It is important to know the different parts involved in the makeup of a paintball gun. The different elements are crucial to the successful working of your marker, and beginners will often be confused when receiving instructions because of their lack of knowledge of what the basic parts are. Knowing the parts of your paintball gun will also help you have a better idea of what you should be looking at when it is time to clean or upgrade your marker.

The body of the marker is the largest part of the gun. The body refers to the area of the gun that incorporates the trigger frame, the valve, and the bolt. All of these pieces can be detached from each other in order to incorporate new equipment, but only experts on their guns should attempt this. Makers of paintball guns have a fairly standard approach when it comes to the body of the gun, with the main difference being in the placement of the trigger and the barrel. Pushing the trigger frame forward shifts the balance of the gun and thus makes it easier to handle with one hand. It will also cause the body to have a lower profile, which is crucial when players are involved in games where hopper hits count towards elimination. The difference is plain when newbies and pros are present in the field, as the rental guns provided by most outfits have huge and bulky bodies that present a lot of hit potential.

The hopper is the part of the gun that holds the rounds of paint. No matter how high end, manufacturers have not perfected a hopper which prevents balls from breaking in containment. These breaks will often lead to jams of the feeding mechanisms and the gun itself, which in turn may cause more balls to break. Gravity-feed hoppers are especially prone to ball breakage while still in the hopper because of their jamming problems. Aside from gravity-feed, there are also agitation hoppers, force feed hoppers, and stick feed hoppers.

The tank is the part of the gun which contains the type of gas that propels the ball forward down and out of the gun’s barrel. Markers use either CO2 gas or high pressure air as propulsion material. The CO2 gas is the original, but HPA is preferred as it is more reliable than CO2 and does not require an evaporation system in order to fire.

Finally, the barrel of the marker is what the ball travels down when the trigger is compressed. The barrel is responsible for the speed and the accuracy, as well as the distance, at which a ball travels, and is thus arguably the single most important component of the gun. Longer barrels will fire quieter than shorter models, but a marker owner should remember that no matter what length of barrel, the paintball can only travel a set distance in order to break. While really long barrels may look intimidating and offer better accuracy, they also are prone to be ineffective since they require a larger burst of air to propel the ball faster to make up the distance within the barrel itself.

By: Chris Abro

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I’m sure you’ve heard of the sport of paintball and all of the fun that those that enjoy it, seem to associate it with it. Well, within this great action sport are a number of things that may at first confuse a newcomer to the sport. One of those terms is that of the paintball marker.

Basically, it’s as simple as saying paintball gun and that’s exactly what a paintball marker is. What you may be wondering is why in the world do they call it a marker rather than a gun?

Ultimately the reason it’s called a marker is because of the fact that they were first (as some speculate) used by forest rangers to ‘mark’ trees and stray cattle. Since it shot a ball of paint, paintball, and was used to mark it became known as a paintball marker.

Pretty simple huh?

Again, if you are new to the sport you may be amazed at first to find out just how much power one of these has. They are known to easily shoot their ammo at a rate of three hundred or more feet per second. That’s as fast as a bow and arrow, also as fast as some ‘real’ guns on the market.

Most consist of noting more than a barrel, a body, a hopper and an air canister. The paintballs stay in the hopper and as one is shot out of the barrel another drops into the hopper. The air canister consists of compressed air that, when the trigger is pulled, releases an explosion of that air which then propels the ball out through the barrel.

That’s it. That’s the very basics of it all. As with everything that has a passionate following such as this sport, there is a plethora of manufactured equipment available on the market for those that are just getting started or those that are more advanced.

Additionally, there is a large market of custom designed and styles available as well. So, the only thing that really affects what you end up with for a paintball marker is your own personal taste, skill level and how really bad you want one.

By: Matt Ryan

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