Home Tournaments Calendar Weather Merchandise Sponsors

Go Back   Spearboard.com - The World's Largest Spearfishing Diving Boating Social Media Forum > United States Geographical Locations > California Spearfishing

California Spearfishing Talk here about spearfishing on California's Pacific Coast, and post those reports and photos!

Reply
 
Thread Tools Rate Thread Display Modes
Old 09-11-2021, 06:45 PM   #1
Pfish
Registered User
 
Pfish's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Posts: 747
Sharpening Speartips

Question: I have been down south hunting Cabrilla. Problem is I am constantly shooting into the rocks dulling my tri and quad sided tips. What is the correct way to sharpen without altering accuracy? Looking for ideas.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
__________________
He who thinks only of number one must remember this number is next to nothing.
Pfish is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 09-11-2021, 11:37 PM   #2
popgun pete
Registered User
 
popgun pete's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 4,245
Re: Sharpening Speartips

Buy a bench grinder and some protective gear and practise on sharpening some rods to provide a point. At first your flats will not meet in a centralised point, but with experience you will get the hang of it. Oil stones can sharpen minor damage but often you have knocked the tip clean off so have to grind the tip right back. Cool the tip in water to stop softening the metal too much. If there is a workshop course available consider doing that. A grinding wheel can whip the tip out of your hand before you know it and send it flying so you need someone to show you the ropes. Grinding wheels are dangerous so you need to set your stance at the bench and keep a firm control of the job, in this case the item being sharpened. My Dad was a toolmaker so sharpening metal such as drill bits and lathe cutting tools was all part of the job. Buy a decent grinder, not one from China.
popgun pete is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-12-2021, 11:55 AM   #3
NaClAddict
Registered User
 
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 398
Re: Sharpening Speartips

Try pencil points around rocks.

When sharpening angle cut tips, maintain the same angle already on the point. You don’t need to remove all the imperfections, just sharpen the point. You can do small touch ups on the edges if they’re bad but if you keep the same angle they should disappear relatively quick.
NaClAddict is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-12-2021, 02:57 PM   #4
Bob Ballew
Registered User
 
Bob Ballew's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Long Beach
Posts: 6,488
Re: Sharpening Speartips

It isn't rocket science...any type of grinding wheel works for badly damaged tips...keep a rough and a fine tooth file in your dive bag for minor damage and to finish smoothing out rough grinding work...eyeball the balancing on each side and close is good enough...a little practice and you will be an expert...
Bob Ballew is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-15-2021, 12:51 PM   #5
nilsonov
Registered User
 
nilsonov's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Jersey City
Age: 41
Posts: 851
Re: Sharpening Speartips

a newer concrete sidewalk/curb/ or an unfinished basement/garage floor does wonders too.... i find it easier to maintain the angle too than when using a grinder.
nilsonov is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-15-2021, 01:22 PM   #6
FishPinata
Registered User
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 28
Re: Sharpening Speartips

Stupid question and yes it's not rocket science. It's hardly even science. I can't believe you couldn't figure that out on your own. Anything that grinds metal will be just fine but like all forum discussions, the simplicity of sharpening a spear tip will get bled for every last drop of minutiae.
FishPinata is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-23-2021, 10:52 PM   #7
Bob Ballew
Registered User
 
Bob Ballew's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Long Beach
Posts: 6,488
Re: Sharpening Speartips

There are no stupid questions..there are, however, stupid comments by immature people with arrogant attitudes...a constant problem on the internet..
Bob Ballew is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-28-2021, 12:00 PM   #8
FishPinata
Registered User
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 28
Re: Sharpening Speartips

Not at all. The question was akin to asking how to sharpen a filet knife. I am certain the OP very well knows it's a single internet search away and the answer to his question would have been attained much faster, with various sharpening methods to choose from. It was and is a stupid post topic that didn't provide a benefit to anyone on the board, including the OP.

www.google.com
www.youtube.com

https://www.youtube.com/results?sear...a+speargun+tip
FishPinata is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-28-2021, 09:24 PM   #9
Scuba Fever
Registered User
 
Scuba Fever's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: South Bay
Posts: 1,655
Re: Sharpening Speartips

Its ARROGANT and NEGATIVE responses like yours that has made this site only a fraction of what it once was !! If you don't like people's questions, just STFU! I Learned most of what I now know from others who were willing to answer my dumb questions and share what they already knew!
__________________
Scuba Fever is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-28-2021, 09:29 PM   #10
Bob Ballew
Registered User
 
