Inalex Alpha C1 Pneumatic Speargun

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Rules of Use

1. The gun should be fired only when aimed at an identified target within the gun's shooting range and not in a careless or irresponsible manner in poor visibility where there will be no knowledge of where the shaft will strike.

2. It is not possible to charge the gun for shooting if the releasing valve is not first reset by manipulating the power regulator cylinder or the butt (refer to the instructions).

3. It is not possible to add or remove air from the gun without setting the gun first to "safe mode".

4. Choose the appropriate power setting for a target, to overshoot a target may be dangerous if you happen to miss and the presence of other water users in the area must always be considered, particularly if they are momentarily hidden from view.

5. The spear should not be left in the barrel of the gun during storage or at any time when the gun is not being used for underwater hunting.

6. It is absolutely forbidden to fire the ALPHA-C1 gun in the air, the gun must be fully submerged before pulling the trigger if the gun is charged with a spear.

7. Do not point the gun at other humans even if it is unloaded, to do otherwise is to create bad habits and ignores basic safety rules.

8. It is forbidden to fire the gun without the spear properly installed in the barrel (unless the gun is being pressurized or depressurized, refer the instructions).

9. The gun should not be charged from a high pressure gas cylinder, or charged beyond 30 bar as this is a maximum level set by the design of the pumping system using the inner barrel of the gun.

10. Do not throw or drop the gun down onto rocks or sand, or handle it in a careless manner, all spearguns need to be handled with respect or the function of the gun may be compromised, plus you set a bad example for other users.

11. Keep the gun in a secure place and do not let it be handled by those unfamiliar with its operation or the safe rules and practices of underwater hunting, especially children as a speargun is not a toy to be played with.

12. Do not leave the gun sitting in the sun for a long period, instead keep the gun cool by placing it in a shaded position.

13. Wash the gun in freshwater after each use and examine it carefully for any damage, then dry it for storage until the next time it is to be used.

 

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Whenever I shoot the ALPHA-C1 I always use maximum power (butt is fully revolved clockwise LHT) as unlike partitioned reservoir systems a lower power shot does not conserve any of your loading effort, everything is used when you pull the trigger. Throttling of the gas flow through limiting the opening stroke of the releasing valve dissipates some of the energy when other than full power is selected, so that reduces the power of the actual shot. As I am using the fixed tip spear I don’t use the ALPHA-C1 around the rocks, hence fish receive the full power of the gun which can thread them like a kite on a string. I notice that Alex uses a trident on his ALPHA-C1 gun, but I don’t like using them as fish are hard to remove. I may try using a high speed pranger on the threaded end alternate shaft, however the multi-prong barbs can steer the shot if they are not straight and that condition is often arrived at as the desperate fish works against the barbs, if it is still alive that is.

 

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If you can understand the operating instructions then you will know exactly how the ALPHA-C1 speargun works. A handy way to deal with the left hand thread is to use the "left hand screw rule" where your fingers point in the rotation direction and your thumb points to the travel direction, thus a clockwise rotation will have the travel outwards and towards you, an anti-clockwise rotation will have the travel inwards and away from you.

 

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Some ideas for high speed prangers which need to minimize drag, but not be too flimsy as once bent out of shape they will not fly straight underwater. If you have gun power to spare and still have a fast strike, or shoot close then such tips are very effective, but difficult to remove from the body of the fish.

The inspiration for the uppermost tip came from this image (see below), hence I named it the "Liberator" tip.

The Liberator Starship (Blake's 7) obliterating all opponents with its "neutron blasters"

 

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One thing to remember is if you hit a fish within the fast flying linear trajectory zone of spear travel then the fish’s body will absorb all the impact as a pranger drives into it. Unless you hit some bone with a single point shaft the chances are the spear will travel right through the fish with just the thickness of the meat slowing the smooth shaft down. Hence up close a shot can pass right through the fish and not cause much damage to it, at least initially. Of course if you hit the spine or the skull then single point is the best option as the fish loses all helm control and even if still conscious can be manoeuvred in for the coup de grace.

Prangers tend to splay as they hit and spread outwards in all directions through the body of the fish causing nerve, muscle and blood vessel damage. An oblique angle hit near the eye will send barbs into the brain even though a couple of barbs may only skim the surface flesh or miss tissue entirely. A very solid hit in this manner may bend the barbs/prongs severely, but the payback is the fish will be yours as few fish can sustain such an impact and live. Heavy shafts such as 3/8 inch can cause fatal damage if all the shaft's momentum is absorbed by the body of the fish.

 

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Step ladder loader.

 

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A schematic showing how the power regulator works by closing the gap for the releasing valve to fly backwards into when firing at reduced power. The throttling effect of the reduced valve opening is used to slow the gas flow which limits the pressure build up rate in the inner barrel. Unlike the bulkhead partitioning system the Alpha C1 gun uses all the stored air from muzzle loading for the shot. Diagrams show guns shooting, top one maximum power, lower one reduced power.

 

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Resetting the releasing valve for the next shot you push the rear butt forwards against its internal biasing coil spring. You cannot screw the rear butt right off as it travels between set limits. Dismantling the gun you can, but that involves undoing a few more parts. Although I have never done it some indicating marks could be added on the control knob surface to provide a set of different power positions which you could then in a sense dial up, say one or two alternatives as more than that and you will just confuse yourself.