If you love shooting paintball guns, you may have wondered in what cases you can reuse paintballs.
Paintballs, usually made from non-toxic material, tend to last quite a long time. However, given their biodegradable material and the biodegradable paint within them, they won’t last forever.
It is important to remember, of course, the whole point of paintballing is to shoot the pellets so that they hit a surface (or person) and splat.
That said, there are still some circumstances when you can reuse paintballs. This article will go into detail about when you can and cannot reuse paintball pellets.
Can You Reuse Paintballs?
In some circumstances, you can reuse paintballs. If the paintballs have not left the hopper and are still clean, dry, and round, you can typically reuse them. If they are not expired after being kept in your hopper, you are also most likely to be able to use them.
Finally, if you have reusable paintballs, you can reuse your paintballs. Reusable paintballs are made for this purpose. I will go into additional detail about each of these circumstances below.
Ensure that if you reuse paintballs, you are doing so safely, and it does not negatively impact your game.
Can You Use Paintballs If They Spill on the Floor?
If you’re wondering whether paintballs are okay to use if you’ve spilled them on the floor, you’re in luck. Paintballs are still usable as long as they haven’t exploded or splattered on the floor. If they are still in their round, rigid form, you can use them, regardless of whether they’ve fallen or not.
However, if you’ve shot the paintballs and they’ve fallen to the ground, it’s best not to use them, as they can get wet or dirty and cause damage to your paint gun.
Can You Reuse Paintballs From Your Hopper?
If you have left paintballs in your hopper from the last time you played, you may wonder what the time limit is on their shelf life. Or, in other words, you might wonder if your paintballs have an expiration date, and depending on their expiration, whether you can reuse them or not.
Paintballs have different manufacturers and are made from different materials. That said, they are not all created equal, and they do not all have the same shelf life. However, most paintballs can last for about four to six months, especially if stored correctly.
You can check the manufacturing date of your paintball set to see if they are most likely expired or not. You can find the manufacturing date on the packaging of the paintball set.
If they are stored properly, you can indeed reuse paintballs from your hopper. I will explain how to keep your paintballs correctly below.
How to Store and Reuse Paintballs From Your Hopper
Storage is a crucial factor when it comes to the usability of your paintballs. If they are in your hopper, and your hopper is stored in a safe, dry, shaded place, they will likely last for the entire six months.
The sun can cause the shells to deform, and water or moisture can impact the quality of the paint. Therefore, if you’ve left paintballs in your hopper and left your hopper out in the sun or a wet place for an extended period, they will likely be damaged to a certain degree.
Finally, you are more likely to be able to reuse paintballs from your hopper if you turn them over now and then. If you keep the paintballs lying on one side for months, the paint is more likely to harden.
Can I Reuse Paintballs if They Are Expired?
Why does expiration even matter? Well, expired paintballs can have a negative or unintentional impact on your game. When paintballs expire, they more easily deform and create dents. They may no longer be perfectly round.
This deformed shape is not ideal for paintball games because the balls will not reach the same speed. With dents and corners, the friction on the paintball will slow the ball down, disallowing it from reaching the intended destination or even affecting its overall accuracy.
Additionally, when they have expired, the paint inside of paintballs hardens. This hardening means that they won’t break open when you hit your opponents, which will likely mean your point won’t count! We all know what a bummer that would be.
Can You Reuse Paintballs if They Don’t Break?
Now you may be wondering whether you can use paintballs that have left the hopper when you shot them. You may have noticed some didn’t break.
There are different types of paintballs, and some have thinner shells than others. Usually, people prefer thinner shelled paintball pellets because they break open easier, making it more straightforward when you’ve hit your opponent.
Regardless, if you’ve found extra paintballs on the ground after a game and they remain intact, should you pick them up and use them for your next match? Or if they have not been fired but have dropped during gameplay, can you reuse those paintballs?
The quick answer is no. Those paintballs are probably no longer clean, dry, or perfectly round. That said, they are more likely to jam or damage your paintball gun. Additionally, wet and dirty paintballs can start to swell, making them even less paintball gun-safe.
What Are Reusable Paintballs?
As the name suggests, you can undoubtedly reuse reusable paintballs. Reusable paintballs are made with rubber material and are highly durable paintball pellets. They do not have any actual paint within them and are typically referred to as reballs.
However, reusable paintballs can shoot just as if not more accurately and consistently than regular 68 caliber paintballs. The main benefit of reusable paintballs is more trigger time with no extra costs.
The main disadvantage of reusable paintballs is that players can only shoot them at a person, a sheet, or a blanket. Players cannot shoot them at a hard surface, such as for practice purposes. Otherwise, the rubber material will bounce back at the player, which can be dangerous.
Another thing to remember is that reusable paintballs do not create the satisfying and colorful paint splatter that you see with regular paintball guns.
How Long Do Reusable Paintballs Last?
Reusable Paintballs can last for years if you take good care of them. Owners have to mix the balls with paintball gun oil to keep the rubber material from drying out.
It is essential to clean the dirt off of these reusable paintballs as well. This cleaning will prevent them from damaging the paintball gun hopper from jamming.
