Paintball Masks and Breathability: An Observation

I have always considered masks as one of the most important pieces of gear, and have always encouraged other players to invest in a high quality mask before purchasing a marker. However, it wasn't until this past weekend that I realized exactly how much of an impact masks can have.

Having recently acquired two new masks, I brought all three of my masks to the field to test them side by side. I had a pair of JT Proflexes, Empire Events, and Dye i4s. When using these masks separately, they seemed to perform quite similar. Having used my Proflexes numerous times, I started the day wearing my i4s. After a few games, I decided to switch to the Events.

What a difference! Although I had never noticed it before, the i4s were much easier to breathe in than the Events. I found myself moving much slower in snake as I breathed heavily while wearing the Events. I immediately switched back to the i4s for the next game, and had zero breathing issues while I crawled down the entire snake.

Although seemingly similar, that little bit of extra ventilation made wearing the i4s much easier to play in. I felt like sharing to remind players that you can play with a low end marker, but a low end mask will hold you back!

(Side note: The Proflexes breathe 100x better than the i4s and Events. I just don't like getting shot in the mouth!)