.50 Caliber Revolution

[Reiff]

So, I doubt a lot of you follow paintball news, so I've decided to bring this one to you. A bunch of companies have banded together to bring about what they're calling the .50 caliber revolution, which looks like it's trying to phase out .68 caliber balls in favor of .50.

Right now, there doesn't seem to be a lot of solid info, but it looks like Smart Parts is at the center of it, unveiling 2 .50 cal markers, the GI Milsim and .50 Impulse. Planet Eclipse is selling a conversion kit that will allow Egos (possible only the EgoX, the newest model) to shoot .50 cal balls. Spyder is supposedly releasing at least one .50 cal marker, and someone from Macdev said that he was involved in talks with other companies about this.

So, there are 2 sides to this. The industry is toting the advantages of 50 cal, saying that they're more accurate, fly farther on the same velocity, and are 2-3 times more air efficient than .68 cal balls. Also, their big selling point is since less material is used, paint will cost less.

The other side is concerned players. Many believe that this is the industry's way of rendering pretty much every existing marker obsolete so everyone has to buy new gear. Also, there are questions about the accuracy of the tests the industry has ran. My personal concern is that the balls aren't going to break as easily, which apparently has been an issue with .50 cal balls in the past.

[grabnar117]

Which ever way it goes Skirmish will probably still charge $60-70 for a case.

[Reiff]

Yea, that was my other concern. Fields that have FPO are going to jack up the prices of .50 cal to match .68 cal, basically negating the cost-saving the industry is looking for.