Anodizing Paintball Gun: Everything to Know

Want to customize your paintball marker and headgear? Anodizing is the way to go.

But how much does it cost and does it risk damaging the marker?

Anodizing your paintball marker is the process of depositing a protective oxide layer over the surface while adding appealing colors and patterns to it. Generally, anodizing a paintball marker can cost around $50 to $500, with custom personalization starting at around $200. Similarly, you can also anodize your headgear.

This article provides a detailed guide on anodizing your paintball marker and other accessories by going through the pros and cons of the process and discussing the factors that affect its cost.

In the end, the discusses alternate methods of customization and compares anodizing against hydro dipping.

MellowPine is reader-supported. When you buy through links on my site, I may earn an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you.

Anodizing Your Paintball Gun/Marker

Anodizing a paintball gun results in forming of an external protective oxide layer which significantly increases its durability and resistance to wear, while providing an option to add a customized design.

This layer prolongs the life of your paintball marker and makes it more resistant to abrasion, chipping, and fading.

Type 2 and type 3 anodization are commonly used for paintball markers as they provide excellent resistance to wear, even under harsh abrasive conditions.

Type 2 anodization creates a comparatively thinner yet more visually aesthetic oxide layer, rendering it preferable for various colors and designs.

Contrarily, type 3 anodization is a hard coating process resulting in a thicker and more durable oxide layer, which lasts much longer but provides less flexibility in terms of colors and textures for your paintball gun. 

Therefore, if visually appealing designs and patterns are desirable, type II anodizing is the way to go, whereas if durability and ling-life are desirable, type III anodizing is the right choice.

However, the anodizing process also has some disadvantages, which makes it important to analyze your requirement before proceeding with the process.

Pros	Cons
Durable	Expensive
Visually aesthetic	Irreversible
Design Variety	Not applicable on all metal surfaces
Long-lasting	-

Anodizing your paintball gun improves its durability, so you can use it in extreme environments like muddy or dusty terrain without worrying about wear and tear.

The visually appealing look of your paintball gun gives a sense of pride and a fascinating appearance overall.

Lastly, your paintball marker will last longer than usual, which can ultimately cut down on maintenance costs and the need to purchase a new one after intermittent periods of use.

On the other hand, this process is costly, especially from an individual standpoint, which can make it an unfeasible option for DIY users and hobbyists. 

Secondly, it is an irreversible option, meaning that once you anodize your paintball gun, you can not obtain its original form again without performing a complex anodization removal process.

Apart from aluminum surfaces, this process applies to some other metal surfaces like titanium, steel, and magnesium, but cannot be performed on metals like stainless steel, copper, silver, etc.

Therefore, it is important to ensure that your paintball marker and other accessories are made of suitable material that can undergo the colored anodizing process to obtain different colors.

How Much Will it Cost to Anodize your Paintball Gun?

The cost of anodizing paintball guns generally varies from $50 to $500.

Some service providers may charge hourly rates that usually vary from $50 to $200 per hour, depending on the type of customization required.

Selecting the right service provider for your paintball gun anodization is crucial so that all your requirements are adequately fulfilled.

Delivery time, cost, market reviews, experience, and customer service are key factors when selecting a service provider.

Outlaw Anodizing is one of the most popular anodizing service providers with vast experience in intricate and unique paintball marker customizations at reasonable prices.

Apart from selecting the right service provider, there are various other factors that you need to consider when estimating the cost of anodizing your paintball gun.

Size/Quantity of the Paintball Marker

The size of your paintball gun is a significant cost-deciding factor.

This means that the cost for larger paintball markers will be higher due to a larger surface area requiring anodization.

A small paintball handgun can cost about $50 to $100 to anodize, whereas a large rifle can cost up to $500 or even more.

Generally, every service provider has a minimum order cost of around $80 to $200. It is the minimum amount that you have to pay even if your anodizing bill amounts to less than that.

Therefore, it is always advised to anodize your orders in bulk, such as anodizing the paintball guns and headgear of the entire team in a single go.

