| It is important to know the different parts | | | | which prevents balls from breaking in containment. |
| involved in the makeup of a paintball gun. The | | | | These breaks will often lead to jams of the |
| different elements are crucial to the successful | | | | feeding mechanisms and the gun itself, which in |
| working of your marker, and beginners will often | | | | turn may cause more balls to break. Gravity-feed |
| be confused when receiving instructions because | | | | hoppers are especially prone to ball breakage while |
| of their lack of knowledge of what the basic | | | | still in the hopper because of their jamming |
| parts are. Knowing the parts of your paintball gun | | | | problems. Aside from gravity-feed, there are also |
| will also help you have a better idea of what you | | | | agitation hoppers, force feed hoppers, and stick |
| should be looking at when it is time to clean or | | | | feed hoppers. |
| upgrade your marker. | | | | The tank is the part of the gun which contains |
| The body of the marker is the largest part of the | | | | the type of gas that propels the ball forward |
| gun. The body refers to the area of the gun that | | | | down and out of the gun's barrel. Markers use |
| incorporates the trigger frame, the valve, and the | | | | either CO2 gas or high pressure air as propulsion |
| bolt. All of these pieces can be detached from | | | | material. The CO2 gas is the original, but HPA is |
| each other in order to incorporate new | | | | preferred as it is more reliable than CO2 and does |
| equipment, but only experts on their guns should | | | | not require an evaporation system in order to fire. |
| attempt this. Makers of paintball guns have a fairly | | | | Finally, the barrel of the marker is what the ball |
| standard approach when it comes to the body of | | | | travels down when the trigger is compressed. |
| the gun, with the main difference being in the | | | | The barrel is responsible for the speed and the |
| placement of the trigger and the barrel. Pushing | | | | accuracy, as well as the distance, at which a ball |
| the trigger frame forward shifts the balance of | | | | travels, and is thus arguably the single most |
| the gun and thus makes it easier to handle with | | | | important component of the gun. Longer barrels |
| one hand. It will also cause the body to have a | | | | will fire quieter than shorter models, but a marker |
| lower profile, which is crucial when players are | | | | owner should remember that no matter what |
| involved in games where hopper hits count | | | | length of barrel, the paintball can only travel a set |
| towards elimination. The difference is plain when | | | | distance in order to break. While really long barrels |
| newbies and pros are present in the field, as the | | | | may look intimidating and offer better accuracy, |
| rental guns provided by most outfits have huge | | | | they also are prone to be ineffective since they |
| and bulky bodies that present a lot of hit potential. | | | | require a larger burst of air to propel the ball |
| The hopper is the part of the gun that holds the | | | | faster to make up the distance within the barrel |
| rounds of paint. No matter how high end, | | | | itself. |
| manufacturers have not perfected a hopper | | | | |