Paintball isn't that expensive.

[Target Practice]

All of you who say paintball is expensive, suck it up. It's expensive because you make it expensive. Why do you need a DMC, with it's, what, $1400 price tag? I'll tell you why.

You've bought into the hype. Congratulations, you're a consumer whore. They know you will suck up anything they put out, so they keep doing it.

I'll tell you what's expensive. Flying is expensive. Car building is expensive. Keeping horses is expensive. Sailing is expensive. Shooting is expensive (again, if you choose it to be. You can pay 30 dollars for 1000 shots. I have to pay 30 dollars for 20 shots if I want match-grade ammo. But, I can just as easily get the cheap stuff, and have the same ammount of fun for a longer period of time.

You know what will make paintball a lot more fun and make it cheaper? Sell your AKAs, your SPs, your Angels, your Dyes, and buy a damn Phantom. Not only will it make you a better player, but it'll fatten up your wallet as well.

Edit: I should say that I'm kinda ornrey tonight, and that's what prompted the topic. I also should add a story about shooting.

I used to love firing off 30 or 40 rounds of .308, then about 60-70 rounds of .223, then maybe 100 or so rounds of .45 each time I went out to the range. But I realized that I was spending upwards of 100 bucks at each outing. So what did I do? I dusted off the ol' .22, and bought 500 rounds for $10. After using that, not only have I become a better shot, but I've been able to afford to continue my $100+ days of gun fun. It just makes more sensewhen you use less cents.

[68magOwner]

Sell your AKAs, your SPs, your Angels, your Dyes, and buy a damn Phantom. Not only will it make you a better player, but it'll fatten up your wallet as well.

OR, keep your nice markers for tourneys, and just use the pump at practice, i have been having fun doing that lately

edit- or, just dont shoot that much, i played all day last weekend with HALF a case (had a tourney the next day, so couldnt afford alot of paint) just threw on the revvy, and didnt shoot alot, i think i only used a pod once, and thats when the revvy opened up during a slide spilling all my paint out

[PRPB]

LOL, It's soooo true. I plan on playing with a pump for the rest of the season, cause I need money for a car. Which at this current time is more important then paintball. Wow I never thought I'd be able to say that.

But the question is WILL I??

Yes I make paintball expensive for myself, but I'm happy with every penny I put in.

[St Elmo's Fire]

Yeah it is

Not to bash on pumps, but I don't find it all that enjoyable yet, although I probably will given time. I don't spray as it is, and I'm certain that using a pump I'd shoot a bit less, but I doubt it would be that much less. If anything, popping out of cover would simply mean one shot instead of two or three.

I shoot maybe half a case in a day of near the cheapest paint available (although never the bottom level). $15 for the door fee, and another $20 for my paint. That's $35, for a guy who has no real job (school and bands take up too much time), and who still has to find a way to fund it himself by chopping wood and various bits of menial labor. That's a lot, considering I can take the alternative of going to see a few bands rock out on stage any day of the week for about $7, and Seattle's got quite a few good local bands right now.

[Target Practice]

no real job

Well there you go.

[quik]

You know what will make paintball a lot more fun and make it cheaper? Sell your AKAs, your SPs, your Angels, your Dyes, and buy a damn Phantom. Not only will it make you a better player, but it'll fatten up your wallet as well.

Sorry, but a Phantom wont nessesarily make me a better player, nor will it be cheaper. I've seen some pumps go way up in price upwards of some Vikings. I dont find pump play to be very fun really either. I use my AKA's, SP's, Angel's, and Dyes because they are very fast, and have advantages that no phantom can have.

But on the other hand, I dont complain about the price of paintball.

Not everyone who buys a DMC or a gun such as one is a consumer whore either.

[St Elmo's Fire]

Well there you go.

And what do you expect me to do? I'm 17, partway through high school, and it seems like getting a job around here is nearly impossible. You don't think I work my *** off to make what money I do get?

[OhMyAMoose]

Your argument for why paintball isn’t that expensive isn't a very good one... Its like saying, "look guys a Dodge Viper isn't that expensive, just look at this Ferrari." or "Flying a plane is cheap, just look how expensive space flight is." You are comparing two completely different things.

