Can You Sell Paintball Guns on eBay?

So you have some paintball equipment you want to get rid of, and you’re not sure how or where. But if you have bought or sold anything on eBay, you might wonder if it’s possible to sell paintball guns on eBay?

You can sell paintball equipment on eBay since the site follows the ATFs definition of a firearm. Setting up an account is easy, and eBay ensures you will receive payment. However, eBay has high fees, so Craigslist and Paintball forums are two other possibilities for selling paintball guns.

Let’s walk you through what you can sell on eBay and how to go about it. You will also learn about a few other options for selling paintball guns and one large site that does not allow paintball sales.

What Is eBay’s Policy on Weapons and Firearms?

To understand why you can sell paintball guns and equipment on eBay, you should know how a paintball is classified—as a weapon, a gun, or a firearm.

According to the ATF, a paintball is not a firearm. To be classified as such, a “gun” would have to fire a projectile (in this case, the paintballs) via an explosive. A paintball is fired by a burst of a gas, such as nitrogen or carbon dioxide.   

Note: The AFT makes an exception about paintball guns—if you remove a ported barrel from a paintball marker, the barrel looks similar and reduces sound like a silencer. The AFT does not consider the barrel a firearm unless it has been cut from the marker. At that point, it concludes that removing the barrel shows a possible intention to use it as a silencer.

There are many paintball guns listed for sale on ebay
Use eBay’s search feature and you will find many hits under paintball guns or paintball markers. Unlike on Facebook, on eBay it is completely fine to sell paintball guns. If you look long enough you can even find some of the most accurate paintball guns for the fraction of a price.

What Is eBay’s Policy?

Here’s eBay’s policy on weapons:

“Firearms are not allowed. Listings for allowed firearm parts and accessories must follow strict guidelines.”

According to eBay’s policy, if a paintball gun were a firearm, it could not be sold on the platform. But your marker isn’t one, so according to their policy statement, you should be able to sell your paintball equipment. 

eBay states that federal and state laws prohibit the sale of firearms. However, they do allow certain firearm parts, including firing pins, cylinders, and trigger assemblies. Also, firearm ammunition and parts for assault weapons are prohibited.

Do People Sell Paintball Guns and Equipment on eBay?

Two kinds of paintball guns and accessories sales happen on the site: store and individual.  

A store is an authorized dealer that sells one or more brands. Zephyrsports, for example, sells Tippmann products, Azodin guns, and HP Army accessories. Most of their products are either new or closeouts, and they offer free shipping.

Individuals also sell paintball equipment. Use the search feature and type in paintball. Not only will you get results for paintball guns, but paintball markers, paintball gun packages, and a host of other results will be displayed.

Is It Easy To Sell on eBay?

You determine how easy it is to sell on eBay, based on how much you plan to sell and whether it’s a one-time sale or something you think you might want to do repeatedly.  

Much of the advice you will find on the internet seems geared toward people who want to make repeated sales and use eBay as a side hustle.

This article assumes that you have a paintball gun and a few accessories, like a mask, to sell.

Create an account and username. If you have not used eBay before, your username is always visible, and you are not required to use your full name as your username.

  1. Link your PayPal account. eBay requires that you have one to receive payments, and there’s no way around it. The good news: if you don’t have an account, the site makes it easy to create one in minutes.
  1. Decide on your profile details. It’s up to you to decide how much time you want to spend on this. You might want to spend a few minutes checking out profiles of other people selling paintball equipment. Setting up a profile can be as simple as adding a picture of yourself and adding a few words about yourself, but it might not be necessary.  
  1. Create the listing. You will see a Sell link on the upper left. Click on it, and eBay will guide you through the steps. It will make recommendations for any choices, including what to call it, the buying format, pricing, and shipping.  
  1. Upload some pictures. You probably don’t need professional photos, but maybe something a little more presentable than your paintball gun on an unmade bed. Take a couple of decent pictures with your camera, edit if you need to, and upload them. Warning: some eBay features come with a price tag, such as Gallery Plus.

When you decide on the price, you should add what eBay calls the “final value fee,” which is currently 14.35% of the total price. List your gun for $100, and you will receive eighty-five dollars and change.

Setting up an account and listing your items should not take you more than an hour. Setting a bidding deadline might be a good idea so you get a feel for if there will be any interest. So, yes, it is easy to sell on eBay. But it may be too expensive.

Video: How to Sell Stuff on eBay for Beginners and make the most money.

Are There Alternatives to eBay?

Some sellers find eBay’s fees high and therefore don’t even bother selling on the site. Let’s look at some alternatives.

Craigslist

Craigslist has similar prohibitions to eBay—no firearms, guns, or components, including pellet, stun, and spear guns. Ammunition, fireworks, and explosives are also prohibited. But there isn’t a specific mention of paintball guns, so you can assume you can sell them on the site.

Paintball equipment is easy to find on Craigslist. If nothing shows up in a search the first time, widen the distance from your zip and try different search words, like “paintball” or “paintball marker.”

Selling on Craigslist is much easier than on eBay. You do not need to set up an account, and posting an item is simple and straightforward.

Follow the on-screen prompts, add pictures, and then click on “publish.” You will receive a confirmation email. Open it, click the link to publish the post, and the item will be on the site.

You might need this email, so don’t trash it.

Etsy

Believe it or not, Etsy does not have a policy against the sale of paintball guns and equipment. The site prohibits the sale of guns, firearms, silencers, and ammunition. Realistic-looking imitation firearms are also forbidden.

However, unrealistic imitation firearms, such as toy guns, airsoft guns, and non-operational guns used for fantasy and cosplay, are allowed.

Setting up an Etsy store will take about the same amount of time as eBay, and you do not need a ton of products in your Etsy store. Also, Etsy charges a much lower 5% transaction fee.

All of that is good, but selling paintball equipment on the site does not make much sense because who looks for it on Etsy?

Facebook

Facebook Marketplace would be a great place to sell your paintball guns if only you could. However, Facebook does not allow the sale of paintball markers. The site lists what it considers a firearm, and included in that list are airsoft guns and paintball markers.

So does that mean no paintball guns are being sold through the site? People try to get around the rules in several ways, so if you want to take the risk, you can find articles and sites that can help you.

However, there is another way to sell your markers that might be easier and give you a better chance of getting top dollar.

Online Paintball Forums

Paintball forums are ideal. The members love paintball, are more serious about the game, and are more likely to give you top dollar. PbNation forum is one of the largest forums, but Paintballforum and the Reddit paintball community are also worth investigating.  

Although PBNation doesn’t take any fees for sales, they offer a 3rd party trade arrangement. The 3rd party is a middleman who ensures the product is legitimately what the seller claims. There is a small fee associated with this. If a buyer asks to do this, you should probably agree to it, especially if you have not done business on the site before.

Paintball Forum’s classifieds are not as active as they used to be, and Reddit is not geared toward sales, but you might be able to ask for tips on other ways to sell your used paintball equipment.

Bottom Line

You can sell Paintball guns on eBay as well as Craigslist and paintball forums. Creating a listing on Craigslist is the easiest, but you do not know who you are dealing with, and sales are limited by location. Paintball forums are a good choice, but they can be confusing for beginners. eBay listings are safe, and you are not limited to local sales, but the seller fees are high.

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