The Beginner's Guide to Buying Paintball Equipment

So you've gone paintballing a few times and you've used the rental equipment or your friend's gear. Now you are looking into buying your own equipment.

Before you buy anything, however, you need to determine if you're going to be paintballing for a long time. Equipment is expensive, and it is quite the investment. You should go paintballing quite a few times before you are sure that you'd like to buy your own equipment.

If you are under 21, you'll need your parent or guardian's consent before buying paintball gear, because in most states it is illegal to buy gear as a minor. Not only that, you'll really need your parent or guardian's support if you want to play paintball, because it is very hard to go paintball without somebody who will drive you to and from the paintball park.

The number one rule to buying your own equipment is to not buy cheap stuff. If you only have 100 dollars to spend on a gun, don't buy one at all. I cannot stress this enough. Teens will often buy cheap guns because it is all they can afford. This is BAD. If you paintball for a year or two and want to upgrade, you'll have to buy a whole new gun because the cheap 100 dollar gun can only get so good. If you're going to make an investment, make it a good one.

PBREVIEW.net IS NOT ALWAYS RIGHT.On PBreview you'll see the cheapest of guns getting 9.5/10. Why? Kids buy the gun and take it out of the box and think its the best gun in the world. It is absolutely silly how a 100 dollar gun and a 1000 dollar gun can have the same rating.

I buy a lot of my gear at actionvillage.com. Actionvillage has good prices on everything. Their selection is outstanding. One word of advice though--don't opt for the economy shipping. It will take 1-2 weeks longer than Fedex Home. It is also very unreliable (i've had a package lost myself) and not much cheaper than Fedex Home.
I also recommend looking on Ebay and Craigslist for your gear. You can get a lot of used gear at a great price. Paintball guns and gear are meant to take beatings, so its not bad to buy a lot of your gear used.

The first thing I recommend you buy is a mask. If you've gone paintball one-two times with gear that's not your own and really like paintballing, get a mask. Rental masks smell and they aren't the most comfortable or the clearest. If you buy your own mask, you will at least have a good one that doesn't fog, smell, or is scratched, and you'll enjoy the game more. Masks aren't a big investment, so if you decide to stop playing paintball after another month (as teens love to do) then its not so big of a loss.

My Mask Recommendation: The V-force Pro-Vantage Thermal. It looks great--doesn't look like a cheap mask. It costs on average about 27 dollars. It comes in 6 colors and is flexible, light, and keeps cool, and the thermal lense eliminates fogging. I have this mask in yellow and I used it for a while until I got a more expensive mask. I still use it for reffing games. It is a GREAT mask and I know many experienced players who still use this mask because they see no reason to upgrade.

If you can go paintballing several more times with your new mask and a borrowed gun and still love the game, its time to get your own gear. You'll need about 250 dollars though. Paintballing is not a sport for the poor. If you think you can get a cheap gun for 100 dollars and just upgrade it as you go, you're wrong. A 100 dollar spyder or ion will never be as good as a PMR. You can put 500 dollars worth of upgrades on the 100 dollar gun and it won't be as good as a gun you can buy for 200. So stay away from spyders and the ION. The way they work just don't allow them to be too good.

My Gun Recomendations: If you're on a tight budget, I'd suggest getting the smart parts vibe for about $125 or a used proto SLG for about $170. The used SLG will cost about 40 dollars more than the Vibe, but for good reason. The Vibe is the cheapest gun I would ever suggest getting, because it is cheap, reliable, and shoots fine at 11 BPS. It will need upgrades, a barrel being the most important, but out of the box it will do just fine. The SLG is a fantastic gun. You can take it out of the box and it will be absolutely incredible. No upgrades are required for it to shoot great, but after you play with it a few times you'll see what upgrades you want.
If you've got about $250+, I highly suggest getting the PMR, or Proto Matrix Rail. This gun is pretty much set out of the box. It really needs no upgrades. Most pros will agree that its a great gun.

Any of these 3 guns will keep up with much more expensive guns. Buy the best one you can afford. There are other options of course, but these are just what I really recommend. Dye/Proto is a great company that has been making guns for years. Smart parts turned out some really overpriced guns in the last few years, but the Vibe is a winner. Other guns that you might want are a nice Autococker prostock '04--these are hard to find but you can get them on ebay for about $150. I also like the Autococker Trilogy Series. Get the Pro version, not sport or competition. The Trilogies actually cost less than the vibe; they're mechanical, however, and a lot of beginners like to shoot fast, which is why said to get the Vibe. If you're the type of player that likes to play smart and shoot accurate, precise shots, get an autococker.

With the Vibe or Trilogy Autocockers, you may use CO2. CO2 is a LOT cheaper, and less consistent. The PMR and SLG ABSOLUTELY need Compressed Air. This is also something to consider, because good HPA tanks cost upwards of 100 dollars. The Prostock wouldn't do very well on CO2, but could use it if thats all you've got.

You'll also need a hopper. These are extremely expensive for what they are, but without a good one your gun will cut paintballs in half before they leave the gun.

MY hopper Recommendations: the VL vLocity Jr or the VL eVlution 3. THe vLocity will feed faster, but costs a lot more. THe eVlution will be fine with most guns and is regarded as the best hopper for the money. You MIGHT outshoot the eVlution 3 with the PMR or SLG if you shoot too fast, but that is unlikely. The vLocity costs about 75 dollars and the eVlution costs about 40 used or 60 new. Hoppers are fine to get used.

You'll probably also need a pod pack. I'd suggest anything from CP or NXE, but all pod packs function the same. Take into account how many paintballs you want to carry when choosing the size of the pack.

And that covers pretty much all the core gear that you will need to get started.

If you want to know about upgrades for your gun, the only thing I can tell you is to go and play with it. You'll figure out what you need when you're out on the field.

Good luck and have fun!