When you’re playing a paintball game, you must hear the quick wheezing sounds of bullets. These paintball bullets might leave you wondering, how fast do paintballs go? Getting hit by a paintball might cause pain to some paintball players. But if you are playing a paintball game and have all the paintball essentials on, like a protective vest, then you don’t need to worry about getting hit by a paintball.
There are certain measures that are taken before a paintball game even starts. You are required to go through a chronograph test following the laws and regulations of your personal marker. In this test, each player shoots a paintball, and the speed of the paintball is measured. Does paintball hurt if it is fired by the best speedball guns?
The average paintball speed falls around 250 to 300 fps (feet per second). Some paintball parks limit the maximum paintball speed to 200 or even 160 fps, depending upon the size of the play area they have. Read about Best Speedball Gun with Fastest Firing Rate here.
What is Paintball FPS?
FPS stands for feet per second, and it determines the speed of the paintball that a paintball marker fires. It is very important to measure the paintball gun fps because it can cause serious damage to any player in the game.
The speed at which a paintball gun shoots matters a lot in paintball. As this game is just a fun activity, you don’t want anyone or yourself to get hurt, do you? So there are proper rules and regulations for a paintball game. Among these rules, paintball speed is much more important.
Interestingly, there is a test called the chronograph test to measure the paintball speed. The paintball players must have to go through this test before entering the battlefield. The purpose of this test is to make sure that all players are using the paintball guns permitted in the arena.
How fast does a paintball gun shoot?
Over the course of my seven-year paintball career, I have used multiple paintball markers ranging from beginner to expert. The ideal speed that a paintball travels with is 280 – 300 fps. It can go above 300 feet per second as well.
Interestingly, there are paintball guns that shoot paintballs at 330 or even 350 feet per second, but you don’t want to get hit by that. Isn’t it?
Paintballs can reach their target in about 1/3 of a second with an effective range of 80 to 100 feet.
The paintball velocity also depends on the paintball marker and the compressed gas cylinder attached to it. Paintball guns usually have compressed gas cylinders of two types. One is the high-pressure air cylinder, and the other is carbon dioxide.
It is important to note that one’s paintball marker determines exactly how fast the paintball velocity is going to be. There are different paintball guns having varying paintball velocities.
These can be electronic or mechanical markers. The electronic markers work either through an electronic trigger frame or an electro-pneumatic apparatus.
Here is an interesting concept you need to know about paintball velocity.
The speed vs. accuracy. And the paintball itself.
Does More Paintball Speed Mean Accuracy?
When playing a paintball game, you might think that if my gun fires at more than the average paintball fps, I can shoot opponents more accurately. But it is not it. The paintball gun accuracy depends upon several other factors as well.
Let’s take paintball barrel length, for instance. The guns having a length of not less than 8 or 9 inches usually have more accuracy. Because a lengthy barrel provides a more controlled trajectory to the paintball when fired.
In the same way, the paintball itself needs to be sturdy enough to escape the gun without breaking. The projectile of a paintball is also an accuracy factor when you’re shooting at your opponents. The higher the paintball quality, the more accurate it will be.
Higher-quality paintballs should have less friction when they leave the barrel, and they should also be more durable.
How fast does a paintball go in mph?
Usually, the paintball speed is measured in FPS (feet per second), but if you want to convert that into mph (miles per hour), then here’s how you do it.
If the paintball speed is 300 feet per second, multiply it by 0.68, and you will get the result in mph.
As
mph: fps
0.68 mph: 1 fps
300 FPS × 0.68 = 204 mph
How fast is too fast to hurt?
When you have a good paintball mask, pod pack, vest, and other protective gear on, then who cares? It doesn’t mean that paintball doesn’t hurt. It does if you take your outfit off and let anyone shoot the paintball at your naked body to figure out how much does a paintball hurt. Get ready to have a bruise and consistent nociceptive pain, then.
If a paintball hits your body at a speed higher than 200 feet per second, the impact is likely to cause severe pain. Apart from that, paintballs below 200 feet per second won’t cause such damage, but you’ll feel like someone has punched you.
Wrap Up
So this was a quick go-through of exploring how fast paintball travels. I hope you get to learn something new from this. I have also included the factors that affect the paintball velocity. It is good for you to have a basic idea of all the aspects of playing paintball. This adds more professionalism to any player willing to start their sports career or even play for fun.
Respecting the integrity of players and the game, the paintball parks should also act responsibly and implement all the rules and regulations. It will promote healthy co-curricular activities and ultimately lead to a livelihood.
Lastly, if you’re a beginner and want to buy some of the best paintball guns, then I would recommend you check out Best Beginner Paintball Gun.