[ivan]

hi Shane

The only way to avoid snapping a shaft on a fish like that is by using a detachable head or a slip tip. The only problem is they are hard to find for euro guns, actually I dont know any that are commercially made. I made a home made slip tip for my Rob allen it is not so hard but takes some time.

Im sure you know the basic way the slip tip works, i will describe anyway. When we shoot fish with our normal euro spears the barb opens and the fish swims off and the shaft flexes due to water pressure and fish power/speed. With a tuna that big the shaft will almost certainly snap at the notches almost immediately, with the slip tip the shaft penetrates then as it comes back through the tip slides off the adapter and toggles leaving the cable with attaches the tip to the adapter. This takes the pressure off your spear cos of the cable between the tip and spear.

Your crimps will also be of concern, as well as the type of shooting cable you are using. If a fish that big is not stoned the pressure it puts on the crimps and shooting cable as it pulls your floats down will be enourmous.

Have you read the Wr Tuna story about that Paulo Gaspar guy, im pretty sure he stoned that huge Tuna however he was using a slip tip, Maybe you could get a local Metal worker to machine up a custom slip tip for you. My home made slip tip worked fine until I decided to change the material that hook the tip to adapter and it got cut off on sharp coral.

Im sure someone know links to show you the basic slip tip design. The Bluewater hunting book by Terry maas is also a good read about the type of hunting that you plan on carrying out.

cheers