Cleaning your paintball gun might be the most tedious and dull job.
At the same time, it’s essential not to ignore this task. A nicely maintained gun determines its performance on the field and the overall lifespan. If you don’t rinse your gun for many days, the paintballs may burst inside the barrel.
Don’t wait for a longer duration or else you need to invest your precious money in buying the new parts. You can easily avoid this cost by properly taking care of your marker. You surely don’t want to own a gun that consistently jams or provide inaccurate results.
Also, it may affect the determination of other players on the field. By simply washing it, your gun can perform precisely and optimally. Nevertheless, the way you polish your marker significantly matters.
Every marker is different from another and requires its proper method or supplies for effective cleaning. The process is easy and straightforward to make the job correctly done.
Cleaning A Paintball Gun (The Essentials)
Step No 1: Remove The CO2 or The Air Tank
Safety should be your foremost preference when clearing your paintball marker. Prior to this process, make sure to remove the CO2 or air-tank. It will prevent any potential damages or accidental fire.
Remember if you don’t remove the air-tank, you are taking a step towards disaster and result in serious injury to yourself and the people around. Your gun will probably have a user-friendly degas function.
Step No 2: Disassemble Your Gun
Here you will use your marker schematics. You must ensure that you disassemble everything correctly, including hopper, bolt, barrel, and grip frame.
By prudently disassembling the gun, put everything in an organized way that you can later reassemble easily.
Step No 3: Clean The Barrel
The scrubbing process begins with checking the barrel out. Rinse out the obvious debris on the external and run a barrel swab to clean the tiny dust particles.
Don’t forget to double-check to make sure that the barrel is uncontaminated and clear.
If it’s still not uncontaminated, you can use a squeegee. Suckle one end of it similar to a hook on the rings and pull it. It will clean out any leftover debris in the barrel. Afterward, position the barrel side-wise.
Step No 4: Clean The Body
Go through the gun’s instructions whether you can use a cloth to rinse your gun. You can use a Q-tip or toothbrush to reach choked areas of the gun conveniently. That way, you can carefully scrub and clear the gun to prevent any jamming.
Step No 5: Clean The Bolt And Hammer
Use a paper towel to polish the bolt and hammer and then dry it. Carefully check the O-Rings to see if they’re any indication of wear and tear. Small wear can be corrected with regular maintenance.
However, if there is any heavy damage, you will perhaps need to substitute the components.
Step No 6: Cleaning or Replace of O-Rings
You may use a Q Tip to clear any debris from the grip frame.
Remember not to separate the trigger assembly as it can be intricate or hard to reassemble everything. You may affect the functionality of your gun until you leave it unbroken.
As soon as you clean the grip frame, dry it carefully, and double-check it.
Step No 7: Checking And Replacement of Batteries
Obviously, you don’t want your gun stops operating in the middle of your game and lose all the excitement.
Maintaining your paintball gun is vital to keep it functioning correctly.
If you find any damaged part, make sure to thoroughly check it and replace the battery when required.
Step No 8: Inspect The Paintball Gun For Damages
In this step, you are required to meticulously examine your gun and look for any details that you need to either fix or replace.
If your O-rings are dried or damaged, you must replace them immediately.
Remember, O-rings has a crucial role in paintballing, so make sure they are fully functional and enhance your performance on the playing battlefield.
Also, make sure the O-rings properly cover the CO2 or else you will regret on the field.
Afterward, scrutinize the inner parts and check the screws and strings. You can substitute them if required. Try your best to prevent your gun from breaking down right in the peak of game play.
Step No 9: Oil And Lubricate The Marker
Now you have unstained every part of the gun; it’s the right time to lubricate your marker. Also, you should use a specific oil exclusively designed for this purpose; otherwise, it will increase the risk of damaging your marker.
Consider reading a user manual that will assist you in choosing the right type of oil.
Also, make sure the O-rings are entirely covered in oil.
Step No 10: Put The Gun Back Together
Since you have scrubbed and oiled your gun, it is safe to reassemble everything in an organized way. Go through the guidelines carefully so you can assemble everything back together with the screws.
Perform this step gradually and with care because your one mistake can destroy your favorite paintball gun.
How To Take Proper Care of Your Gun Regularly
In addition to occasional cleanings required to maintain your gun, storing it in the right way is also essential. If you store your gun as we have suggested below, it will significantly help you in preventing any damaged parts that may affect its performance.
As soon as you detach all the inside parts, you should also focus on the marker’s outside. You can use a squeegee to polish your gun’s external body. Follow up with a toothbrush to avoid any jamming and purify the entire body.
However, squeegee has a relatively large size that makes it challenging to get into nooks and crannies. Some people prefer using cotton swabs or Q Tips to clear all those small crevices.
Also, you can use warm water to break down any leftover residue. To do this, dip the toothbrush in warm water and use it to clean through every clogged area. Brush your gun thoroughly and make sure not a single spot is left. Don’t forget to wash leftovers that may result in jamming.
Once you are done with cleaning, dry the body using a paper towel and make sure it’s completely dry.
Speaking of the grip frame, be sure to sanitize and dry it. This part typically requires maintenance the most as it has the excessive paint left after the game.
A small brush dipped into warm water can result in intense scrubbing.
Gun Storage Essentials
If your paintball marker is not properly stored, it can easily get damaged. Follow the guidelines listed below and perform with excellence in the field.
- Remove ammunition from your gun. Also, make sure it is not loaded in storage.
- Separate the canister and eliminate the gas.
- Pull the trigger to make sure bolt move forward gradually. In this way, spring damage can be avoided.
- Pins and screws should be lubed up.
- Similar to a real gun, make sure the safety is on in the storage.
- Drop a little oil so no part of the gun can crack up.
- Make sure the case of your paintball gun is locked up and keep the keys with yourself.
- Don’t let your children know where you have stored your paintball marker.
- Keep your paintballs and canister in different areas of your home.
- The gun owner should be the only person to arm the marker in order to use it.
- Additional pieces are always required whether you are in or out the field so it’s important to have a field repair kit along with you. Typically, it includes everything you will need for a simple repair.
How Often To Clean Paintball Gun?
It’s a somewhat hectic exercise to sterilize your marker after a long day of an intense game. You may want to postpone the task to the next day. Though, leaving your paintball marker this way is more likely to cause serious issues that may affect its performance and restrict its lifespan.
It’s a great practice to polish your gun after every game and try to make it a habit.
You are only required to clean down your gun’s outside immediately after gameplay to remove the paint. Once it is dried on the gun, it will be hard to clean it later.
Likewise, make sure to cleanse the outside of your marker before the game, so it operates properly. You may want to detach the barrel intermittently to polish the inside using a squeegee and water. Excessive paint or dirt can damage your marker.
Also, we advise you not to disassemble your gun very often as you are likely to lose a substantial part or assemble it incorrectly. You need to be very careful when playing since the battleground is full of mud.
Try your best to prevent water or mud from coming into contact with your marker. If it happens more often, you will need to disassemble your gun and wash it at the moment.
At times, you simply cannot avoid cleaning your gun due to the nature of the game. For example, if you have been rolling around for the entire day, the chances are that dirt is consistently getting into your marker and therefore you must disassemble it.
Final Verdict:
Cleaning your paintball marker after a day or two might be a daunting task but it shouldn’t be optional. You should take care of your gun by polishing it properly and more often. This makes sure it will serve you in the long run and perform perfectly every time.
If you have anything to contribute in this article or want to share your paintball gun scrubbing experience, please write to us in the comment section below. Your input will be highly appreciated.
Start practicing cleaning your paintball marker properly from today!
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