Paintballs come in different sizes and grades. Paint sizes are a common factor in whether a paintball will hurt, as well as how accurate they are. The three most common paintball sizes are .50 caliber, .68 caliber, and first strike rounds.
The smaller .50 caliber balls can be shot at a velocity and can, without sacrificing accuracy, hit a target at up to 200 feet away. Here, at Cypress Paintball, we use this ammunition with our rental equipment because it is less painful, which is ideal for first-time players and kids as young as 7 years old!
The industry standard, .68 caliber, is the most commonly used paintball. When using the larger .68 caliber ball, you need to fire it at a slightly higher velocity than the .50 cal because of the weight difference. Most tournaments and experienced players with their own equipment use these paintballs because of the large amounts of paint that mark the player when hit.
First Strike Rounds (FSR) are most commonly used by the true snipers of the sport, and because of this, it makes the paintballs very expensive. FSR are a designated paintball sniper round made of a photodegradable polystyrene material rather than food-grade gelatin, like regular paintballs. They have a rounded front and a hollow cylindrical tail with fins. The FSR’s fins allow them to stabilize in flight, causing them to fly further and more accurately than is even possible with a regular paintball. FSR can accurately hit and break on a target over 300ft away!