Bulk orders bring down the overall cost of anodizing and provide you with an option to negotiate a good deal with the service provider.

However, anodizing different patterns on every gun is generally treated as separate orders and can increase the overall cost of anodizing.

Desired Finish of the Anodzied Layer

The desired quality of the surface finish also affects the overall cost of anodizing the paintball gun.

Apart from that, the thickness of the anodized coating also affects the cost, as a thicker coating costs more due to significantly higher material usage and time.

Simultaneously, for custom designs such as multi-color patterns, greater post-processing and a variety of dyes are required, raising the anodization cost.

A single-color coating with a Type 2 anodization is usually the cheapest.

Surface Preparation Required Before Anodizing

If your paintball gun initially has a worn-out, greasy, dirty surface, the surface preparation will be more prolonged and intensive, resulting in higher costs.

More intensive surface treatments like sanding, cleaning, or media blasting will be needed for a worn-out, dirty, uneven surface.

If a higher degree of surface preparation is needed, the labor rates will also be higher, raising the overall process cost.

Complexity of Design

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Outlaw Anodizing (@outlawanodizing)

The complexity of design can raise the cost due to higher labor rates resulting from the requirement of disassembling more parts for anodization and more significant subsequent raw material usage.

Specialized expertise will also be needed to achieve the required design with high precision, adding to the overall cost.

Generally, special customizations cost higher and can often start from around $200 for custom anodizing your paintball gun.

Customization Ideas for Your Paintball Markers

Anodizing your paintball accessories provide you with a variety of colors and patterns to choose from.

Solid Colors

Solid colors are most commonly used on paintball guns, mainly due to ease of availability and cheaper cost.

These are single-tone colors applied uniformly to the paintball gun’s surface, creating a uniform and smooth appearance.

Using single-color anodizing such as black anodizing, green anodizing, gold anodizing, or bronze anodizing significantly reduces the cost of anodizing while providing a durable coating.

Two-Tone

Two-tone colors are also popular as they create a contrasting outlook on your paintball gun, giving off an eye-catching look.

The frame and slide of the paintball gun are often anodized in different colors to create a two-tone look.

This color technique costs relatively more than a single color technique.

Fades

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Outlaw Anodizing (@outlawanodizing)

Fades involve blending two or more colors to create a gradually changing color pattern over the paintball gun surface.

However, it is comparatively more expensive and requires a controlled anodized coloring process to achieve a gradual color shift that is aesthetically pleasing and unique.

Multicolor Combinations

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Outlaw Anodizing (@outlawanodizing)

This technique involves applying different colors to the various parts of your paintball gun to create a randomized color pattern.

Although the process does not require a controlled process to achieve a gradual color shift, it is a labor-intensive process and requires dismantling the paintball gun to achieve different colors for each part.

It costs almost the same as a two-tone coloring technique but can cost higher for special customizations.

Personalized Customization

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Outlaw Anodizing (@outlawanodizing)

Personalizing your paintball gun with customized logos, designs, and text adds to its aesthetics while significantly increasing the cost of anodizing.

Generally, personalization is more costly than any other coloring option, as it involves using special techniques such as etching or masking the workpiece precisely along the required pattern to get the desired result.

However, it is an excellent technique to customize your gears and stand out from your competitors.

Is it Safe to Anodize Your Paintball Gun?

Generally, this process is safe in all aspects, but some degree of risk is involved.

Physical Aspect

The anodizing process requires dipping the paintball gun in an electrolyte solution through which an electric current flows. 

This process generates heat, and without a proper cooling mechanism, like a cooling jacket that surrounds the reaction vessel, your workpiece surface can deform due to warping or thermal stresses.

Chemical Aspect

The electrolyte should have a controlled concentration as a stronger solution can erode the paintball gun's surface.

Moreover, pitting, discoloration, and non-uniform coating may occur if the surface is not properly cleaned and treated before the anodization process.

Environmental Aspect

As this process emits significant heat and involves the use of a strong electrolyte solution, ensure that you use proper personal protective equipment like gloves, face masks, etc., to prevent accidents. 

