Cayman HF2!!! (brown camo!!!)

[twentytwomonk]

Seriously, tell her I'll have one for her at the beginning of March. Only $350.

[monchan]

Do you think with the release of the caymam hf2,
The cayman hf will start going cheaper? it's the gun I want to get.
if the the wife gives me the ok. So far scubaland in france has the best price
and shipping combo to japan. I could buy a small country for the price they sell the HF in Japan.
Thanks.

[Mr. X]

Was hoping to get a 70cm gun but it is proving elusive. While reviewing alternatives (80cm Omer XXV Gold sans reel, Rabitech 80cm, HF2 80cm,...) I noticed tha Apnea.co.uk are offering the HF2 for a similar price to the Rabitech.

The HF2 costs less than I expected but the XXV Gold costs more than I expected. Looking at the HF2, what has it got that makes it better? Lots of muzzle/rubber options (good), a modern handle & slimmer mech (hopefully better design - not sure about robustness) & that funny barrel. Does it have a rail? Is the barrel shape just a gimmick? The barrel looks fatter than normal, which seems like a step backwards to me (like Halogen house lights). What is the point of the bulges, especially the second one (surely not to mimic the look of an American bluewater woody's wings)? Might have been better to mimic the shape of the C4s but in cheaper aluminium.

Perhaps the XXV Gold is more expensive because it has a lighter, thinner barrel which probably will perform better than most of the competition.

[ILDiver]

I think there is a rail on the HF2 as on the HF. But the rail is more for structure. I'm guessing that the shape gives some resistance to help the muzzle from kicking, but I don't know if it helps, I have not used (or even seen in person) the HF2.

I like my HF, there is not a lot of recoil and I have the single 19mm band stretched tight. I also put a hammerhead muzzle on it to bring the bands inline with the shaft. I have not fired my 90cm HF with this muzzle, but I did fire my Cayman Cave with the same muzzle and a single 19mm band. The band feels a little week and I plan to gut it down 1/2" and try it again and fine tune the length/power. With dyneema instead of mono and a dyneema wish bone, the 55 was very quiet. The shaft did not slide on the rail and it's accuracy was right on. I was at supper close range though.

I'm REALLY looking forward to using the HF in Florida and trying it with some range. Not that I mind the hunting I do up in Wisconsin, but I want the real challenge of the open clear water.

[Marwan]

X for that size gun, depending on what fish you shoot, i would think that the XXV gold would be the better choice, for basically the reasons you mentioned. The rabis are a bit harder to track so i find them better for 100+ guns, where the difference will be hardly noticeable..not sure about the HF2, and i dont think you get a lot of grouper there, so probably you dont need a thicker spear and more powerful bands, i say go for the XXV gold, a friend of mine has it in 75cm a real beauty..

[foxfish]

Mr X I would think it comes down to personal choice in the end because you will hear good & better about both guns!
If you want my opinion I would say - my bro rates his gold but I would go for the high mass design espesally considering the great price Apnea are offering?

[foxfish]

I actually got to see the omer catalogue today & saw for the first time a picture of the camo gun - fantastic!
however I tried a quick search through a couple of web sites but cant actually find one for sale? Has anyone a link?

[ILDiver]

I am not positive, but I don't think they are on the shelves yet. I talked to Mark L a couple weeks ago and he said the The 100 coming to the US will get in the States the end of March. So you may see them on the shelves soon.

[spaghetti]

Foxy and Chris, in Italy it's available but look at the price of the LE camo: I believe the HF2 can be a very good gun for agguato, and the non-camo version has a reasonable price. But the Limited Edition stands at 378 euro!!! Come on....if I had such a budget for a new gun I'd get something else.
..
TuttoPescaMare :: SUBACQUEA » FUCILI SUBACQUEI » FUCILI ARBALETE » FUCILE CAYMAN HF2 CAMO LIMITED EDITION ::

[spaghetti]

Originally Posted by Mr. X

Was hoping to get a 70cm gun but it is proving elusive. While reviewing alternatives (80cm Omer XXV Gold sans reel, Rabitech 80cm, HF2 80cm,...) I noticed tha Apnea.co.uk are offering the HF2 for a similar price to the Rabitech.

The HF2 costs less than I expected but the XXV Gold costs more than I expected. Looking at the HF2, what has it got that makes it better? Lots of muzzle/rubber options (good), a modern handle & slimmer mech (hopefully better design - not sure about robustness) & that funny barrel. Does it have a rail? Is the barrel shape just a gimmick? The barrel looks fatter than normal, which seems like a step backwards to me (like Halogen house lights). What is the point of the bulges, especially the second one (surely not to mimic the look of an American bluewater woody's wings)? Might have been better to mimic the shape of the C4s but in cheaper aluminium.

