Gear maintanance?

[OTGav]

I'm a total noob, so it would be good if you could forgive the dumber questions that I'm bound to come up with.

Just got a gun/float/line and wondered if there was anything I should be doing to maintain it while it's dry - any oiling, powder for the rubbers, leave it with the spear in and mono hooked or loose?

And when it finally does get wet what post dive cleaning is needed - quick run under fresh or full lube job?

I've been doing scuba for a while so I'm used to plaing around for a while post dive getting everything clean - just don't want my rubbers to perish or mechanism to fail due to neglect.

Thanks for any advice

Gav

 

[sgnips]

i can't help for gun and spearfishing gear in detail, but for float and lines some fresh water will make the job

 

[Pav]

All i do is rinse kit when I can. When dry I keep kit in dark (out of sunlight). Never had any major problems with kit. WD40 oil on knife blade if in storage.

 

[Mr. X]

Welcome OTGav. I just rinse everything in freshwater to get the salt out. Salt seems to be fairly destructive to many materials. When I bought my first speargun (a Rob Allen band-powered speargun) I was told specifically NOT to lube it, just rinse it. Pneumatics maybe different, I only have band guns.

That said I have heard of others lubing their spearguns (with light silicone lubricants & WD40). I guess the problem with lube is that it tends to hold grit, sand & salt in your trigger mech - with modern materials it usually isn't necessary. Oil based products can sometimes damage some rubbers & plastics (interestingly, neoprene is quite tolerant of oil). I think using silicone on rubbers helps conserve the rubber (as does deep freezing), but I had trouble finding a suitable product locally, so don't bother; I keep my guns in a cool place & spare rubbers in the deep freeze. If the trigger mechanism wears, they can often be replaced cheaply & easily and, in the scheme of things, you can buy a new speargun quite cheaply (that's not to say all spearguns are cheap of course).

The one exception I can think of is the spear. Stainless steel spears seem wonderfully maintenance free - with perhaps just an occasional sharpening. The (slightly) cheaper but good Rob Allen (galvanized?) spring steel spears will start to rust after a few years, so it is a good idea to oil these after each trip. I use vegetable oil to avoid tainting the fish meat but it will go rancid if you don't use it for a while - so some kind of mineral oil might be a better bet if you don't expect to spear for a while (e.g. over winter). Come to think of it, some of those unhealthy vegetable oils & fats used in vending machine foods, like palm oil, would probably last a real long time.

There was a good image on a discussion thread recently of a forum member hosing down 6-12 spearguns after a boat trip out with friends.

 

[OTGav]

Thanks for the info - a good hose down and into the freezer with the spares.

Excellent - that's loads of time I don't have to spend checking every little joint and crevice for salt and sand.

 

[spaghetti]

Mr. X has said it all.
Me I've always rinsed everything (everything) under abundant fresh water after every dive (especially gun mechs), and carefully stored everything for the coldest winter months: wetsuits and belt in a dry place on a wooden crutch, gundbands in the fridge, fins in a dry dark place too, trigger mechanism oiled, mask in its rigid box, airguns turned upside down every few days to avoid the internal lubricant from slipping all to one side of the inner barrell (wow!).
I've always followed this protocol for 20 years, and, as a probable consequence of this loving care for it, I've always enjoyed the durability of my gear.
But this year, well this year...
...I happen to be the head of a scientific experimental programme about winter divegear storage and related issues. The experiment consists in leaving my divebag with all the gear in the luggage trunk of my car: it's all there in the bag since the last time I used it (late november) and I plan to keep it there in the car all winter long. Step 2 of the programme is: see what happens. Considering that last night temperature was down to -9°C it will be a tough proof.
I'm doing this cause I'm growing old an lazy, more than for scientific purpose. I'll keep you informed on the outcome of Step 2 (i.e. "see what happens")

 

[Mr. X]

rofl rofl I look forward to reading the outcome of your research Dr. Spaghetti.


