Playing Paintball Safely

Wear only Paintball approved goggles: No brainer right? You might think so, but you'd be surprised to know how many players try to get away with wearing ski goggles, Motocross goggles, etc. These goggles don't have the impact resistance necessary to withstand a close-range Paintball hit, nor do they cover your entire face, ears, etc.

There are goggles not made for Paintball that have the impact resistance of Paintball goggles, but they still are not safe. In the semi-auto age that we play in today, there are many times where several paintballs are in the air headed your way at the same time. The first one may not penetrate the goggle, but the third or fourth may. Don't take chances. Wear only Scott, JT Paintball, Vents, or Leader (post 1995) goggles when playing Paintball. If you have a question about your goggles please call us at (703) 491-6199 and we'll do our best to answer you.

Never fire your gun at or near anyone not wearing Paintball approved goggles: Chronograph your paintgun several times during the day: Whether you use C02 or nitrogen, you must chronograph your gun several times during a day's play if you're concerned with safety. There are too many things that can alter your gun's velocity without you even knowing it. Remember, if someone is hurt by a paintgun that you've fired, you will be held responsible if negligence is an issue.

Play Paintball only at commercial fields: No we're not trying to help Paintball field owners out there. There's a huge safety issue and legal issue if you play on private land that's not a "real" Paintball field. When you play backyard Paintball do you have a phone, first-aid kit, chronograph, refs to watch over inexperienced players, etc.? Is there barbed-wire, rocks, glass, or other hazards on your land? I rest my case.

Don't ever alter your gun's C02 or nitrogen system: We don't mean you can't change from vertical-bottle to bottom-line C02. What we're talking about here is using improper burst disks, mixing gasses, building your own expansion chamber, etc. Most players don't know as much as they think they do when it comes to the dangers of C02 expansion and high pressure gasses.

Never work on you paintgun without wearing goggles and disconnecting your air source: You really do need to do both to really be safe. Some paintguns will fire a paintball even after you've disconnected your air source.

Play with other players that are at or above your skill level: This one's not a safety issue, it's a matter of preserving our sport. How many times do think a new player will spend $50+ to get shot up all day long? Twice maybe?

Don't carry your paintgun around in public unless it's in some sort of gear bag: To many people (or maybe most) think a paintgun looks like a real gun. You'll probably scare the heck out of someone, and who knows how your local police officer will react when he sees you wielding a paintgun around.

Don't take your game too seriously: You just can't stress this one enough. One guy with a bad attitude can ruin a whole day of walk-on ball. Remember, there are a lot of players that may not understand the game the way you do. Give them a chance to learn before you jump on them for doing something that you may see as dumb. It's just a game--relax and have fun.

Be kind to your local field's neighbors: Many Paintball fields are located close to residential homes. Be as quiet as possible on those weekend mornings when neighbors may be trying to sleep a little later than work days. Your field owner will appreciate it.

Tell your friends, co-workers, etc: If you're like most people that have played Paintball once, you probably are hooked. Share it with your friends, they'll love you for it.

Keep the Ball speed down below 300 fps (feet per second) You may think you will do better with you paintballs flying out faster, but this usually hurts your accuracy. The reason paint fields keep the speed down is because goggles are rated to only stop 300 fps paintballs. Where did 300 fps come from? Physicists found that a blunt object going over 300 fps can actually break bones (finger especially), so please keep the speed down.