders, markers and even in paint pods AND it can be considerably more expensive. So why even make brittle paint? Well, if you’re playing at the top end of competitive paintball, airball in particular, then every advantage counts. Players are fast and the margins for error are minimal, so you need to make sure that every single ball counts. No bounces, no missed shots, no near misses. That one ball can mean the difference between winning or losing. A point, a match, a series title, a World Cup. Brittle paint tends to be more consistent in shape, size, weight and more accurate. It is manufactured for those who demand a high level of performance and who take their paintball much more seriously.
Testing paint can be very easy. The drop test gives you a good idea of how consistently brittle, or hard, the ball is which means you know what to expect before you hit the field. Simply grab a good handful of paintballs, find a hard surface and drop balls one by one from waist height. Feel each one for consistency of shape and see how easily they break once dropped. You can tell just how brittle each ball is in the way they break. Some will split evenly, some may break mid bounce, some will completely collapse and others will bounce. If they bounce, they may be too hard. If they collapse then they’re too brittle. If they break and split evenly then it’s a good, brittle ball. But make sure you know what type of ball you want to use. Sometimes you’ll want a super brittle ball, but most of the time you want consistent breakages and every now and then it’s good to have some firmer paint if the weather is inconsistent… but that’s another story.
Finally there’s the barrel to paint (bore) match test. Sometimes you’ll have the perfect ball that is medium brittle but it breaks in your barrel causing all kinds of problems. It will break the next ball, and the next, the paint will stick to other balls and every shot will be wildly inaccurate, ruining your game. Simply take a few paintballs and drop test them through your barrel (removed from your marker) or gently blow them through the barrel. If the paint drops too freely through the barrel then your barrel bore may be too large. If the paint sits in the barrel gently blow, and if the paint fires through easily then you have a good match.
Once you quickly learn how to avoid using the wrong paint then you’ll have much more fun. You will 100% run into paint issues during your playing career, it’s inevitable because there are many factors involved. Just stay calm, try the tests and take control.
Enjoy.
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