Posts by Dan

  • Antigua spearfishing reports

    Don't lose sleep over it George. If the shark was given a chance he'd take your life and not feel a thing other than a full stomach. You're not a god to take responsibility for this animal's well being. The shark is just competing with you for the same resources. Now if the sea is a more pleasant place for you to be knowing this creature is in it (as long it doesn't hurt you) that's fine, until it does try to hurt you.

  • Mounting a composite reel on a Riffe speargun

    Often I get inquiries from guys looking to mount the Speardiver composite reel on their Riffe speargun. Specifically they want to know if the holes in the reel mounting bracket match the threaded inserts in the Riffe stock. Short answer is no they don't match, and there's no composite reel other than the Riffe reel with a hole configuration that matches the Riffe spearguns. I then explain that if it's a Riffe euro, to choose the flat profile mounting bracket when they buy the reel. Installation is simple as drilling two holes in the bottom of the stock and using the two included stainless steel screws to attach the mounting bracket to the gun. But for some reason that's not acceptable.. the reel they will buy must match the threaded inserts built-in the speargun. The fact that using threaded inserts is a weak way to attach a reel is of no consequence compared to the irrational need to make use of those damned inserts.


    The Riffe reel is obviously not a desired option (it's not a good reel on top of being overpriced), so all this trouble is for not wanting to put a screw in a wood gun. That's what wood guns are for, so you can add or remove whatever you need easily whether it's a reel, a camera arm, a shark spike, a flashlight bracket, a rest tab, band stabilizers, ballast or an extra shaft holder. Get over putting a screw hole in your pristine wood speargun and just use it :dumb:


    Speardiver composite reel

  • Speardiver C100 vs Deep Apnea 100 vs Moana Fins

    Rubber foot pockets can't be molded with heat. Just think how un-rubber like the Pathos foot pocket must be if it can be molded, more like plastic.


    It was hard to find the length of the Bleu tec blades, it's not stated anywhere on their website :S I did find one shop listing it as; width: 19cm, length 79cm. This configuration is comparable to the Speardiver C90 width 21cm, length 78cm. You probably prefer the conventional length to the longer blades as I do.


    Are these the Subcraft fins you were talking about? SpearAmerica.com; the best customer service I’ve ever had - Spearboard bubble blowers drama forum


  • Speardiver C100 vs Deep Apnea 100 vs Moana Fins

    At this point I want to address the latest marketing hype being used to sell carbon fins; Quadraxial (Sleep Apnea) and Omniflex (Moana).


    Quote and image from Sleep apnea website:

    Quote

    Now Deep Apnea introduce a new Carbon Fiber Quadraxial Structure with 5 years warranty. What that means? Means that our fins has now fiber orientation in 0º, +60º, 90º, and -60º, that makes the fins more resistance to the torsion, more durable and more responsive. Before our fins had fibers in 0º and 90º.


    The following excerpt is from Moana promotional video:

    Quote

    At first glance you'll notice they do look different than most fins out there. The primary feature that you'll notice looks different is the fabric pattern. This is not a 0 - 90 plain cloth weave like virtually all other fins. Instead you'll see about half the fiber weight in the 0 degree direction, and no fibers in the 90 degree direction, which normally leads to excessive weight, and an "access"??? to fatigue and crack along?? doing very little to help the properties of the fin.


    You'll notice about half the fiber weight is on the bias, the inner taper layers are a different bias as well. So over all I call this my Omniflex, it distributes flexion and compression in about 10 different directions. The impact strength is about 5 times great than standard plain cloth, hopefully you'll get a much more durable fin.

    I wanted to back up my take on this so I sent a question to Jon Soller of Soller Composites:


    Hi Jon,


    My competitors are advertising Quadraxial carbon as being used in their fins. Can you please clarify if such material truly exists? If yes, which of your carbon material matches the “Quadraxial carbon" description”?


    Thanks,
    Dan
    _______________


    Hi Dan,


    A quad fabric as one fabric is not possible, but this can be done by a triaxial fabric and a UNI behind it, or a biaxial braided fabric and a woven fabric behind it. The use of the term Quadraxial is a marketing gimmick.


    A biaxial and triaxial fabric are made on braiding machines and a 0/90 fabrics are made on a loom. Being a weaver ourselves, we can tell you it is not possible to make a 0/60/90/60 (quad) fabric on one machine.


    For complex shapes and for quad fiber angles you are best using a biaxial braided sleeve cu in 1/2, and then a twill or 8HS behind it. If you go with a biaxial or triaxial fabric and a UNI behind it to get the quad angles, the biaxial or triaxial fabric will be static and will not conform well.


    Best Regards,
    Jon Soller
    Soller Composites, LLC


    While neither Sleep apnea nor Moana state outright that they're using "Quadraxial" or "Omniflex" carbon in the singular sense, they are implying it in their marketing. The truth is that at best they are achieving correct carbon blade characteristics through the layup of readily available carbon fabric.


