"Dave" <catx@pacbell.net> wrote in message
news:fI3ud.40669$6q2.20755@newssvr14.news.prodigy. com...
> Just getting into paintball and have some questions.

Hope I can help.

> Is it Ok to lubricate the inside of the markers, both inside the moving
> parts and barrel? I know to keep the O-rings oiled, but someone told me
not
> to get oil on my fabric squeegee or the inside the barrel.

Well, you should "avoid" getting oil inside your barrel, but it's not going
to disintegrate your gun or anything like that. What it WILL do is make
your accuracy a little less consistent, making paintball fly in
unpredictable directions. During the course of normal maintenance, you are
well advised to remove the barrel, and do your dry firing of the gun with
the barrel off, so that no excess oil gets into the barrel.

And yes, lubricate all moving parts inside a gun as per the manufacturer's
directions. Assuming your gun is a standard blowback semi auto(tippmann,
spyder, etc), oiling the bolt and orings is just fine.

> My markers came with 9" factory supplied barrels, but I read about using
> longer ones (i.e.: 12"). Is there any truth to using barrels longer than
> 14", that you will loose velocity as the air needs to exit the barrel
behind
> the ball without further resistance?

Anything over 8" is gravy. Eight inches of barrel is what is required to
get a paintball up to speed, from a physics perspective. That said, many
people prefer longer barrels because they are easier to aim. However, there
is NO truth to ANY statement made to the effect that longer barrels slow
down the paintballs to the point that you cannot fire them fast enough. You
will simply have to use more air to move the paintball at the same speed. A
longer barrel *MAY* use more air than a shorter one, but only negligebly
more.

Personally, I like using 12" barrels. I find 14" barrels to be a bit long
for my taste. There are tactics that almost require a long barrel, however,
such as using your barrel to poke into the side of a sup-air bunker, to
expose less of yourself, but in general, I think that shorter barrels are
better, once you know how to aim.

> Lastly, it is normal to have C02 gas leak in a loud long hiss when
removing
> it from the marker. Seems like no matter how quickly I try and unscrew the
> tank, I get quite a lot of gas spewing out.

What you are hearing is normal. To remove your CO2 tank, remove the paint
from the gun, point your gun in a safe direction and start turning the tank.
When you hear the hissing sound, start firing your gun and continue turning
the tank until the sound stops. This will save wear and tear on your
o-ring.

--
Jeff Goslin - MCSD - www.goslin.info
It's not a god complex when you're always right