If you go to any paintball field today, you will probably see two different types of paintball guns being used; pump paintball guns and standard semi auto paintball guns (in either mechanical or electronic configurations).
The primary difference between playing pump paintball and regular semi-auto paintball is that semi-auto paintball guns allow you to keep shooting continuously just by pulling the trigger, while pump paintball guns require you to cock the paintball gun after each shot in order to shoot again.
Both pump and semi-auto have their own pros and cons associated with them, with semi-auto being the easiest paintball gun and play style to master. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t play pump paintball, it just requires the player to compensate for the lack of firepower with skill and agility.
Lets go over the differences between pump and semi paintball guns and how they perform in more detail.
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Differences Between Pump and Regular Semi Auto Paintball Guns
Pump paintball guns and regular semi-auto paintball guns are different in how they are made and how they function. These differences extend to how the paintball gun is physically set up and lead the player to bring different equipment on to the field with them.
Pump paintball guns are typically very simple in design and require the player to physically cock the gun to shoot. Regular semi-auto paintball guns (in both mechanical and electronic variants) are more complex and allow the player to continuously shoot by just pulling the trigger.
These differences will usually dictate how large of a hopper or air tank you attach to the paintball gun, as with a pump paintball gun you most likely won’t shoot through a standard 200 round hopper in one game nor will you use a full 45ci 3000psi tank over the course of several games.
How Pump Paintball Guns Work
Pump paintball guns require the player to physically slide the bolt back by manipulating a pump handle or cocking arm to both cock the paintball gun and load another paintball into the chamber in one motion.
These types of paintball guns are very simple in design and are typically more reliable than most other paintball guns.
Pump paintball guns still require an air source, like a small 10ci HPA tank or 12 gram CO2 cartridges, and can usually be seen with either a small 50 round hopper or 10 round feed tube. If you want to see some examples, click the links below for my top pics for pump paintball players:
Best hoppers for pump paintball guns.
Best air tanks for pump paintball guns.
Because of the smaller hoppers and tanks, pump paintball guns are typically lighter and smaller compared to regular semi-auto paintball guns. This makes them great for players who favor fast and quick movements instead of shooting a lot of paint.
If you want to learn more about pump paintball and how to play it, check out my article below:
https://www.paintzapper.com/pump-paintball/
How Regular Semi Auto Paintball Guns Work
Regular semi-auto paintball guns fire and automatically reset the internal bolt assembly to the ready position with each trigger pull. They operate by using excess air when shooting to push the bolt assembly back into the ready position, or use solenoids and air valves to direct airflow to shoot and reset the bolt to the ready position.
These types of paintball guns are more complex and have more moving parts than pump paintball guns. They are also a much easier paintball gun to master and allows new players to play without having to worry about gear limitations too much.
You will usually see regular semi-auto paintball guns come in two different varieties, mechanical and electronic.
The primary difference between mechanical and electronic paintball guns is that electronic paintball guns use a circuit board to activate a pneumatic or mechanical solenoid to cycle the paintball gun while mechanical paintball guns do not.
Lets go further into the differences between the two and how they work.
– Mechanical Paintball Guns
Mechanical paintball guns are simple, don’t use batteries and, for the most part, can only shoot semi-auto. These typically come in two different verities, sear tripper or mechanical solenoids.
Sear tripper mechanical paintball guns typically have a heavy striker hammer that is held back by a sear, and when released is pushed forward by a spring into the push pin on a valve. When the hammer pushes the valve open, this allows air to flow into the shooting chamber and push the paintball out the barrel. Then, excess air is expelled back towards the hammer and pushes it back past the sear to reset the bolt for another shot.
These types of paintball guns usually have a more pronounced recoil and are more affordable.
Paintball guns that use a mechanical solenoid are more complex in design. When the trigger is pulled, it opens a solenoid to allow air to flow into the bolt assembly and push the bolt forward and allow air to flow into the chamber and push the paintball out the barrel. Then the bolt either moves back to its original position by itself or will do so once the trigger is released.
These types of paintball guns typically have a lighter recoil and cost more money compared to the basic sear tripper versions.
– Electronic Paintball Guns
Electronic paintball guns are slightly more complex, need batteries, and cost more money. However, they provide more features like anti-chop eyes, advanced firing modes, and even shot counters. These types of paintball guns can be super simple sear trippers or use electro pneumatic solenoids to control airflow.
Electronic sear tripper paintball guns bolt designs work in the same manner as their mechanical counterparts, but use an electronic solenoid to release the sear when the trigger is pulled. This provides a much lighter trigger pull and faster firing rates.
These types of electronic paintball guns are typically found in entry level paintball guns and are cheaper to manufacture.
Electro pneumatic paintball guns take the electronic paintball gun to a whole new level by controlling how much and how long air is allowed to flow through the system, further controlling how bolt moves. This allows for fine tuning for increased efficiency and rate of fire.
In general, electro pneumatic paintball guns are more expensive and can normally be found on mid range to high end paintball guns.
How Full-Auto Paintball Guns Work
Many new players often gravitate to or are afraid of “full-auto” paintball guns as they are considered to shoot faster. The truth is that almost every paintball field does not allow for full auto paintball guns.
