Band guns are superior to pneumatics

They are because pneumatics are a pain in the ass. Yeah they'll get you fish and they're cheaper. But if you have the possibility to choose don't choose the pain in the ass gun. I know of some die hard pneumatic gun users from Cuba that took a long while but they finally switched to band guns. They only thing I see attractive about them is to somebody who likes a bit of technology. But once you know pneumatics they're very simple on the inside so there goes that illusion.

Quote from Tin Man

I think there are guys here in South Louisiana who hunt catfish in the local freshwater lakes, and typically in about 3-5' vis. I think they generally use pneumatics because they are looking for adequate power in the smallest possible package. If not with a pneumatic, how would you approach that application?

OK I'll address that line of reasoning. For 3-5' vis, and it's rare I do this I have a spot in some dirty shallow intracoastal water, I've used a cyrano 70. Basically a 70cm pneumatic gun. I've done the same spot with Riffe C2X that I cut down to roughly 70cm size and put one tight 20mm band on it with a short 8mm shaft. I preferred the band gun. The only thing I didn't like was the wood gun getting banged up on structure when horsing a fish around. Also the pneumatic was difficult to hold for extended periods of time in the ready to shoot position as you must do in low vis. The reason for this is that it's front heavy and you have to exert constant pressure to keep the muzzle up.

Now you mentioned adequate power. The pneumatic has most of it's power a the end of the piston stroke which is just as the shaft leaves the gun. That in itself take 3-4' of distance. The band guns by contrast I believe to give up most of their power right as the bands start tightening. This is one of the reasons I believe the band guns have more recoil. I'll give pneumatics that, they're accurate when powered correctly, but other than that they're a pain in the ass

Quote from Tin Man

Yeah, but noodling is usually practiced in water shallow enough to wade, I think, so that you can plant your feet and drag him out of the stump. The guys I know are generally freediving among sunken cypress logs in 6-10 feet of water. They routinely shoot catfish in the 25-35 lb range, and sometimes up to 45-50 lbs. Not unusual to come upon a gator resting on the bottom either. :0

Who are these guys? They sound like they have big balls or they're very hungry

Always interesting to find out about the kind of people attracted to spearfishing. So you're saying that both these guys use pneumatics? Did they arrive at using them independently or is it something that runs in their circles? Another thing I'll give pneumatics is that the loading process is smoother, after a while you can almost do it by tact. A band gun takes more concentration to load. Still some people use JBL's just because everyone they know are using them from 40 years ago.

That last bit is how I think it works for most people. I don't know if I'd be spearfishing today if the first gun I tried was a chest loading gun and I believed there was no other option. Hmm.. :idea2: That will be my next thread in this section; What's up with chest loading y'all!

Welcome to the forum Harry :thumbsup5:

Quote from greekdiver

Boo!!!

Pneumatics are great!

They move better through the water than any bandgun!

:thumbdown1: Muzzle heavy!

Quote from greekdiver

Way cheaper to maintain! Bands cost more than orings! Even though, i dont replace any orings internally.

When you buy band material in bulk it costs next to nothing to make your own bands. This way you can control the power on the gun for your needs with diameter and length. Much easier to replace than taking the pneumatic apart and recharging it after. Any deterioration in the bands is visible so you know it's time to replace.

Quote from greekdiver

Very little recoil!

A properly powered band gun has very little recoil. If you want to increase power without recoil just increase the mass of the gun. Can you use a pneumatic to hunt 300lb tuna?

Quote from greekdiver

Small pneumatics easily have the edge over small bandguns

Not in my experience as I described in one of my previous posts.

Quote from greekdiver

Easier to attach video camera

What can be easier than a couple of screws to attach to a wood gun?

Quote from greekdiver

Plenty of power and fast shaft speed

Wouldn't be much point to it if it didn't have that considering all the other disadvantages

Quote from greekdiver

Add a sealing kit to a long pneumatic and you have yourself an underwater recoiless canon! 5m+ shots!

Why would you need to add something to an already perfect weapon :laughing:

You must be referring to this title on that site Bluewater Tuna shot with pneumatic. When I click on it I get "The resource you have requested is available to Paid Subscribers Only. If you are a Paid Subscriber please login." Still, it goes to show you how rare it is if they're making a big deal of it :cool2:

Quote from greekdiver

Small pneumatics to fire in poor vis and close range are easily dominant. You can load them way faster and they cut through the water like a knife.

I was looking more for the cut through the water like a speeding steel 7mm shaft effect

How much shaft overhang do you like for your pneumatics Harry?

Do you consider pipe band guns and wood band guns the to be the same when you talk about the negative aspects (like recoil) of band guns?