Gunsmith Pneumatic Speargun from the Ukraine

  • https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Vintage-crafted-pneumatic-spear-gun-Ukrainian-master/163571228934?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649


    An early pneumatic from the Ukraine which I think may be a valve operated gun as the trigger controls a slide to the rear end of the gun. This is a speargun in the gunsmith tradition as exemplified by the pistol-like grip handle. The only drawback in this gun is the low handle position with respect to the spear propulsion axis as the gun is then more susceptible to muzzle flip. The absence of a hand pump and a rear inlet valve cap indicates that this is a gun that pumps up via the inner barrel which is quite common for releasing valve guns from that part of the world. With that solid looking handle the gun is most likely a sinker after the shot.

    The gun seems to have no muzzle relief ports as the ring of machined cutouts are probably there to lighten the nose cone and allow a point of purchase to twist the nose cone during gun assembly. As releasing valve guns are usually held together by the outer tank the end bulkheads screw in to the tank ends via screw threads which would be consistent with the observed proportions of the gun.

    If there are radially directed holes in the base of those nose cone cutouts then they are unusual to be placed there as more metal to drill through to reach the inner barrel. However relief ports need to be rearward of the anvil face, hence the length of the shock absorber anvil in the muzzle needs to be considered.

  • Whoever made this gun knew his stuff as everything is hand made, including the spear and line slide. It looks pretty heavy duty and if all else failed then the user could always whack the victim on the head with it once the "interaction" moved to close quarters combat.

  • Unfortunately the offer of the gun has been terminated as when I clicked on it in my "watch list" on eBay it had just vanished. The same seller was selling a "Skat" pneumatic speargun a few weeks back and it also disappeared without any explanation. Both guns were made to order models from specialist speargun smiths which we have no counterpart of in the West, whereas in Russia and Ukraine this was once common due to the very ordinary and sometimes crudely made spearguns offered by State-owned Factories.

    This is a high quality underwater weapon made by an expert and appears to be made from titanium and stainless steel. At USD 500 it was too much for me and that does not include shipping. By comparison the rear handle gun was USD 250. To buy them new would have been multiples of those figures, especially given the price of titanium in tubing, plate, bar and rod stock.

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