Bob Ballew's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Long Beach
Posts: 6,488
Re: Sharpening Speartips

...Well, over 1600 divers read the post...not a stupid topic to them, apparently...you inferred that the posting person was stupid for asking the question....not a good way to start with only 15 posts to date...Differing opinions are fine...However, some of us took offense at the way you chose to differ...Try positive input and you will get positive attitudes in return...Choose to stir the pot and you have to expect some heat...
Tip: I bought a cheap grinder ($16 at Harbor Freight) and it works fine to do a quick rework on spearpoints...
Bob Ballew is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-31-2021, 11:24 AM   #11
Pfish
Registered User
 
Pfish's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Posts: 747
Re: Sharpening Speartips

Sorry for the confusion. The issue is I am on a boat in LA Bay 28 miles from Guillermos with no grinder, only a file. I think after reading this post that a pencil tip is the way to go. Here is why: When you get a new Tri-tip or Quad cutter tip, you will dull it pretty quickly by shooting into the rocks. But, when you sharpen it, you are not going to get a true point-it is going to be angled. And, I have a feeling it is effecting the ability to shoot straight. Maybe my imagination after being in the water 5 hours a day. Thanks for all of the input.
__________________
He who thinks only of number one must remember this number is next to nothing.
Pfish is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 11-02-2021, 04:55 PM   #12
pozofreediver
Registered User
 
pozofreediver's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: San Antonio
Posts: 35
Re: Sharpening Speartips

Good question! I was wondering how other divers do it myself and got some good pointers. And yeah...too bad Spearboard is a fraction of what it use to be.
pozofreediver is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-05-2021, 08:11 PM   #13
rojodiablo
My spawn kills on....
 
rojodiablo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Huntington Beach, Ca
Age: 53
Posts: 8,572
Re: Sharpening Speartips

Quote:
Originally Posted by Pfish View Post
Sorry for the confusion. The issue is I am on a boat in LA Bay 28 miles from Guillermos with no grinder, only a file. I think after reading this post that a pencil tip is the way to go. Here is why: When you get a new Tri-tip or Quad cutter tip, you will dull it pretty quickly by shooting into the rocks. But, when you sharpen it, you are not going to get a true point-it is going to be angled. And, I have a feeling it is effecting the ability to shoot straight. Maybe my imagination after being in the water 5 hours a day. Thanks for all of the input.
The best shafts for shooting into rocks are the Rob Allen high carbon shafts. They are all tri-cut tips, they do rust a bit, but they take a beating like no other.

I will use files or a rough sharpening stone in the wild or on the boat. Instead of a pencil taper, use a much shorter taper, akin to a low angle rounded grind with a decently sharp tip. (Think Chinaman's Hat) It may blunt a bit when hitting rocks, but it stays pretty concentric and doesn't bend wildly like a long pencil taper will.

Buy a rough cheap stone, like from Harbor Freight or Home depot. And a couple decent files to start the cleanup of the tip.
There is no need to overthink it; if it's got a decent point on it, you will be fine.
__________________
Safety is but an illusion; Every grain of sand was once a mountain. Every speck of dust..... was once a man. Nothing can stop this, in time. So use the time you have well..... you won't get it back.
rojodiablo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-08-2021, 07:05 PM   #14
Marco
Registered User
 
Marco's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: North Miami, Florida
Age: 58
Posts: 2,868
Re: Sharpening Speartips

I have always used a file. It works!
__________________
Marco

A bad day fishing is ALWAYS better than a good day at work
Marco is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-08-2021, 07:35 PM   #15
popgun pete
Registered User
 
popgun pete's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 4,245
Re: Sharpening Speartips

In the old days you sometimes got case hardened tips which shrugged off any attempts with a file. They had to be ground back on a grinder which got rid of the case hardening if you had to re-establish a tapered point on the tip. When these tips broke eventually, they could take some punishment before doing so, you usually lost quite a chunk as the front sheared off. The Italians used to be fond of making these, but totally abandoned them when speartips needed to be churned out in large numbers. These speartips were usually cadmium plated which gradually wore off as the cadmium was used up much like zinc coating to minimise rusting.
popgun pete is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:46 PM.


The World's Largest Spearfishing Diving Social Media Forum Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2002 - 2014 Spearboard.com