[Deviox]

I decided to create this thread for people curious about what other Paintball players on this forum use whenever they go out to play. State what you use in listing fashion, and if you want, give a good reasoning to why you use it to help out some of the new players adjust to this game and make good purchases based on your input. Any posts are appreciated.

Masks
Empire E-Vents
-I use the E-vents personally because they never fog, and my face cannot fit into the Dye I4's, and these were my next choice. Great visibility, great value.

Hoppers
Dye Rotor
-Pretty self-explanatory, this hopper is just a tank, you'll find most tournament players using this loader, or something of the Spire or Halo variety.

Pants & Jerseys
Eclipse Distortion Pants & Eclipse Elusion Jersey
-Just great value clothing, haven't had any problems with Planet Eclipse in any part of their products, as they hold up incredibly well.

Tanks / Air source
68/4500 Ninja Tank (Pro Reg)
-Ninja has grown to be one of the favorable tanks out on the field, and I highly recommend them to any baller, as I've had great success with them.

Knee Pads / Pads in general
Dye & Planet Eclipse Pads
-By far the best companies (in my opinion) to purchase pads from. They can take beatings and still look new, and protect you from whatever injury you could possibly sustain on the field. Do NOT skimp on pads, you will regret it later.

Gear Bag / Backpack
Planet Eclipse Gear Bag
-Personal preference. A Rubber Maid container will work.

Cleats
HK Army Shredders
-Have demolished mine, work fantastic, not so great on wet grass.

Under Shirts
Under-Armour UA Tech Shirt
-I wear these under my jerseys, and felt they are perfect for keeping the sweat off my body when I'm playing, don't make me feel like a stove like the bounce shirts do.

Gun / Marker
Ego 11 w/ D.A.R.T. Kit
-Easy to maintain, preform well, never go down. Highly recommend this to any player looking for a solid marker.

Let me know if this has been done before, from what I've seen it has not.

[Kolds]

Mask: Sly Profit
Hopper: Invert halo or VMAX
Clothes: Acu pants and a beater
Tank: 45/4500 crossfire carbon fiber w/ ninja pro reg or 45/4500 CF with crossfire ss red
pads: none
Bag: Army duffle
Shoes: Army issue Combat Boot
Undershirt: My skin.
Gun: V3 Vapor, Etek3 lt, Etha

[Deviox]

Originally Posted by Kolds

Mask: Sly Profit
Hopper: Invert halo or VMAX
Clothes: Acu pants and a beater
Tank: 45/4500 crossfire carbon fiber w/ ninja pro reg or 45/4500 CF with crossfire ss red
pads: none
Bag: Army duffle
Shoes: Army issue Combat Boot
Undershirt: My skin.
Gun: V3 Vapor, Etek3 lt, Etha

Thanks for taking the time to help out other new players, as always if anyone needs to know anything about gear, PM me. I spend a lot of my time on the Internet sadly, and I have usually something to say on most pieces of gear.

[cpt_crunch]

Mask: Vforce Grill. Fits me the best, the largest mask I have tried on and I have a big head.

Marker: Highly customized Worr Games Trilogy modified for pump action. I like tinkering and I like pump. This marker was cheap and seems to work just fine for me. I highly recommend a new frame for this marker.

Hopper: 120 Pocket hopper. I don't need as much ammo for pump.

Tank: Ninja 30ci/3000psi steel tank. Cheap and it works.

Clothes: Army BDU's

Shoes: Merrel mid-tops

pads: home depot knee pads

[iboomalot]

Mask: Vforce Profiler
Marker: Duracoated Digi camo V1 Victory with Vcom spool
Hopper: Duracoated Digi camo V2 Prophecy with 9v and RF
Tank: GA 110ci/4500 with remote line and 32 degrees slide check
Clothes: Army woodlands camo pants and long sleeve Tshirt, Merc Vest with 3+4 loader pouches
Shoes: Cheap walmart specials midhigh for ankle protection
pads: none
Gloves: BT 1/2 finger camo
Batteries: Hitech 9v lithium rechargeable for gun and hopper

[2nwyka]

Mask: VForce Armor or JT Proflex (Black)
I absolutely love my VForce Armor. It's a cheaper mask that ended up outshining anything else I've tried, and believe me, I've tried a lot! It never fogs, it's very easy to disassemble for cleaning, and it fits very well.
The Proflex, is, well, a Proflex. It's comfortable, breathes well, and I like to play with it sometimes.

