[Uber J]

A group of friends and I own/play on a large private owned wooded/tall grass field, and although the field by itself is awesome to play we have been thinking to add/build on it this coming year. My question is to those who have already done something like this what did you use (materials) and what did you build/add (forts/walls)? We would like to get some giant spools and the like but have no idea where to attain said items. Any ideas would be great.

[Castro #66]

Take an inventory of the kinds of businesses around you and consider the types of "byproducts" they make. Pallets, barrels and spools can be very common, and readily available if you ask the right people. Electric/utility companies are the best for spools, usually.

Be careful building structures that people either climb on or get inside of. These kinds of things can be incredibly dangerous!

Also consider your natural options. If you own the land, consider building V-shaped forts from fallen branches, and use dirt to build berms and trenches.

[Nosaj2189]

I have gotten a few spools from a local cable company.
In the past I would dig a small whole and put the V-shaped bunkers like he mentioned above.
Around here on craigslist they are always giving away used pallets, or selling for really cheap. Although one alone wouldn't be an ideal bunker since you can shoot through them... get a few and build a decent bunker with the wood.
Trenches are a good though if you have time.
Car tires work really well. Usually easy to come by (at least here) since people don't want to pay money to have them properly disposed of.
If you get lucky, a covert or drain (hyperball). Those are expensive new so... you may get lucky at a junkyard or something.
Can always use old metal objects; car hood, water tank, etc.. but if you are going to put anything up like that.. be courteous and take it done afterwards. If it is your land... that is obviously up to you but if it isn't... you will want to keep playing there again.
Also hay bales work pretty well if you are able to get some of them for free or cheap.

[Uber J]

Thanks, definitely plan on using the wood/branches for Vs and walls. Don't plan to build anything with a roof. As for the "right people" to talk to, who would you guess that might be?

[pballer0303]

A couple of friends and I built a field last spring. Most of it is made out of doors from renevated houses in our area (you wouldnt believe how many doors get torn out of houses when they get remoddled). Palates and tires also work well, and are fairly easy to find.

[Castro #66]

Some companies are more interested in "donating" materials to a project like this, while others prefer to sell. Sometimes it's just talking to the right person within the company about it, that's what I meant.

[FreeEnterprise]

I don't like the look of a bunch of "garbage" on my field, so if I want any cover, I cut up trees that have fallen and make stuff with the logs, but, typically the best cover is just natural cover. Otherwise, you end up with guys spending their day hiding behind the bunkers you built, and that is no fun... With no real bunkers, people tend to move more and games are much faster paced.

At least that is what I have found at my private field.

[dps093]

Spools, plywood, tractor tires, pallets, old construction cones. All can be purchased cheap/free.

[KYhillbilly]

I am making a woodsball course as well. We use alot of pallets and put vinyl siding sections in the slots so paintballs wont go thru. I will probably spray paint them so they dont look trashy.

I am avoiding using really junky stuff like water heaters, appliances, car doors ect. unless it comes with a whole car.

Spools are great but I have to carry all my stuff 150-500ft in the woods depending where I put it so its not something I want to deal with.

Overall pallets are hard to beat, with a little more work you can take boards off one side and cover the other side. And you can arrange them to make some pretty nice bunkers if you want.

After I get enough bunkers I am going to work on advanced structures more. Heres a local group who made their own field. I plan on checking it out soon, they have a great homemade place to play. Looks like Mostly pallets.

http://www.rowanfpj.com/local-fields/valley-forge

[Danny96211]

i made a nice field on my property. I used sheet metal from my old shed. It works great. All i had to do was nail it to trees to keep it in place. I also used downed trees and branches to build natural bunkers. But the sheet metal is alot better and easier to build. I put a starting point on both sides of the field, then a main fort on both sides by the starting points. Then i just put the bunkers in random places throughout the field. I arranged most of the bunkers in L shapes. It's a great field to play on, and the best part is the sound the metal makes when a paintball hits it. Its loud and scared me the first time i was hiding behind one when it got hit lol. I should take some pictures...

[scroadkill]

new home construction sites usually have dumpsters out front - especially in new high density sub divisions - but ask the builder before you dive - great source for scraps and freebies.

many auto stores will let you take all the used tires you want if they are sure you wont sell them. It costs them money to have them hauled off and a cordless drill w/ hole saw cuts nice holes in tire sidewalls to prevent standing water.

home depot has a cull-lumber bin in the back w/ cut up / damaged stuff that they generally let go for 0.51/board.



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spools and wood pallets: rot and become dangerous over time.

[Uber J]

Never thought about the rotting of the spools, naive I guess. All these ideas are good, that valley forge field looks very good.

[Castro #66]

Anything wooden will rot given enough time, for sure. But for a few years, you'll have a nice bunker to play!

[speedball murder]

I use a mixture of air up bunkers and home made bunkers made of tarp does job easy easy set up take down clean up...

[tameone]

#1 option in my mind is always naturally sourced cover -- fallen branches, cut up logs, stumps, etc. Make some into plain piles, others into L or V shapes, etc, but nothing so large that you can just camp behind endlessly. The rest of this post considers alternate options.

You're probably not going to want to set it and forget it, and not have to take down anything when you're finished playing.. with this in mind, I prefer to use only natural easily degradable materials -- no plastics, no cloths, no large metal bits. Classic wooden pallets are best in my opinion.

Should be able to source some locally, probably free.

They are wood with no glues, so will not harm the environment.. just be mindful of the nails.

They provide good cover, but are not 100% solid so you can fire through them, and sometimes even get hit while behind one (you can remove a couple boards from the pallets to facilitate this).

I've been on private fields that used a variety of other stuff -- mattresses, tarps, etc and it all gets worn down and just looks like a garbage pile after a couple years.

[drugfreeotoc]

Me and my friends back home made our own field in the desert too. We at first used a lot of wooden spools and 2x4's but then we decided to go with old tires. That way after a few months, we spend a day out there and rearrange the field to mix it up. We just went around town to different tire places and auto stores and asked for their old used tires.

Up north, my friend did this with his property, used all natural brush and materials for his bunkers. Got fallen trees and branches and formed different bunkers and made burms out of the dirt for king of the hill style play too. And he also got some caution tape to mark off the boundary's of the field so you don't go to far into the woods and get lost.