Shooting into hard rock

[lowviz]

A suggestion for the old broken down 68 & 1/2 year old diver

The Record Hunter: "I Ain't Dead Yet" - The What-Knots (Dial, USA, December 1967)

-play the vid in the link...

 

[lowviz]

@MAKO Spearguns, I'm conflicted as to what of your gear to start with. The flounders in the sand are 'gimmes', the vexing black bass that play hide and seek in the jettys are at the extreme opposite end of the spectrum. (I bought and downloaded a 'Florida conditions' vid that is helping me to get me up to speed with respect to hardware.)

Conditions: ^$#@$%& dive flag, green water, 8' visibility, surge, freaking sharp barnacles everywhere.

I would consider an 8-10' shot into rock crevices as my max. No trophy fish here. I love to cook, same day jetty to memorable meal is my goal.

 

[MAKO Spearguns]

Ok Thanks. Initially, I was talking about the very special application of targeting flounder on top of hard flat granite rock. That may or may not be a common occurrence for you. Another person mentioned that when shooting fish like that, using a more oblique angle is beneficial since it gives the flopper a better chance to open on a speargun. That is good advice and I probably should have mentioned that; of course that will be what happens if you scare one off the rock and it is swimming away from you.

I assume when you say black bass you are referring to Tautog (which tend to be larger) rather than black sea bass?

In any regard, both fish can be targeted extremely effectively with a short speargun. You don't need (or want) a speargun that shoots much further than your visibility. So at 8 ft vis, a 70 cm gun would be an excellent choice. Our standard rigging would be a flopper shaft, a single wrap of monofilament line and two bands. Probably you would start out with a single band and leave the second one unloaded, unless you are having issues with longer shots. You might even consider a 60 cm gun if the vis is often less than 8 ft and costs less than $160 (including shipping).

https://www.makospearguns.com/Predator-Pro-3rd-Generation-Speargun-p/mpp3gr.htm

A pole spear is another option, but it is going to be more challenging. I would select a floppered tip rather than a three prong tip. It can still target flounder as well.

If you are very concerned about the line running over sharp barnacles, we can rig the gun (for a few more $) and use white dynema shooting line. Typically 3 or 400 lb test monofilament is thick enough and tough enough around rocks so that is our standard set up. The monofilament is stiffer and less prone to tangling than dynema line and is easier to deliberately cut if you get a bad tangle issue. The dynema is extremely tough, super strong, but this also makes it much harder to cut in an emergency. This may be more of a concern for freedivers rather than scuba divers.

All our bands and guns and rigging are assembled at the time of ordering, so we can customize based on a customer's wishes without any delay or significant additional cost.

Possibly I am giving you too much information, my recommendation is to try the stock 60 or 70 cm gun and see how it works for you.

We also offer a full compliment of tools and supplies which will allow you to replace the monofilament shooting line when it gets worn or abraded, but I suspect you will be surprised just how tough the basic monofilament shooting line is.

For scuba hunting around rocks, I don't think a reel or floatline would be necessary, just hang onto the gun if you shoot a big Tog!

Here's a pic a MAKO Customer sent us on Facebook.

Dive Safe

Dano

 

[Akimbo]

green water, 8' visibility, surge, freaking sharp barnacles everywhere.

I would consider an 8-10' shot into rock crevices as my max.

Sounds a lot like Northern California. A short gun with two smaller diameter bands gives you the option to use one of the two bands. Ling cod are really stupid and easily approached in rock crevices. Pole spears work for them, but are not as maneuverable as a short gun or as suitable for other species.

 

[lowviz]

Dano, OMG I love taug!

Nope, second pic nailed it. Exactly that, same size.

Barnacles across line, nah. Running across ME, yeah.

 

[lowviz]

@MAKO Spearguns, you should now see my current PayPal order for a 50 cm gun.

I picked no sock or butt pad. (Huh?)

I am not a believer in one size fits all. I went with a pea-shooter for poking into inlet crevices. There is still time to fix it if I'm wrong. I'll most likely follow it up with a biggie gun if I get into the sport...

 

[MAKO Spearguns]

Thanks so much. The 50 should work for those little sea bass. You don't need a but pad if you have a thick suit. You will find that gun easy to load and very quick to maneuver around rocks. Send us a pic with your catch!

 

[lowviz]

Roger, WILCO.

 

[lowviz]

@MAKO Spearguns, getting familiar with my new 50 cm gun. Most happy. I know you would rather that I went with a 60 or 70, but I remain convinced that I got exactly what I wanted for the job at hand. Impressive short-range power.

Questions: The spear came with a tri-cut point. I'm going to put it on my K.O. Lee grinder and turn it into a conical point. Taper to be determined by use. I assume the spear is not case hardened but tempered throughout and will tolerate cold grinding?

I also want to remove 4" of spear overhang. Serves no purpose that I can see, will that be a problem? Moving the flopper backward is no issue for me.

Cheers!

 

[MAKO Spearguns]

@MAKO Spearguns, getting familiar with my new 50 cm gun. Most happy. I know you would rather that I went with a 60 or 70, but I remain convinced that I got exactly what I wanted for the job at hand. Impressive short-range power.

Questions: The spear came with a tri-cut point. I'm going to put it on my K.O. Lee grinder and turn it into a conical point. Taper to be determined by use. I assume the spear is not case hardened but tempered throughout and will tolerate cold grinding?

I also want to remove 4" of spear overhang. Serves no purpose that I can see, will that be a problem? Moving the flopper backward is no issue for me.

Cheers!

If the 50 cm gun is working for you great! I'm glad to hear you like the gun.

Generally people believe that the tri-cut tip has better penetration than a conical tip. I think the conical tip would be easier to make as well. However, I can't imagine it making a big difference especially for a short gun.

MAKO Speargun shafts are manufactured in South Africa. They are NOT stainless Steel. Our shafts are stronger and harder than Stainless, but since they are not stainless, they must be coated to provide corrosion resistance.

As you use the shaft and hit rocks etc., the coating will be compromised, particularly at the tip. If/when you need to sharped the tip with a grinding wheel or file, the coating will be removed and the tip will rust. Generally you will need to touch up the tip if the shaft has sat for weeks in a humid environment to clean it up before a trip.

This is the price we pay for having super tough shafts. You don't want to get the tip too hot when using a grinding wheel.

The steel is extremely hard, much harder to drill than stainless. So drilling a new hole for a revised flopper location may be a real problem. I'm not saying it can't be done, but it generally is not done. It is my understanding that the hole is drilled during the manufacturing process prior to the hardening process. I apologize if I can't speak with more authority or specificity about technical aspects.

If you wish to revised the tri-cut to conical, that is definitely doable, but as mentioned the coating will be removed on the area worked.

Shortening the shaft might make the gun slightly more maneuverable, but many people feel that the shaft extending off the end of a speargun helps to sight the target. I imagine with a 50 cm gun you are making close shots in poor vis and these tend to be "snap" shots or "pop the weasel" types of scenarios, where the hunter is really just pointing the gun rather than aiming it, so a shortened shaft may not cause you problems. Also, some people just prefer really short shafts with minimal shaft overhang - this all comes down to personal preference.

If your heart is really set on a shorter shaft, perhaps try drilling the hole in the proposed location before chopping off the end or pulling the existing flopper? That way if it turns out to be more trouble than you envisioned, your shaft will still be functional. Also, you will need to find a new pin for the flopper, which might be a challenge.

Of course, you can always buy another shaft if necessary.