Hopper: Empire Reloader Bs (1 with eyes, 1 with sound), Extreme Rage Pocket Hopper, 10-round feed elbow.
My Reloader B (eyes) is my main hopper. It's fast, consistent, good on batteries, and low profile. I love how it loads, never had a problem. I put a Virtue speedfeed on it to help with loading on the speedball field. The sound-activated hopper is my backup that I'll slap on lender guns or play with if it's raining. My pocket hopper is the one on my pump, just a typical shake-and-shoot that feeds sometimes and doesn't others. Pretty decent little 100-rounder, though.
Clothes: 5.11 Tactical Pants, Army Combat Shirt, JT jersey
My 5.11 Tactical pants are really nice for this. They're thick around the knees for crawling and sliding but light enough that I can move well in them without overheating.
The Army Combat Shirt is simply ACU sleeves with a polypro torso. It's very breathable, lets me move, and has built-in elbow pads mostly for crawling.
My JT jersey takes the place of the Combat Shirt when I play speedball.

Tank: Ninja 62/30
It's a 3k tank...what can I say. It gives me a good number of shots between refills and is heavy and long, but it's a Ninja and therefore amazing. I'm looking to upgrade to a 68/45 as soon as possible (when I get money again...)

Pods/Pack (I changed the category! ): Jackco 5-pod pack, GxG Pump pack.
I love both my packs for their comfort. I hardly notice five pods on my Jackco, even hauling butt between cover. No jiggle, and the paint is there when I need it. My GxG pack is the same way. I can pull tubes for my stock class guns and have it ready when I need it.

Bag: I currently use a backpack for all my soft gear and hoppers/tanks and a hardshell padded case for my guns.

Shoes: Adidas Shredder Tactical boots.
They work very well and allow me to sprint without slipping. Very comfortable to wear and effective for cold and hot weather. I LOVE them!

Undershirt: If it's cold I'll wear Polypro, if it's nice and warm I'll just wear whatever shirt I'm wearing that day.

Gun: 2k0 AutoCocker pump, 2k4 Superstock AutoCocker, 2009 Proto SLG, Tippmann TiPX.
I absolutely love all my markers. I started with the Viewloader Triton II a long time ago. It was the greatest thing ever until I realized I needed something a little bit better, so I bought the 2k0 AutoCocker. I had it semi-auto for a long time before I built a pump kit for it (it's a professional job, no glue or wires!) while I was a TA in a welding/machining class. I modified this into a beast machine after I completed my Superstock. Speaking of which...I wanted another 'Cocker, so I bought the Superstock body from PaintballGateway.com for $25 and built the gun from the ground up, buying and fabricating parts until she was done. I've swapped a few things here and there, so she shoots like a dream with a Check It Delrin bolt, Dye LPR, and MP4 ram. The Proto SLG is a fairly new acquisition and does most of my speedball work. The TiPX scratches my magfed itch with 9 Tru-Feeds and 2 Zetamags as well as a RAP4 Recon barrel with a Frostbite tip and remote adapter. I love them.

Noah

[Deviox]

Originally Posted by 2nwyka

Mask: X-Armor Impact II or JT Proflex (Black)
I absolutely love my X-Armor. It's a cheaper mask that ended up outshining anything else I've tried, and believe me, I've tried a lot! It never fogs, it's very easy to disassemble for cleaning, and it fits very well.
The Proflex, is, well, a Proflex. It's comfortable, breathes well, and I like to play with it sometimes.

Hopper: Empire Reloader B, Extreme Rage Pocket Hopper, JT Overdrive dB.
My Reloader B is my main hopper. It's fast, consistent, good on batteries, and low profile. I love how it loads, never had a problem. It has an electronic eye installed instead of the sound-activated system typical of the Halo platform. My pocket hopper is the one on my pump, just a typical shake-and-shoot that feeds sometimes and doesn't others. Pretty decent little 100-rounder, though. My JT Overdrive is a backup electronic that feeds about 10bps through an agitator system. It runs off of 9vs and allows me to keep playing if my Reloader goes down, or lets me use it on a lender to avoid chops.

