Posts by Teaspoon shallow

Gun works.

Species: Yellowtail Kingfish (Seriola lalandi)
Weight: (via a cheap set of spring scales as I drowned my good set ) 18kg
Fork Length: 1085mm
Stoke level: 9/10.....still wanting to break the 20kg barrier.

Took him in 12 - 15m from a school of 12 - 15 all the same size plump size (our winter kings are fat)
He was about 5m from my spear tip. Though this gun is a trial gun, I have learnt a lot and with a little more lead near the muzzle this will be a good gun. Its nice and accurate but with a speed needle attached sinks slowly with the muzzle slightly lighter than the rear. I like my guns to be slightly muzzle heavy so when I drop it there is little chance of the shaft aiming at a person.

I am now ready to get cracking on the next one.

Quote

American Ash
Botanical Name Fraxinus americana
Other names Canadian White Ash, American White Ash, Red Ash
Grows in North America
General characteristics Grayish-brown to red; straight grain with coarse, but even texture.
Working properties Moderate dulling effect on tools, can be worked well with both hand and machine tools. Polishes, stains and glues well.
Uses Sports equipment (bats, cues, oars), handles, church pews, bent parts for boat building, cabinet work, plywood manufacture and veneers.

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The Wood Source - About Our Woods

This timber is fit for purpose for gun building. :thumbsup2:

Just pay attention when laminating it and make sure it is well sealed.
I look forward to the updates.:cool2:

Quote from blacqfins

I have another Q?? about hard ash, how will is hold up as a speargun?.. reasons I wanted to use it because of the color of the would.... that way I'll be able to dye it a blue/green color and of course completely seal it with epoxy.. it's not as hard a teak or padauk... bit it is hard ash...:D

Can you post the scientific name? In Australia we get so many timbers with the same common names or names like Oak which are not Oaks at all.:confused1:

Thanks Dan. Not perfect but ever evolving into what I always dreamed about.

Should post the back deck? When you are designing sometimes you need a little break.

No the beer fridge does not always look like this, just special occasions.

Sorry for the off topic post.:nono:

I am stoked with my little workshop. Next project will be a dust proof room for finish coating.:thumbsup2:

To straighten and square my blanks I first run them through one of my table saws with an extended fence. (2.4m long clamped into position, see the tool on the right of this picture)

I then put them through one of my thickness planners.

You can also use a jointer:

Alternatively you can do it manually with a plan, straight edge and square. I used to do it this way and you can achieve perfect results. Please season your blanks and once made close to the dimensions required, I season them again. (Some of the timbers I use are unstable but they are just so pretty).

Best of luck and ask as many questions as you like.:thumbsup2:

G'day Blacqy

All sounds good but a bit of a friendly warning, Titebond 3 is not suitable for full submersion so please make sure that the epoxy coating is thorough and well maintained.

If anyone is making a timber laminated gun and epoxy coating them, I would recommend gluing the laminates with epoxy too. (Just my 2 cents)

I am looking forward to more photos of your progress.

Kind regards

Darren

Had a 5 hour dive with them today. Swam to a point 1.5km in one direction with lots of diving for lobsters and fish along the way.

Firstly the pockets. The Mares pockets are a little firmer than my last three sets (different pockets). Initially I did not like them as much in the shallow water but my opinion soon changed when I started diving deeper.

The blades. The steeper angle made surface swimming feel a little more mechanical than the softer blades at have a flatter angle. Then came the 12m - 18m drop offs. I was pleasantly surprised at the little effort required getting to depth. Though I did not dive deeper my bottom time increased by 7 - 10 seconds. Now this may not sound like much but I assure you, it really is.

Returning to the surface with slow gently kicks had me accelerating rapidly giving me more confidence than any other fin I have owner. (This is not saying other fins would not also do this for me, I have only owned 5 pairs of free diving fins!)

These are more rigid than my carbon fins. These are not as nice to dive very shallow while searching for lobsters. I need to work on my technique for surface swimming as it felt as little fatiguing though the speed was still very good. These fins are fantastic at diving and that is important to me.

So far I am very happy with Penetrator Fins. I love the clear though I am sure I will scratch the hell out of them and they wont looks as pretty for long.

Instead of doing a wet lay up, epoxy is drawn through the matrix from an external reservoir via a vacuum pump.

I am trialling this with a couple of guns now and will post some photos and a video when I am done.

Best derail ever Dan.:thumbsup2:

Came today. Though I am working I had to open and have a quick look.:D
I selected the clear blades in medium with the Mares foot pockets.
At a quick glance they look great and are what I wanted.
The real test will come on the weekend with a couple of dives planned.

My sincere condolences and my thoughts go out to his family and friends. This is very saddening news.

Quote from Rusty

<snip> I will be chasing 40kg kingfish with my 1m rail gun and no float line in the morning!!!

By by gun.:laughing:

Best of luck and be safe.

I found the Leader carbon blades to be a lot softer than other carbon blades I have owner & used. If you are after a medium blade you may have to consider a Hard Leader.

2 years of constant abuse and they the foot pockets are dead but the blades are still good. I have used the on multiple rock hops (carbon usually hated rocks) without issue.

Great from a boat but lack the drive a fat boy like me needs.

I ordered my first set of Penetrator fins last Friday, when they turn up I will post some pictures and write a review of them after a few dives.

I have to say Larry (the owner) has been very easy to deal with. He emails promptly and answered my questions honestly.

If the products are similar to his service I am confident they will impress.

Thanks Henrik.

The Australian economy is screwed but we will keep ticking over.

I am using carbon on guns that honestly do not need it for structural integrity. I am risk adverse and want to gain as much knowledge and experience as I can.

The goal is to make slim and strong spearguns and have zero failures. Baby steps. My next gun that is getting coated is another mid handle that does not need carbon but it is pretty stuff.;)

Ha ha ha. I am a Builder / Carpenter & Joiner. I run my own company. Unfortunately our area has suffered from a steady decline in building approvals and many good trades have left our industry.

Playboy just seems like a job with a lot of um....satisfaction.:laughing:

I will have continued work but i will have to let go some very good employees which is depressing.

If they are available in 3 months I will rehire them in a heart beat.

This was an old blank I made over a year ago that had been sitting in my rack waiting to get the camo treatment. I recently gave a RA Sparid to a junior diver and noticed a gap in my guns and knocked it up over a weekend and finished epoxy coating it over 2 weeks.

I did not get build pictures of this one but will take some of the next few.

This gun is very basic but I wanted to make sure I could get a reasonable finish with the carbon before moving on to something with sexier curves.:D

After the next Euro with hips I want to do the same thing only in a staged roller.

My existing contracts finish tomorrow and my next major project is 2 - 3 months away. I still have maintenance and minor works but in 18 years I have never had a day off due to lack of work before.:@

I can not sit around doing nothing so I am going to make some guns for myself and my friends. Expand on what I have been doing in the past.

I am only a hobby gun builder and waiting for my dream job as a Playboy photographer to become available.:thumbsup2:

I would be so dedicated to that job.:laughing:

Had a spare Beuchat Marlin handle from on old gun that I don't use any more so I thought I would make a quick Euro for some testing prior to making a roller gun.

Its a very basic gun, laminated timber core with a carbon wrap. Its rigged and ready for shooting, now all I need is some time.

G'day Rusty

I have sent you some couriers I have used. Please note: They charge different amounts for the same service so it is worth shopping around.