FYI: Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, we earn a commission if you click through and purchase.
Paintball shotguns are a bit of a newcomer to the paintball scene. They are specialized for games that have will have you up close and personal to your opponents. The best paintball shotguns are designed to be low impact. The reason for this is that these guns are made to be used at closer ranges. Whereas normal paintball guns have a much higher velocity in order to reach much further targets.
Most paintball shotguns use a smaller .50 caliber paintball compared to normal .68 caliber paintballs. Many people use paintball shotguns for practical purposes, such as scaring off unwanted pests without causing them any harm. Although their main purpose is to be used in paintball games.
Paintball shotguns are popular amongst beginners and anyone wanting to enter the sport. Another great feature of paintball shotguns is their cost. Most models are a fraction of the cost of traditional paintball guns. Their maintenance and upkeep are minimal compared to regular paintball guns.
Even as a beginner gun, the best paintball shotguns will have the versatility and effectiveness of more traditional paintball guns. There are several different kinds of paintball shotguns that are old in design and simply do not get the job done. Without much relevant or helpful information available online, finding the best paintball shotgun for your money can be time-consuming. No need to worry, we have gathered a list of the best paintball shotguns available right now.
Best Paintball Shotguns 2019
| Preview | Product | |
|---|---|---|
 | JT SplatMaster Z200 Shotgun, Red | Check Price |
 | Valken Gotcha Paintball Shotgun - 50 Cal (Blue) | Check Price |
 | Valken Gotcha Paintball Tactical Shotgun - 50 Cal - Red | Check Price |
1. JT SplatMaster Z200 Shotgun – Short and Compact Feel
The JT SplatMaster is a tactical pistol grip style paintball shotgun. Short in length, but sharp with its bite.
Weighing in at just above two-pounds, the Z200 fires .50 caliber paintballs at an effective range of 100 ft.
This pump-action shotgun holds up to 15 paintballs at a time. To load the Z200, there is a trap door on the top shotgun just in front of the Picatinny rail. One great feature is that the Splatmaster is spring-loaded, so no need for CO2 tanks. With this being intended for younger users, parents do not need to worry about filling up CO2 tanks on a regular basis. Users can just load up, cock the shotgun and shoot.
This model comes with a target so you can perfect your marksmanship before heading into a game. A squeegee is also provided to clean the barrel and keep your paintball shotgun shooting straight. And then you get the SplatMaster itself. The SplatMaster also has a 9 mm rail so you can add scopes or any other desired attachments.
The frame of the Z200 is made from plastic and with the absence of CO2 and O-rings, maintenance levels for this paintball gun are low. This gun is intended to be an entry-level paintball shotgun, so keeping it simple is a nice touch.
The Z200 is one of the best paintball shotgun because of its low impact capabilities. Making it great for beginners with its lower velocity. Low impact paintball guns are popular amongst kids because being struck is much less painful and are generally safer to use. Click here to see the best price.
- Spring-loaded so no CO2 needed
- Great entry-level paintball shotgun
- Low maintenance and durable
- Low cost
- Low velocity, paintballs only travel 50 to 100 ft.
2. Valken Gotcha Paintball Shotgun – Lightweight and Tactical
The Valkan paintball shotgun is another great entry-level paintball shotgun. With a sturdy pump-action to load, the Gotcha is one of the best paintball shotguns available. No need to worry about filling up air tanks, the Gotcha is spring loaded, this means no CO2 or compressed air needed.
This will reduce the cost of using your paintball gun significantly over its lifetime.
The Gotcha shotgun also uses a 120 round hopper to feed paintballs into the chamber. With a higher capacity than other paintball shotguns, users can send more rounds downfield without needing to re-load. With a max speed of 140 feet per second, this is a truly low impact shotgun. That said — even with a lower velocity — this gun shoots straight and is surprisingly accurate. To shoot the paintball shotgun you cock it and pull the trigger. Only one paintball can be loaded in the chamber at a time. So if you are planning on having multiple rounds fly down range you will be let down.
Not much upgrading can be done to this paintball shotgun, but there is a Picatinny rail that sits atop the receiver so you can mount sights or scopes. The only other upgrades you can make are to the hop-up unit. The hop-up unit creates backspin on the paintball which then creates lift to carry the paintball further. Two additional hop-up units ship with your Splatmaster, which will adjust the amount of backspin. These are easy to install and does not require tools to make modifications.
Weighing in at 2-pounds, the Gotcha can be carried durations with little to no fatigue. With higher capacity and lightweight, this is one of the best paintball shotguns on the market. Click here to see the best price.
- The hopper holds up to 120 paintballs,
- more than an average shotgun
- Lightweight and easy to carry
- Low impact paintball shotgun
- Hopper has to be purchased separately
- Effective range is lower than other spring-loaded shotguns
3. Valkan Gotcha Tactical Paintball Shotgun – Long and sleek profile
The Valkan Tactical paintball shotgun is a variant of the original Gotcha shotgun. The Gotcha Tactical is one of the best paintball shotguns on the market. The tactical version is equipped with an adjustable stock that improves handling and accuracy.
