Daryl Wong 50" Carbon Fiber Hybrid

[rigdvr]

Re: maybe with YOUR truck...

Originally posted by icarus pacific

occasional boo-boo by dropping it or even driving your truck over it. That happens all the time around here. :head



Sven if those accidents are common to you, I revoke your standing invitation to Biloxi!

 

[icarus pacific]

Just a play on other's words.

sven

 

[Murat]

As i read from interwiev of Hawai skin diver magazin`s with Mark Labocetta. He says the carbon barell of the new Omer Alluminium speargun is more stiffer than titanium.But i don`t know how.

 

[rigdvr]

Just a play on yours too...some of us out here appreciate your input Sven(referring to the other thread) I say we strap on some rebreathers and stay down all day and kill everything with fins or gills!

just a joke for everyone out there who forgot to take their blood pressure medicines!

 

[Austin]

An email from Rick Bettua

Let me try to help you out. If you are diving in Hawaii more than likely the
best size is 50" that is what Daryl and I use. To compare Carbon Fiber to
Titanium is no comparision, the Carbon Fiber is many times stronger! It does
not nick. You can learn alot from gun makers, meaning what do those guys
use. (Carbon Fiber 50")

Thanks for all the great comments. I think I will give the Carbon Fiber 50" a try. And if I do manage to nick it since the warrenty is so great I guess I can just take it back before it breaks.

Austin

 

[Iyadiver]

Hi Austin,

Tell us how ur future 50' Wong shoot like.

On the subject of carbon fiber, I want to explain in the best of my limited knowledge.

Carbon fiber is one the stiffest material, pound for poud stonger than steel. It is an aerospace and high performance boat buliding material. Aerospace probably first, they are always ahead anyway. Carbon and Kevlar is within the same gang, aramid fibers, exotic stuff.

Spearguns builder using this stuff lacks the long term testing of users like power boat builders. Power boats especially racing ones realy torture carbon fibers to the limits. If you see the prestigious American cup, one of the main sail mast made of carbon fiber can cost US$1 million each for the racing yachts.

Beings stiffest and strongest weight for weight might not be the best in long term usage. Carbon fiber is like the structural material and they have to use resin (glue ) to bond them together. If a builder has good budget, epoxy will be the resin. Vinylester and polyester are the other choices , less exotic but cheaper. 50/50 ratio is about right. Good bonding technique will be by vacuum bonding. Less resin is best.

The main concern of getting nick on carbon fiber barrel is not only nick as in damage, the worry will be water absorbtion cause the exposed strand of fiber which will pick up water/moisture like a candle wick sucking oil. Delamination will occur and thus strength will be compromised. Titanium does not suck water as with all metals.

If a barrel is using epoxy resin, UV from sunlight will kill it fast. Other resin can survive UV better, but less strength. A compromise. Kevlar is another "no UV ray please" material.

If a Wong Hybrid at 50" is design to take 2 x 9/16 bands and if it can accept 2 x 5/8 bands, Titaniun or carbon fiber barrel is already more than adequate. Even a good aluminum barrel can survive this lousy power of the bands. Manufacturer loves to put exotic material where it can boost sale cause it sound exotic.

Other weakness of carbon fiber is that the strength of the barrel will depend on the orientation of how they lay the carbon cloth. In boat we zig zag 45/45 and so on, so that we get strength from all side for wave impact. It will be natural that the carbon fiber barrel will be oriented in respect to the band pressure but the screw attachment for ur shooting line and installation will be the weak link cause the carbon fiber orientation does not focus on that part. In boat buliding where we need to mount something that has great ripping power like big bolts for some big gear, we use a backplate to distribute the load. This u won't find on speargun barrel.

If you want long term service life I am sure Titanium will give you more. But again speargun is consumeable item, we learn of their reliability from using and abusing them.

If Mr. Bettua said that carbon fiber does not nick, this is marketting my friend. Unless u are talking of Zircon Oxide or diamond against a reef or wreck, other materials will at least nick.

Happy Hunting,
IYA

 

[rigdvr]

bottom line from what I understand is that aimrite stands behind their gear so go for the carbon...time will tell the rest of our debate.

Let us know how the gun works out for you...I think it will be a great asset to you.

 

[aquahunters]

Hi, I haved used a 60 inch carbon fiber hybrid for about 4 yrs now and have never had a problem with the carbon fiber becoming weak when there is a scratch on the barrel.icarus pacific said that you will have problems down the road, I have had this gun ripped from my hands and slammed on the rocks and have scratches on the barrel And it is still strong as ever. I once slammed my gun between the tailgate and body of my truck and guess what happen.....nothing.Anyways if the barrel did break which I doubt that it will, Daryl would replace it free of charge....just remember.....lifetime warranty

 

[aquahunters]

P.S. I used to own a titanium hybrid and notice more flex from it and none with my carbon fiber.My gun has went thru extreme testing....I use it 2 to 3 times a week, every week. Once you use carbon fiber you will never go back.( Wong guns that is. )Comparing celery to carbon fiber is like comparing mash potatoes to a diamond:naughty

 

[Bill McIntyre]

It will come as no surprise to readers of DB and Spearboard to hear once more that I'm a big fan of Wong hybrids. I have a 55" hybrid with titanium barrel that I got in 1999, a 60" with carbon fiber that I got about two years later, and a 57.5 inch magnum with titanium barrel that I got last summer.

