Buying your own paintball marker

sham08

Hi

I was wondering what is the legal position on buying a paintball marker, there doesn't seem to be any websites selling them in Ireland, so are they illegal or what???
Also when you have your own marker what do most people do with it?? I mean do you just meet up with your friends in a field/ forrest and play the normal games or do you tend to just go to paintballing places and use your own marker and their paintballs?
I'm asking because I went paintballing last weekend and I really enjoyed it but it just seems so expensive for the paintball refills, I mean one guy went through 900 paintballs in about 3hrs costing him an extra 80 euro.

Thanks

ironclaw

Hi Sham08. Yes, they are a firearm meaning you need a license / authorisation from An Garda. Its a legal minefield and a marker is not a cheap. A good one plus a license is about €600. And then you have to maintain it and gas it.

But it is very rewarding! There are competitions and if you serious you can go to national and international events. You can play privately but you need a fairly remote forest (Folks with guns running around normally attracts attention) and the landowners permission (Insurance might be an issue. Its all fun and games til someone loses an eye!).

I'd say experience the sport for awhile and then make a decision. You need to play a few games and get experience. Join the clubs in college and learn from people. That way you can cut your costs futher. But remember safety ain't cheap. Invest in good goggles and kit. It could save you some day.

Regards!

(By the way, paintball is a fairly expensive sport. Buying a marker will only effect your paint fee's if you playing in a 3rd party competition. Most fields will not allow you to bring your own paint).

ditpaintball

Sup sham, paintball is an expensive sport, but even more expensive as a punter.

A punter being the person who turns up at a place and pays their 40 quid to play.

The IPPA - Irish Paintball Players Association and PaintBaller.ie organise montly open days and leagues. Here you can use your own gear and buy a box of paintballs (2000 paintball) from €50 and up.

www.paintballer.ie for all you need to know and more

sham08

Cheers guys thats sound advise, its so easy to get carried away after doing something that you had great craic at, but I think I'll hold off and get a few more games under my belt. Thanks again

ditpaintball

Come check out the IXL or a S.O.D.

There you can see tournament games in action and try out proper gear. Then if you think that its for you, we will help you get the best gear for your price range.

Richie

sham08

A friend of mine just sent me a link, I was wondering what do you guys think of this??
http://www.shop.justpaintball.co.uk/acatalog/Tippmann_98_Custom_-_Power_Kit.html

Any opinions would be great

ion c

hiya sham,
my advice is don't buy anything until you get the chance to try out some gear. If you can head down to Barrage Paintball, Ashbourne on the 17th May (its a Saturday) you'll be able to see LOADS of gear and try it out as the Irish XBall League is held there.
visit http://www.paintballer.ie/ixl/index.html for more info on the league or www.paintballer.ie for more info on markers, masks, playing etc
of course any questions you can post em here, i'm happy to help you out.

Oh yeah to answer your question, I'd really hold of getting that package. Generally you'd find yourself upgrading most of the gear in that package in a matter of months

ironclaw

Welcome to the Worlds Most Addictive Sport!

ditpaintball

Amen

bullets

This might sound bad but I dont have much interest in Paintball
as a sport but I do have an interest in the equipment itself.

I'd also like to purchase a Marker for Casual Back Yard Plinking.
I already own firearms to go shooting and I also have plenty of
Airsoft products to plink away with legally on my own property but I also like the
mechanics of a Marker and would like to see the paint splat on some targets
out my back garden. It would be used responsibly too ....
ie I'm not some kid that just wants to run around his neighbourhood
acting the maggot.

Have markers always been considered firearms in Irish Law?
Years ago I thought people could buy them without a license and
then something changed in Irish Law. This would have been in the
90's and before the 2006 amendments to the firearms act.

How are they actually licensed? do you get an official firearms cert and
pay 38 Euros or a similar price and have it stamped buy the Gardai

or

Is it Not a License but a letter of permission to own one from the
Local superintendent where you dont pay for the license.
(Similar to they way you get a letter of permission to own/use a
silencer/moderator on a rifle)

I am wondering because as far as I know Markers would not have a serial
number so how would you fill out and process form PC20.

Also whats stopping an online store from sending you one without a license?
Do they ask you for one.

