Is .50 still a thing?

[Mps18]

newbies and little kids usually play 50 and they seem to enjoy it as the playing field is pretty even

[Meleager7]

Even though the birth of .50 cal had disingenuous beginnings, I think it's been a positive outcome overall as many fields have realized the potential of it, as a low impact alternative perfect for introducing new players to this game, kids and more pain averse adults alike!

Real world experience here , in summer 2018 I took my oldest to play .50 cal at a local field where low impact was popular enough for walk on play. That day we joined up with 2 other groups. One group was a small group of parents, with their sons, daughters, nieces\nephews, etc. The 2nd group was a small party of bridesmaids , 20 somethings, out for the day as first part of their stagette. We ended up teaming up with the bridesmaids. Yes, we had to all move closer for the .50 cal guns to be effective, but that just happened organically, and you didn't even think about it.

The most important part though, was that the fear of getting hit evaporated from those young players, and they all got right into the mix, and as such we all had a great time! How many times have you seen kids playing .68 and hanging wayyyy back, or even completely hiding from the action for fear of getting hit!? Low Impact resolves that issue completely in my view.

My main gripe right now with .50 cal is that it really should be offered at a cheaper price! I think it should be priced lower to promote Families bringing their kids out more often. At current prices (exact same as .68 cal) , it really is a Once a Summer type activity, especially if you have a larger family in my opinion.

In case you can't tell , I love .50 cal and hope more fields promote it (at a more economical price) !

[Chappy]

We’ll I agree that in and if itself it could be cool. However without the support from the industry it will not do well. Sure lots of people say it’s healthy and renters love it and all that. But then you can’t buy a gun so how healthy could it be?
Tin foil hat time- from where I’m standing, it sure looks like 50 cal was created by GI to dupe kingman and a few other companies into investing them cause them to struggle.How did 50 cal go for kingman? Who owns kingman now? Just sayin. And anything I’m just saying should be taken with multiple grains of salt lol
I

[Meleager7]

We already have our .50 cal stuff already, but this thread had me look again what’s out there right for sale in new .50 cal guns. There’s basically nothing. At least in Canada. I see the odd .50 cal TMC on US websites but not much else. It’s a shame really! Imagine an 8 year old who falls in love with the game at a .50 cal bday party, and likes it enough to buy a .50 cal emek, or TMC, or Enmey. The Dad picks one up too. The little guy and Dad play more since they have their own stuff, and can save a bit of money each time. Finally Junior rocks that .50 cal gun for 8 years, and moves up to 68 on his 16th bday! It’d be a win win for everyone!

[Seajay]

Well... I personally don't see much point to .50 cal standard play. For "low-impact" just shoot good .68 paint at 250-260fps.
I will say those spring powered splatmasters are great fun, and I definitely see the potential for .50 cal here. I took my little kids to play with these spring powered markers and it is just a fun, mostly silly, game. When you have 5-8 year olds it just fits nicely.

I know some 8 year olds have no fear and eat ropes for breakfast, but not everyone is that competitive at the young and gun age.

[Meleager7]

It’s interesting idea, but you would have to go lower fps to get comparable joules like .50 cal. Remember ,it’s the significant lower # amount of force on impact, that lets us be able to call it Low Impact, and keep the game younger player friendly

[vijil]

I love the idea of 50 cal for rentals. The field I worked at wished for them.

No need to call it "low impact", it's just paintball as far as the punters need be concerned.

Our field here in NZ was FPO, FGunsO, the only thing we'd let anyone bring was their own mask outside of club days. We generally did financially better than most fields, because we deliberately ignored the club scene. Moving to 50 was the next logical step, but the paint was rubbish and the supply just wasn't there. We were heavily focused on the playing experience. Proper thermal masks for rentals, careful field maintenance.

I'd hoped to see more field options in terms of guns. In particular we wanted to see smaller, lighter rental designs that were designed only for 50 but were also tool-less and rugged. We then planned to put smaller tanks on them, 22s or so. So many of our customers were on the younger side and really struggled with the big 98 clones. But that never happened.

[Chuck E Ducky]

I got a two so the kids can play in the backyard (supervised) they Run on 12g (I buy in bulk) and a case of paint will last longer then it will store. I got custom VSC phantoms when they get a lil older and are ready to step it up.

I think 50cal is a great way to introduce people to the sport.

Jelly balls are even better and cheaper. But both will never replace standard paintballs like they were claiming back when it first came out. They are novelty markers for the most part. But not going to lie the wheel gun feel is Cool AF! I need to try these in open play for giggles.

