Paintball Guns (Last Updated 04/04/2007)
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) staff supports voluntary standard activities related to paintball markers and associated equipment. Staff is participating in ASTM F08.24 subcommittee activities to develop performance and safety requirements. The subcommittee maintains several standards associated with paintball, including standards for paintball markers, paintballs, cylinder burst disk assemblies, barrel blocking devices, and eye protective devices.
CPSC staff is aware of three deaths for the time period 2002-2005 associated with paintball guns due to carbon dioxide (CO2) cylinders unexpectedly flying off when the cylinders were being removed from the guns. CPSC staff worked with ASTM to develop new performance standards to address this hazard.
For 2005, the majority of paintball gun-related incidents were eye and head injuries. CPSC staff is working with ASTM to develop and revise requirements for safety equipment to minimize the risk of injuries.
Additional Information
Safety Alerts:
Voluntary Standard and Code Activities:
ASTM F08.24 Paintball Subcommittee Meeting May 16-19, 2005
ASTM F08.24 Paintball Subcommittee Meeting May 19-20, 2004
Contact ASTM International:
For further information concerning standards associated with Paintball Markers, please contact Kathie Morgan at kmorgan@astm.org or ASTM International at http://www.astm.org
Contact CPSC
For additional information or to comment, please contact cpsc-os@cpsc.gov
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