Is .50cal still relelvant?

brokeass_baller · 03-13-2013, 07:27 PM

The topic of .50cal has been discussed for a few years now; some evidence showing it's strengths, some showing it's weaknesses. Make up your own minds on whether or not .50cal or .68cal is the better round.

My question is, is this all still relevant? All of my local fields sell .68cal only. All the proshops around here cater to the .68cal crowd exclusively. In most, if not all, of Ohio, .50cal just doesn't exist. Is this still important? Is there any single area where the size is dominant, or at least common? Is the discussion of the topic still serious, or is it more or less hobby research now?

aresfiend · 03-13-2013, 07:58 PM

Yep.

In my opinion, .50 serves no place replacing .68, that's just ridiculous, however, .50 in conjunction with .68 works very well. The advantage to .50 is size, smaller balls in the same amount of space equals more balls, so a snake player can get into snake and do the same damage with less pods or more damage with the same amount of pods as .68. Same goes for in the woods or a scenario game, and depending on the woods the 20 foot difference between the types of paint (Yes, 20 feet difference, big surprise) might not even matter at all.

Now, as to the reason you don't see your shops selling .50 equipment. There has to be demand, and if there is not demand there is no equipment to be sold. That is all reliant on players being closed to .50. If more players were willing to try it, stores would keep more in stock.

MoNoFx · 03-26-2013, 02:30 PM

No /thread

stl letta · 03-26-2013, 09:31 PM

Why reinvent the wheel?

aresfiend · 03-26-2013, 11:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stl letta

Why reinvent the wheel?

Not sure if it's reinventing the wheel as much as adding smaller ones to assist with the larger one.

WildWayz · 03-27-2013, 08:27 AM

I've said it before - i've seen people who are slowly switching to .50cal for UWL, walkons and big games. Maybe even sup air.
It shoots straighter and does break on distance. I know the UK scene chronos .68cal @ 280fps and 325fps for .50cal so the breakage is there as well as distance.

Gonna try my Etek 4 with .50 cal drop in this weekend - and can't wait... cos taking a hopper and a pod out is the same as taking a hopper and 4 pods out!

Horizon · 03-27-2013, 09:47 AM

50 caliber will never replace 68 caliber for those that are serious about paintball. But 50 caliber has one distinct advantage and that is why more and more fields are using it as an option for their rental games. The impact from 50 caliber is considerably lower than from 68 caliber.

Almost all contact sports incorporate rules and/or equipment that will lessen the discomfort for new, especially younger, players. This is the area where 50 caliber becomes a viable tool for the industry. It's a good way to introduce and attract new players into our game. Those players that move on and end up taking paintball more seriously, will for the most part, move up to 68 caliber.

So yes, 50 caliber is relevant in our industry, but it will never replace 68 caliber as the most common paintball size.

SPYDRMN22 · 03-28-2013, 12:36 AM

I have just played for the first time this past weekend with a Spyder Advancer .50 cal gun and I had a blast shooting people all day! I think the biggest part of having a good day shooting .50 cal is "shoot good paint"! I shot some good stuff and only broke 5 balls all day( get a swab), I shot all day all game long and it was awesome! The only drawback I saw was distance but I'm usually close so it didn't really matter too much but I was getting a lot of bounces at distance so If your a long baller then this might not be for you but if you like running people down and shooting a lot of paint then I'd give it a try. I'm not saying its gonna take over 68 cal but it's def fun to change it up and try something new.

arshagarbon · 03-28-2013, 01:11 PM

Good concept that just couldn't gain ground. The idea is you can produce paint for cheaper which would help with the economic trouble in most of the world. the problem is in order to shoot it you'd have to buy a new gun. Most of the people looking to save money like me don't want to buy a new gun to save money long term. therefore most people sticking with their old guns stuck with the old caliber.