Safety Tips

Compared to the most popular sports around, paintball is safe.  This is largely due to the emphasis that manufacturers and most players have always put on safety.  If proper precautions are taken, there is little to be feared from a day playing paintball either on a commercial field or in the woods.

Gun Safety:

• Never fire, or even point, your gun at anything you do not intend to shoot.
• Check your paintball gun to make sure your paintballs are not traveling any faster than 280 feet per second.  “Cranking up” the velocity of your marker only causes more balls to break in your barrel and reduce accuracy, and more importantly, has the potential of hurting your fellow players.
• Do not turn off the trigger safety switch until the game has begun.  Turn the safety back on immediately at the end of the game.
• Always use a barrel plug or barrel sleeve.  Do not remove it until either the game has begun or you have been instructed to do so by an official.
• Store and transport your paintball gun unloaded, with the trigger safety switch on, with a barrel plug/sleeve in, and with the CO2/compressed air tank detached. This is not only a safety measure, it is also the law in most states.  A paintball gun with the gas tank attached is considered a firearm, and it is illegal to have loaded firearms in a vehicle.
• Never look down the barrel, whether you think the gun is loaded or not.
• Keep your hands and face away from any moving parts on the gun.  Usually this is not a problem because the moving parts are inside the paintball gun, but some models have moving parts on the outside.
• Never place a finger or any object into the chamber of your paintball gun while the CO2/compressed air tank is connected.

Equipment Safety:

• Always wear a mask with goggles whenever you are in the same area as paintball guns with their CO2/compressed air tanks attached.
• Never tamper with the valve of the CO2/compressed air tank.  Always have a professional airsmith do any modifications to your air-delivery system.
• Wear clothing that covers as much skin as possible (even when it’s hot!).

Playing Safety:

• Never shoot at anyone that is not wearing a mask.
• Never shoot at any object that is not meant to be shot at (do not vandalize, duh).
• Never shoot at any animal.
• Never fire in public places or places where un-masked people, animals, or objects not meant to be shot may be present.
• Stop firing at the conclusion of a game, and do not fire until the game has begun or an official has given permission.
• If you are within 15 feet of a person, give them a chance to surrender before shooting at them.

Follow these common-sense safety rules and everyone will end up having a great time!

Isaac began playing paintball in Virginia in 1995 with a pump gun and a desire to let fly a large amount of paint.  He and his friends played paintball in an abandoned trash truck factory or in the woods and had to drive more than two hours just to get their CO2 tanks filled.  They did this at least twice a week.  Paintball became a part of life, and sometimes, life revolved around paintball.

It was not until 1999, when Isaac had been shipped off to Louisiana by the military, that he first played paintball at an established field.  It was then that he first became aware that the pastime that he loved was rapidly becoming a serious sport.