Euro vs Riffe gun sizes

[feign]

I have been reading old posts & looking into gun sizes and am a bit confused.

How do euro guns and riffe compare in lengths? Riffe guns are all long it seems, possibly because they tailor more to the blue water type hunting. I have read recommendations that all purpose euro lengths are like 75 or 90 cm. Yet Riffe guns are barely getting started at these lengths with a #0 at 82cm or so.

Also, previous posts of people debating gun choices have put MT#3 (127cm) vs Euro 100 or 110 cm guns. Are these "equivalent" in some respects like manuverability etc. or why the discrepancy?

thanks.

 

[Shadowkiller]

Riffe guns come in midhandle type guns, so you get more manouverability whilst having a longer stock.

Riffe really do cater more for the big game style hunting. Euros are/were made for spearos who target small flighty fish. Hence the shorter lengths.

btw I have friends in Edmonton, who whinge about being so far from the ocean... how do you cope?

 

[Russell]

Euro Gun Lengths

The most popular Euro Length Gun we sell is the 120. Followed by the 110. Few are shorter than 80.

Gun length is really a function of viz. So your guys diving with 70cm guns are most likely diving in soup.

 

[feign]

thanks guys.

shadowkiller,

you are right about being far from the ocean. It is a matter of my schooling right now that keeps me here, but when I settle down eventually it will be on the west coast for sure. I crave for the ocean. We cope with it here by going to the freshwater lakes, getting to the ocean on rare occasion and by visiting the ocean in our dreams...

Do your friends in edmonton freedive? As far as I know there are only two of us that actively freedive from edmonton.

lee

 

[fuzz]

What shadow & russel didn't mention is that RIFFE's measure their guns on overall length, whereas euro-guns are measured on barrel length only. That means you take a 100cm euro gun, add on a muzzle & handle & your gun is now about 15-25cm longer(depending on make of handle, muzzle, etc.).

With that in mind, the 82cm Riffe MT #0 is about the equivalent of a 55-60cm gun euro gun. From my experience, that's about right.

As you've found in searches, a 50"(127cm) Riffe-style gun is about the size of a 110 euro gun.

What kind of visibility do you get in those lakes up there?

 

[feign]

thanks fuzz, that helps a lot.

Visibility varies for us from poor to decent. On monday out at the lake, I could see to the bottom at a 5m depth. I want to get a gun that will work for lakes, but will also be sufficient to hit some bigger fish out at the coast if I had the shot. Any thoughts on a good length?

lee

 

[Bill]

Feign
If you're interested, her's 2 cents worth from someone who's been there.
I went through this about thirty years ago. Find the best design for competition guns in S. Calif. The viz was near zero to 5 meters over 90% of the time. After looking at 50+ guns (real guns, in use, not shelf guns) and building 3-4, one gun seemed to work great and I used it for 20 years, along with a longer version for clearer waters and a 'big game' gun. They are very cheap to build or Riffe will sell you a masterpiece.
A 100cm barrel mid handled pipe gun with lots of power works great. The tip of the shaft was only 10cm from the muzzle. You can hold near the muzzle with the left hand and shoot from the hip at a fish 1/2 meter from your face or you can stretch your arm and get the tip about 2 meters away to give you a 5 meter range. With a five prong head and enough power, fish up to 15 kilo will stop swimming and wait for you to grab them. The 8 and 9 mm shafts help. For smaller fish, aim for the gills and your only problem is stringing a fish with no head. Some of us have hunted all our lives and still like it best when the animal doesn't suffer, even cold blooded animals.
Aloha
Bill

 

[Russell]

SpearGun Technology has moved on

Bill:

Thanks for your post.

I just wanted to make a comment that speargun technology has moved on considerably in the last 30 years. Particularly in the composite materials that are being used in barrells, and in trigger mechanisms. Every year, with every model, minor tweaks and improvements in guns take place such that over time guns evolve and improve.

So what might have been the best tool for the job in 1974, may longer be equally as applicable.

But based on what you have written, you must really have a genuine cannon there and I can see no nead for you to change, because I have been there too, and in all my time of diving, I have yet to blow a fishes head clean-off. But that must be the five prong tips you are using.

Russell

 

[feign]

Bill, considering the post by Fuzz, just to clarify when you say 100cm gun - do you mean full length (riffe style) or 100cm euro version?

 

[Murat]

there area much longer (band pull length) euro guns than Riffe like 1.7 RA But you can not judge the gun by only its length

My advise to you about euros is buy the longest one according to the conditions. If you have 10-20 meter visibility and relatively spooky fishes don't waste your money to 75 cm gun. We have great visibility here generally more than 30 meters and 75cm gun has only use for caves. Other than that i preffer to use the longest as possible without causing to much trouble while loading.

As a result you have to decide about length by thinking of visibility, style of hunting and reactions of the fishes.

Drop down technique needs longer guns that will have enough range to nail a fish from a distance before it sense you and dissapear. If the fishes are too fast moving than 130-140cm gun will not help much.

 

[Bill]

The gun I used measures almost 120cm overall with the back of the handle 25 cm ahead of the butt. The shaft for 5 prong is as short as possible and 8.5mm. I used a longer shaft and straight head for clearer water.
Aloha
Bill