Paintball Shell Thickness vs Shell Hardness: What Is the Difference?
A technical comparison of paintball shell thickness (dimensional property measured in inches, typically 0.030-0.038 inches, controlled by mold gap and injection pressure) vs shell hardness (material property measured on Shore A durometer scale, typically 45-65, controlled by gelatin bloom strength at 150-300 bloom and plasticizer content), explaining how they are independent properties that interact to determine break behavior, with a five-row interaction matrix showing all thickness/hardness combinations (thin+high = tournament grade with clean breaks, thin+low = deformation and bouncing not recommended, medium+medium = premium field grade balanced, thick+high = tough and bounce-prone for practice, thick+low = soft with barrel breaks not recommended), typical specifications by grade across five product types, and buyer specifications for OEM ordering including target thickness tolerance of +/- 0.002 inches and Shore A range.