Can you buy first then license or do you need to license first then buy.

If you dont want to Play the sport but do want to purchase
a marker is it a Legal requirement that you are in a paintball club?
About 10 Years ago I was going to buy in some paintball markers
(Which I think were about 180 UKP at the time) and gear to form our
own paintball club (I could have sworn they were tipman markers but
I may have been wrong.) with work but our sports and social society reckoned that there would be hassle with insurance and it never happened.

At the time we could not afford to spring for a compressor to re-charge
the CO2 tanks and the interest fizzled out when the costs got higher.
It would have been sweet too cos a guy who worked with us had a sister
who worked in a factory that made Paintballs and could have got discounts
for us.


~B

ditpaintball

Before I start, I know they are vauge answerrs but thats the way they are at the moment. We, the Irish Paintball Players Association (IPPA) are in talks with the DOJ to clarify the legal status of markers in Ireland



Have markers always been considered firearms in Irish Law?

Yes and no. They were fully reconised as a firearm in the 2006 CJA with the 1joule limit. A paintball has a muzzel energy or 12-15 joules. But in general, they were put into the firearms category by accident more so than anything else.


How are they actually licensed?
No, the other option... well it depends. If your local superindentend (god) wants it licensed, then he can make you get one. Or like me, you can simplely get an a letter of authorisation, which can be granted for special firearms for special uses. I say no because not all markers have serial numbers, so they are hard to put onto the garda pulse system


Also whats stopping an online store from sending you one without a license?
Nothing as they do not need to ask you for one.There is no online store in Ireland whom sell markers, because they would need a firearms dealers license. There are shops in the north where the law is not as strict on markers. You just need to be over 18 really. You can buy from these. The only risk you run is it getting stopped at customs. Most other countries in europe and the world do not have markers in any firearms law, hence sold freely and the sport in those countries is very popular.


Can you buy first then license or do you need to license first then buy.
Technicially you should buy first, bring the recpits and description to the guards, fill in the form, get your license and take it to the dealer and collect your marker. Catch 22, there are no legl retailers in the country... yet


If you dont want to Play the sport but do want to purchase
a marker is it a Legal requirement that you are in a paintball club?
There are no paintball clubs as of yet, just teams. The IPPA is the closest thing to a club as yet. One of our aims is to help develop more clubs and teams around the country and get more leagues and competitions going. Pending the new legislation which will be out soon, if we are required to have licensed for our markers then the IPPA will be insisting that every member applies for it.

Hope that helps.

bullets

Cheers for the info.

It would have been 1997-1998 when I first was going to get gear
and there was no restrictions in place.

I remember around the time that Combat zone opened its site down near me
that I started hearing stories that Markers needed permission from the Gardai to
own and could not be sold in Ireland over the counter etc etc
But I never say any evidence of this until the 2006 amendment where
they put in place the dreaded 1j into it so anything over a joule was a firearm.


~B

mcw92

i was thinking of buying a painyball gun: http://www.play.com/Gadgets/Gadgets/4-/1130190/Paintball-Pack/Product.html has any1 bought this, any good? would i need a lisence for this, and i know they dont deliver 'gadgets' to irl, but if i get it delivered to relatives in N.I. would i get away without needing a lisence?

Korvanica

Yea at The Moment imlooking into buying a marker.
Have been looking at a Tippmann 98 Custom. Mainly This Pack here.
98 Custom Marker Pack

Thginking of getting the flatline barrell for it aswell. Flatline.

I Know the hopper is only 10bps os so but thats grand for a start, besides i dont have the funds to get a good one.

What do ye think? any Tips etc?

ditpaintball

mcw92 wrote: »

i was thinking of buying a painyball gun: http://www.play.com/Gadgets/Gadgets/4-/1130190/Paintball-Pack/Product.html has any1 bought this, any good? would i need a lisence for this, and i know they dont deliver 'gadgets' to irl, but if i get it delivered to relatives in N.I. would i get away without needing a lisence?

Avoid that like the plague. It is the cheapest thing out there and not really worth the hassle.


If you want to buy a marker, head to the buy and sell section on paintballer.ie and you will pick up some great deals. Paintball gear is not cheap so don't be expecting to pay peanuts for it.