Clothes: 5.11 Tactical Pants, Army Combat Shirt, JT jersey
My 5.11 Tactical pants are really nice for this. They're thick around the knees for crawling and sliding but light enough that I can move well in them without overheating.
The Army Combat Shirt is simply ACU sleeves with a polypro torso. It's very breathable, lets me move, and has built-in elbow pads mostly for crawling.
My JT jersey takes the place of the Combat Shirt when I play speedball.

Tank: Ninja 62/30
It's a 3k tank...what can I say. It gives me a good number of shots between refills and is heavy and long, but it's a Ninja and therefore amazing. I'm looking to upgrade to a 68/45 as soon as possible (when I get money again...)

Pods/Pack (I changed the category! ): Jackco 5-pod pack, GxG Pump pack.
I love both my packs for their comfort. I hardly notice five pods on my Jackco, even hauling butt between cover. No jiggle, and the paint is there when I need it. My GxG pack is the same way. I can pull tubes for my stock class guns and have it ready when I need it.

Bag: I currently use a backpack for all my soft gear and hoppers/tanks and a hardshell padded case for my guns.

Shoes: Adidas Shredder Tactical boots.
They work very well and allow me to sprint without slipping. Very comfortable to wear and effective for cold and hot weather. I LOVE them!

Undershirt: If it's cold I'll wear Polypro, if it's nice and warm I'll just wear whatever shirt I'm wearing that day.

Gun: 2k0 AutoCocker pump, 2k4 Superstock AutoCocker, 2010 Tippmann A5, Constant-air modified JT ER-2, Viewloader High Voltage, Viewloader Maxis, Viewloader Triton II.
I absolutely love all my markers. I started with the Viewloader Triton II a long time ago. It was the greatest thing ever until I realized I needed something a little bit better, so I bought the 2k0 AutoCocker. I had it semi-auto for a long time before I built a pump kit for it (it's a professional job, no glue or wires!) while I was a TA in a welding/machining class. I modified this into a beast machine after I completed my Superstock. Speaking of which...I wanted another 'Cocker, so I bought the Superstock body from PaintballGateway.com for $25 and built the gun from the ground up, buying and fabricating parts until she was done. I've swapped a few things here and there, so she shoots like a dream. The A5 was a fun gun to mess around with, I traded for it and built it fairly cheaply from parts on PbNation. I had a WTB thread somewhere with a complete record of who I bought everything from...
I bought a Viewloader Maxis for cheap and painted it pink for a Breast Cancer Awareness event and it still looks good. The High Voltage was an impulse buy as well. The ER-2 was one of my metal shop projects. I decided I wanted a modified stock-class marker that would be able to stand up to the punishment of normal play, so I drilled and tapped the valve, ran an ASA through the handle, and hooked her up to a remote. I also beefed up the internals and relubricated everything several times to keep her running smooth. It's a lot of fun to play with and gets lots of funny looks at the field.

Wow, that's a long list.
Noah

Thanks for taking the time to post this! Hopefully it helps narrow down gear choices for new players.

[blockbeata]

Mask: JT Proflex

HIGHLY customizable. Breathable. Good hearing. No fog. CHEAP!

Marker: Planet Eclipse Geo

Reliable. Lightweight. Easy maintenance. Planet Eclipse. Cheap (compared to new markers).

Hopper: DYE Rotor

Reliable. Cheaper than Spire.

Tank: Empire 48/4500

Bought it used. Looked like brand new and still has years left hydro.

Clothes: DYE C7 Pants & Long-sleeve plain shirt

IMO, paintball pants are a must. Breathable. Great slides. Enough padding.
Long-sleeve plain shirt. Go dark on color (so paint is easily visible for the ref). CHEAP.

Shoes: Soccer Cleats

Perfect for grass. Great traction. Lightweight. CHEAP.

Pads: Planet Eclipse Elbow Pads

Elbow pads are a must if you want to slide headfirst. Not too bulky. Good fit.

