UW Paintball

[CBulla]

First, this is just a personal opinion, not a researched fact from the command:
1. Paint balls will crush at depth, plus the gelatin would disolve in the water. So strike that. Plus they'd travel about a foot and a half...maybe
2. Best option 1: Lazer tag. Would have problems in turbid water though.
3. Option 2: A gun that fires small "toypedo" style projectiles. water pressure and cavitation will keep anything from traveling very far/well, so you need something that will corkscrew through the water like those toys.
4. Option 3: As mentioned, some kind of blunt tip for a spear gun, however its flight characteristics will be impacted by the need to make it blunt enough that it doesn't harm the diver....
Just my two cents.

May I present Baldar Blunts - This is something a few of us ScubaBoarders with another backround in history (Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc.) know about and some even experienced either shooting (me!) or getting hit (many people, JustJoe even!)!

For kicks, I've tried dinking with a ball in the water. You need considerable pressure and rifling to get the round little ball do anything.

 

[PhishMan]

Since paintballs are filled with oil they shouldn't crush at depth, but the gelatin coating will deteriorate underwater.

I know tippmann's can shoot underwater (YouTube - Tippmann A5 RT shooting underwater) so it may be possible. But actually getting them to go anywhere may be the biggest problem. The paintballs need to break!

Me and a couple of my buddies are going to test this new sport once it gets a little warmer. but rigging up a paintball gun to shoot clips of miniture versions of those underwater torpedo toys isn't a bad idea either.

 

[ScottB]

First.. i think the vast majority of people who would want to try this, are the same people who walk and dangle on the reef.... That aside..

I remember a radio control submarine that fired compressed CO2 filled torpeedos...

 

[CBulla]

First.. i think the vast majority of people who would want to try this, are the same people who walk and dangle on the reef.... That aside..

I remember a radio control submarine that fired compressed CO2 filled torpeedos...

Wow, thats a generalization thats almost hints that this is a machisimo grande style sport concept that should have bronze boots and diving helmets group of divers looking for something to spice up trapsing around the ocean bottom. It could be true.. but that aside....

Reefs, naw thats to easy, messy and would terrorize the lobster and spearable fish to much? Dark water gator and cotton mouth filled lakes, thats more sporting!

 

[ScottB]

eh, just remembering some bad scenes I witnessed from afar in Bonaire... makes me sad to see things hurt...

 

[defied]

Adding my two cents here.

Paintballs will not crush at depth, but their spherical shape will not allow them to travel at depth either.

The air pressure behind shooting the paint would also be fairly inefficient.

You may want to consider starting old school, with a sling shot. If you could design a fast loading semi flexible spear shaft, attach it to a recovery reel, and roll around single shooting fools, that would be a great start.

Moving on to a spinning, spiral "drill" type paint encasing and something that would shoot that way would be a good next logical step. Or fashioning some reel attached payload delivery device.

 

[Underwater Ogre]

I love this...
Ever had a Roman candle fight? Why couldn't you use expired marine flares? You get 3 shots in one pull.

Good luck,

U/O

 

[slingshot]

Shkval.

 

[art-shark]

Not sure if people are still paying attention to this thread as it is rather old
but what about biodegradable torpedo bb's and some sort of pistoly crossbowy thingy???

just throwing it out there...

 

[Underwater Ogre]

I think some R&D money and some victims...I mean test subjects...lol