So paintball is still relatively expensive. And yes, you could play with a pump but I don't find that as fun as using semi. Also, it does not help that everyone else is using high end guns. Sure, someone with a pump can get a few eliminations but their chances go way down when everyone else is shooting at a high rate of fire.

When I had my classic Mag I would still go through a few hundred rounds in a day and I could spend $35-$40 pretty easy for one day of play. Now, I guess 40 bucks isn't a ton but it still adds up. Then I got my RT and I would go through a little more paint and the price to play would go up a little more. I never owned a gun that could shoot extremely fast so I can't comment on how much that costs.

I guess my point is that paintball is still expensive, even with a lower level marker. And yes, using a pump would cut down costs a good deal but I also think it would cut down on the fun. Also, most pump players will sink a good deal of money into their guns. I’m sure it isn't hard to spend $300+ on a nice pump.

[Lohman446]

In general: the people complaining about the price of paintball for whatever reason have little to zero experience in running a retail business. They have little to no understanding of the need of mark-up, overhead and its various expenses, and the hope of taking a profit. There is a worrisome new idea in America that all business is just out to screw the consumer, its not true and the applying of this to mostly small businesses by people who have no clue is getting annoying.

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[rkjunior303]

And what do you expect me to do? I'm 17, partway through high school, and it seems like getting a job around here is nearly impossible. You don't think I work my *** off to make what money I do get?

you play within your means. it's life. deal with it.

[paintballfreak90]

my only problem with playing pump during games is that it is really hard to defeat all of these people with these 1000+ guns, but if you get a better gun then you have a better chance. I used to want to just conserve paint so i bought a zues pistol and it gets fairly tough to get a hit during a game. Maybe its just that im bad with them but i dunno.

[Target Practice]

But on the other hand, I dont complain about the price of paintball.

Exactly. I'm talking about the people who make it more expensive.

I would wager that the caliber of the average player of 15 years ago is higher then that of the average player of today. I think that technology has indeed replaces skill to an extent.

As far as the expense, I should have stated that I was talking about the long term expense. Sure, you may have an initial cost that's higher, but come on, it's not going to amount to an 04 Vike for a decent Phantom.

[Carbon]

whatever, basketball is still cheaper.

[yakitori]

Well, I just bought a pump, but not because I cant afford to play. Im still keeping my viking, and my ion. I like using them for what I use them for. But, I think it will be nice to go out and play pump against ppl at some of the rec fields that I go to. I like a challenge. Thats why I got the pump, not because I cant afford anything better. I dont see the need to spend 250+ on a phantom when you can get a cheaper lower end pump for 50-70 bucks and still get the same effect. Well, maybe not the same quality, but you get the idea.

Plus, I cant wait to see the look on ppls face when I go to the field w/ the SL 68 I bought. Ill bet they will laugh, snicker, and talk, but I dont care. Im there to have a good time, and I will more than likely still be a difficult elimination. And it will make me improve on some parts of the game that I couldnt do w/ an electro.

[Target Practice]

my only problem with playing pump during games is that it is really hard to defeat all of these people with these 1000+ guns, but if you get a better gun then you have a better chance.

As an example: At last year's Vegas NPPL, Miscue, myself, tsc, Edweird, and Ed's freind were all walking around commenting on how much BS permeated the game at the upper levels. We stopped to watch a game as we switched the subject to Emag software.

As we watched, I noticed that the guy in the snake nearest to us was using a stock class Phantom. Now, the opposing team all had DM4s. We started looking, and we noticed that all of the players, save one, were using stock class pumps (later, we learned that the guy that wasn't using the Phantom had to use his backup electro, because his Phantom wasn't working).

Anyhoo, the pump players were the ones that pushed and advanced past the fifty to the opposition's 35 or so. They took the game to their opponents, going so far as to bunker their opponents, never going on the defensive, moving/playing/winning as a team. It came down to a one on one, a stock class pump against a DM4. The last guy was in the snake, hunkered down against a steady stream of paint. Finally, he was gotten out. Not by skill, but by someone just laying down a stream of paint.

Of that entire tournament, that team was the funnest to watch. Why? Because they played the game like it was meant to be played, and they made it exciting. It wasn't who could put the most paint downrange, but who could put paint downrange with the most skill.

But, I digress. My point is, is that you can hold your own against fast electros with a pump. You just have to work at it, and god forbid, not "hide behind your equipment".