I was back in MT a couple weeks ago on vacation, and played paintball with my brother in law.  I was a bit apprehensive about getting hit, as I have heard all the "horror" stories of guys getting huge welts and bleeding and all but I thought 1) If I'm afraid of a little bruise, what am I going to do when real bullets fly my way and 2) Pain is temporary, but glory is FOREVER hahaha.  Anyway, after getting hit a bunch of times I found it is not too bad.  One guy got hit in the finger and that looked like it hurt.  Anyway, regarding real life, this made me think: just because you shoot at the range, doesn't mean you know how to move *and* shoot (at targets that you can hardly see, and shoot back), know when to take cover, coordinate an assault with a team, and also be in SHAPE enough to handle it.  

I used to play and I had a Bushmaster electro gun with a compressed air system. When I played I wore a sleeveless shirt (think wifebeater) and shorts. After you play long enough the hits don't bother you. I was thinking about getting back into it but the gun setup that I really want (and wouldn't be happy without) would run me about $2000. Now I have my new ATV to occupy my time. [:D]

finger hits sting like a SOB!
paint ball is a helluva lotta fun.

first time i played. played on the side with the high territory. this one guy on the other side kept harassing me before the game "ill go easy on you, don't worry." hehe.. fatal words for him. I nailed him with 1 of a 4 shot burst through a bush at 75 feet. one of my teamies ran outta ammo. and was keeping the guy down with dry fire. turn and peg the pinned guy. 2 of 4 down... hear a guy creeping on the right. turn and fire in one smooth fast movement. bang hes dead. someone took out the 4th. 3 of the 4 are mine. 2 with no assist. first game.

the guy egging me was annoyed because HE was the first out by ME no less. for the rest of the day he never got a bead on me. took him out a second time.. by then it was a might bit annoyed. after another 2 games we ended the day. he hadned yet put me out.

he one of his friends, me and one of my friends. went out to my friends dads farm. (the egger still had not put me out so he was raring to go. and ready to tag me.) we play a woods game. and whos out first by who? him by me.. poor guy was upset now, my friend go his. next we played a another woods area. my friend climbed up a tree.. we then spotted one of them.so i crouched behind the tree and purposely made a newbie mistake. left my toe visible.. now my friend is up in this tree surrounded by other trees branches in camo pants/shirt/mask. damn hard to see. if i was the other guy. the other guy spotted my foot and figured he would sneak up and tag me out. soon as he stepped into range my tree buddy tagged him out. now his friend had taken a different path and was further away but coming towards us from a diff location. he spotted me and fired but missed. i ducked around the tree so it was blocking. popped out fired and missed.. my tree but couldn't see him and stayed still and quite. while I "retreated" to draw the guy in. he as was predicted by me followed quickly as I moved away. I fired to keep him distracted and ducking. he got in range and tree buddy nailed him. then the other guy who stayed around to watch( we do this as it was a non-official/pay field, but we don't give away the location of the enemy to our teammate) started laughing because he spotted who nailed him and realize he had been well suckered. as did the other guy. he was miffed but happy I didn't put him out that time.

2 games later he got me and was happy as could be. but the game before that I was walking from a woodsie area into a field, he was hiding across the way and when i got within range of him. he fired and missed.. now i only had 3 shots to go off of to place him. purely on instinct I snapped the gun up and fired 1 and only 1 shot. dead center of his goggles in his mask. the string of curses would have stunned a sailor. and yes that game where he got me my friend was tagged out to.

as you can tell paintball is a heck of alot of fun. if your concerned about finger hits get some cheap leather gloves or a set of paintball gloves, these leave ust the front 2 segments exposed but a hard rubber "Armor" covers the back of the hand. i would recommend a soft cup. one guy took a nut shot(no cup) and had to have that one surgically removed. throat shots hurt but are not bad. just painful for a few mins.

...And thus ends any and all thoughts I had about going paintballing in the near future.

*crosses legs and feels the pain*

wimp... though i cant blame ya. it did like SGs tennisball size.

<<
You would not be refering to and Angel perhaps??

Bushmaster BM2K on full-auto... I figure that it is the closest I will come to class III in CA. I played PB once with the younger crowd but it was the need to rock-n-roll in my backyard that made me buy the marker. I think there is some city municipal code against this though... figures.

Quoted:
i would recommend a soft cup. one guy took a nut shot(no cup) and had to have that one surgically removed.

Wimp, can't even take a nutshot. pff, what a newbie. [:D]

Seriously Nova5, your accounts seem a bit far fetched. I've never ever seen anyone hit in the nuts ever, in all my years of paintball. Maybe it's because I play with larger groups at paid fields, so it's less hunting and more trench warfare. Second, what kind of an idiot climbs trees for paintball? That's just so idiotic, if you get caught climbing and the other side open fire you won't even be able to return fire, chances are you'll get hit and fall off, and seriously injuring yourself. Never put yourself in a position like that, where you can't defend yourself. The only time that even came close to happening to me is when I got flanked once. I couldn't see where the other guys were but I could see their balls flying past me because they were red. Their fire pinned me and this other guy to the fence we were huddling against, so we had nowhere to run and nowhere to hide. (normally, this would be considered a good defensive position, but since we were attacked from the side ...) So we could only shoot back blindly in the general direction which doesn't offer much in the way of suppression fire, in the mean while, they zeroed in on us and eventually both of us got taken out. That totally sucked, we were just like sitting there fighting desparately for time and they were zeroing in and there's nothing we could do about it.