Even mainstream tournaments only allow special tournament modes, commonly called ramping, and not full auto as the mode is deemed to be unsafe and requiring no skill to use. Even then, these firing modes are capped at 11 to 12 balls per second (bps) to prevent overshooting.
– What is Ramping in Paintball?
Ramping is a firing mode on an electronic paintball gun that allows the user to shoot at a controlled bps once they have pulled the trigger a certain number of times and continuously keep pulling the trigger at the minimum required times per second.
Common tournament ramping modes that most modern mid range to high end paintball guns have is PSP, NXL, and Millennium. Each mode will shoot semi-auto until the player pulls the trigger faster than 3 to 5 times per second and then will start shooting up to the preset bps programed into the paintball gun.
If the player stops pulling the trigger, the paintball gun will stop shooting and require the player to make the required trigger pulls again to increase the rate of fire.
Hearing a player use ramping can often make inexperienced players believe that the player is shooting full auto by how fast the paintball gun is shooting and how consistent the rate of fire is. A player who is familiar with the firing mode will hear the first few shots be a little slower and then the ramping up to the bps cap on the gun.
Gameplay Differences Between Pump and Semi Auto Paintball
Playing with both pump paintball guns and regular semi-auto paintball guns will typically cause the player to act differently on the field and use slightly different gear.
Playing pump paintball relies more on player skill and accuracy. The typical pump player will be using a smaller hopper, small tank, and probably bring 50 to 100 extra paintballs on the field with them. This makes for an extremely lightweight loadout and allow the player to have more mobility and endurance.
A good pump paintball player knows that they need to keep moving and that they may only have one or two good shots before they need to duck back behind cover. They take advantage of their smaller profile and reduced weight by quickly darting from bunker to bunker and popping in and out of bunkers making quick and accurate shots.
Playing paintball with a regular semi-auto or electronic paintball gun allows the player to shoot more paintballs quickly and suppress the other team. The paintball gun loadout may be a bit heavier than pump paintball guns, but have added firepower.
It is recommended for most new players to start off with a decent beginner semi-to paintball gun so they can get into the sport and learn faster and enjoy themselves. New players will find that just being able to shoot lots of paintballs enjoyable and sometimes the younger players don’t care if they hit anything at all, the simple act of shooting is enjoyable enough.
Best Pump Paintball Guns for Beginners
If you are new to the pump paintball world and are looking to pick up your first pump paintball gun at a great price here are two great options at an affordable price. For a full list of my recommended pump paintball guns click the link below:
https://www.paintzapper.com/best-paintball-gear/best-pump-paintball-guns/
Azodin KP3.5
The Azodin KP3.5 is an excellent open class pump paintball gun that allows you to use a standard hopper and tank. If you already have your own paintball gear, all you need to do is throw on your hopper and air tank on the KP3.5 and start playing!
They come with two different sized barrel backs to bore match to your paintballs and prevent rollouts while increasing accuracy. It is a solid feeling paintball gun at a great price.
You can find your KP3.5 on Amazon or used on Ebay for a great price!
Click here to check Amazon for current prices.
Click here to find amazing deals on Ebay.
CCI Phantom
The CCI Phantom is the go to stock class pump paintball gun if you want to use a 10 round feed tube and 12 gram CO2 cartridges. Phantoms are simple in design, affordable and easy to use.
There is an almost unlimited amount of configurations for the phantom and it is easy to modify one to your exact wants and needs. I myself have been using them for over 10 years and love how simple yet effective they are. You can click the link below for my full review:
https://www.paintzapper.com/cci-phantom-review/
The best places to pick on up is either directly from the manufacture or used on Ebay.
Click here to buy a phantom directly from CCI.
Click here to find a great deal on Ebay.
Best Semi-Auto Paintball Guns for Beginners
If you are new to paintball and are looking to pick up your first paintball gun, here are two amazing options that will keep up with any player until they are ready to pick up more advanced gear. For a full list of my recommended paintball gear, check out the link below:
https://www.paintzapper.com/best-paintball-gear/
GoG eNMEy (GEN2)
The GoG eNMEy turned quite a few heads when it first came out as it was an amazing mechanical paintball gun at an affordable price.
The eNMEy uses a long proven internal bolt design found on some electronic paintball guns and was modified to work with a mechanical trigger instead.
You can easily shoot quickly and with accuracy with this paintball gun, and is my cousins favorite gun he owns (his is pictured above). It is easy to clean and maintain while being durable and easy to use.
You can find your eNMEy on Amazon or used on Ebay for a great price!
Click here to check Amazon for current prices.
Click here to find amazing deals on Ebay.
Planet Eclipse EMEK
If you are looking for a high quality semi-auto paintball gun that won’t break the bank, the Planet Eclipse EMEK will be your best option today.
The EMEK uses the same internal bolt design found on their much more expensive tournament grade paintball guns in an affordable and very durable platform.
You will be hard pressed to find a more reliable mechanical paintball gun that will work in all temperatures and requires very little maintenance. I myself own a paintball gun very similar to this (the EMF100) and only opened it up once during the last year that I owned it for basic cleaning.
You can find your EMEK on Amazon or used on Ebay for a great price!
Click here to check Amazon for current prices.
Click here to find amazing deals on Ebay.
If you are just getting into paintball, check out my tips and tricks for beginners: https://www.paintzapper.com/paintball-tips-for-beginners/