Paintball is an up and coming sport, as of now its being Televised on WGN and ESPN2. So I think it is worthy of a grand guide for those ranging in tournament play to woodsplay and from your beginers to your experts. I'm going to break this down into three simple steps.

1.Before hand research the marker via a paintball marker review site. Make certain you are bidding on sometihng you know enough about. When searching for a marker be sure to be general in your first search to see if theres  more of a variety of that brand. (Ex. Type "Tippmann Paintball" rather than "Tippmann 98 custom") But, if you are for certain what model youd like and know the brand that makes that model then you should be specific on what brand and model of the marker you want
(Ex. "Tippmann 98 Custom", "Infamous Intimidator", or "Spyder Electra")

2. Theres that nifty little button on the item screen called "ask seller a question".....USE IT!! Theres nothing worse than not knowing enough about the history of an item and what condition its in. Be very inquisitive. Paintball markers vary in price, but either way you would definetly want to know what condition your marker is in.

3.Read the description thoroughly. Alot of times you see a great deal and then you just rush into buying things. A lot of eBay sellers have begun using this trick that says you get a awesome marker for say, $20.00, but its actually just a link to a site that sales them cheaper as in wholesale. Another thing is that the tags seller put on can lead you to the wrong marker you want. (Ex. you search "Tippmann" and a Bob Long Intimidator comes up that in the description states "NOT DYE,TIPPMANN, ION, SPYDER,") Alot of times you can be misled, but it can be avoided by simply reading and knowing what you want.

Above are three simple steps to getting the paintball marker you want. Follow them and use common sense. If you do you'll end it with what you want. Remember though, when playing paintball always wear all the protective gear you need.