Xmas Shopping

Its Christmas time and all us parents are sweating to keep the dreams of our kids equal to the money in the bank.

Below is a great email and my reply about equipment. I have been getting quite a few of these, so I thought I would just post.  Also, take a look at the page on this blog "Is it expensive?"

Do remember, this is from me a parent, not some crazy paintball equipment nut, so my prospective will be different to some other people out there.

Hi Gord

Thank you for your website; I am as unknowledgeable as can be about the sport other than to say my son has gone twice and greatly enjoyed it both times with his friends.  He is 15, 6'3" 150#'s if that helps any for the questions I'm going to ask.

I want to buy my son everything he would need to enjoy paintball with his friends at local places as well as on my property (we have 5 acres).  My "simple" question I know will get very complex (like what's better, Nike or Rebok).

What gear should I get (gun, masks, hoppers, paintballs, etc) and what would be the higher end / reasonable entry stuff to get?

I"m blessed to have enough funds to not need to look for $50 guns, but I don't think he'll need a $500 gun either.

Hi Allen,

Thanks for the email.

The first thing you need to purchase is a mask. It doesn't matter how good your gun(marker) is if you cant see the game. Bring him with you to a local paintball store and have him try on a few masks. I find that different masks fit different people differently. I personally like the JT Line because it fits my head like a glove. Also, get dual plane. I find in any of the sports that I play, from skiing to paintball, chemically treated masks will still fog up, so get dual lenses.

Markers are a tough one. You are dealing with a teenager. As a parent, I tell other parents that a good entry level marker is a Tippmann. But at the same time the kids have their own opinion, so check it out with him. The good news, is most modern paintball markers are all pretty good. 

Another thing to find out is, does your child like woodsball, speedball or pump makers. I dont suggest pump to start off with as its really hard. The speedball markers for some kids are cool because they look like a pro, some kids think that they look strange and would like to have ones that look like an assault riffle. Find out from your child which way he wants to go.

One thing though, dont get them the highend markers. Its way too much for them to handle. Im talking about the ones over $1000.

The hopper depends on the marker you purchase. After deciding on the marker, ask the retailer which one he would select. 

Another thing to purchase is the clothing and footwear. Paintball gloves are highly recommend. I didnt put my gloves on today for one game. Man, you should see my fingers. 

Good shoes, like cleats from soccer, are excellent. Seems strange, but makes a huge difference. If cleats are a no go, get some good all leather boots with excellent tread. Military or workman grade boots.

Paintballs. It doesnt matter how good your marker is, if the paint is dimpled or uneven, it will not fire straight. I suggest watching this video for a good explanation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbLeVK57dK8

Thanks,

Gord