Best Paintball Sniper Rifle in 2021 – Great Long Shot!
You don’t normally associate snipers with paintball. Most paintball players get a high from raining paint down on opponents, usually after an ambush. But then, there are those who use paint like gold, caressing the trigger only when they know they can absolutely make it count. There’s nothing more satisfying than a long-range shot, from maybe 125 to 150 feet out, after factoring in arch, projectile shape and wind, and still nailing your unsuspecting opponent. If you are one of those meticulous and disciplined snipers, this post is dedicated to you, to help you find the best paintball sniper rifle out there.
Now, before we get started, please understand that there isn’t a lot of choices for out-of-the-box sniper rifles in paintball. But, there are a few legendary paintball rifles that the best snipers in paintball swear by. That’s exactly what we shall cover now.
Our Top Picks In 2021:
Dye Dam Assault Matrix First Strike (Best Selling Paintball Sniper Rifle) – Buy Now
The Dye DAM Assault Matrix is a ridiculously brilliant paintball sniper rifle. It’s pricey, yes. But, when you look at what it can do, the price feels just about right! Here’s a run down of its features.
It shoots both First Strike paintballs as well as regular paintballs. Of course, if you want to snipe, First Strike is the way to go. It can take magazine fed paintballs or a special Dye rotor magazine type feed system. It can also accommodate a conventional top loader. The magazine or Dye rotor feed system when scoping out lurking opponents allows you a clean look down the sights, even if you are wearing the clumsiest of paintball masks.
Choice of barrel is a two-piece 14′ barrel that is very, very accurate, even at ranges over 125 feet.
We love the Dye Dam Assault Matrix so much that we wrote a very long review about it here.
What’s Good
- Shoots First Strike paintballs, with high accuracy, even at 125+ feet plus
- Flick a switch to toggle between loader and magazine feed
- Ambidextrous and suits both left and right handed snipers
- Heavily mod-friendly, with almost 2 feet of picatinny rails to slap accessories on it
- Gas through frame that allows for a clean sniping profile
- Comes with a very rugged sniper looking case
What’s Bad
- Expensive! It’s worth the price. But, expensive nonetheless!
- Doesn’t work with CO2. But, if you are a sniper, you probably don’t use C02 anyways. Compressed air is the way to go!
If you want a paintball sniper rifle that is just badass in both performance and looks, simply go for the Dye Dam with your eyes closed. If your sniping talents match the performance capabilities of this gun, you are going to become a sniping legend wherever you play, with this beast in your hands.
Buy the Dye DAM Assault Matrix Paintball Sniper Rifle Here!
First Strike FS T15 (Best Affordable Paintball Sniper Rifle) – Buy Now
The First Strike FS T15 is strikingly similar to the famed AR Rifle. Built out of solid cash aluminum, this feels like the real deal in your hands. It can shoot First Strike rounds, a must have for snipers or also regular .68 caliber paintballs.
It actually even disassembles like the AR 15, collapsing in the middle when you release a latch. Pretty cool stuff. The T15 comes with two magazines that you can load up with First Strike Rounds. You can shoot 20 first strike rounds before having to reload, flip a switch or swap out a magazine. That’s more than enough ammo for a paintball sniper to do some serious damage!
What we really love about the T15 is the air tank built into the stock of the gun. Could it get cooler than that. This isn’t some impractical tank either. There’s 3000 psi worth of air in there. Not having to deal with a remote line when sniping is something that you will really, really love when you use this paintball sniper rifle.
What’s good
- Looks like the AR 15, feels like the AR 15. The meanest looking sniper rifle out there!
- In-built air tank in the stock, eliminating clumsy remote line setup
- Shoots both First Strike and .68 caliber paintball
- Magazine fed and hopper fed
- Super Mod-Friendly! There’s a ton of AR 15 like upgrades out there!
What’s bad
- First strike rounds are a bit expensive to shoot. But, they are accurate and you don’t have to spray
If you want the coolest looking First Strike compatible paintball sniper rifle out there, it doesn’t get better than the T15.
Empire Paintball Pump Sniper Rifle (Pump Instead of Bolt Action Paintball Sniper Rifle) – Buy Now
This gun is a massive hit with paintball snipers out there. What most paintball snipers crave is a bolt action paintball sniper rifle that they can cock each time they take a very calculated shot. It gives snipers an euphoric feeling of making their precious shots count.
Unfortunately however, unless you have a heavily modded out gun that you have personally welded a bolt type cocking mechanism onto, a pump action sniper rifle is the closest thing you can settle for. And this Empire sniper rifle does that brilliantly. It also saves you a ton of paint. Unlike electronic markers that can have you spraying paint, a pump action paintball sniper rifle like this lets you earn your sniping credentials, while continuously honing your skills, each time you play with it.
