Ted,
How did the hell USA import such fish from us...
I have never hunt with the 7mm (9/32") Hawaiian shaft for the MT0. I find it too lightweight. As you know I done testing with the plywood and I don't like the result. I did not intend buying this MT0 for smal fish anyway. What I had in mind is to get the smallest gun and make it as powerful as my Riffe Standard #2, this was the original plan. As I said the heavy current infested wreck was the motivator, the trevallies actualy. I don't do holes with the MT0, I have a 85cm Cyrano pneumatic for holes. So I will never use the 9/32" Hawaiian shaft.
My ballistic result with the overly long 36" x 3/8" is the best result. I need to remind you that the original 3/8" shaft is actualy 32" not 36". Shipment by mistake but it proved deadly. This long shaft also allows long overhang and thus an Ice Pick is possible to use. At 3/8" and so short at 36", it is super stiff.
My spearhead testing of the MT0 on the fishes been always the large spearhead, since my shafts are 24" threaded for the 5/16 and 3/8. Since I kind of starting to like pencil point Hawaiian shaft, this is why I am modifying my 3/8" to taper to 9/32" for some part of the front. Will show you when it is ready. I want 3/8"
shaft for its momentum and I want the end tip of 9/32 for penetration. I do not know if the balance or accuracy in flight will work out well but large spearhead is not that light and low profile too. If I don't experiment, I will never learn how far I can push the modification.
In summary, since my MT0 can use up to 5 x 9/16 bands, I get maximum ballistic quality with 3/8" shaft. I am not trying to make it look like a super magnum guns by using 5 bands, I am just maximizing its potential. While people are going longer, I want to go shorter. The basic calculation will be the same, how fast can u launch out what mass of a shaft. Since the MT0 has only like 15" of useful rubber travel/propulsion, 5 rubbers is not that plenty.
I buy amber rubbers because I believe light colors absorb less UV and might less longer if I stash it anyhow on the open boat. Riffe rubbers, may it be black or amber is the same spec. Metal Tech comes with black ones cause the whole gun is black, thus it looks "cool" when the rubber is black...my assumption.
The original two wraps is too short for me since 3 rubbers is my minimum. On my 5/16", I use 3 wraps and I still get the gun pulled away by the shaft so strongly at 4 rubbers. On 3/8" shaft I use 4 wraps and at 5 rubbers, the gun still get robbed by the shaft. I did test 5 wraps but, messy to re-do underwater. At 4 wraps of shooting line and 3/8" shaft, I get power like my Standard #2 but being pin point accurate is not easy, cause the recoil is significant (5 rubbers).
I do not use mono and I do not believe in mono being more accurate, my test have proved it...at least for me. The 270 lbs Riffe coated SS cable is so small in diameter and soft, it acts like a 250 lbs mono.
My Standard#2 been using 500 lbs coated SS cable, also from Riffe and it is very accurate. Many people forgot the difference between soft cable and hard cable, hard one maybe accuracy destructing. Soft cable cost more money cause the strands are fine and plenty. I am a scuba diver and do not use reel or float. When fighting a big fish, I am the float. If I am desperate, I just wrap my ss cable around a rock or wreck part and let the fish pull all its might, you can't do that with mono. I tried 1000 lbs Kevlar and it is a MESS to do underwater.
Enjoy............
IYA