The stock can be removed leaving users with a pistol grip paintball shotgun. This ability to transform from a sporty and short gun to a longer more tactical one adds to the value of this shotgun. It has all of the same features as the base Gotcha paintball shotgun.
This paintball gun comes with a couple of accessories. The first is a barrel plug. This is important in preventing accidental discharge and potential injury. The second accessory is a hopper adaptor. The hopper is not part of the kit and must be bought separately. The gun is compatible with a 120 round hopper that is attached to the top of the paintball gun. Be sure to buy a .50 caliber hopper, not the standard .68 caliber.
The Gotcha Tactical is a pump-action paintball shotgun, so with every pump, one .50 caliber paintball can be fired. You can attach scopes and sight to the Picatinny rack that sits just in front of the rear sight. This is a low impact paintball shotgun, so major welting will not be a problem.
The tactical version of the Gotcha gives you the same quality of the original with added accuracy. Click here to see the best price.
- The tactical stock improves accuracy
- Low impact projectiles
- Durable plastic body with aluminum barrel
- High capacity hopper sold separately
- The molded plastic barrel cannot be replaced if damaged
- Those are the three best paintball shotguns available right now. Now that you know your options, you may still have a few questions.
Why should you use a paintball shotgun?
There are several reasons why a paintball shotgun may be the best option for you or your family. The biggest draw is the fact that these paintball shotguns are low impact paintball guns.
Paintball can be an intimidating sport, and the thought of you or your kids jumping into a game can be frightening. The average speed of a traditional paintball gun is about 280 feet per second, with an effective range of 150 ft or more. The pressure released in traditional paintball guns is around 850 psi. When a player is hit with one of these paintballs it can be quite painful. Some equate it to being stung by a bee. The speed and impact of a paintball often leave players with welted and broken skin. For beginners, or parents with children interested in paintball, these facts alone may scare them away.
With paintball shotguns, the velocity of the paintball is much lower. The pressure released from a low impact paintball gun is about 150 psi, considerably lower than that of a traditional paintball gun. Although with many paintball shotguns you do not need to worry about air pressure. The shotgun paintball guns we have on our list are all spring-loaded rather than gas fed.
Now that we know how low impact paintball guns work, let’s talk about their advantages. There are multiple reasons why using a low impact paintball shotgun is the best option for you or your family. To start, the low impact of a paintball shotgun lessens the pain considerably when struck. The pain, when hit with a low impact shotgun, is like a small pinch. Considerably less painful than a normal paintball gun. The issues of welting are not as present but are not completely gone. If you wear the proper clothing, as we specify in our guide on what to wear when playing paintball, you can avoid most pain or welts all together.
With less pain and intimidating speeds, low impact paintball does a better job of retaining players. Low impact is marketed to all age groups, including young kids. It is a great introduction to the world of paintball that can open people up to a new hobby. In fact, there are more low impact paintball fields opening up year to year. Increasing the accessibility to the sport of paintball.
Another advantage to low impact paintball guns they cause less of a mess. With smaller paintballs, there is less paint smeared on you or your kid after a long day of paintball.
So you may be wondering what makes a paintball gun low impact. Again there are a couple of reasons for this. First, let’s start with the type of paintballs that are used.
An average-sized paintball is .68 caliber. Low impact shotguns and paintball guns use .50 caliber paintballs. The surface area is significantly smaller of low impact paintballs. With less mass these paintballs carry far less energy reducing speed and pain. The second difference lessening the impact in paintball shotguns, specifically the paintball shotguns on our list, is that they are pump action.
What is pump action?
The best paintball shotguns will be pump action for a couple of reasons. For one, it feels great to load a paintball in the chamber by raking the shotgun. The clunk noises are satisfying, and some might say empowering. We have seen it in countless movies, the hero says his or her monologue, they pause and cock their shotgun. You yourself can feel the satisfaction when you buy one of these models.
So how does that benefit the low-impact qualities of a low impact shotgun? The short answer is when you pump the shotgun it pulls back the spring, hence the name spring-loaded. When the spring pulls back it pulls a plunger with an O-ring along with it and locks it in place. The O-ring creates a seal trapping a pocket of air between the plunger and a paintball. When the user pulls the trigger the spring shoots the plunger forward forcing air outward very quickly. The only way for the air to escape is to push the paintball out of its way through the barrel. The pressures released by a spring-loaded shotgun are much lower than paintball guns that use gas as a propellant. Making pump action paintball shotguns the best option for low impact paintball play.
FAQs
Can a paintball shotgun shoot more than one paintball at a time?
Yes and no. The models we have on our list only shoot one paintball at a time. This makes them more efficient and accurate. There are some models that can shoot multiple paintballs but have been found to be unreliable.
Do I need batteries to use paintball shotguns?
No, none of the paintball shotguns we have listed require batteries.
Do I still need a mask since my gun is low impact?
Yes, even though these are low impact, they can cause injury to eyes if not properly protected.
