Old School vs New School paintball

I posted this a long time ago over on the SO Forums. I refound it while looking for something else, and I wanted to put it somewhere I wouldn't lose it again. So, it goes here. It's a quick look at the differences between "old school" paintball, and the "new skool" players. Pack a sense of humor, and enjoy.

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Old school : Patches. Everyone had patches on their BDU jacket from events and places they'd been. You had to spend a lot of time sewing them on too, showing dedication to the company or the location

New School : Stickers. They're on everything that's vaguely smooth and might hold the stick. It's a no-brainer. You rip, you stick, you don't worry when it falls off.

Old school : camo everything. People would dye their tubes BLACK so they could get more camo! Use camo duck tape to make the mask invisible! And it never really worked

New School : camo everything. Dye your socks black and put camo duck tape on your pods to hide them, even though it never really works.

Old school : camo face paint

New School : camo face masks

Old school : speedball bunkers made of plywood and sunk into the ground

New School : scenario fields made of plywood sunk into the ground

Old school : goggles borrowed from a chem lab that were so unsafe it's not even funny

New School : goggle tech and look borrowed from a fighter pilot.

Old school : The "good players" wore tiger stripe

New School : The "good speedball guys" wear stylisied woodlands

Old school : "The $150 a case paint SUCKS! And it's WAY overpriced!"

New School : "The $50 a case paint SUCKS! And it's WAY overpriced!"

Old school : "Ban the full auto! 9 balls a second is too much!"

New School : "I'd get an Ion, but 17 a second really is way too slow for me."

Old school : "Wouldn't it be cool to have a heads up display on your goggles?"

New School : "Wouldn't it be cool to have a GPS HUD on your goggles?"

Old school : The crowd at the Knoxville indoor helping out the players

New School : The crowd at the X-ball field helping out the players

Old school : "I'd bring my kids out to play, but the age limit is 18."

New School : "Paintball? Isn't that a kids game? My 15 year old kid play that with his friends."

Old school : "Gimme gun #5. That one shoots really far."

New School : "Excuse me sir, but 375 FPS is simply not acceptable here.

Old school : tube socks being used as barrel blocking devices

New School : barrel socks being used as barrel blocking devices

Old school : Myths that you can buy a barrel to shoot further, and specific paintguns will launch a ball further than another brand

New School : Myths that you can buy a barrel to shoot straighter, and specific paintguns shoot straighter than another brand

Old school : Being told that we need to get rid of the war image in paintball, and disassociate ourselves with anything warlike

New School : tourney players talking about getting "kills" and wearing camo, and scenario players modding out their paintgun to look as much like an M-16 as possible

Old school : Putting on your cammies, getting out of the house on a weekend and hanging out with friends

New School : Putting on your cammies, getting out of the house on a weekend and hanging out with friends

Thus proving that nothing really changes, except everything.

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E-bay sales "Junk in a trunk"

Since this is all over the place, I post it here. These are all e-bay sales, 5 days. I'm in a pinch again, not having health insurance sucks sometimes. So, I'm selling gear to offset what I owe doctors.


Vector M-1 Military milsim paintgun Blowback semi, CO2 compatable, great starter's gun.


Unique sporting goods 6x1 harness, WITH pods


Goggle Skinz (new) & yellow JT old school strap (used)


Indian Springs 125 hopper & Pods set Old School setup


Tactical leg harness The most interesting thing I have for sale this time, and it's probably older than some of the members of this forum.


JT Stock Class harness


And finally, a solid chronograph

If anyone bids, good luck. Share and enjoy.

"Redz Comfort"? Not really anymore.

A few months ago, I posted a request for people's opinions of traveling gear bags. I settled on the Redz "Tranzport Seriez Large Gear Bag" for several reasons. Lockable zippers, wheels, ease of travel, and something that didn't scream "I HAVE PAINTBALL GUNS STEAL ME!"

5 months after purchase, I have a final verdict on this product. Total junk.

The inside of the main compartment is spacious, yes. It fits a lot of gear. The side pockets fit a pair of boots on each side, in fact. However, here's the problem. In construction, they cheaped out on one of the most vital components. The zippers.

Here are two photos taken not more than 20 minutes ago of the zipper pulls on the lower compartment. A compartment, I might add, that they claim "holds enough clothes for several days" If all you wear is 1 pair of jeans and change underwear sparingly, this is not the case. Unless "several" means 3, in which case I'll buy that. But the problem is the zipper is made cheaply.

One side zipper came off 4 months after purchase, but I could deal with it as the other side still worked and the bag still closed.



Tonight, the other zipper simply pulled off the teeth under ZERO stress, and now the bag is completely useless as the bottom part will not close nor secure. The upper compartment zipper is doing the same, and under a "Zero load" I know it's going to break very soon.

I could still use the bag, but I couldn't put anything in the lower area. It will fall out. Hence killing 30% of the bag's holding potential, not to mention making it impossible to pick up as the lower half will swing free on a hinge if it leaves the ground. I could use the buckles, but stuff will still fall out the bottom.