[Meleager7]

.

I'd hoped to see more field options in terms of guns. In particular we wanted to see smaller, lighter rental designs that were designed only for 50 but were also tool-less and rugged. We then planned to put smaller tanks on them, 22s or so. So many of our customers were on the younger side and really struggled with the big 98 clones. But that never happened.

The Spyder opus, when they were being made, was a small form factor, smaller , lighter upper receivers, and a shorty .50 cal barrel . But they still use a full size grip frame , same as the .68 line of guns. Here are two guns I put together, and I paired them with the FS 13/3000 tiny tanks to keep them as light a setup as possible. We had a chance to try these guns out this summer and they worked out great!

Long live .50 cal ownership!

[vijil]

They look good! We wouldn't have been able to run electro hoppers. Was kinda hoping for a PALS emek version, but small/light.

[Brokeass_baller]

.50 cal was a money grab. Let's be real. It didn't fly as far, and it didn't maintain accuracy as well as .68 cal. So ultimately, it flopped.

But, it has found it's way into magfed, mostly on the way of sidearms. It's smaller, and doesn't maintain velocity. But that's fine in a CQB pistol setup. And you can get more shots from a 12g. It works well as a pistol round, which is it's real niche.

[Meleager7]

not mine,

here are some cool .50 cal TMC pkgs in case this thread inspired anyone to pick up their own gear

https://www.ebay.com/itm/154394948944?hash=item23f2a7f550:g:YJQAAOSwJ2dgYlZz

[MrKittyCatMeowFace]

.

[Meleager7]

That’s wild! I wonder how they converted it to 50?

[Meleager7]

Hi DocsMachine , can I pick your brain? How do you think they pulled off this .50 cal mod on this autococker? Would this be a kit from back 10 years ago? Or something homemade?

How would you convert a wgp gun to .50 ?

[shooter311]

Meleager7 I actually messaged this seller about how they achieved this. It seems they didn't do it, but they said there was an insert put in the breach and the bolt was whittled down. Thats all the info I got.

I thought about designing an insert and bolt to 3d print and see if I can convert a cocker pump to 50 cal. It doesn't seem too difficult. Of course the 3d printed bolt can only withstand so many shots before coming apart (from my experience on cocker bolts I have made in the past.

[Meleager7]

.

Hey, being in Canada I cannot even message this seller on eBay. Could one of you guys message him, and ask how they did this .50 cal mod on a wgp gun? Thanks, M7

[MrKittyCatMeowFace]

I just did. Its pb sports who is selling it and they sell a lot of used stuff. They have tents at a lot of big game/scenario events and buy a lot of stuff off people there who want to get rid of their gear for cash. .

[Meleager7]

Thanks man!

[MrKittyCatMeowFace]

Meleager7 yeah just like i thought. Person brought in into them for cash, didn't tell them anything about it.

[DocsMachine]

Hi DocsMachine , can I pick your brain? How do you think they pulled off this .50 cal mod on this autococker? Would this be a kit from back 10 years ago? Or something homemade?

How would you convert a wgp gun to .50

-I can't say how that particular gun was converted, but it's worth noting that Bud originally offered the Sniper, as an option, as convertible in caliber. The trick was that the barrel had a long, extended breech hood, that filled the extra bore space in the bolt passage. Basically a sleeve attached to the barrel itself. Then the bolt was 'necked down' at the breech end to fit inside the barrel.

The only trick being that the sub-caliber barrels had to be fitted to that particular body- once the barrel was tightened into place, then the hole had to be bored through for the feed neck. That barrel would then be unlikely to fit any other body.

But, that said, you could do the same thing that Eclipse did with their conversion kits. Have a sub-caliber 'sleeve' that slides in from the breech, has a lip that rests on the inside of the barrel threads, and has a hole aligning with the feed neck.

On the Eclipse guns, the bolt, with its pin, would keep the sleeve vertical and thus in alignment. With a 'Cocker... hmmm... the ball detent would do it, but you'd need a custom, slightly extended one.

After that, it's just adding a fifty-cal barrel, readjusting the pressure or springs to get the right velocity, and a compatible hopper.

Doc.

[Arthur]

I got that .50 thang on me too

[Meleager7]

love that thing ! Looks like a Webley revolver !

[Rainmaker]

Are there .50 caliber stock class tubes out there?

[Brokeass_baller]

Only fat cigar tubes.

[chrislognshot]

yes it is i just hit half century at first of them month