Big or small?

[irtrogdor]

Hi, I don't post here very much but I've learned a lot here. Thanks.

I just have a quick question. For reef spearing, would you choose a gun with a 24-28 inch shaft or a gun with a 42-48 inch shaft? Last fall I modded my gun from small to big, and while it is nice, I have been seeing lots of fish inside cracks and holes that I wasn't noticing before (mainly because a lot of my attention was focused on the lack of air in my lungs). So if you had to choose between a big gun and a (very) small gun for a day of reef fishing, which would it be? And why?

[Mr. X]

I would take a medium sized gun as a compromise because we usually only take one in the water in the UK (for me in UK viz that means 75cm) & we don't get holed-up grouper. However, Spaghetti in the med. takes 3 spearguns with him on this float to handle the various situations he encounters; so you might consider getting a second gun & taking both on your float. A third alternative might be to get a small pneumatic speargun, perhaps with the acclaimed Mamba kit (for power & silencing?). You could then have a gun as short as your short gun & as powerful as your long gun -- I believe some hae a power switch to reduce the power for caves. Another option (perhaps not as good) might be to use a short or medium gun with 2 bands but only load a single band for caves.

If my calcs are correct you are talking about 60cm vs. 115cm shaft -- do you mean barrel tube length or spear shaft. If the latter, then both spearguns are very short < 80cm - so I would go with the larger. If the former, then see the paragraph above.

[irtrogdor]

My current shaft is 120 cm long. The old shaft is around 70 cm (or less. probably less). I'd considered buying a second gun, but i really can't afford it right now. What i really need is a foldspear, that would be perfect.

[cubanoperdido]

introgdor,

i see you from mexico, i'm in costa rica...runnin all round central america. i'm new on the board....is there a place i can get with people from central america?? i cant find it here on the site....i'm guessing people chat with people from the same locations..... thanks to you or anyone who can give me a pointer in the right direction..... happy huntin...

[Mr. X]

Originally Posted by irtrogdor

My current shaft is 120 cm long. The old shaft is around 70 cm (or less. probably less). I'd considered buying a second gun, but i really can't afford it right now. What i really need is a foldspear, that would be perfect.

Then it sounds like your "big" gun is probably only something like an 80cm barrel eurogun (spearlength - 40cm), which should be short enough for most reefs. 70cm is a very short spear & sounds like a dedicated cave gun. I would use the larger configuration.

cubanoperdido, if you can't find a thread for your region, please start one. There are several forum members in the Carribean, Florida, Brazil & around the Gulf of Mexico. Also, those are places that people like to visit.

[Marwan]

i imagine the viz in mexico to be good. i would recommend something in the range of 90-110 for reef spearng

[cubanoperdido]

thanks mr. x, i'm on it...i posted a thread yesterday and i'm on standby.
z-ya

[irtrogdor]

alright, thanks everybody. that's pretty much what I assumed. I'll just load one band if i need to look in a cave or something.

[spaghetti]

Hi there.
Yes I am the Spaghetti that Mr.X was mentioning. Just like any Mediterranean spearo I always carry 2 or 3 guns of different length and set up, to match the different hunting situations having always an appropriate gun at hand.
However, if you're not willing to spend money for a second gun by now, tha shouldn't be a big problem.
In facts your gun, with a 120cm shaft, is likely to be in the 75/90 range, which is a good universal/overall gun for hunting in reef.
You will learn that you can shoot into holes and crevices with your gun (better if loaded at first notch, not full power, to avoid trashing your shaft): all you need is to do some practice and to find an appropriate technique. Train yourself to peep into holes upside down (head doqwn, fins up), to pull the trigger with your thumb (this will give a bit more of arm stretch when shooting), to shoot with your head near the hole and the gun strethced bacwards. If it's a 75cm bandgun, or an 80, I really can't see no problem to use it for shooting into holes.