Gear Bag Review #5

Welcome back to the final entry in my series detailing my personal beginner’s paintball kit. In this entry, I will be taking a look at some of the “optional” pieces of kit that I have recently purchased to supplement my own gear bag.  I consider these items optional because even though they are items specifically marketed for paintball, they aren’t necessarily going to make or break the way that you play the sport.  Most of the items in the following article can be substituted with every day items you may already have around the house, so don’t feel obligated to purchase these items to be a proficient player.

Paintball Jersey

A good jersey serves multiple functions.  First and foremost, a jersey is typically made of light, breathable material that can be worn as a protective layer in a wide variety of environments.  The material is not typically thick enough to reduce the felt impact of paintballs, but it is still better than being hit one bare, unprotected skin.  The semi rigid shells of paintballs will cut exposed tissues when it breaks if the circumstances are right.  It’s happened to me, and others that I play with, enough said.  Some jerseys are brightly colored, and others are patterned with camouflage. 

I recently bought a Valken V-Tac Jersey, though I have been playing with old, beaten up clothing previously.  I’m not ashamed to say that this was mostly inspired by the look of the jersey, but my decision was also prompted by the fact that most long sleeve shirts are simply too warm to wear during the summer months of play.  I haven’t worn the jersey out on the field yet, but it was very comfortable to wear around the house, and the venting seemed adequate to keep things moderately cool during warmer days.  Again, jerseys are in no way required, but they do add something to the aesthetic appeal of a well complimented paintball uniform.

Head Wrap

I had been wearing a couple of cheap $1.00 bandannas while playing, but I wanted something more subdued that would have a padded band to protect the sides of my head and my forehead while playing.  The Valken V-tac head wrap that I recently bought fits the bill nicely, and it is easy to tie or untie between matches.  Don’t feel the need to shell out $20.00 for a head wrap if you don’t want to.  In fact, I may still alternate this between wearing a backwards facing ball cap depending on how I play and where.

Remote Line/Coil

Whether this is an optional item may be debatable depending on what marker you use, and what variety of paintball that you play.  I purchased my Ninja Remote Coil because I felt that the Tippmann A-5 I will be using is too heavy with a CO2 canister attached directly to the marker’s ASA.  Having a 20 oz. tank screwed onto the grip also makes the marker much longer and more awkward to hold up whereas using a remote line allows the marker to be held closer to your face and body.  Doing so makes peaking corners much easier.  This is another item that I have yet to field test, but using this along with the vest rig I mentioned in my previous post seems like the optimal way to run with a heavier marker when competing with smaller, lighter electro markers.  

This particular coil also has a remote check valve that allows you to cut off the air supply to your marker without needing to disconnect the line from your tank. Having this ability is particularly handy for saving air or CO2 that is normally wasted while screwing and unscrewing a tank directly from the marker itself.  There are many different remote lines available to choose from, but try to avoid buying anything that seems like it might be a better deal than is reasonable.  Price is tied to quality with these items, and I have read many accounts of players getting burned (in the financial sense) by cheap, leaky remote hoses.

That pretty much wraps it up for my personal gear bag review.  Aside from the various tools, cleaning cloths, and other miscellaneous items that I won’t bother to mention, I have listed every item that I currently own and use to play paintball.  There are a few items that I recently ordered that didn’t make the list, but I will talk about those later on when I discuss upgrades, and share my overall views on playing this sport.  I haven’t spent nearly enough time on commercial fields yet to discuss strategy or give gameplay advice, but I will post future entries with links to articles and videos that I find helpful when approaching the game. 

Sorry there aren't any pictures of my gear this time.  I lost the files, and didn't have the time to take more with my phone for upload.

Until next time!

~Krimmit