Modern day paintball markers are able to belt out paintballs very quickly; electronic triggers and hi-tech super speed fully automatic firing takes much of the skill out of aiming.  Almost no player relies on the first shot with guns like these.  However there are several things you can do as well as accessories to add to your paintball gun that will greatly increase your shooting accuracy.

Whether you play speedball or scenario woodsball today, it seems real aiming and shooting skill is becoming more and more rare.  Many players shoot a burst of paintballs and adjust their aim and shoot again; while this method works fine, it doesn’t take skill with aiming.  A real marksman will line up his shot and score himself a one shot kill after focusing on his target through the gun sight or crosshairs of his scope.

This being said, accuracy in general is somewhat limited with a paintball gun.  The fact that the balls are round rather than bullet shaped is an inherent problem in aerodynamics. The shape of a paintball creates much drag in the air and greatly reduces its ability to fly straight past distances farther than 200 feet, no matter which paintball marker you have.  Despite this, there are however a number of accessories and strategies that will increase your shooting distance and accuracy.

Improving your accuracy in paintball can be accomplished by two methods; upgrading your paintball equipment and using certain simple strategies when you play.  There are a number of accessories you can add to your paintball marker that will make it shoot straighter and farther.  Perhaps the fastest and easiest way is to first upgrade your gun’s barrel.

Upgrading your marker with a ‘rifled’ barrel will make an immediate improvement on your marksmanship.  Rifled barrels have tiny grooves inside them that run their entire length.  The grooves not only reduce the surface area that touches the paintball (reducing friction and therefore increasing ball speed), but also guide the ball, preventing it from spinning.  The spin-free projection allows for a straighter, more accurate shot.

To further improve your shooting distance and accuracy, also consider increasing the length of your barrel.  Sniper barrels (ones longer than 16 inches) project the paintball farther and straighter than their shorter counterparts.  Some barrels also feature other characteristics that slightly improve accuracy as well, like fluting/porting or spiraling inside.

For tactical paintball guns, many players find help with accuracy by attaching optical accessories, such as sights or hunting scopes.  High powered hunting scopes are not necessary for paintball guns as they can view much farther than any marker can fire.  Short range scopes and red dot sights and scopes are cheap to buy, easy to install and work excellent for paintball guns.

Another cheap paintball gun accessory that will improve your shooting accuracy is a bipod or vertical grip.  These attachments are also cheap, easy to install and will increase the stability or your gun while aiming and shooting, however these are mostly used on tactical paintball markers.  A steady hand when aiming can make a big difference when firing at a small target or one that’s far away.

Finally, incorporate a strategy into your practice and game that will force you to improve your shooting skills.  Practice target shooting with one shot at a time from different distances regularly to become better.  When playing, commit to shooting at opponents with single shots instead of a barrage of firing.  Force yourself into this type of play by using paintball markers with limited ammo capacity, like tactical paintball pistols or magazine fed guns.

Take your shooting skills to the next level by adding a few simple accessories to your paintball gun.  Upgrade to a longer, rifled barrel, add a scope and a vertical grip and you’ll be surprised at your gun’s new performance.  Practice target shooting regularly during practice and game play to make steady progress in your marksmanship.  Pretty soon you’ll be a ‘one shot, one kill’ player!