[MaG Adrenal1ne]

Masks
Empire E-Vents
-All around solid choice. Cant go wrong.
Hoppers
Spire
-Cant beat Virtues CS. This thing is a workhorse and indestructable.
Pants & Jerseys
Team Jersey/ PE Distortion Pants
- Our team jerseys made by HK are top notch, PE pants seem to be the only ones I have ever owned that can take a beating time and time again. Wel worth the money.
Air source
68/4500 Ninja Dura Tank (Pro Reg)
-Ninja tanks are the most reliable and user friendly. Not to mention the option to adjust output pressures is a huge win.
Knee Pads / Pads in general
Sly Front Player Arm Pads
- My knees? Screw um. Sly arm pads are very lightweight and durable.
Gear Bag / Backpack
Bodybag
-Have had it since they came out. Tons of room and storage for pods and guns.
Cleats
Adidas (Agressive shoe, but not a cleat)
-I have a ruggid pair or trail shoes. Things are beast.
Under Shirts
White Tee
-Keep it simple.
Gun / Marker
12' G6R, Geo 3
-Need a reliable poppit and spool... these two fit the bill perectly and I get the best of both worlds.

[Lemieux]

Mask:
VForce Profiler w/mirror lens
-Cheap, fits me the best, and i can wear it all day and not even know its there. Worn with a Virtue headwrap

Hopper:
Spire 200/260
-Hands down the bet loader if money is not an option. I switch back and forth between shell sizes but typically run the 260

Air source:
Crossfire 68/4500 w/Micro MaxFlo on my Shocker, CP 68/4500 w/Ninja reg on the rest of my markers.
-68/4500 tanks are pretty standard, hold plenty of air, and are still lightweight. I really love the MaxFlo setup on my shocker. Nice and compact and lightweight.

Marker:
Shocker NXT (Al Eigenbolt, Virtue Redefined, 13" Freak)
-Shoots amazing and super efficient with the Eigenbolt. However, it is a lot of maintenance and is not the most beginner friendly

Backup Marker:
Empire Mini v.3 (stock besides 13" Freak)
-Reliable, proven, and shoots great. Shot quaity isn't on par with the Shocker, but still an amazing gun. Especially for the price. I love being able to throw it in my gearbag and know that it will shoot every time.

Pants:
Old pair of JT pants I've had forever. The kind with the urban camo. Havent had a reason to get a new pair, these are so good and durable.

Jersey:
Raza TM2 i had done up custom
-Moderately padded, half gloves, and it has my name and number. Price was reasonable and it still looks like new after a good wash. I wear just a t-shirt on hot days.

Knee/Elbow pads:
661 Kyle Strait mountain bike knee pads/Planet Eclipse Overload elbow pads
-The 661 pads i use mountain biking, but work just as well under my pants for paintball.
-The PE pads are quality. Comfy and durable

Shoes:
Inov8 trail running shoes
-Cant remember exact model but they work for everything. Speedball, recball, scenario. Any surface, any terrain. They just work.

Pack:
GI Glide 4+5
-It works. Hold plenty of paint and i can wear it all day and never be uncomfortable.

This is my go-to setup. I have many other "Play" markers to have just for fun. A few cockers and more shockers. they never see much play time but i will pull them out on rec days. My gear may change if i'm playing a different style (like if i play pump; no pack) but its always based off of this. Also its good to have backup hardware (marker, hopper, tank) because stuff WILL go wrong, and its not a fun way to end your day.

[Squattingdog]

Mask: Grillz
Hopper: Rotor
Clothes: Empire pants, JT team pants and a bunch of team jerseys
Tank: 68/4500 Ninja
pads: Eclipse arm pads
Bag: Planet Eclipse gearbag from like 2008
Pack: NXe, Proto and Redz (i switch them up)
Shoes: Nike Cleats
Gun: Geo 2.1

[CreedPB]

Mask: Dye i4s with Northen Lights lens
Gun: Iron Man Ego 100
Loader: Dye Rotor w/ Virute SF
Tank: 68/4500 Empire CF
Pack: Either an Empire 3+4 or a Critical 3+6
Pants: 2012 Eclipse Distortion Pants
Top: My Route 7 Jersey
Headgear: Custom HK headwrap
Cleats: Soccer Cleats

[Christian P]

MASK: Dye I4 for hot summer days where I'm running a scenario and need to breath. I'm not as covered in the jaw and usually wear a handkerchief over my neck, but its the mask is breathable and doesn't fog.

Just started the Carbon fiber Empire E-vents and like they are better cover than the I4's. Ive only worn them twice but they are my new starting mask. Look great. I THINK THE MASK IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF YOUR GEAR!!!


