You go to the fridge, pull out something like a yogurt. You open it up, stick your spoon in, and luckily before it reaches your mouth you realize it’s gone bad. Oops! This often happens with food stuffs like dairy or vegetables, but did you know it can also happen to your paintballs?
Yes, paintballs expire. They get old and unusable. Oh no, you have a whole stockpile of paintballs! How do you know if they’re bad? Unlike the dairy and the veggies in the fridge, you won’t often know until it’s too late, but there are ways to tell.
Old paintballs have harder, more brittle shells than new ones. If you think you might have ones that are expired, try dropping them on the ground. If they burst open on contact, they’re too old. You can also tell if the physical paintball is warped or dimpled. You can check when you’re putting them into your paintball tanks. If it seems a little warped to you, don’t put it in.
Why can’t you use old paintballs? Well, for one thing, they’re less accurate. Because of their warped exterior they may not fly straight and you’ll always be off target. Also, because they’re more brittle they’re more likely to explode in the barrel of your gun.