Experienced Spearos get humbled last sunday!

[StickItDeep]

Last Sunday 4 of us tested all of our spearguns guns, with the Sure-Shot Speargun Targets...
http://www.stickitdeep.com. We used JBL Gulf magnums and .38 Specials for this target shoot.

3 of the four spearos had 25+ years each in spearfishing. I only have one year of experience. At 15'...3 of us missed the target completely, and the the other just barely hit the target... missing the fish on the target.

At 10' everyone hit the target....but what a drop the shaft took...Almost 8-10" missing the fish "bullseye" also. After compensating for the shaft drop, we started hitting the "kill spots" on the targets....but

The velosity of the spear decreased enough to barely penetrate the target at 10 feet.

I was using my JBL MAGNUM HXD with (2) 5/8" bands, and a 3/8" shaft. (I removed one band just to see if I could get away with only pulling two slings)...NOPE At 10' the shaft only went in about an inch with 50/50 accuracy. It did not clear the wings on the tip. At 5' I blasted all the way throught the target and the shaft exited the target. At 5 feet my accuracy was 100%, and the spear veloscity would blast a hole in a FAT Grouper

My counterparts .38 specials with 5/16 shafts and (2) 1/2" bands. had the same results. The spear would hit the target, but the penetration wasn't deep at 10 feet, maybe an inch.

We really know our limits concerning our JBL guns now. The affect of the resistance of salt water is amazing. What 5 feet can do to a spearshafts speed.

Lesson learned. Try and get the speartip of the gun within 10 feet of the target, which means be a maximum of 15' away. Honestly, I think this is almost a "hail mary" shot using these JBL guns the way we had them rigged for reef fishing. Fish are fast, and unless you lead them enough, compensate for spear velocity loss, and shoot straight, chances are, you are going to miss the fish at 15 feet! Or mame it.


Does anyone know the actual limits of their speargun that they are hunting with? How far is your "Hail Mary" shot?

I'm testing different speargun set-ups at depth in the coming weeks. I'll let you know which guns perform.

 

[Killer&Griller]

My Wong Magnum Hybrid 60" shoots further than I am comfortable taking for a shot. My best stone, 17' from the tip of the shaft.

 

[Loneranger]

I have an 48'' Ultimate Bullpup model gun. This thing uses all the JBL shafts from my long gone Magnums and Specials. The difference is this is a track gun and can be powered up with 2 5/8 X 22'' bands or 1 3/4 x 22'' when freeshafting. I sucessfully hit 2porgy's on the run a week ago. I would estimate the range to be 15-17'. I believe the gun would be accurate to 20' if it were loaded with 2 bands and the freeshaft. I never took fish from over 12' away with the smaller JBL models, and can not speak of the capability of the larger models.

 

[pescador775]

I own several guns. In my years as a spearo, I've landed enough fish to fill a tractor trailer (short bed, LOL). This question of speargun range often surfaces with novice divers who are looking for a gun, or are just curious. My problem is definition of terms. What constitutes range? Using a Biller Limited 52 with two, stiff, Riffe bands, I nailed a 3 foot grouper at a distance of 22 feet. The shaft did not have a slide ring or conventional tip. The arrow was a modified Biller "freeshaft" with 1/16 kevlar line tied off near the butt of the arrow. The tip was a sharpened point with barb, Tahitian style. The shot was taken in clear water, free diving, at a 30 deg downward angle. The shaft did not "string" the fish but easily cleared the 3" barb. The barb, as all my Tahitians, was spring loaded and solidly held the fish. Range is defined as the distance from my outstretched fist. My personal observation is that a Biller 52 with three, 9/16 bands is faster out the muzzle but when a slide ring setup is used with the three band, the overall range is about the same as the two, 5/8 band setup with Tahitian shaft.

 

[pescador775]

About shaft drop. Guns which use slide rings may experience this due to drag. Also, very powerful guns may show some shaft drop due to muzzle jump. The muzzle tips the the rear of the arrow up. All my guns with three bands use a slide ring with arrow which has been altered. The arrow has no notches or fins. The three bands are held by a single metal tab which is folded piece of metal, sloped backwards and welded to the shaft as far back as possible. This device acts like a rudder and results in a flattened trajectory for the arrow.