Which gun to build>

seaweed,
Thats what I've been wanting for years!!!!
1. Never made sense to me to try to hold a 5-6ft long pistol steady in the water with one hand to hit a fish.
I even went so far as to talk to Ray Odor about their old/old guns with stalks years ago.
2. Short gun shafts have many advantages. That is why I use a shaft 2-3 sizes to short for the last 10 yr. My shafts are just long enough to allow the flopper to clear the muzzle and our new slip tube shafts can be shorter yet, maybe even ending back down the track slot like in the picture of your crossbow pistol.
3. Wood doweling for the barrel of similar diameter to the RA with an enclosed track could have a SG[specific gravity] of less than the current RA, =float better than the current RA. Different woods have different SG. If other woods are used, the new epoxy gun finishes being used by many builders now would prevent delamination problems.
4. Matt888 and Griswold use a CF tube with an enclosed track on their hybred guns now and another famous gun maker is experimenting with an enclosed track AL barrel. Matt888 and Griswold both have working muzzle designs on round/dowel barrels now, as does RA of course. These new round CF and AL barrels have high floatation material inside the barrels so that water intrusion is not an issue as it is in other hollow barrel guns.
5. I think I know of a manufacture of TI rods/tubing for the sliding wire stalk.
6. Mori manufacutres a low profile trigger mechanizem for his 'reef' model guns and the RA assembly is very light weight[and cheap] and would have one of the lowest profiles in an enclosed track gun. The Riffe Euro/Euro X trigger assembly is low profile and has a side release [monster slayer:)]
7. If you are going to design a gun for reel use, I might suggest a side line release instead of a bottom line release.
8. Sooo,= take a 1 1/2in teak laminated dowel, use a ball cutter for the enclosed track, route out a corrisponding trigger pocket for a Riffe Euro or RA trigger assembly, shape the muzzle band slot, make a grip to match and attach a sliding Ti wire stalk.[ Oh, and paint it black epoxy if you wanted [seaweed :)]. Then it might even look like a pneumatic with bands [greekdiver:)]]
Tin Man may have some good ideas and he can manufacture/produce anything.

Thanks for starting this thread seaweed. I hope I can provide positive input.

Sorry Davie but I already built this gun a couple of years back.

If your really want no overhang you could cut the first 3" of the track deeper and wider so the flopper can sit in it.

If you want smallest cross section buy a dowel at home depot and make a crude band slot. Then put some sort of anchor at the end, maybe just a screw sticking out from the top. Stretch the bands and see if the dowel has flex under the band load you want. Laminated teak of the same diameter should have less flex?

My experience has been that 13" shaft overhang is very important. Also that a 20mm band makes the gun jump too much and accuracy suffers.

pargo,
You have way to much fun with that Photoshop
Remind me to NEVER EVER put up a pic of myself or anything near and dear to me.

I had the deathstick rigged like that and it was accurate but I just don't see the point of it. You don't get any more range because you still have only to the end of the mono. Penetration with two 16mm bands is adequate for most fish we will see here. Speed of reaching the target is also not an issue. Why then so much power?

Quote from hau

pargo,
You have way to much fun with that Photoshop
Remind me to NEVER EVER put up a pic of myself or anything near and dear to me.

Hahhahahha. too late man, Dan is the god of photo shop, he allready have a pic of you somewhere you can bet on it ....

Davie, that idea is great, as a matter of fact, every time we think about speargun design, we think in a crossbow, that´s why the french word for speargun is Arbalete, (crossbow) If you see the Kitto Muzzles and state of the art guns as Sea sniper, they tend to resemble a crossbow in its most basic fom. A single band makes a lot of sense for that matter.

Was it so bad of me to create a visual representation of what Davie had in mind? I remember in high school the shop teacher always made us present him with lots of drawings before approving a project so we can go ahead and make it. I always found that to be a nuisance as I had a clear pic in my head of what I wanted. But half the drive to make something like that is wondering what it will actually look like when finished. Sometimes once you have it it's no big deal any more. Did the pic cool you off a bit on that design or did it whet your appetite Davie?

I think the idea of a folding/sliding stock is a very interesting thought. I can hardly wait to see this build progress!

It's just the butt though. Sounds like you're thinking about the middle of the stock <img src= " height="23" srcset="https://spearfishing.world/forum/images/smilies/emojione/1f606@2x.png 2x"> Reminds me of those JBLs that come in a case with all different parts and you can change the length of the pipe. Awesome guns those JBLs :fart3: Those were the wonder years that will never come again..

I understood that it's just a folding putt extension. I just think that it's an interesting way to make a single gun a little more adaptable for different circumstances. I do think that the details of the construction will make all the difference between a feature that is functional, and one that just gets in the way.

OK can I be brutally honest then?.. I think that folding butt extension is a useless thing. If you don't have enough time to track normally with a rear handle gun you won't have enough time to put the second hand on the butt against force of habit. I'm referring of course to the conditions we face here in Miami. It may be different in other circumstances that I can't envision. However the challenge of making it functional (though non functional ) is interesting of it's own accord.

Quote from Tin Man

I think the idea of a folding/sliding stock is a very interesting thought. I can hardly wait to see this build progress!

Tin man, i personally appreciatte your work, and the design duo you had with Griswold. I think indeed that you are a gifted craftsman.

What kind of butt will it be, wire? What gauge?

Besides the issue is not how long it takes for it to deploy but how long for you to remember to put your hand on it. Also when you use the second hand you're sacrificing mobility. Remember that pic of the fencing turtle you posted?

Quote from monster slayer

Tin man, i personally appreciatte your work, and the design duo you had with Griswold. I think indeed that you are a gifted craftsman.

Thanks. Griswold will be showing off our latest carbon fiber gun (and delivering it to the new owner) at the Blue Wild Expo in February, if anybody will be there. It's 56" long, with three wraps of carbon fiber over an improved core material, delrin enclosed track, spring resetting line release, molded handle, and custom 3-hole delrin muzzle. Even unfinished, it looks like death incarnate. <img src= " height="23" srcset="https://spearfishing.world/forum/images/smilies/emojione/1f606@2x.png 2x">

I don't like the expo but I'd like to meet Chad. His dance card will probably be full but it would be great if one of the guys here happened to be taking a boat out so we can take him diving. Who's taking the Carbon gun?