• Choose a Paintball Marker (Paintball Gun)

• Select the Right Paintball Air System

• Wear Protective Paintball Gear

• Improve Your Game with Paintball Accessories

• Choose Your Paintballs

• Find Paintball Equipment on eBay

• Buy Paintball Gear With Confidence

Choose a Paintball Marker (Paintball Gun)

Choose a Paintball Marker (Paintball Gun)

To play paintball, you'll need a paintball gun, called a paintball marker. Popular markers include Kingman markers, Tippmann markers, WGP markers, Angel markers, Bob Long markers, 32 Degrees markers, and Smart Parts markers. Buy a marker based on your skill level.

• Beginner paintball markers: Start out with a marker package or basic paintball marker, and trade up if you decide to spend more time playing paintball.

• Recreational paintball markers: Take to the field with an automatic marker.

• Paintball tournaments: Fit your paintball marker to your position.

• Front players: Look for a paintball marker with a remote air hose. They weigh less for improved speed and mobility.

• Cover players: Look for a fast-loading marker with a large air supply bottle and remote line hose system.

• Utility players: Tote a paintball marker with a large air system and mounted tank that offers the mobility and paintball capacity you need.

Select the Right Paintball Air System

Select the Right Paintball Air System

Two types of paintball air systems deliver the pressure needed to propel a paintball from a marker:

• Carbon dioxide (CO2) systems: Most recreational players choose carbon dioxide (CO2) systems. The tank size determines how many rounds you can shoot before refilling. Most paintball fields can fill your carbon dioxide tanks.

• High-pressure air (HPA) systems: Serious players sometimes opt for a high-pressure air system, also called a nitrogen system. HPA systems offer superior accuracy, lighter weight, and more shot volume. However, only some fields will fill an HPA tank. Contact the paintball field where you like to play and make sure they'll support your HPA tank before you buy.

Wear Protective Paintball Gear

Wear Protective Paintball Gear

Manufacturers such as Dye and JT offer protective paintball gear so that you can have fun and stay safe when you play paintball.

• Paintball vest: Protect your kidneys, heart, and back with a tactical paintball vest.

• Pads: Cover up with chest protectors, neck pads, elbow pads, knee pads, shin pads, and gloves.

• Paintball goggles & masks: Paintball-specific eye protection can help you avoid eye injury. Invest in paintball goggles designed to give you ample protection from hits from all directions. Some come with face shields to protect your head, ears, and jaw. You can also opt for a full paintball mask.

Make sure you understand how to safely use all of your paintball equipment before you start playing.

Improve Your Game with Paintball Accessories

Improve Your Game with Paintball Accessories

Before you play, gear up with paintball accessories to improve your paintball experience.

• Upgrade your barrel: Fit your marker with a new barrel. They come in different lengths and bores (inside diameter). Most are 10- to 18-inches long. Select the bore size to match the paintballs you’ll use. Most barrels are made for the standard .68-caliber paintball.

• Store more paintballs: Mount a basic paintball storage bin, called a hopper, to the top of your manual marker. It also works with electric markers that have a low- to mid-range rate of fire. If you’re a serious player, get a loader—essentially a battery-powered motorized hopper—designed to work faster than a hopper.

• Remotely control your air supply: Use a remote air hose to lighten your paintball marker. The line connects your marker and air supply, allowing you to use an add-on air supply not directly mounted onto the marker.

• Strap-on paintball accessories: Store paintball pods or tubes (containing additional paintballs) or a backup tank on a harness or paintball belt pack.

• Clean your paintball marker: Clean your paintball marker with a squeegee, available pull-through or stick form. When you evaluate item listings, check to see that the squeegee works with your paintball marker’s barrel. Also look for a squeegee holder for quick access during play.

Choose Your Paintballs

Choose Your Paintballs

Paintballs consist of a water-based paint surrounded by a gelatin coating. They fire through your paintball marker and break on impact.

Paintball sizing

Paintball sizes include .50-caliber, .62-caliber, .63-caliber, .68-caliber, and .72-caliber. Buy the paintballs that fit your barrel diameter.

Select paintball colors

Choose brightly-colored paintballs that will make it easy to see a hit. Red or orange (not green) are good options for play in forested areas.

Paintball storage

Properly store your paintballs in a cool, dry place to keep them away from humidity.

Find Paintball Equipment on eBay

Find Paintball Equipment on eBay

Once you know what type of paintball equipment you need, go to the Sporting Goods portal, click Paintball, and start searching for item listings on eBay.

• Categories: The Categories list on the left side of each page will help you narrow down your listings by item type. You'll find links for Air Systems & Accessories, Barrels, Gear Bags & Marker Cases, Gloves, Goggles, Masks, Harnesses & Pods, Jerseys, Marker Accessories, Marker Packages, Markers, Paintballs, and Other Items. As you dig deeper into the site you'll also be able to narrow down your choice by specific item type.

• Keyword search: Search eBay title listings for specific words. For example, if you want to find a new 12-inch barrel, type "new 12 barrel" (without quotation marks) into the Search box. Click "Search title and description" to expand your results. Visit eBay's Search Tips page for more tips on searching with keywords.

If you can't find exactly what you want, try shopping at eBay Stores, tell the eBay Community what you want by creating a post on Want It Now, or save a search on My eBay and eBay will email you when a match becomes available.

Buy Paintball Gear With Confidence

Buy Paintball Gear With Confidence

Before making your purchase, make sure you know exactly what you're buying, research your seller, and understand how eBay and PayPal protect you.

Know your purchase

Carefully read the details in item listings.

• Figure delivery costs into your final price. If you spend a lot of money, make sure the seller will insure the item when it ships.

• If you want more information, ask by clicking the "Ask seller a question" link under the seller's profile.

• Always make sure to complete your transaction on eBay (with a bid, Buy It Now, or Best Offer). Transactions conducted outside of eBay are not covered by eBay protection programs.

• Never pay for your eBay item using instant cash wire transfer services through Western Union or MoneyGram. These payment methods are unsafe when paying someone you do not know.

Know your seller

Research your seller so you feel positive and secure about every transaction.

• What is the seller's Feedback rating? How many transactions have they completed? What percentage of positive responses do they have?

• What do buyers say in their Feedback? Did the seller receive praise?

• Most top eBay sellers operate like retail stores and have return policies. Do they offer a money-back guarantee? What are the terms and conditions?

Buyer protection

In the unlikely event that a problem arises during your transaction, eBay and PayPal are there for you.

• Pay safely with PayPal: PayPal enables you to pay without the seller ever seeing your bank account or credit card numbers. In fact, PayPal protects buyers 100% against unauthorized payments from their accounts. Plus, with PayPal Buyer Protection, your purchase can be covered up to $1,000.

• eBay Security & Resolution Center: Visit the Security & Resolution Center to learn how to protect your account and use eBay's quick and efficient resolution tools.