Having the best paintball hopper is one of the strategies you can use, to improve your marksman performance. The best paintball hopper doesn’t have to be expensive; you can get one for under 100$.
A good hopper does more than improve your accuracy. It gives you firing reliability because it will prevent jamming and breaking up of paint.
Electronic Vs Gravity Fed Hopper
Gravity loader
This type of paintball hopper relies entirely on gravity to feed the balls into the firing chamber of the gun.
A gravity loader often lacks the dependability to always load paintball when required. Which can really affect your performance at a tournament.
The delay happens because you have to agitate the hopper. Which can happen manually or after a recoil.
Electronic loader
This hopper has a built-in motor that agitates the paintballs to facilitate easier loading. The electronic loader main advantage over the gravity loader, is the ability to provide a consistent and reliable loading.
As long as your electronic loader has paintballs in it, you can be sure there is a ball in the firing chamber.
But just like its counterpart, these hoppers have their downsides; they are expensive, and heavy compared to the gravity loaders.
6 Best Paintball Hopper
Paintballing is an effective sport and outdoor recreation activity. We are going to list the hoppers that we believe offer the best value for your money.
Dye LT-R Electronic Paintball Hopper
Key Features
- Tool-less disassembly
- 200 ball capacity
- 30+ balls per sec. fire rate
- 1.05-lbs weight
- Jam release trigger
- LED indicator On/Off feature
- Water resistant coated board
Dye R2 Electronic Paintball Hopper
Key Features
- 30+ balls per second and up to 100,000 shots on 3 AAA batteries
- 20% larger mouth design for a reliable feed
- Reload Alert System and low battery indicator
- Shark Fin Jam release trigger
- selectable 200/260 rounds.
- Adjustable paint tension
- Weights 1.1-lbs
Empire Paintball Halo Too Hopper
This is the cheapest electronic loader available on our list. The hopper comes with a lightweight build that results from a polycarbonate shell. Which is able to withstand the hardest of hits. Despite its low price, the loader offers outstanding performance. Making it an easy pick for most paint shooters.
Key Features
- 20+ BPS firing rate
- 180 ball capacity
- Low battery indicator
- Ultra-quiet belt drive, sound-activated feeding
- Freeway anti jam mechanism
- Polycarbonate shell
- Weighs 1.32-lbs
Bunkerkings CTRL Electronic Paintball Hopper
Key Features
- 200 round capacity
- Angle indicator
- 3 AAA batteries
- Magnetic tray and ball raceway
- weighs o.9-lbs
- 90 day warranty
HK Army TFX 3.0 Paintball Hopper
Besides having the good looks and a variety of colors available. The HK Army TFX 3.0 offers remarkable quality and performance. The hopper features a soft-touch paddle system to enable a consistent feed rate. It has a 180-ball standard capacity expandable to 230 balls with the use of an expansion ring.
Key Features
- 22+ BPS Firing rate
- Rechargeable 2.0Ah battery
- 180/230 ball capacity
- Water resistant electronics
- USB charging port with cable included
- Effective anti jam feeding
- 1.8-lbs in weight
- Lazer Breaker Beam Eye Sensor to signal low loading
Proto Primo Paintball Hopper(Gravity Loader)
This is a budget paintball hopper that costs sub-50$. It’s suitable for beginners to mid-level, skilled persons. The budget price might fool you, but this gravity loader is very effective.
Compared to other gravity loaders this one relies only on a slight agitation. This is because it features a primo loader. That helps sort and funnel the balls as you shoot for a consistent vertical feed.
key Features
- Clear spring loaded lid for easy reloading
- 200 ball capacity
- 0.15-lbs in weight
- 8 BPS firing rate
- Positive shelf designed to relieve pressure on paint balls
Best paintball Hopper- Buying Guide
Let’s look at what you should consider when shopping for a paintball hopper.
1. Skill level
We all have different paintball skills, depending on the experience we’ve had with the gun. It would be wise to save the money required to get an expensive hopper that your skill level doesn’t match. There are 3 types of skill levels to consider when shopping for a hopper;
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Beginner
Mostly uses the paintball for fun and recreation. The hoppers used by beginners are simple lightweight and inexpensive likely sub-50$. A beginner doesn’t require an electronic feeder, a manual one is just fine.
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Mid-level
This denotes enough skills, to occasionally participate in competitive tournaments. The skill level requires a better-equipped, and more advanced hopper. Ideally the unit should comprise of; electronic loading, a moderate capacity and a higher feed rate.
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Professional
For professional tournaments, get a professional hopper. A professional unit is better in all capabilities; feed rate, paintball capacity, and consistency. It has a powerful motor, antijam mechanisms, and various integrated sensors.
2. Size and weight.
If you feel your hopper is too heavy for you. It will most likely affect your performance. It’s fitting to consider a hopper with a moderate capacity just sufficient for a round of firing.
3. Firing rate
If you have a fast trigger finger, consider acquiring a hopper that matches up to your speed. A slower firing rate ranges from 8- 12 balls per second. A moderate firing rate ranges from 20-30 balls per sec. While the highest firing rate is 30+ balls per sec.
5. Paintball capacity
This defines the amount of paintball that your hopper can hold. Ideally consider a hopper that can hold enough balls to complete a round of challenge. Higher-capacity models can hold greater than 250 paintballs. With smaller ones able to hold 200 paintballs or less.
6. Ease of use
Get a hopper that is easy to load, install, and adjust the required settings. An easy-to-use hopper should be favored because it saves you time.
7. Warranty
Consider a hopper with a warranty because it stresses on the durability. Even for a short warranty period, you will be able to obtain useful solutions from customer care.
FAQs
Q:How do I safely carry a paintball hopper?
It’s not illegal to carry a paintball hopper. You can safely put it in a protective bag and move it to wherever you want.
For those who are more protective of their equipment. There are specially designed cases meant to carry the hopper disassembled. Inside the case we have spaces, meant to fit every disassembled component separately.
Q:How do I maintain a paintball hopper?
Always disassemble the hopper carefully to avoid losing parts. Clean up any paint left after a game, and properly store the equipment to avoid any external damage
Conclusion
We are confident that the information we have provided will help you get that suitable hopper for your requirement.
Your favorite hopper may not be on our list. But you can be sure this guide will provide you with the right tips. To use when getting your next hopper.