Feel free to share any of your own thoughts about the best equipment to buy first, or what items to avoid in the comments below the posts. I will put up one master post with a list of links to the items listed once the series is finished, and I also plan to put together a price guide for the very first items I bought so that you all can see what a beginner’s kit can cost.
Paintball Masks
 |
| Sly Profit Dual-Pane Thermal Goggle |
A good mask is probably the most important part of any gear bag, and it is really the most vital and universally required piece of equipment for playing on any commercial paintball field. The most important thing to know about paintball masks is that if it seems like too good of a deal to be true, it most likely is. My very first mask is really the only piece of kit that I fully regret buying. There’s a little bit of back story here, but I will be brief.
For my very first paintball outing, my friends and I decided to play in the dead of winter, and the only gear that I actually owned for playing was a marker, and a tank that my wife had picked up for me the night before. We all met at our local sporting goods store to pick up paint, fill our tanks, and see what other gear we could find. Most stores in my area don’t stock up on paintball supplies too heavily, so pickings were slim that day. However, I did spot a JT hopper for my mechanical marker and a JT mask for about $25.00 on the shelf above. I didn’t have a mask of my own, and I knew very little about what features to look for at the time.
We all left the store with our new items in hand, and drove out to the woods for a few games. After about 20 minutes of playing, running, and breathing into the mask, the lens fogged up so badly that I couldn’t see past the large drops of condensation that had gathered there. I wasn’t sweating, but my skin was breathing moisture into the goggle which was chilled from the cold air outside. To make things worse, the condensation then froze inside my lens rendering me blind and vulnerable.
I chalked that experience up to bad weather, and brought the mask out of storage a few months later when the weather had grown warmer. Even at temps around 50 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit, the mask fogged so badly that I would have to call myself out to avoid running into a tree stump or a ditch unwittingly. The lesson here is to always look for a mask with a thermal coated lens at bare minimum, and that’s where my Sly Profit comes in.
The Profit retails for around $120-$130 on most websites, and once I started playing with this thing, I was running around the field with confidence. Even when temps started peaking around 90 degrees with 100% humidity, my lens stayed clear and the mask is still quite comfortable. My only gripe would be that the Profit is not well ventilated, and it does feel a bit stuffy at all temperatures. Still, I can’t complain about how much better it has been playing with this mask.
I haven’t played with any other masks besides that JT abomination, and my Profit, but I wouldn’t necessarily say that you need to spend over $100 to get a good thermal mask. There are several options available in the $40 + range that seem to have very good reputations from players who are more seasoned than I am. My advice is to do a bit of research before you buy, and choose something that you like both aesthetically, and functionally.
Many players will have strong opinions about masks and other equipment, but don’t follow herd thinking on this choice. Besides, how boring is it to see a bunch of Dye I4s and Empire Profilers running around on the field all day? Both are great masks from what I hear, but a bit of variety is good. Choose something that fits your need, and something that fits your budget.
Until next time!
~Krimmit
No comments:
Post a Comment