Moreover, ensure that a proper cooling system is in place, as there is a risk of fire or explosion if the temperature of the reaction vessel becomes exceedingly high.

After completing the anodizing process, the electrolytic solution should be properly disposed to prevent environmental hazards.

Alternate Methods to Customize Paintball Accessories

Apart from anodizing your paintball gun and accessories, you can opt for laser engraving, CNC engraving, or hydro dipping to customize your gear.

Laser Engraving

Laser engraving uses highly-powered focused laser beams to remove material and etch designs, logos, or text onto your paintball gun’s surface.

This method can be done on a greater variety of metallic surfaces.

It is suitable for accurately making intricate and precise designs on your paintball gun.

However, it is costlier than anodization in terms of capital and running costs. 

With the advancement in technology, you can own small-size, affordable laser engravers for DIY customization projects.

It must be noted that fiber lasers are best suited if you want to engrave on the bare metal body of your paintball gun, whereas a diode laser or CO₂ laser can be used for engraving on powder-coated or anodized surfaces.

CNC Engraving

CNC engraving is another method of customizing your paintball gun by using a computer-controlled tool to engrave the desired shape.

Unlike laser engraving, it involves using a sharp cutting tool that removes the material from the surface of the workpiece, producing the desired engraving.

As a result, it is suitable for almost any type of material, provided that you use the right parameters as per the material you are engraving on, such as aluminum, steel, copper, etc.

Depending on your requirement, you can use a CNC router or a CNC mill to engrave your paintball guns.

Hydro Dipping

Hydro dipping, also known as water transfer printing, deposits patterns on a paintball gun's surface using water and a water-soluble film.

The film floats on top of the water's surface, and after dipping the paintball gun in it, it sits on the gun's surface and adheres to it permanently.

This technique is preferable for obtaining grain type or camouflage texture on the surface.

It is comparatively cheaper than anodization but provides relatively less durability.

Anodizing Paintball Gun vs Hydro Dipping Paintball Gun

Parameters	Anodizing Paintball Gun	Hydro Dipping Paintball Gun
Durability	Higher	Relatively lower
Life Time	Longer	Shorter
Customization Options	Higher	Lower
Risk of Damaging the Gun	Moderate	Minimal
Cost	Higher	Lower
Expertise and Availability	Lower	Greater

From a durability perspective, anodization results in a more durable external protective layer which is thicker than the thin film deposited in hydro dipping.

An anodic layer lasts much longer than a hydro-dipping film that may wear off gradually.

Anodization can produce various textures and color patterns, compared to hydro dipping, which indeed has a variety of colors and patterns, but provides comparatively fewer options.

However, unlike anodizing, hydro dipping does not risk any damage to the workpiece as it only involves using water and non-toxic dyes for the process.

Moreover, the anodization process is costlier than hydro dipping in terms of initial setup costs and running costs.

Apart from that, hydro dipping does not require any special equipment or expertise, whereas, for anodization, a skilled operator with a complex setup is required.

Final Thoughts

Anodizing your paintball gun can significantly improve its durability and visual appearance. 

However, it is important to select the right service provider with good knowledge about anodizing paintball markers.

Anodizing the marker with improper process parameters can lead to damaging the workpiece, making it important to ensure effective and safe anodization.

If cost is a significant hurdle, then you can opt for a cheaper alternative like hydro dipping, but for greater effectiveness and wider color and pattern options, anodization is the way to go.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How long does the paintball gun anodization process take?

The paintball gun anodization process can take up to a few hours to complete, depending on the size and complexity of the gun. Generally, it takes about 4 to 6 hours to complete. However, it can take much longer, depending on the type of finish required.

Can this process be performed at home?

Yes, this process can be performed at home with the correct equipment and training.

Is this method applicable to non-metallic surfaces?

No, this method is not applicable to non-metallic surfaces like wood or plastic. This process is specifically suitable for aluminum and other metals like magnesium and titanium.