I've decided on a second gun - band question

    I currently have an Aimrite Venom Comp 130 and am thinking about buying a second gun. I think it's going to be a Rob Allen 90 or 100 that I'm going to use to start doing some hunting up my way (NY tri-state area) for striper, tog, etc., and also as a back-up and hole/reef gun when I travel to warmer places.


    I found an older thread on dual 16s versus a single 20mm band, and it seemed that most preferred the dual band setup so that you can power down for hole shots. Having said that, I do like the idea of a single band. Is a single 20 on a 90cm gun really too much power for a hole shot, even if you use the forward tab? Or is it more of an issue with longer guns?

    it is funny you brought this up as I was thinking the same thing too.


    I want to put one 20mm band on my 90 so I can use it very quickly.


    Ithink the ability to change the power has more effect on longer guns as a 90 with a 20mm band is still not that powerful..I would advise against shooting into the reef as it will still get stuck

    i like to spear fish

    Quote from LunkerBuster

    Ithink the ability to change the power has more effect on longer guns as a 90 with a 20mm band is still not that powerful..


    That's what I was thinking but wanted to make sure. I was actually hoping that you would respond because I thought I remembered reading that you had a RA 90. Thanks, LB.

    for sure...I havent actually done this yet, but it was my exact line of thinking over the weekend.


    Once Jeff finishes his move, he had a great RA single 20mm band muzzle he made that I wanted to get to try out.



    if I get mine rigged up before you, I'll be sure to post here to let you know my thoughts

    i like to spear fish

    Quote from LunkerBuster

    I use a 7mm x 130cm


    RA shaft? The issue I had with the RA shaft, at least on the Aimrite, was that the shooting line would get chewed up in the trigger mechanism because of where it attached (back end of the spear).

    Quote from nyspear

    RA shaft? The issue I had with the RA shaft, at least on the Aimrite, was that the shooting line would get chewed up in the trigger mechanism because of where it attached (back end of the spear).


    Probaly your shooting line is too thick. Try a 1.8 mm. It's the perfect thickness.


    One 20 mm band with a 6.6 shaft is a nice combination on a 90 - 100 cm gun.

    Marco Melis

    A bad day fishing is ALWAYS better than a good day at work.

    Quote from Marco

    Probaly your shooting line is too thick. Try a 1.8 mm. It's the perfect thickness.


    Because of that issue, I went to a 300lb mono, and it still happens. That's why I started using a shark-fin tab so that I could change the attachment point of the shooting line.

    my shaft on that gun is an RA shaft and I use the 400lb mono and have had no issues...I cannot use 400 lb mono on any of my longer guns though because the 7.5mm shaft and the mono do not fit well as you noticed...the RA mech was tight and the beuchat handle on my Tito would not even let the shaft engage it was so tight..so, I did exactly what marco said and found a 1.8mm mono that is rated to 350lbs.


    Larry had been generous to give me a bit of the stuff before and I was hooked. It is a lot easier to manage the thinner mono too because it has less line memory in my experience



    I very much like the sharkfin tabs but I already had the RA shafts and I really have become a big fan of spring steel over stainless and I have not found any spring shafts with full size fins.

    i like to spear fish

    I got my mono from Neptonic and I think it's 1.8mm, but even that got chewed up in the mechanism. When I swapped shafts, I was sent Riffe shark fin shafts. According to the Riffe site, these are "spring stainless?"

    I was hoping you would know :D


    Oh, and these shafts are pencil point vs tri-cut. In my inexperienced mind, this tells me that I'll like these for the reef for ease of sharpening, but would prefer a tri cut for blue water for penetration, especially since I'm only using dual 16s on my 130.


    As for the 90 or 100 that I'm going to buy, I might keep shafts with both types of points depending on what/where I'm hunting. I realize I'm probably overthinking this :)

    Quote from LunkerBuster

    "spring stainless" ?!?! huh? that is confusing to me....can anyone shed some light on this for me


    Marketing term;) = 17/4 ph and heatreat.


    I'm going to tell someone I Cryo my shafts at the next meeting,;) :laughing3::laughing3:


    Cheers, Don

    "Great mother ocean brought forth all life, it is my eternal home'' Don Berry from Blue Water Hunters.


    Spearfishing Store the freediving and spearfishing equipment specialists.

    Okay so I dove w the newly rigged 90 and I loved it. I miss a little bit of power for long open water shot on a few macks that gave me the slip, but this is not a bluewater open water shooter.


    I had a faster reload and the really cool thing about it was the two second shots I took. I didn't rewrap the mono just engaged the shaft and reloaded and there was no tangle from loading the second band.


    I have to spend a minute or two in the pool dialing it in and learning it's effective range


    Loading it was cake after the first go round. I tied a 19" band which was a little over 300% and found it easy to load. I shot without a thought about the reload. I might switch to one wrap of mono and just make it a short range speed machine.



    After diving with the 90 all morning though I did feel a little naked. I missed the 120. I am just a long gun guy. The 90 is coming w me on all boat trips though. It is a great tool but if I am only diving w one it will be a 120

    i like to spear fish

    Wow, thanks for following up on this. I'm definitely going to give it a try. I'll be going with a single wrap on mine for sure. I'll be placing the order in the morning :thumbsup5:

    I switched to a single wrap of 300lb on my pursuit gun and love the improved reload time. Before I couldnt keep macs interested in my shiny fins long enough to reload, now I have enough time to get one band shots off before they lose interest.

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member to leave a comment.

Register a new account
Sign in now