Admin: Create Bruce Roberts article documenting his work at Perentie Paintball, development of the Badger and Viper, custom equipment projects and death in March 1996.

2026-10-26T08:55:55Z

Create Bruce Roberts article documenting his work at Perentie Paintball, development of the Badger and Viper, custom equipment projects and death in March 1996.

New page

'''Bruce Roberts''' was an Australian paintball marker designer and machinist associated with [[Perentie Paintball]]. He developed the [[Perentie Badger]] and built custom markers, including the double-barrel [[Perentie Viper]]. He died on 26 March 1996.[1][2][3][4]

== Paintball equipment development ==

Roberts worked with Darren Hayes at Perentie Paintball in Seville, Victoria. A contemporary review described him as a qualified fitter and turner who also held the Australian Army trade qualification of armament fitter.[1]

The company's Badger marker used a blow-forward mechanism and was developed primarily for the rental market. Reviewer Mike Wallis examined a prototype at Cockatoo and subsequently photographed and tested it at ML Skirmish in Coldstream.[1]

Roberts continued refining the Badger and produced customised versions for individual players. His work included the Perentie Viper, a double-barrel marker commissioned following discussions with Wallis. It used two Badger actions operated through a shared trigger mechanism.[3]

Other custom projects included a helmet-mounted double marker with cable-operated triggers and a red-dot sight.[2]

== Death ==

Roberts died on 26 March 1996. Wallis subsequently published an obituary describing his equipment development and assistance to local paintball players.[2][4]

== See also ==

* [[Perentie Paintball]]
* [[Australian paintball equipment manufacturers]]

== References ==

# [https://web.archive.org/web/19990209194519/http://www.xsystems.com.au/wpaint/wpaint2/badger1.htm Badger Blaster]. Mike Wallis, originally published in ''Australian Paintballer'', December 1993; republished in ''Paint'', archived 9 February 1999.
# [https://web.archive.org/web/19981206111342/http://www.xsystems.com.au/wpaint/wpaint2/bruce.htm Bruce Roberts]. Mike Wallis, ''Paint'', issue 2, May 1996, archived 6 December 1998.
# [https://web.archive.org/web/19981205170356/http://www.xsystems.com.au/wpaint/wpaint1/double.htm Double Trouble]. Mike Wallis, ''Paint'', issue 1, January 1996, archived 5 December 1998.
# [https://web.archive.org/web/20030729213239/http://paintmagazine.com/npaint2/badger.shtml Perentie Badger — The Australian Marker]. Mike Wallis, ''Paint'', May 2003, archived 29 July 2003.

[[Category:Australian paintball people]]
[[Category:Paintball in Victoria]]
[[Category:1990s in Australian paintball]]
[[Category:Paintball inventors]]

Bruce Roberts - Revision history

Admin: Create Bruce Roberts article documenting his work at Perentie Paintball, development of the Badger and Viper, custom equipment projects and death in March 1996.