This sniper rifle is so popular out there that Empire have released kits to change out the appearance of this rifle, since it comes only in a single black color. Despite a retro pump action type loading mechanism, this paintball sniper gun is a tournament pedigree rifle. It works on very low pressure and features a 2 piece 14′ barrel that puts out impressive and more importantly, accurate firing range.
It comes with three barrel inserts, supporting paintball with .675, .680 and .685 specs.
What’s good
- Pump action resembles a bolt action paintball sniper rifle
- Very, very accurate rifle, with excellent range
- Barrel upgrades available
What’s bad
- Not a true bred bolt action paintball sniper rifle
- Hopper fed and not magazine fed
- Slightly pricey at about $380
Tippmann X7 Phenom + Tippmann Flatline Barrel (Longest Range Paintball Sniper Rifle) – Buy Now
The Tippmann X7 is a phenomenal gun. Available in both mechanical and electronic types, the Phenom boasts an impressive 150 feet range with just its stock barrel. Add the high performance Flatline barrel from Tippmann and you are easily looking at even about 200 feet to take out a target.
We have written an in-depth review of the Tippmann X7 here.
Now, about the barrel. The Flatline barrel specifically designed for the X7 Phenom was specifically created to add at least 100 feet of range. This translates to about 50 extra feet to the 125 feet that the X7 can shoot with just a stock barrel.
Flatline barrels from Tipmann use patented technology that adds heavy backspin to paintballs as they leave the barrel. The result is paint holding more velocity and trajectory for longer, key requirements for sniper kills. Installing this sniper barrel is super easy, taking you all of a couple of minutes.
Tippmann X7 Phenom Sniper Combo
Gun = Tippmann X7 Phenom ($299)
Barrel = Tippmann X7 Flatline Barrel (+$49.95)
Suggested Red Dot Sight = Trinity Aluminum Reflex Red Dot Sight (+$24.95)
Suggested Scope = Trinity 4 x 32 MILDot Scope Sight (+$39.95)
What’s good
- Remarkable gun in the X7 phenom
- X7 is highly modifiable
- 250 feet effective range
What’s bad
- Moderately expensive
- Barrel can break paint if gun isn’t maintained properly
- Hopper fed and not magazine fed
First Strike Tiberius Arms T 9.1 Sniper Rifle (Most Accurate & Longest Range Paintball Sniper Rifle) – Buy Now
The Tiberius Arms T 9.1 is a roguish legend in the world of paintball sniping. What immediately sets it apart from all the other paintball sniper rifles discussed in this post is that the rifle can shoot first strike paintballs. In case you did not know, first strike paintballs are not fully spherical. They are rounded in the front while the rear is cylindrical. This aerodynamic shape gives them incredibly improved range and accuracy. Because they have to be loaded with the spherical direction facing front, they can only be magazine fed and not hopper fed. By the way, this gun shoots regular paintballs as well.
Most paintballers, especially paintball snipers who try First Strike paintball sniper rifles like the Tiberius 9.1 never go back to regular paint. Who can blame them? They are just phenomenally more accurate. If you can nail a target 5/10 times with regular paint, there’s a good chance that a gun like the Tiberius Arms 9.1 that can shoot First Strike paint can let you hit that same target 8 or 9 times out of ten.
Yes, that’s how accurate these rifles are, when firing First Strike paint. The rifle with the stock barrel costs about $340 and doesn’t include any extras. You will have to pick out scopes and sights separately.
This marker is mag fed, meaning you don’t have to deal with that ugly hopper that restricts your line of sight down the sights! You can also attach a hopper for regular paintball if you wish! But, nobody who buys the Tiberius T 9.1 ever uses a hopper as the magazine feed just gives them a great looking and also very functional and ergonomic sniping rifle.
This paintball sniper rifle can use 3 different types of air sources and the user can switch between mag-fed and hopper fed feeding with just a toggle of a switch.
What’s good
- Super long range and super accurate (Thanks to First Strike Paint)
- Mag-Fed and also hopper feed capable
- Adjustable stock
- Shroud rail allows for heavy modding
What’s bad
- First Strike paint is a lot more expensive than regular paint
- Requires a bit of careful maintenance if you don’t want to break balls
Best Paintball Sniper Rifle – Important to Remember
Please remember that most paintball fields will not allow you to shoot faster than a particular speed. 285 feet per second is about standard in most playing venues. If you are shooting faster, you will eventually get thrown out. Why this is important to remember when it comes to paintball sniper rifle is that there is absolutely no point to buying more expensive guns that shoot faster. Since 285 feet per second sort of levels the speed, there is essentially no difference between a paintball sniper and a regular paintball player. The only thing you can play around with is the barrel to get some extended range. That is why we have mostly suggested barrel upgrades for fairly mainstream paintball guns. Of course, only the Tiberius Arms 9.1 is very different because it shoots First Strike paintballs. With a projectile shape, they will obviously go farther than a regular paintball, giving you an edge as a sniper. But, please make sure that the paintball venue you frequent allows First Strike paintballs to be used!