A guide to protective gear for paintballing

Protective gear and padding are essential for your enjoyment of playing paintball. Purchase different pieces of paintball clothing, which ranges from cheap paintball gear through to more expensive items. Some paintball protective gear is mandatory, such as a mask with goggles, while other items, such as elbow and knee pads are highly recommended.

Mandatory Protection

Protective Mask: Almost all paintball centres require you to wear protective masks at all times when you are on the course. Masks are applied around the back of the head and include protection for your eyes, cheeks, jaw line, mouth, chin and ears. Masks vary greatly in quality, with the high-end items affording paintball players much greater protection at a cost in excess of £30 to purchase. Those who paintball infrequently may be better off simply hiring their mask for the day they are playing paintball; most paintball centres allow you to hire all equipment.

Optional Protection

Chest: A key piece of protective gear for paintball is the chest guard. Chest guards commonly come in the form of a padded shirt, which is worn as with any regular t-shirt. Cheaper chest guards have padding on the front and back, but leave your sides exposed, while more expensive guards have protection for the whole of your torso. Arms: Protection for your arms covers your elbow with heavy padding while also providing your forearm with slim protection. The padding on your elbows is useful in numerous ways, allowing you to sustain shots to the elbow without major discomfort, protect your elbows if you fall over and crawl around on your elbows to decrease your visibility from your opponents. Head: Further to your mandatory mask, head bands, which wrap around your head, operate by keeping sweat out of your eyes and offering your forehead additional padding. Neck: Your neck and throat is one of the most painful areas you can sustain a hit in. Neck and throat protection is pulled over the head and around the neck like a snood that fits snug against your skin. Legs: Leg protection ranges from knee pads alone through to full-length leg protection that extends from the top of your thigh all the way down to your ankle. Leg padding allows you to belly-crawl along the ground, offering you a tactical advantage, while it also prevents injury to your legs which can inhibit your movement.