    I am absolutely certain that over 4 years of experimenting with carbon fabrics, we settled on the very best material for Speardiver fins. But I must concede that when it comes to eye appeal, a fresh pattern trumps old and reliable for a prospective buyer. When I first saw the Moana fins I liked the look, and wanted to offer at least some blades with that pattern. So I experimented with the same carbon fabric. The results were not favorable. Blades made with this material are significantly slower. To compensate and make the blade faster, more layers need to be added, which will result in a stiffer heavier blade. This is something I'm simply not willing to do, sacrifice performance for the sake of eye appeal.
    See if you can tell the difference for yourself in the video. First is a Speardiver blade for comparison, notice how quickly it snaps back to straight and the POP! sound, and how it doesn't wobble back and worth but instead stays rigid. Carbon 1 is the Moana material (straight lines), out of 3 different straight lines patterns I tried it was the fastest, but still significantly slower than Speardiver carbon. For comparison purposes the blade was made in medium stiffness, note how much the blade is being bent/flexed before being released. You will not see that in a Moana promotional video, the blade is simply too stiff to flex this way. It has to be stiff to give it the speed which the carbon lacks in the first place. Carbon 2 in the vid is another straight line pattern that's even slower.


    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za8cIKHms1c

  • Speardiver C100 vs Deep Apnea 100 vs Moana Fins

    I'm tired of pointing out flaws in other guy's products, but it is what it is.


    The sleep apnea fins I tried were Alan's, the same ones that Pantoja used. They were too heavy/cumbersome. I could feel it immediately after I put them on (which was in the water exchanging fins with Alan). I already posted my thoughts about the the longer Speardiver C100 blades vs. the conventional length C90; I find the longer fins less easy to handle in any case. But the sleep apnea fins went beyond that, Speardiver fins at that length don't feel so heavy. Pantoja thinks the same looks like. I also don't like the water channeling rails on them, this style rail reduces the blades effective surface area by a 1cm wide strip along each side.


    I have to touch on the 100cm vs. 90cm fin length for a moment. For some guys the longer blades are very good going by what they say. I try to figure out the diving conditions and physical attributes that allow them to get better performance from the longer fins, and I posted my conclusions before. Suffice to say, for the kind of scrambling my diving partners and I do here out of Miami, the 90cm fins are better.
    I see the latest trend of longer fins as a marketing gimmick, because my competitors Moana and sleep apnea offer blades exclusively at that length. While I acknowledge that some divers prefer the longer blades, like G.R. Tarr who's a very experienced diver and whose preference must be considered seriously (he's using Speardiver C100, check the vid below to see if your kicking style matches his), they are definitely not for everybody.


    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYFQ2SlMXXg


    To offer longer blades exclusively is to capitalize on the simpleton notion that longer must be better. If this were true, where does long end? why not even longer? Obviously there must come a point where longer becomes a disadvantage. I define the ideal fin length at 90cm, that's total length foot pocket and blade, hence Speardiver C90. But that doesn't mean that Speardiver C100 (100cm total length) fins are not better than the competition's, on the contrary they are lighter and just as quick at a softer stiffness.


    What I consider a good carbon blade is one that maintains its characteristics of being fast, light and durable, in the softer stiffnesses. This is where you'll see a low quality blade, like a Leader/Nautilus fin, become sluggish in anything less than Medium stiffness and practically useless. Making the fin right, I can get the quick snap of the blade back to straight, without making the blade too thick and consequently too heavy. This depends on type of carbon fabric used, the epoxy, layup and other trade secrets.


    My personal preference is softer blades. I find that just like Matt said, I can dive them all day and my ankles and knees don't get tired. And I can get just as much propulsion as guys do with stiffer fins by adjusting my kick. Stiff heavy fins are wasted energy, will decrease your bottom time, and control when you end diving for the day. That said, if someone prefers stiffer or longer fins, no problem, order Speardiver medium hard or even hard. They will be just as stiff as Moana or sleep apnea, but feel lighter and faster.


    When I tried the sleep apnea fins I saw blades that got their speed from their thickness, which translated into a heavy fin. Additionally they were resin rich which contributed to the weight. Alan bought them about a year ago. According to sleep apnea website the fins are now new and improved. Nice to know that whoever bought fins previously got an inferior product? This is why it makes no sense to go with the latest fin on the market. Speardiver has been doing it since 2009 and the fins are stabilized, meaning we're making them as good as they can be. During this time I've experimented with many foot pockets and materials, to try and improve blade performance in terms of quickness, lightness and durability, as well as eye appeal. Things that no other fin manufacturer has done like using Texalium for blade material. Pathos foot pockets and carbon Kevlar fabric that some of my competitors are only getting into now, I experimented with long ago and dropped in favor of better performing materials and foot pockets.


  • 55inch custom wood gun

    Referring to handles posted above..


    I don't like an overly sculpted handle, it's good for a conventional shooting position, but poor for shooting from any other angle, like taking a hole shot with the gun extended back.


    The relief on the back of some of those handle definitely doesn't add to comfort of loading, as it will press against your abdomen.


    A wooden trigger guard (incorporated with the handle) is a weak point and an absolute no no. Guys who can have such a trigger guard on their guns and not break it, do not dive and abuse guns like we do.


    The open trigger guard design is a line tangling accident waiting to happen.