A regulation paint ball with a small "blister" that contains the ingredient normally found in the glass tube part of a glowstick. There is a small tube attached to the blister on the inside of the ball with a tiny check valve. When you push the blister in,it causes the liquids to mix, making the paintball glow.
-- rascalraidex, Nov 17 2007

Glowstringing video http://www.youtube....watch?v=q2A1uh7ClKw
Basically to show the trace effects, even some in a lit room. [rascalraidex, Nov 17 2007]

Glow in the Dark Paintballs http://www.pain4glo...he-dark-paintballs/
A UV light is used to charge the paintballs and give them a bright healthy glow. [steam_cannon, Aug 01 2009]

Sounds good to me. However, I suspect that you need a pretty bright light to be able to follow a rapid movement in the dark - maybe brighter than a glowstick? Not sure.
-- MaxwellBuchanan, Nov 17 2007


Glowstick paintballs would eliminate the need to be in any type (other than dark) environment for the effect. I think that glowsticks would be bright enough to see traces. Maybe you could use ultra bright glowstick chemicals.I think they are cyalume(?).
-- rascalraidex, Nov 17 2007


I guess you wouldn't even need dark environments to see it necessarily.(link)
-- rascalraidex, Nov 17 2007


having chemicals added to paintballs may be potentially hazardous if they were to break on someone's mask and get in their mouth or eyes (although that is less likely). airsoft guns already have tracer rounds that are normal until exposed to an intense light that is ususlly in a mock silencer. i'm not sure how you could make this possible with paintball without making it hazardous, but i figured i'd let you know
-- aaron_winch, Jul 31 2009


//you need a pretty bright light to be able to follow a rapid movement in the dark //

Nonsense. Glowsticks at night would work just fine. We would spin a chem-light on 550 cord (rope) to mark the company assembly point on the drop-zone during airborne training operations.

//having chemicals added to paintballs may be potentially hazardous//

glow-sticks (chem-lights) are non-toxic. They taste terrible but they wont hurt you.
-- MikeD, Aug 01 2009


[+], by the way. The impact would be spectacular. This should be baked.
-- MikeD, Aug 01 2009


i was not aware that they were non-toxic. sounds good to me then.
-- aaron_winch, Aug 01 2009


I'd think that the "blister" could be made to break open either on impact just like the rest of the ball or upon firing for the aforesaid tracer effect. [+]
-- FlyingToaster, Aug 01 2009


Great idea.
-- danman, Aug 01 2009


It is a great idea and fully baked :)

I was going to suggest a lighted hopper and glow paint sprayed on the paint balls. But I googled and it looks like someone has what looks like an even better system then that. Fully developed and it even leaves the people glowing after they have been shot! See [link]
-- steam_cannon, Aug 01 2009


"It's his eyes. He cannit seeee."
-- ChewTheBeef, Aug 01 2009


The glow in the dark paintball requires a light source to charge them, such as a specialized hopper or barrel attachment. With the blister idea, you just push the ball and load it, and the chemicals involved would probably be cheaper to produce than the glow paint balls.
-- rascalraidex, Jun 21 2010


The blister idea requires a brittle inner capsule that might render some sharp edges on impact though. I've been hit in the face with the soft capsules and got a pretty good cut. (Lucky shot got under my face mask.)

Great idea, but on the subject of tracers in general remember: They work both ways. The enemy can see where you're firing from.
-- doctorremulac3, Jun 22 2010


//The blister idea requires a brittle inner capsule//

I was thinking more along the lines of like a catheter tube connected to the sidewall of the ball, running about midway into it, with a real thin membrane separating the chemicals. There would be a small blister on the outside, bulging slightly above the surface where the tube is. When you press down on the blister, the pressure breaks the thin membrane and mixes the chemicals together, producing the glow. With the catheter tube being a soft plastic, there would be no sharp edges, although it may sting a tiny bit more if you get hit directly by the blister.
-- rascalraidex, Jun 22 2010


Yea, that could work.
-- doctorremulac3, Jun 22 2010


//Great idea, but on the subject of tracers in general remember: They work both ways. The enemy can see where you're firing from//

That's why I think having impact-activated tracers is the way (especially for night matches). Make each ball with several weak membranes inside, so there's several pockets of both the base and the activator ingredient. Should rupture most if not all compartments on impact. You can probably still tell where you're shooting. Enemies get lit up when hit (thus attracting more fire).
-- Custardguts, Jun 22 2010


[above is what you get when you leave the annotate screen up for several hours while you pontificate on with actal "work" - and someone writes basically the same idea in the meantime]
-- Custardguts, Jun 22 2010


I guess those would be point of impact markers, not so much tracers, but I think that's the real appropriate application of this idea.

First you have no issues with a brittle capsule inside. Soft inside pops at the same time as the soft outside and mixing of the respective contents would instantaneous and thorough.

The fun part is, you wouldn't be limited to light emitting chemicals, you could have smoke and sound as well. Explosion sounds would be dangerous without ear protection but no more than getting hit in the eye without eye protection. I know they sort of do this now for movies but the addition of the part a/b light chemical could really add to the effect.

Then of course, you could put hypergolic substances in the two chambers and have a stand off flame thrower that wouldn't ignite until it hit it's target. Wouldn't want to be the guy in charge of carrying the ammo for one of those though. "Oops, foowooshBLAMMO!"

I suppose you could keep the substances in separate balls in separate containers then just shoot them out a double barrel affair where they mix by arriving at the same point of impact at the same time.

I think flame throwers are against the law though. What a hassle.
-- doctorremulac3, Jun 23 2010


I don't think there are any current federal laws against owning flamthrowers, and I think only like 10 states make any mention of them being illegal. Hell, even a minigun made before 1986 is legal to own if you have a class 2 permit. =D

I was kinda thinking of the cool visual effect the glowballs would make while whizzing by, almost like a laser rifle. I was also thinking that with the blister, just pushing through the barrel of the gun would cause it to start the glow, so you could even just load the hopper with some and go.
-- rascalraidex, Jun 25 2010



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