So I checked the website about returns, and I saw this :

We stand behind our products 100%. If, for any reason, Redz products do not perform up to specifications, or if there is a manufacturer defect in material construction, we will repair or replace the item free of charge, for up to 120 days from the date of purchase with a valid receipt. No refunds will be issued for warranties. Abused or misused products will not be accepted; please follow the care instructions on product tag or contact a Redz international for care instructions.

Customers wishing to utilize this warranty procedure must provide a copy of a dated receipt of purchase.

Seeing as I've been traveling to UTAH and back, the bag has scrapes and abrasions on it to constitute "abused". Not to mention that 120 days have passed since point of purchase, so they will not honor their warranty. I tried to contact the company several times and gained no response from them at all. So, in the end, I now have a bag that won't close, a company that won't respond, and a problem hauling my gear around.

So why am I blogging this? Well, $150 is nothing to sneeze at when you count every penny. Paintball isn't a cheap sport, we all know this. But I like a product to last more than 4 months when it's supposedly designed to last. Ever since Hastings became a separate entity to "Redz Comfort" the whole company has pretty much gone to hell. I bought the bag thinking he was still part of the company, and was quickly proven otherwise.

But even for the moderate use I've given this bag over a period of less than 5 months, to have it fall apart is just sad. Perhaps I'm strange, but things like luggage should be constructed with the thought that gorillas will be handling this stuff. And what falls apart? The zipper?!? Come on guys, that's just sad.

For the same $150 I could have chosen other brands, but I chose the REDZ. I'm now regretting this decision. So, until further notice, I'll be using my 7+ year old JT gear bag that has not fallen apart, even after flying from coast to coast and having passport marks on it. In hindsight, I probably should have gone with Mantis or Empire. Possibly Ratco, if I can find any in stock anywhere.

Or just go with my gut, hit up a local surplus store, and get a military duffel. That'll last forever.

What newbies want.

In the last few times I've played, I've seen a lot of new players at the fields. And on one hand, that's cool. On the other, it's more than a little annoying. A lot of opportunity is lost because I am forced to hesitate and check if the guy opposite of me is wearing his goggles before I pull the trigger. Don't laugh. I've already saved 4 people from going blind this year by having basic trigger control.

But one thing I've noticed, and this is across the board here. New guys all have a few things in common. So I thought I'd share them with you all, and hopefully make some kind of understanding between the guys who have a clue, and those who are clueless.

First of all, a lot of the new players are weaned on "1st person shooters", so they're expecting a bolt rifle at worst, a laser gun at best. They expect to run around the map and just "pwn" everyone. Either that or this is a fantasy camp for them. They want to put their "gat" to their hip, and one-handed shoot it and mow down the opfor. Just like Rambo did, or like in every "gang fight" on TV.

Speaking of gats, they want one of two paintguns. They want the "automatic" that shoots 700 rounds a minute and hits harder than anyone else's and can shoot through walls. Or they want the "sniper gun" that can pick a guy off at 300 yards, which is actually 250 yards longer than the field of play they're on. But whatever you give them, they don't want to really get hit a lot by anyone else. Even though they want to shoot the snot out of everyone else, they don't want it back at them.

The goggles are ALWAYS uncomfortable. "Do we really need these?" is a common complaint. Even after multiple warnings, they still won't keep them on. Why? Well my theories are varied, but it comes down to two things. One is that since they don't think they'll get shot in the face because they're so naturally good, they see little need for a face mask. Second is that when they do get shot in the face, they figure nobody will shoot at them anymore and so they're safe to take the goggles off.

When they want gear, they want a "Bag of bullets". Get over this fact, they're newbies. They also have nothing else to play the game, so they're gonna look for rental coveralls, buy a pair of gloves that really won't protect them from more than a mosquito bite, and probably try to scam a pod pack out of somewhere when they realize that 200 bullets does not equal 200 kills.

On the field, they're gonna be Rambo. At least until they start getting shot at and they get that "rabbit in the headlights" look. The ones who've had some combat training will do the smart thing, get behind cover. The rest will do what they've seen in the movies, if they even think about it. This is assuming, naturally, they don't cower behind the first big bunker they can find, set out the firewood and camp.

You've seen it all before, you know what these guys are like. But this isn't just about poking fun at them, because just remember Ollie Lang was a newbie once too. No, this is about how you deal with them. And what you do can actually have a lot of impact on what kind of a day they have, and if they come back.

Taking a little time to coach a new guy is really easy. Even if it's just good advice or a quick plan of attack. "Ok, see that bunker there? Get to it off the start and shoot that way. I'll cover ya." You've just given them a plan, and they'll really enjoy themselves once they see you've put them into a place to shoot a lot of people. OR just a minute long shooting lesson can go a LONG way to improving their day. Even just telling them that they can't 1-hand a gun while running sideways and expect to hit anything can help!

Saying that, there comes a time when you have to realize when you're wasting your time. Some new guys are strong-headed, and they absolutely have to learn things the hard way. In those cases, I just tend to go do my own thing, and try not to get caught in the fallout of their learning curve. I can recall one field I played at where my teammates plan was to "hang back". They never saw any action all night, because that's what the other team did too. I ended up being the only one actually making moves up the field.

Then again, my "Teammates" were a boyfriend/girlfriend, and they wanted to hang back and sit in a bunker together on a darkened field. All I can say is that as long as they were wearing protective gear, I really don't care what they were doing.

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