Sorting out a quick & affective way to clean your gear will probably increase your enjoyment of the activity. I have a big ceramic "Belfast sink" in my utility room which I used for cleaning small items & fish but got fed up carrying the big items up to the bathroom - also it was recently refurbished and a complete ban was imminent! Taking the gear back down to drip dry under the garden umbrella and/or on the back of garden chairs doubled the effort. So I fitted an old Belfast sink outside, the biggest I could find, under an existing outside tap (fawcett) & now use that for all my gear -- it's wonderful! So much quicker & easier. Possible improvements would be to move it all higher & add a draining board at each end, then I could clean fish comfortably there too. That would require major alterations & plumbing though. An outside shower might work well (some beaches have them) but a hose should be enough.

We've been lucky on holiday so far, finding convenient outside taps/inside baths, washing lines, garden furniture, patios, etc. It might be problem though in some flats, hotels, B&Bs. Worth thinking about if you a planning a lot of spearing on holiday.

 

[blaiz]

Thanks for the info - a good hose down and into the freezer with the spares.

Excellent - that's loads of time I don't have to spend checking every little joint and crevice for salt and sand.

If you have used the rubbers do NOT store them in the freezer. When the bands are stretched underwater they will absorb water and when frozen the ice crystals will break down the rubber. Powder them with a little talcom powder and toss them in your fridge. i keep mine in the lettuce crisper.

The other important think is to just store everything in the shade and out of the sun. uv rays are the biggest factor in the decay of your bands.

Do you have a wood gun? pipe gun?

 

[OTGav]

I have a freedivers rail gun, will make a home for it in the basement

 

[mateusz h2o]

i agree with alot of what everyone has said. i rinse off everything really well and make sure its dry befor i put it in storage. storage being my dive bag in the closet in teh garage. one problem i noticed is that my bands are cracking. i dont know what it could be from. when i dry my equipment i set it outside but under my patio overhang. so i dont think its the sun. i really dont know what else it could be from. my garage stayes cool over the summer so i dont think its the heat. any ideas would be great.

 

[Pav]

I also try and keep rubbers apart from each other! Something funny can happen when different types of rubber come in contact with each other. This is most apparent with fishing lures but I have had spear gun rubbers go sticky before. It was explained somewhere on here but I can't remember why!

 

[blaiz]

The rubbers are going to break down no matter how well you take care of them. They will crack around the constrictor knots first and anywhere they rub on the muzzle or stock. IF you are storing your gun for long periods of time take your bands off and put them in a ziploc with talcom powder and keep them in the crisper drawer in the fridge. THey will last A LOT longer.

i agree with alot of what everyone has said. i rinse off everything really well and make sure its dry befor i put it in storage. storage being my dive bag in the closet in teh garage. one problem i noticed is that my bands are cracking. i dont know what it could be from. when i dry my equipment i set it outside but under my patio overhang. so i dont think its the sun. i really dont know what else it could be from. my garage stayes cool over the summer so i dont think its the heat. any ideas would be great.

 

[mateusz h2o]

thanks for the advice ill keep that in mind.

but now i need to buy new bands. it seems like i have to buy new ones every season.

 

[Pav]

I would hate to be loading a gun and the rubber snap! Would most likely result in a nose bleed!

 

[blaiz]

thanks for the advice ill keep that in mind.

but now i need to buy new bands. it seems like i have to buy new ones every season.

sounds about right.... I change my bands every 2 months or so:blackeye

 

[scottwilson]

I give everything a rinse in fresh water, with the westuit I soak in soapy water, rinse and hang on the line outside to dry.

My gun gets a blast from the shower head in the bathroom and then "steamed" while I have a shower. I wipe and I turn the gun upside down and leave for an hour or so to make sure the inside of the reel is dry. one more wipe. I did have to replace the rubbers a month ago as they cracked which is a good thing as the new ones are noticeably better.

 

[yugyug]

I also chuck all my gear in the shower and then lovingly clean it while I shower under steaming hot water.... nothing better after a cold winter dive. I also take a beer in with me.

 

[OTGav]

I also take a beer in with me.

Shampoo/hot water in your beer - that can't be good :naughty