Perhaps the XXV Gold is more expensive because it has a lighter, thinner barrel which probably will perform better than most of the competition.

Mr X I don't think the HF2 barrell design is stupid. The two bulbs are intended to reduce recoil in a way that, in theory, seems to me quite smart.
In fact a band speargun has two different types of recoil:
1) a primary recoil that pushes the gun backwards: on the HF2 the bulb near the handle is intended to concentrate some more mass in the back section of the gun, same as on many of the more advanced european guns (C4, Gabbiano, HF 1). The same concept, even with a totally different design, is applied on Wong Hybrids: the mass is all near the handle.
2) a secondary recoil, that whips the muzzle up: on the Hf2, this is the purpose of the bulb near the muzzle, and yes it hymitates the wings of the american blue water gun. But not just the look of them: it hymitates the same function. The wings, or the bubble in the barrell near the muzzle, give drag preventing the nose of the gun to whip up.
One more thing to say about the HF 2 is that it must have, in theory, a very good side tracking, being the barell relatively flat: the ends near the muzzle and handle are just 25mm thick (same as the XXV Gold) instead of the classic 28 millimeters.
I'd like to check myself if the compromise really works (very thin barrell with two big anti-recoil bubbles). Live and see...

[ILDiver]

The HF2 is cheaper than the HF, but the HF comes with the line reel. The LE is $200 more than the plain HF2. I didn't know they were going to be so high. The MSRP for the HF2 LE is $560 USD on the 100cm, $518 on the 80cm version. I was thinking about getting one of each to sell, but I'm not sure now. The 90cm is $540 and the 110cm is $604.

I want one, but that sticker has me wondering if I could settle for the HF2, even with getting a discount through the shop. With only 1500 being made and only 100 coming to the US through TechnoSport, I will probably get the two through the shop to sell, I don't know if I'll keep one.

[strangelove]

Spaghetti

Here is another point of view

The gun Mr. X is looking for is from 70 to 80 cm, so as more I think about, the HF barrel design may be over kill. This is the way I see it, if you looking for smaller guns 90 and less, odds are you are going to hunting in close range, therefore the whole recoil thing is less of a factor. In addicion to that the HF is a really loud gun, in it self can be a problem depending on fish you are hunting, so why pay more in a gun that has on it's main feature the barrel design that it is something that you may not take advantage after all.

I think at the end of the day, also being HF owner my self, I kind of agree with Mr. X. specially for smaller guns.

[Mr. X]

Yes, I haven't noticed recoil being an issue with the 90cm RA, so wouldn't expect it to be an issue with a smaller gun. Nor stiffness (larger diameter aluminium tubes are usually stiffer/more resistant to flex). It did occur to me that they might help the gun remain flat in the water; my speargun is a little muzzle heavy so I put half a cork in the muzzle to take some weight off my arm.

A black barrel is camo enough for me ("black, it's the new camo"). [Although Spaniard posted that "red is the new black", so maybe "red is the new camo" too?!]

[spaghetti]

I agree that it's not necessary to get fancy expensive guns, especially for a short size like 75/80, and I agree it's not the arrow but the indian, and I can witness I took tons of fish with simple cheap guns like Aspic 75 (which I still love and use), Comanche 75 (great gun for the price), Excalibur 75 (2007 italian National Champ gun). They all shoot pretty straight and are very easy to handle.
but
If we're talking of guns with an advanced design I believe they'll give a little "plus" compared to cheaper simpler gun. This "plus" it's not strictly necessary, it's just a little help, a little more accuracy and a little more handiness.
Recoil does exist especially on short guns. Maybe we don't notice, because shots are short and the small gun is easier to be kept firm when you hold it. But in terms of ballistics, no gun has such a poor accuracy as a lightweight short guns due to lack of mass.
Then of course you may still say: "as long as my stick does kill fish, f...k ballistics", and that's a respectable point of view, no doubt.

[Marwan]

again boils down to perference and TRUST of the gun you are using, i never use any fancy guns, 90 or smaller, If we exclude the GAbbiano elite 90, i use regular aluminum spearguns, for size 90 and smaller, most fish taken with 75 and 60 cm cressi comanche ..
its just that i had recently tried one of my friends xxv gold 75, it was very impressive..