MARKER: Empire V3 Mini is my personal choice for scenario, speedball, or Woodsball. I modded it to be more like an Axe with an on/off ASA and improved trigger. Mine is more of a show gun as I've polished the barrel and gun to a chrome shine. I think that this electric gun can compete against a Luxe, Geo, or any other $1000 gun at a quarter of the price when modded.

For outlaw ball or rec play I shoot a CCI Phantom pump. Playing pump I only shoot 30/60 shots a game. It's more light weight than playing a gun with a tank nice I shoot a 12 gram cartridge.

HOPPER: Rotor V3 is under $100 and is a top of the line. I got a custom wrap on mine from Thunder designs. For $20/30 you can make the rotor unique with a wrap. Plus the V3 rotor has an unjamming fin that helps. Get a V3 if possible.

PANTS: Dye pants cost me $60 but handle slides, dives, and dirt. Get a good pair of pants. My Evil pants tore twice and are proof, you get what you pay for (spent $20 on them). Spend one money on pants.

[[NA]WARLORD]

Being an old fat scenario baller, I'll chime in here as well:

Mask: I use an Empire E-Flex during the day with a half smoke/half clear lense and a JT Pro Flex mask at night with a Fan for high humidity.

Hopper: I use a Rotor on my E and Mech gun, but use a gravity fed Sportshot on my pump at night.

Clothes: While you can wear anything, I recommend dark or nuetral colored clothes that your comfortable with. Old BDU's work well. I use cargo shorts with slide shorts in the summer months and a lightweight jersey, no pads. Sponsored games I use Empire Contact pants and Jersey, most other times I wear my old BT pants or Valken V-Tacs.

Tank:

Depending on which gun I'm using, E= 68/4500, Pump or Mech, I use 45/4500.

pads: My pads are in the jersey pants, lol

Bag: Old REDz bag

Shoes: WalMart Hikers

Undershirt: Only if I don't wear a jersey

Gun:

E - Empire Axe
Mech - Autococker Trilogy Comp
Pump - Autococker Trilogy Comp with CCM kit

[shokertm]

Masks
eflex, A must have for anyone wearing glasses with a big face,
little to no fogging for me, just make sure you have multiple headbands

Hoppers
Rotor, Simply it's the best. Hands down, had mine since Hb 2011 and only changed batterys once, had less then 10 jams ever.

Pants & Jerseys
Jersey-whatever I can buy for cheapest that does not say invert or spyder, i live in las vegas. It's hot. I don't usually wear jerseys.
Currently sporting a sly bouncepad/sly jersey overtop


Tanks / Air source
Ninja reg, any bottle. currently a Wgp. The bottle doesn't matter to me, the reg is what matters... I find ninja regs to be highly consistent

Knee Pads / Pads in general
I don't wear knee pads, and sly elbow pads for soft days, go hard days eclipse because the thick padding

Gear Bag / Backpack
PLanet eclipse, it doesn't really matter though. It's just something to carry your stuff

Cleats
Nike, I will wear them untill they fall apart. I wear size 14 shoes... I have to order special online

Under Shirts
Either a raza shirt, with jersey ontop or a lighly padded bounce shirt (i like the tight fit)

Gun / Marker
Bob long Insight right now,
Its light, the most efficient spool, and havn't had many problems with it.
Really looking for an lv1 though :/

hope this helps!

[drugfreeotoc]

Mask: DYE I-4
I love how quick to dissemble it and the low profile.
Hopper: DYE Rotor
I love the low profile of it though times I do switch off back to my Vlocity. But the rotor tool less dissemble is great for the field to clean when a ball breaks inside.
Clothes: Empire jersey & pants
The padding in the knees and the crotch are a life saved as well as the oversized elbow pads.
Tank: Guerrilla 68/4500
Great tank, picked it up from ANS when it was on sale.
Bag: Proto gearbag
Such a big bag, able to hold both my primary and backup marker as well as a separate compartment for my dirty cleats and jersey/pants for the end of the day.
Shoes: Old ADIDAS soccer cleats
Just my old cleats from soccer that are still holding up since 06.
Undershirt: any long sleeve
I prefer to wear a long sleeve under my jersey so when I start to overheat, just take it off between games and cool down.
Gun: Planet Eclipse EGO11, 2012 Proto Reflex Rail
Two guns I saved up for and both have suburb performance out of them.