I'm not certain that the carbon fiber is worth the extra money, but OTOH I think worries about fragility are not warranted. It is really tough stuff.

I don't own the 50" that you are thinking about, but I wish I did. A couple of friends own them, and its a great reef gun. While it comes with just two bands, it has a three-hole muzzle and can take a third band. I made a third band for a guy who dives with me, and he says he can really tell the difference in power and has no problems with decreased accuracy.

Here are some fish he has taken with it while diving from my boat. As you can see, he got Daryl to install the Omer 50 reel on it, and it makes a really slick rig. It also floats with the reel installed and the shaft out, which is more than can be said for some Riffe Metal Techs I've seen. A guy brought a Metal Tech on my boat, and he had taped a bunch of foam around the butt to make it float. I am not sure is that is true for all lengths of Metal Tech, but if you are a freediver, you should make absolutely certain that the gun you buy floats or that you are willing to buy the optional (and at more cost) "floater wings" that he sells for the Metal Tech. I don't think he would call them "floater wings" if they weren't required to make the gun float.

I've used Riffe, Alexander, and Aimrite trigger mechanisms, and none of them have failed me. I do think that testing every one in a machine before its shipped sounds like a good idea though.

 

[Bill McIntyre]

Oops. Sorry, but I didn't notice that this was an ancient thread just brought back to life. I guess the guy long ago bought whatever he decided on, and all my previous post and photos was a waste of time, at least as far as his decision went.

 

[ajwaverider]

Since you made the effort to help and just so your time wasn't wasted,What do pacific sheephead eat and do they share any other likeness to the gulf/east coast sheepshead besides the name.Since it's a old thred vearing off the subject should be ok.AJ

 

[Bill McIntyre]

I think they mainly eat crustaceans, mollusks such as mussels, and sea urchins. The fact that they eat urchins, and urchins eat kelp hold fasts, is why many people think that the large males should not be taken.

I don't care for them, but then I haven't eaten any in about 35 years, and many people seem to like them. From what I recall growing up in St. Pete, FL, they are not nearly as tasty as the East Coast variety, and are more mushy.

The guy holding the fish doesn't usually take them, but he is an executive chef at a big golf and country club, and his sous chef, a Korean, asked him to bring one and let him show the kitchen staff what could be done with it. I believe my friend said that it was steamed with some veggies and sauces, and was very good. I'm afraid that back when I tried them, I didn't do anything more sophisticated than fry. Maybe I should take another look.

 

[Mako]

Geez, this IS an old thread. In any case, my carbon hybrid is still going strong 4 years after my last post on this thread. I told y'all it was good stuff.

FWIW, the last time I killed a sheephead about 3 years ago I tried cooking it like they do at Sam Woo (Chinese restaurant chain) and it tasted okay but was still mushy. Needless to say I haven't bothered to shoot one since.

 

[seaman]

Do not have any worries about the stiffness and or hardness on Wongs guns, that stuff is 100 % satisfaction guaranteed and does have A LIFETIME WARRANTY, besides even stainless steel it may nick sometime, the nice stuff about Wong guns is they actually Kill fish on a daily basis and for the years to come ...

 

[icarus pacific]

On rethinking the Carbon thing...

Good to see this thread back up and running.

Much has changed as regards to my opinions of carbon fiber barrels. Due mainly to this thread, Daryl sent me a section of the carbon fiber pipe used in his guns and the difference between it and carbon fiber as I know it from aerospace work is day and night. It's much, much thicker, uses a epoxy that is also thick and is rolled on it's mandrel with less warp and weft than a lighter weight carbon tube would be for use in the air or in a weight conscious application.

That said, I had done all I could with my home built titanium hybrid and gave Daryl a call for a 50" carbon hybrid to use at the KK'05 fights. The gun was a beauty and it was everything that I needed and then some. Hogfish, snappah, and grouper were all hurting from this thing and with the exception of the reel getting yanked from the inserts, it came away with nary a scratch. I took a good loooong look at the carbon barrel and figure that the weight and thickness of it will allow the accidental ding to not affect the strength and ultimately safety, of the gun.

Carbon is used prinipally in areospace and now auto and communiocations arenas and the weight vs strength thing is now less a matter than the advertising that your widgit is carbon fiber. Too bad, but thems the breaks. And the tubes on Daryl's guns aren't going to break.

I'm now a fan to the point that I may consider going to a magnum 60" with the tube for use in the kelp on those rare days when the conditions allow. Much Mahalo, Daryl!