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All About Guns What's your weapon of choice, and why? Discuss the beloved speargun here!

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Old 06-07-2013, 09:04 AM   #1
Snapper Mangler
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first gun build

Hi guys, new member here.
Im a florida native (family goes back to earlier than 1870 in Jupiter) and an avid craftsman (boat building).
My wood working skills are minimal but ive got the will to learn.
I have read every gun build on this site word for word, yea I got a headache..
Right now im shooting an AB Biller 60 special and to be fair I honestly havent had a complaint about it. Its killed everything I pointed it at



But I have an itch to build a gun.
My basic design is going to be a sapele, white beech combination.
Somewhere in the 55-60inch shaft range.
I plan on doing an open muzzle deep track, with a neptonics handle, reverse mech, and line keeper.
I plan on adding a magnet to the gun so I dont have to do a wrap over the shaft for ease of loading (if I cant do this, please let me know!)
Also, my plans with this gun are for absolute deadly accuracy, which I understand will take some trial and error.
I plan on using an Omer America One shaft
Building a band holder to keep the band horizontal with the shaft (or as close as possible)
Heres a quick sketch of my "design"

My main questions now are trying to figure out exactly how long I want the gun, so I can figure out the exact size shaft I need.
I also have no idea what thickness shaft I need or what size bands or how long?
Also, will the Omer America shaft work with the neptonics reverse trigger?
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Old 06-07-2013, 01:28 PM   #2
COWSskateGOOD
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Re: first gun build

Good luck with your build, honestly I have nothing to add to this discussion but I await the great tips, and information you are about to receive.

(Subscribed)
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Old 06-08-2013, 07:50 AM   #3
Snapper Mangler
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Re: first gun build

Thanks man
I did some more thinking and my original "layup schedule" of wood seems thick.
Im a small guy and dont have big hands, so I changed it around to 1 3/4 wide by 2inches tall.
I think the smaller profile will help the gun track better.
Im just hoping thats going to leave enough meat on the bone for when I route the edges.
I should be picking up my wood first of this coming week
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Old 06-08-2013, 09:55 AM   #4
ahoullis
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Re: first gun build

good luck on your buils, about lenght the only thing i can say because i dont know the conditions you dive, is you biller too long for your viz? or could you get away with more? the most length you can work with allows you the most power and shooting distance
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Old 06-08-2013, 10:58 AM   #5
Snapper Mangler
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Re: first gun build

My biller is honestly about the perfect size.
I really only dive when its 30ft vis plus..
I have really short arms and my biller, while still easy to load, is about at the max my arms can stretch to grab the band and start pulling it back.
With my vis conditions I could use a bigger gun but I honestly dont see the need, as im sure a gun the size of my biller could easily take down decent sized dolphin and snapper with the occasional grouper.
It has before lol
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Old 06-09-2013, 12:50 AM   #6
spearq8
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Re: first gun build

Nothing wrong with the Abbiller 60" special, I have a bunch of these and have shot tons of fish with them. But of course it has very limited range and power and is not really an optimal setup as the shaft is way too thick for the power that can be generated. I still use mine though if I plan to scuba dive oil rigs as with a slide ring, you can rig the gun with Kevlar or Spectra line without worries of band tangles. And with 2 x 5/8" bands and 1 wrap it does have most fish covered.

As for your new build, it is really a good idea to build a gun with a shaft in mind first. I really think that a gun should be built around the shaft you want to use. Usually the shaft is only an after thought. With the bunch of testing that I have done in my pool, I think the optimal shaft for good performance with 2 x 16mm or 17mm bands is a 150cm @7.5mm shaft. I would go for a 125cm band stretch and try and fit a reverse mech for extra band stretch at the back. The Omer America One shaft is the most accurate shaft there is, but at 7mm it is a little light for long range shooting and has the fins not as far back as is optimal, and if you want to use that then I recommend a 135cm band stretch and 160cm shaft and maybe add an ET (160cm has a little more mass for long range). A good alternative to the Omer shaft could be new squalo shafts from Salvimar. They come in 7.5mm and even 8mm and look like they would perform well. I am trying to order some to see if they shoot accurately.

http://www.salvimar.com/varietecnologie.aspx?tech=wired
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Old 06-12-2013, 07:51 PM   #7
Ric.Fallu
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Re: first gun build

Agree 100% with SpearQ8 that you should start with the shaft. Get a rough idea of what short of gun you want (which you seem to have) and then find the nearest approximation in a shaft, and then work out the dimensions of the gun.

His recommendations for shafts seem generally good to me, though its horses for courses and sometimes others might be suitable.

I am not familiar with the timbers you intend to use, but different timbers often have different propensities to move - especially in response to atmospheric humidity (and this is true even with well seasoned timber). If you put two or more kinds together, you need to balance them so that one set of movements equals and balances out the other. In your diagram, the sapelle balances the beech, except for on the left hand side, where there is an unbalanced piece of sapelle. Depending on the natures of the timbers, you may end up with a stock that bends - something you don't want. It might just not bend either, but this is something you just cannot predict. I don't take the risk.

I have short arms, and I am not all that strong, so I find that long guns can be difficult to load. Its the last few inches that are the hardest. SpearQ8 suggests a reverse mech, to shorten the butt. Personally, I like to have at least 6 inches between my belly and the rear loading notch - maybe more. In a gun longer than 1.2 metre, I find a forward loading tab on the spear really useful.

(The technique with long guns is to grab the rubbers with the left hand, and then pull up the butt with the right so that it tucks into your belly - as high as you can get it. The rubbers are stretched, but only a little and you can get both hands onto them to do the loading proper.)

Anyway, the best way to find out how a design works is to try it. Do it in cheap wood first so your mistakes (AKA learning steps) don't cost too much.

Ric
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Ric Fallu started spearfishing on the southern coast of Australia in the 1960s, and never really stopped. His other passion is building wooden spearguns.
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Old 06-14-2013, 11:19 AM   #8
johndoelman
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Re: first gun build

Magnets work for holding the shaft in but not well.. there just to assist in reloading so the spear stays in place.. when u move the gun down the water will pull the spear up. Its still will help bur you will have to wrap the mono over the shaft
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