Hi Hooda
This is a great forum.
Good to see you here.
Ihab
Posts by Ihab
-
-
Dive with a partner and you statistically halve your chances of shark attack
You also get a set of eyes for the back of your head, more intimidation ability and an extra poking stick.x2
Ihab
-
It's a strange empty feeling to think we're talking about Nate and he's no longer here. Almost like it's too early to let go. But he is gone, and I believe not without long reaching repercussions in the spearfishing community. I bought a FRV today, even though I think I'm the last candidate for making use of it.This is truly sad....my condolences to his family & friends.
Although we hear many similar incidences...yet most of us ignore the most important safety rule in spearfishing...The Buddy System....not a 100% guarantee...but the best there is in terms of safety
Even with a FRV...there are still factors that can hinder its use.
A couple of months ago, a buddy (who always dives alone and very far from us) shot a G.Traveli (about 30 kg, 66 lb) and was using a floatline.
The fish took off for a deep dive then it suddenly changed direction making a tight circle around our friend which ended up with the floatline wrapping twice around his right foot below the knees and he began to descend and obviously could not use his right foot.
With the left foot only and the power of the big fish, he was drowning and no one could see him...But as we all have our time to go....by a miricale/luck...whatever, a diver just happened to be near and dove quickly to remove our friend's right fin and freed him from the floatline.He came up unconscious; pale and didn't recall what happened.
DO YOU THINK HE LEARNED THE LESSON.....NO....he still jumps off boat as soon as its anchored and still dives alone.I'm not sure how the FRV would have helped in this situation?
What if the diver who rescued our friend could not dive at this particular depth?
Suppose if he couldn't and called out for help...could it have been too late?
.........Etc.,We practice an extreme sports.....too many variables....but we need to minimize the odds against us as much as possible.
Diving with a friend is # 1 in my book although the guys I dive with never seem to follow this procedure...specially when fish start appearing in numbers.So I guess we have to start with ourselves.....no fish is worth that extra effort that can kill you.
RIP Nate
Ihab
-
Off topic....just to give you an idea about my diving buddies...or rather..The Nile Tec Team.
Ihab
-
Ihab do you have Gray Reef and Tigers?
Thanks Don
Tigers yes..plenty....I don't believe we have grey reef...worst are Bull sharks and oceanic white tips.....very aggressive and stubborn.
2 years ago 2 Bull sharks attacked my float...or they were trying to get the fish on it during dolphin fish season and I had like 5 of them on my stringer.
My buddy froze...had to push him to the boat....never saw bull sharks since then..and I don't want to
Ihab
-
That's a nice Cuda Ihab - what kind of sharks to you encounter? We had lots of Bull's Tigers, and both black & white tip reef sharks as well as Dusky's, and other's I never knew the species. Bull's were bad and I had lots of encounters.
The list above just about says it all...add to this Hammerheads but they're not a real threat...I was once caught in a current trying to get out of it and these guys just ignored me totally.....must have smelled bad or something to them
Ihab
-
I'm not sure in this post if Diesel is afraid of them or wants to shoot them....or both
In either case, we encounter Sharks and Cudas every other time we spearfish over here....I've learned the best defense is a good offense with these guys...so if your worried abut Cudas attacking...show aggressiveness and swim steadily towards them with eye contact ...every time this happened, they will make a run for it and disappear.....if you want to shoot it....better have a sure shot or sometimes they get nasty and turn around to bite.
My problem is when they're lurking just beneath the surface while your looking down at some fish...they can scare the S***t out of you.Ihab
-
Beautiful dive...not sure about the Tunas but the Yellow Fins were very apparent south west of Dahab last month...some over 70 kg...never had a chance to catch any.
Ihab
-
I just had to budge in.
- Don't thin epoxy for ANY reason
- Epoxy will protect wood stock much better than Oil
- A good epoxy coated Speargun looks and feels much better than oil coating.
- Repairing epoxy coated guns is much easier than most think.If I do get several inquiries from this forum only...I will disclose steps some tips on how to achieve a nicely coated stock with a good shine....But I have to admit that I will not disclose 100% of what I actually do for obvious competition reasons.
You'll get 90% within this level if not more....promise.
Ihab
-
Done & shipped
Ihab
-
Laser cutting done...in the polishing process....will have pics tomorrow...and tomorrow it will be shipped.
Ihab -
I like it....if it will be well balanced...this gun should shoot like a laser with the bands aligned so high from the tip of the muzzle.
(Muzzle will be laser cut 7 hours from now)
Good job.Ihab
-
Dan while I think the stainless muzzle design may have some negative aspects I havent considered (like the danger of so much steel on the front of the gun) my intention with it was definitely not to needlessly complicate the build, but solve a few problems I didnt see any other solution for.
