How to Choose a Right Size Paintball Barrel

Beginner or no beginner, every paintball player should know how much of an influence a barrel has on the accuracy and efficiency of the paintball marker.

The right size paintball barrel can improve the accuracy and range of your marker and your overall performance during the paintball game.

That is why choosing the right barrel is one of the crucial parts. This article will tell you a few tips and tricks on choosing the right barrel.

A quick summary for those reading here for the first time; a barrel is a cylindrical tube installed in front of the paintball marker from where a paintball is shot. There are two basic types of barrels short and long barrels.

There are also paintball barrel kits available in the market, consisting of different paintball barrel inserts, a front, and a back.

You can read about this in detail in our barrel review article, where you will find the basic information on barrels and a list of the best paintball barrels available in the market.

How to choose the right size paintball barrel?

First, you will need a handful of paintballs for your next match as a sample you plan to use in your hopper or magazine.

Always use a good amount of paintballs to test out the right side of the barrel instead of just one or two. It will give you sure outcomes whether the barrel size is too tight or too big.

Now put the paintball inside the barrel. If the paintball drops right through the other end of the barrel, then that means the bore size is too big for that particular paintball you are using.

Keep repeating this step 3 to 4 times to ensure your outcome.

If the paintball gets stuck in the barrel instead of just falling off, then blow through the barrel. However, if the paintball comes through the barrel upon blowing, you have found the RIGHT SIZE!

However, if the paintball gets stuck, the bore size or the barrel is too tight for paintballs, they will surely be raptured inside with air pressure.

This is how you can effectively improve the accuracy of your paintball marker and get the best out of it. In addition, we have a few other tips for you, which will increase the accuracy even more.

9 Tested Tips For Improving The Paintball Marker Accuracy

These tips worked wonders for us. And we are sure it will help you step up your paintball game.

1. Upgrade the CO2 Tank to HPA

High-Pressure Air (HPA) is much more reliable and consistent than CO2. HPA has just started getting popular because of its properties, so before switching your tank, make sure your paintball marker is compatible with HPA.

Since the start of paintball, players have been using CO2 for shooting. But since CO2 is sensitive to temperature, it doesn’t have consistency, and if the pressure is not stable, your shot accuracy won’t be tough.

Your very first and last paintball shots would have a big difference in accuracy in them. This was another reason why HPA is getting more fame than CO2.

2. Always Keep Your Marker Well Maintained

Keeping your paintball marker well maintained and cleaned is another way of improving shots’ accuracy. If the marker is dirty, the shots made will be inaccurate.

Just cleaning the barrel with a squeegee is not proper to maintain a paintball marker. From time to time, we talk about thorough cleaning and inspection of the gun parts, including its body, barrel, hammer & bolt, detents, eyes, and inside of the gun’s motor.

You need to be extra careful with assembling and reassembling your paintball gun. If you are not confident in doing so, we recommend occasionally going to a professional store nearby for a thorough checkup.

3. Don’t Overuse Oil Lubricants On Your Marker

Lubricants are the best way to keep a marker in top condition, but too much of anything is wrong.

The only way to know whether you have used too much lubricant is to ensure it doesn’t find its way to your barrel.

Too much of the lubricant will be stored up in the barrel, thus blocking the paintball passage. This could also affect the accuracy of the paintball marker and gun.

4. Always Test Out a Handful of Samples of the Paintballs

Testing out a handful of paintball samples before going through the match is always wise. It will tell you the barrel’s correct bore diameter for outstanding performance.

Not only that, inspecting your paintballs beforehand saves you from crises like paintball rupturing inside your marker.

Check through your paintballs for any dimples, divots, or flat spots. We constantly check our paintball supply beforehand to avoid situations like this.

5. Keep Your Regulator in Check

A regulator in the marker is responsible for supplying consistent pressure to the marker for shooting paintballs.

Just like gas upgrades contribute to boasting accuracy, so does the regulator. But conversely, a faulty one can affect the consistency of the supply, thus resulting in inaccurate shots.

6. Keep Your Hopper in Good Condition

Hopper is a part of the gun or marker where you store the paintballs for later use in tournaments or matches.

A clean hopper is also essential so it won’t hinder other parts’ performance, initially contributing to accuracy.

7. Always Double Check the Caliber of the Paintball’s Barrel Bore Size

We explained in detail how to do so at the start of this article. But unfortunately, it is a common mistake most beginners make that could affect the accuracy of the paintball marker.

Too tight will rupture the paintball inside, thus withdrawing from the match to clean your marker. Too big, and the paintball will slide out. You won’t get the outcome best suited for accuracy in both situations.

8. Clean the Barrel With a Clean Squeegee

It is a must-given point. If you clean a barrel with a dirty squeegee, you damage it instead of doing it well. It ends up sabotaging the inside of the barrel.

We have witnessed a few players cleaning with a dirty squeegee. That is why we decided to add this as a valid point in our article.

If the inside of the barrel is then polished and the non-friction surface has been damaged, the shot’s accuracy will also be compromised.

9. Upgrade the Barrel’s Length and Quality

The paintball barrel length dramatically affects the accuracy of the paintball marker/gun. Therefore, the first thing players about upgrading are the barrels.

However, a longer barrel gives you good accuracy. You won’t get the optimal accuracy if you don’t follow the previous tips. 12″ to 16″ of the barrel will give you optimal performance and all other directions.

Conclusion 

We are sure by the end of this article; you too can conclude that there are a lot of factors other than barrel from which you can achieve the optimal level of accuracy of your marker.

We have also simplified the steps of finding the correct bore diameter or barrel size for you to choose before the match to get the most out of it.

Since the game is about performing well and shooting accurately to win, these tips and tricks will significantly help you.

Similar Posts