Hoppers Pot Shots and Battle Packs
So you’ve got your paintballs, marker and overalls and are all set for a day of exhilarating paintball fun. But hang on a minute, you aren’t ready just yet because you’ve forgotten one important thing – how are you going to carry all your ammunition around?
Well, first things first, just relax because all Go Ballistic paintball sites will supply you with a hopper, shot pots and a battle pack so that you will be properly equipped to go and cover your mates with as much paint as they can take!
When you get your paintballs they’ll be issued to you in long tubes with handy snap-on lids – these are your shot pots and they normally contain 100 paintballs. You’ll also be given a hopper which attaches to the top of your marker and holds your paintballs. This also has a snap-on lid to make sure your balls don’t fall out of the top.
However, it’s important to take care when you pour the paintballs from the shot pots into the hopper. This is because the hopper has a hole at the bottom which feeds paintballs into the marker as you pull the trigger. And unless the hopper is connected to the marker, the paintballs will fall out on to the floor and be wasted!
A good tip regarding the filling of the hopper is to insert a finger into the hole in order to stop balls falling out. Then turn your marker upside down and slide the marker on to the hopper before turning the marker the right way again. Another way is to wait until your empty hopper is attached before filling it.
So your marker is now loaded up and you’re ready to go – apart from one crucial detail. You’re going to need to carry some ammuntion with you because running out of paint is never an option in paintball.
This is where your battle pack comes into its own because it’s the best (and only) way to carry more shot pots out into the field. Battle packs are best thought of as a wide belt which has pockets designed for shot pots to be inserted into so that you always have one to hand.
Most battle packs will carry at least four shot pots so there’s never any excuse for running out of ammo. However, it’s vital you keep tabs on how many of the shot pots are actually full because it’s easy to think empty pots are full, only to discover your schoolboy error in the heat of battle!
Another tip regarding hoppers is to make sure they don’t come off when you’re attempting bunker attacks, slides or just crawling through a game zone. Hoppers can sometimes work loose so always make sure it’s in place or be prepared to suffer the consequences!
The more you get into paintball, the more these pieces of equipment can be upgraded because there’s a wide range on the market. But for rookie rental players the good news is that hoppers, shot pots and battle packs will all be provided by Go Ballistic as part of your game.