My plan with this gun was to design it like a wing, wide but vertically thin and tapered with channels for the bands so horizontal tracking is better but the gun still has a lot of mass and relatively level bands. I didn't see how this could be done without a precarious amount of wood being removed around the band holes. Especially staggering the height of the band holes as is needed to help keep both bands flat when loaded. The additional benefits of built in line guides, very forward ballast, and a strong cap protecting the end of the gun from getting dinged up, just added to the practical benefits I saw of using a stainless muzzle.
This gun is an experiment in many ways and worst case I can chop the end off and put normal band holes in it and make it a 110.
The top line release mech is a better choice for your design....good move.
This SS muzzle will get the bands aligned with the spears plane at an early stage...something positive for the direction of recoil...as long as the design of the wood behind it is done properly.In have 2 concerns about the SS muzzle:-
1- The amount of "play" the bands will have...i.e., I've never seen a snug fit for the bands in similar SS muzzles...maybe you could look into this a bit ore...instead of having to adjust the bands every time you load them.
2- May be a minor factor but it could be susceptible to some blows which could bend the muzzle.Ihab
-
Can't stop workin on this darn thing. Diving was a wash today with 15 + winds so I decided to do some more work on the gun. Very pleased with how it turned outs. http://i.imgur.com/9amZQgb.jpghttp://i.imgur.com/fzPRftA.jpg
For this mech, I would have recessed the mech a bit more in the pocket so that the top of the casing is flush with the stock.
This will give you a "deep" open track since you're using sharkfins anyway...+ the slot for the line release would be a bit more comfortable to work with.
If the trigger starts to rub against the trigger guard handle...you can always shave a few mm off the trigger.
Ihab -
You're welcomed...actually you're doing me a favor by designing the muzzle which I may end up using after your permission.
You only need to pay for shipping......nothing else.Ihab
-
I was also wonder if anyone can recommend which type of stainless steel plate would work best for this application? (the muzzle)
2mm...316 grade stainless steel.....if you can send me the drawing of the muzzle in CAD...I can laser cut it and a few more....you pay for shipping only.
Ihab
-
Ihab---thank you
What gun or gun design would you suggest for the best accuracy in 125cm 3X16mm?
Would not a 4band 140 or so gun have longer/accurate range? I am just asking.
Thank you for your reply.
(PS--I have seen fish like in your avitar here in Guam, just not that big. Congrats on such a nice fish).Thanks Hau...we're just lucky to have some nice size fish in the Red Sea.
Going for 4 bands is a bit overboard in my opinion.
This stock weighs a little over 3 kg without any accessories or ballasting weights.
With accessories & weights, it reached 5 kg.
The cuttle fish design helps in tracking since this s a Euro style gun....adding a forth band will not increase the distance considerably but will have an effect on power
.......but you'll need to go for a heavier stock.
Going for 3.2: 1 ratio on 3 x 16mm bands does a good job in powering up this baby with excellent accuracy at 6 meters...shaft used is carbon steel 7.00 mm...didn't need any thickener shafts...with a 25 cm overhand.Hope this helps.
Ihab
-
Gun designers / builders / blue water hunters--
question--What (In your opinion) is THE best gun design for sniping "normal size" tuna, wahoo and ulua out to 25-30ft range? (ANY gun design possible including many bands, roller guns, any length)?
background--Where I live and hunt the bluewater is crystal clear and the wahoo/tuna and ulua are very skittish. I need a sniper gun that will reach out and hit "normal size" wahoo/tuna and ulua at 25-30ft. I have shot rear handle pipe guns (Like 130RA) for years.
(I know many will say to just get closer to the fish, but I want your opinion on a sniper gun/spear combination that will "drive tacks" shot after shot).
Thanks for your helpI would say your hunting conditions are very similar to the Red Sea.
I usually use 125 cm with 3 x 16mm bands for 20-25 ft targets...wooden gun if course since you need accuracy at long range.Ihab
-
Here we go....Enclosed VS Open.
Its quite difficult to state for sure that ET does have a -ve effect on spear projectile/speed.......its really depends on several factors.
- Type of Track
- Clearance inside trackI think the "vacuum" effect is a bit overstated....the shaft at all times is surrounded by water and if there is adequate clearance around the spear; the vacuum effect will be extremely minimal if any...just a slight decrease in wishbone length alone can tack care of it.
I'm blessed with testing guns in a pool almost every weekend and have not noted any effect of an ET....and to an extent...there is no difference except when it comes to overpowering and loading...actually the ease of loading an ET lets you focused more on the fish during shaft loading as opposed to OT where the shaft may slip out of track and you know the rest.
At times with an ET, I shot fish without rigging the mono as there was no time ( I know its not very safe) and this could be quite difficult with OT....and I was very glad I have this option...otherwise I would have lost some nice fish.The only advantage I see in OT is that its easier to build..and have the choice of using notched shafts ...I prefer sharkfin shafts for several reason but that's another story.
If its a must, I would go with DEEP open track.
Ihab
-
Nicely done Ihab. How is the roller pin fixed in place?
The pins are flared in the middle so they remain in place under high pressure.....not depending on the casings inner walls.
Ihab
