Playing paintball for the first time does need a lot of preparation. As a beginner, you will need to make decisions about a variety of things that can be challenging. After selecting a paintball gun, the next important thing to consider is the paintball caliber.
Paintball size directly determines the speed, accuracy, and shooting technique. It’s crucial to get the correct paint size when playing paintball to improve paintball gun accuracy.
The standard paintball size is .68 caliber, which is pretty popular among professional and casual paintball players alike. Additionally, you will find other smaller paintball size like— .40, .43, .50, and .62. You have multiple options of paintball to choose from.
We’ve put together this quick-through article to help you make an informed decision. Continue reading.
What is Paintball Caliber
Paintball caliber is its size in inches. For better performance, the paintball gun you selected should match the bore size of your marker barrel. Sometimes to achieve more accuracy, players use larger paintball sizes that can break the barrel. That’s not something we recommend.
A paintball caliber of .68 (.68 inches) is considered to be the best paintball size. Most seasoned paintball players and tournaments prefer this caliber. Another popular caliber is the .50, most often chosen by beginners for casual paintballing.
Types of Paintball
The manufacturing grade of paintballs varies depending on the player’s professional skill and the type of paintball game being played.
Tournament-Grade Paintball
Games involving more serious and competitive play use tournament-grade paintball. Designed for high-end guns, these paints are of the highest quality and standard size (.68 caliber). Therefore, these are expensive paintballs.
Recreational-Grade Paintball
A common type of paintball is a recreational-grade paintball used for general playing. Typically, these paints are compatible with mid-range and low-end guns where you don’t have to worry about accuracy. .50 caliber Paintball gun are used as recreational paintballs generally.
Reusable Paintballs
Reusable paintballs are designed specifically for practicing purposes. Also known as Re-balls, these are actually foam paintballs. These re-balls lack paint filling and are relatively heavier than the paintballs.
Factors Affecting the Choice of Paintball Size
Several variables determine which paintball caliber is right for you, and these are:
Pain
How much does a paintball hurt? It depends on the paintball size. The bigger and faster the paintball, the more painful it is to be hit. That is why more competitive games use the standard size of the paintball to make it harder. If you are not the type who doesn’t like to be hit by a 0.68-inch paintball traveling at 280 fps, you should select smaller paint.
Paintball Type
As established before, the larger paintballs are for more serious and challenging games, while smaller ones are suitable for casual gameplay. Players who prefer playing in the tournament will select 0.68-caliber paintball because of its quality and efficiency.
It won’t bother you if the paintball flies off inches away from the target while practicing with your friends. Since shot accuracy isn’t much of a concern in this scenario, smaller paintballs seem reasonable.
Cost
A 0.68 caliber paintball is more expensive than a 0.50 caliber paintball. It depends on your wallet. If you can afford it, go for standard-size paint— you won’t regret it. Otherwise, choose the cheaper option.
Why Standard Paintball Size is Popular
The standard paintball size is known for its precision and unmatched quality. That is why most paintball arenas use this size to maintain fair play. It perfectly matches most tactical paintball guns and the style of the game. These premium-quality paintballs have consistent velocity, shape, and better splat quality.
The standard size of the paintball is relatively bigger and heavier. These 0.68 caliber balls can sustain the pressure from the high-pressure canister, increasing the velocity and making it ideal for long-range shooting.
Almost all the markers, hoppers, and barrel sizes can accommodate 0.68 caliber paintball. However, some will require conversion kits to use these balls.
What is the Second Most Popular Paintball Size
The second most commonly used size of paintball is .50 caliber paintball. This 1/2-inch paintball is ideal for recreational or casual play. Because of the smaller size, these paints can’t get enough pressure behind them and, therefore, have low velocity.
Since these paintballs move slower, you won’t be hurt when you hit them. Also, these balls are cheaper than standard-size paints. That is why these low-impact paintballs are quite popular among beginners, kids, and indoor fields.
Conclusion
Most paintball arenas use the .68 caliber paintball because of its top-notch quality and speed. The selection of standard paintball size depends on various factors which we have discussed above.