Posts by Deanmc

I've been using the Neti Pot myself now every night for about 6 months. I have a deviated septum and it got to the point where at night I had to use one of those Breathe Rite strips to open up my nostrils so I could get a decent nights sleep. Well, I don't have to do that anymore, the neti pot rules. Also for the ears I use this stuff Wally's Ear Oil, it has Tea Tre Oil and a bunch of other essential oils in it. I've returned from diving many times with ear pain and after using this oil everything feels fine within a half an hour of using it. Great stuff.

The open vs closed has taken on a life of it's own! Really great stuff to tuck away in the "for future reference" file. I'm amazed someone hasn't taken the bull by the horns and written a book on speargun design. Tons of info out there but it's scattered all over the place. Who's gonna put together the speargun building for dummies book? I'd be first in line to buy one:D Thanks for sharing everyone, you guys rock!

So anyway, I had a few hours this morning and took a whack at glueing up my padouk. Woodguy had suggested making sure the lams all lined up perfect on the top before proceeding. I set the table saw up to trim a couple that were a bit off but the more I looked at my strips the more I could see myself screwing things up beyond repair. They weren't that bad so I threw caution into the wind and glued my lams together. If it comes out like shit I'll chalk it up to a learning experience and use the wood for something else (padouk pen holder anyone?) One thing I was wondering.... tomorrow after removing the clamps should I hang it right away or clean up the unevenness (and squeeze-out) off the tops? The width is 2.25" I want my blank to be 2.0" wide so I've got 1/4" to play with on the width. I still need to put my top ("T" lam) on. Should I wait until this all stabilizes before thinking about doing that? Anyway, I figure I've got a bunch of time now to start thinking about how I'm going to shape this thing. I've got more wood ready for action so I'll probably take what I learned from making this blank and make another.

Don, thanks for all the great information on enclosed tracks. Really good stuff.

Quote from yardsale

I'd go open track dude, you aren't going to be shooting enough bands or far enough to make a difference on a 48" especially in dirty water, might as well save the track for a build where an ET is going to really give you some benefit or return it.

Yes, that's exactly what I was thinking, the more I read about enclosed VS open the more I was leaning in that direction for this gun.

Quote from Wood Guy

Twisting is , in my opinion, the hardest problem to deal with when the lams are less than perfect. I would suggest you make sure they are flat along the top when the lam is on edge.

I will definitely give them a little trim job to make sure they are all lined up on top. I had planned on doing the double flip so the twisting forces would be alternating with each lam.

Quote from Wood Guy

Did you get the auto resetting mech?

No I wasn't aware of the auto rest mech, I'll get that for the next one. :thumbsup2:

Quote from Wood Guy

Good luck with the build - good to see you're already planning another build. Very few builders only build one!

I have the feeling this is going to be another hobby that becomes a total obsession!

OK, I'm going to give this gun building thing a shot! I've been reading and rereading every morsel of information on the topic (here there and everywhere) that I could find. I've finally got things set up in my basement, have my materials and parts. I'm ready to start putting my blank together this Sunday. I've been practicing with 2X4's - the basics like the mech pocket handle recess and line release. I'll have a spare blank to use for test cuts and set up before I start working on the padouk blank I'm making. Even after all the reading, before I start glueing up the blank I have a few questions.

Question #1
I've got the West Systems 105 base epoxy and the 205 (fast hardener). I'm in the Northeast and my basement is typically in the 55 to 65 degree F range this time of year. I'm also going to be using the 403 microfiber filler. Does that sound like the correct recipe?

My wood is padouk. In the shots below; the first one is the day I picked it up from the lumber yard. The other two pieces are reclaimed teak from the USS NorthCarolina that I plan on using in another build (hopefully) at a later date. The second shot is one half of that 10ft 8/4 board. After sitting in my basement for over a month it twisted quite a bit so I had to flatten it with my planer on a sled. I lost 1/2" of wood in the process but I got it perfectly flat. The third and forth shot are from earlier today after ripping some pieces for the glue up. I wound up with four 1/2" X 1.5"X 5' strips and two more slightly thinner ones. I still have half the board left for another piece that I'll use horizontal across the top so I can achieve the correct dimensions I want.

Question # 2. These pieces I ripped are a little twisted, I'm obviously not going to attempt to joint them because of their thickness. I'm assuming they are OK to use as long as I oversize my dimensions to be straightened at a later date? What's a good rule of thumb in regards to oversizing? I was thinking a quarter inch on the width and height.

I guess that's all I have for now but I'm sure I'll be hitting all you talented builders up again at some point. Oh yeah, the gun is going to be a mid-handle like the Riffe 44" with a 48" shaft. I do a lot of diving in murky water. I've got a Neptonics reef mech, handle frame, shaft etc. I also bought the UHMW track but I'm thinking I might make this an open track. Thoughts on that?

Thanks in advance for all comments and suggestions.

Hey Don, I'm on the North Shore pretty much due North of Patchogue in a town called Rocky Point.

My name is Dean. I've been involved in the scuba business since I was 16 years old. I'm only now 33 years later getting into freediving and spearfishing. The freediving came first, spearfishing almost immediately after, it just seemed so natural whereas with scuba I never had an interest in hunting. Anyway in the last year I've taken three freediving courses and have been hunting as much as possible. I landed a 29" striped bass the first time I ever shot my gun! What fun! Anyway I came across this forum because now I want to build my own gun, woodworking is another hobby of mine and I have plenty of time during the cold NY winters to hole up in my basement with my power tools and imagination. Although I'm bummed the local dive season will be ending soon I'm getting pretty psyched about building my own gun. Anyway, pleased to meet you all!