[pbplayer343]

Gogs- grills, i4s. both are really nice
Hopper- rotor, i have had all of the newer loaders besides the pulse and it has been the most solid
Gear- Dye pads, pack, and pants.
Tank-ninja, really user friendly
Gun-almost anything really, theyre all nice
nike cleats.
Furious and dye barrels have given me great results

[ben.g90]

Mask:Dye i3 pro never fogged up, and felt good on my face.
Hopper: evolution 4 (eggo)
Clothes: System x pants, cheap at my local shop and can expand to bigger/smaller waist.
Tank: Empire 48/4500 tank. chubbs i like that i can hold it close to me and keep a smaller profile.
Bag: random duffle bag from walmart.
Shoes: Nike midtop rubber cleats. idk the name of them.
Undershirt: underarmor short sleeve shirt. fits me snug and keeps me cool when my fat a** starts running around. =)
Gun: Dangerous power g4, stock, bit of an air hog but since i run a small tank i dont really mind stoping by the refill station after a game on my way to my car.

[yugo52]

Mask: SLY Profits or V-Force Profilers

Hopper: Empire Z2 or Halo B w RIP drive

Clothes: Usually old BDU pants from work, or an old school pair of JT pants from like the late 90s. I usually wear a t-shirt and a set of elbow/knee pads for sliding purposes.

Tank: 68ci 4500psi Ninja.

Bag: I use an old school Under Armour bag or just a LARGE mesh football bag.

Shoes: Under Armour baseball cleats that I also use for slow pitch softball.

Underwear: Usually I wear some compression shorts under my pants and some type of UA Heat Gear up top.

Gun: SL Alien Indy or a mech cocker.

Not to go off topic, but since this is the New Players Forum, I think the most important thing to emphasize on this topic is to watch the excess spending being a new player. Usually new players are spending on somewhat of a budget, at least until they get their feet wet in the sport and know they are here to stay. Thus, there are certain things you can skimp on and there are others that are essential to buy the best. IMO, the list looks something like this:

1. Mask - Pretty self explanatory, as this item is the lifeline of the safety of the sport. I recommend buying new, or LNIB if you go used.

2. Paint - You shouldn't be blowing your money on a brand new GEO or EGO or whatever, only to then grab a case of balls from WalMart. Buy good paint, it helps with consistency, barrel breaks, chops, etc.

3. Air Source - If at all possible, go straight to HPA and avoid CO2.

4a. Marker - What are your plans: air ball, x-ball, speedball, woods ball, all of the aforementioned? If you are buying a marker for the first time, I recommend going to your local field first and asking everyone around questions about their markers. Ask to shoot a few rounds, and get a feel for what works best for you. Also, if you plan on going with a electro, I recommend buying one that's a few years old. You can save hundreds of dollars by buying an Ego 8 as opposed to an Ego11, and still have a marker that can compete with any other marker on the field.

4b. Hopper - This depends on 4a. A good hopper should be feeding paint at the speed in which the marker can shoot. No use in buying the latest electro if you are going to slap on a VL-200.

5. Pads - More specifically, knee and arm pads. These pads will save your limbs if you plan on sliding and diving.

6. Cleats - I prefer football or baseball, but I also hear that soccer work well. I personally think that paintball cleats are the most overrated item to purchase.

7. Clothes - Whatever is left on your budget can go here. There's nothing wrong with wearing a long sleeve shirt you have in the closet. I've been playing since 1997 and almost never wear a jersey anymore.

[Badlandz4Life]

Mask: Grills
Headgear: Sandana headband
Jersey: Foxwood Renegade jersey
Elbow pads: Planet eclipse
pants: Gi sports or exalt thrashers
knee pads: planet eclipse
pod pack: nxe elevation
cleats: nike soccer cleats
Gun: Geo 2.1
Hopper: Rotor
Tank: Ninja 68/45

[Srtflo]

Mask: Steel blue Proflex
Hopper: Spire
Jersey: None (Long sleeve shirt)
Pants: Dye C4
Tank: 68/45 Ninja Pro
Bag: Old black military backpack
Cleates: Underarmour baseball cleates
Gun: Clone VX, GTI board/grip, Violent Scythe trigger