Buy 2 Win - Getting the best deal at Stalker Paintball

Congratulations on deciding to join the millions of players around the world who have chosen to play paintball--the fastest growing recreational game in the world. What awaits you and your buddies are endless hours of adrenaline packed action adventure and a chance to play the high tech game of paintball. Buckle your seat belt because you and your friends are in for days upon days of sheer exhilaration.
Like any person who is taking up a new game, you must now make two very fundamental decisions. Both of these are important steps towards making the game of paintball a mind-boggling experience.

What paintball gun or equipment do I buy? Where do I buy that equipment?

Make the right decisions on those two questions and your entire game will be better. Make the wrong decision and you could have problems--maybe even severe problems. Paintball 2-Xtremes Magazine is the paintball magazine for the recreational players and as such we have heard from a lot of players about their experience in buying paintball equipment. I would like to share with you what we have learned from listening to our readers.

Buying from your local paintball store or paintball field pro-shop is the smartest decision you can make.

Paintball is a high tech sport. Players who buy intelligently can have a decided edge if they choose the right equipment and know how to use it. You can quite literally buy the right guns or accessories and improve your chances of winning by as much as fifty percent. In making that all-important choice, the local paintball store-owner or the people at your local pro-shop can be your new best friends in paintball. These folks offer you some things you cannot get from a Mail Order Company or mass-market store. Here is what you get from your local store or pro-shop.

• Expertise - Day in and day out, the staff at your paintball store do nothing but sell and service paintball equipment. They are the professionals of our game. They can advise you based not only on their experience, but the experience of their hundreds of customers. They talk the talk because they have walked the walk. Compressed air or CO2? Remote air supply or bottle attached to your gun? Which of hundreds of accessories are right for your gun? What are the special needs imposed by the climate in your area? The answers for these and dozens of other questions are available at your local store.

• Service - Remember, I said paintball is a high tech sport. Well, high tech equipment needs maintenance and repair service. When you only have one or two days a month to play paintball, you do not want your gun at the manufacturer, waiting for repair. Your local store and field are there, waiting to save you by fixing your problem, many times while you wait and for only a minimal charge--if you bought the gun from them. Otherwise service fees can be high.

• Mentoring - That's a fancy word to say they will keep you from making a fool out of yourself every time you add new technology to your gun. They not only sell you reliable equipment, they show you how to use it and make some of the simple repairs yourself. Spend a few hours talking to your local storeowner (Yes, they do take that kind of time at your local store or pro-shop) and you will soon be talking the talk and walking the walk--yourself.

When something sounds too good to be true, that's because it usually isn't true.

In all fairness, we should say that there are reputable mail order companies in paintball. However, in recent years, the competition has gotten so cut throat and their profit margins so thin, some mail order companies have begun business practices that have the industry very concerned because the losers in that game is our players. In fact, the situation has degenerated so badly, that paintball 2-xtremes Magazine has stopped mail order-priced, advertising, like all but one of the other magazines. In our case, it was based on feedback we received from our readers. Here are some of the problems readers reported to us:

• Bait & Switch Tactics - Mail order companies baited readers with very low prices on name brand products. However, when customers called, these name brand products were out of stock and they were switched to other, no-name products.

• Selling Used or Reconditioned Equipment as New - The law in most states requires used or reconditioned equipment to be marked. It also requires that advertising disclose it as used or reconditioned. Some unscrupulous mail order companies choose to ignore that.

• Replacing quality components with cheap, inferior components - Factory barrels and bottles are among the components that can be easily changed to inferior ones. How is a new customer going to know?

• Charging Credit Cards and Delaying Shipment - Some companies finance their business this way by shady operations. They say it is in stock, but isn't. They charge your card immediately; then delay shipment for up to a month.

Support the People Who Support the Game

You are entering that exciting world of high tech, high-energy paintball. Your local paintball store or field pro-shop are just like the pit crew in auto racing. They make sure you start with the best possible equipment your money can buy. They are, also, there when something goes wrong. They fix it and get you back in the game as quickly as possible. They are an integral part of your winning paintball support team. Support them.

This article is reprinted with permission from Paintball 2-Xtremes Magazine.