I have to say that one of my favorite paintball games occured on the same exact map (field). The other side attacked first and we managed to beat them off. Then the game (it was timed) was about to end, I don't know how this came to be but everyone on our team spontaneously got out of our defensive positions and mounted a charge. It's like one of those Russian infantry charges you'd see in a WWII movie, everyone just charging up their hill and shooting like crazy (while yelling and screaming). We actually broke through their remaining defenders and captured their flag, that was fun.

This past spring a bunch of buddies and I were playing at a local feild with about 15 players on each team. Anywho, My friend was shot directly in the ding ding while squatting(His jeans were streched tight while squatting so the paintball didnt hurt him) and I was shot in the rear once and it wasnt too far off from my twigg and berries. Though being shot in the gonads may be rare in the paintball feild it is a possibility. just my .02

i have been hit in the junkyard a few times. never a problem. usually your pants take the shock or it. if your legs are just a little apart, or your crouched, your pants are tought over the junk yard, if you get what im saying. just dont wear sweatpants.

Paintball is a ton of fun.  I have many fond memories of it.  Never hit in the nuts luckily, but the inner thigh can be almost as bad.  Worst I ever took was by some idiot who decided to keep coming after the whistle blew, he jumped up over a log and shot me right in the neck from five feet (which you're not supposed to do anyway).  MOTHERF#$#R that one hurt.  I need to look around now that I'm back in ND and see if there any places to play out here.  I'd like to get into Airsoft, but as cool as that is, seems like the playability of paintball might be better.  Besides by the time I get the gun, extra batteries and mags, etc, I could have another REAL AR.

Mike

My only complaint about p-ball is it can get a little spendy for a day of fun - even with "own kit."  Paint ain't cheap.

A soft cup is not a bad idea, but you don't get hit there often (as previously mentioned.)  My first outing netted me a sore left testicle the first time I got hit (indoor play at T.A.P.S on Walks Av in Santa Clara years ago...) but I only needed a break for a few minuted - I was in the next game.

I also play airsoft, and that doesn't cost anywhere near as much for a day's play.  Initial outlays are a little more, but you come out ahead overall.

My choice of weapon?  VM-68 EXC (modified) with BOA Concealer barrel and lots of internal cleanup.  Works better than the Cockers, Mags, Spyders, and Angels I've seen on the field most times (kids really don't take good care of their gear) and is UTTERLY reliable.  I also like the fact that you can power a VM with anything that will provide a minimum of 200 psi...  CO2, Air, N2, or whatever.  The weight of the VM is also not an issue for me!

FFZ

I have been playing since 1989. In all the games I have played or reffed I have been hit once in the soft spot. I was on the run and it didnt hurt to bad. The worst shots are the hands. Hurts like a sumb#%h. The worst shot I took was indoors. Took a glancing blow off the right temple from about 20 feet from a Splat Master. Cant tell you why it hurt so much but it did. Since I have had back surgery have not played and cant stay in the infantry I am looking forward to play again.

Sounds like a fun event for the next BRC doesn't it?!?!?!   There ya go, G&B and Anti...  a PAINTBALL match!   I'll bring mine!

Dave

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AT-4
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AT-4 ( with front handle,car stock and flashlight)
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A-5
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The IR3 to be exact. I started wearing a cup after having a few close calls.

I've been playing since the mid 80s and have loved it since the first day.

I think almost everyone goes through the I really don't want to be hit phase, but after the first couple of rounds hit you, it goes away.

I currently use an Autococker with a 114ci tank.  I even went so far to buy a kick ass jersey from Raven to wear on the speedball fields.  I've worn gloves since the first time I was nailed in the hands and I am looking to proabably pick up a new pair soon.  My old tried and true Thunderwear gloves finally kicked off after 8 years of service.

Tournaments are completely different from what I played back in the early 90s, but all of us saw the upcoming rise of speedball.

As for below the belt hits, I have seen one in all the years I have played and it was on the first day.  My buddy got nailed while he was running from one building to another.

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while farfetched they are 100% true. but never have i had such a streak of luck ever again. and i do mean never. mabey a 2game streak. but not a 5game. and as for climbing the tree.. it was his dads farm, sure hes done it a ton of times. i had both markers. it would have matrix-like. both guns blazing. lay back and watch the balls zip by..(no not really)

and as for the nut shot. read it on the web. there were pics... which i opted not to view. i have had a neck shot and that hurts like hell.. ive usually the the friends protected with my legs or somthin else to block a incoming painball ;)

NEVER overlook the tactical advantage of a hidden firing position.

I have to agree finger hits are the worst. I once got shot on my ring finger in the same spot 3 times in a burst. The other guy had one of those full auto paintball guns and I pinned him behind a dirt mound. He suddenly jumped out from one side and snapped off a hail of paintballs at me. At least three of them hit my left ring finger and the skin actually peeled.