Going back to the 1970s when Charles Nelson and friends invented a much more intense version of the classic game, “Capture the Flag, using paint pellets and air rifles, the Nel-Spot 007 was the only gun in the paintball supply cabinet. Well maybe some of his smarter friends made use of a pair of swimming goggles as well, but that was about it. The Nel-Spot 007 was adapted from the .22 caliber air rifle used on many farms to mark cows, for branding purposes not fun. The original paintball gun had to be re-cocked with each trigger squeeze, it certainly wasn’t known for its speed, nor its accuracy. But the world of paintball supplies has been greatly expanded, growing at a pace and with such an advancement to some of the ancillary supplies and equipment that rivals some of the more amazing advancements in weaponry among real firearms and warfare. These technological advances has increased the enthusiasm for the sport and caused more people to head for the paintball fields and woods to take their frustrations out on their co-workers, neighbors, family and friends.
Since the object of paintball is to “mark” your opponent with paint, the equipment used to shoot paint balls is called a “marker” in the parlance of paintball vendors and players. It also makes it easier to say that you shot your friend over the weekend. What? I shot him with a marker; not a gun. And now, markers are not the only piece of equipment in a paintball soldier’s arsenal. Yes, most of the weapons used are still mechanically or electronically controlled markers, but there are also plenty of other weapons you will find under the heading of paintball supplies. Taking its lead from our military, new developments in paintball technology has provided some very neat, if not unbelievably cool weapons that will hit the mark, and mark the heck out of your friends and opponents, including:
· Paintball grenade launchers – probably the first among paintball supplies to stray from the traditional “marker,” formula these are totally cool and amazingly messy, marking your opponent in shame with their splatter.
· Paintball Landmines – yes, you read that one right. Probably one of the most daring inventions to hit the paintball supplies market in a while, paintball landmines offer a bang, explosion and burst of paint to rival any big boom you can make with other products. Many are reusable and the oval green cases make it as menacing as it sounds.
These are just two of many new weapons in paintball artillery. To find more check out your nearest paintball vendor and to see if they have the paintball supplies you are looking for.