I've a question about wood types for building a roller gun.

[Tropdiver]

This will be my first try at building a spear gun. So let the simplest of questions begin: I see the wood of choice is Teak and then maybe Mahogany. Why not Oak, it's cheap, hard, easy to get, and most importantly, I already have some. Thoughts?

 

[foxfish]

You can use oak if you want too.
Oak has tannins that can react against certain metals and cause black staining of the wood or corrosion of the metal.
It can be a very dence and hard wood that might not be very buoyant so not the best wood for a hight mass construction.
However if you lamanate at least three pieces together and seal everything well it can make a great gun.

 

[Tropdiver]

Ok, thanks for the info on oak. Much appreciated. Since this is my first try at building one, I believe I'll use the oak until I know what I'm doing. Where's a good source for rollers, mechanisms, so forth?

 

[Tropdiver]

I discovered Neptonics.com What a candy store.
I've decided to not build a roller gun for my first try at building. It will just be a reef gun 2 bander. I'm thinking of using the Neptonics Reverse Trigger Mech. The reviews say it will work with either euro or american style shafts. I'm intending to use american shaft. Anybody using that set up? Is it stable? Engages reliably/releases smoothly, so forth? Thanks for any inputs on this subject.

 

[growingupninja]

Neptonics mechs have a very good reputation, a lot of guys who build high end custom guns use their parts.

I am not much of a carpenter but oak is a poor choice, it will crack eventually. You would also need a lot of ballast lead since it is lighter than most boat woods. It would probably save you a lot of grief to buy a wood blank from neptonics.

 

[doyenofcastle]

for oak just finish my 2 guns but my learns is it won't be able to use hand tools easily only grinding machine can do the work and as fox said its very heavy ,what about african teak or iroko ?

 

[foxfish]

I have just started putting two guns together using Iroko & Mahogany, iroko is a good choice, a bit oily but light and strong.

 

[doyenofcastle]

next week I ll start for roller and bazooka ,keep post foxfish specially for the coating

 

[foxfish]

I finish all my guns with two pack polyurethane clear varnish, expensive but very tough and shiny

 

[doyenofcastle]

irok easily wraped? my friend left the laminated 10mm in the garage in vertical position and it bent within 2 days is it normal ?all remaining just put them in the floor

 

[foxfish]

No, not normal for well seasoned wood, your wood must of had a high moisture content.
The wood bent because when it was cut into thin strips, it dried out and shrunk.

 

[DTKreten]

irok easily wraped? my friend left the laminated 10mm in the garage in vertical position and it bent within 2 days is it normal ?all remaining just put them in the floor

From my expiriences, yes. Iroko is one stubborn piece of wood. However, its mass coupled with its specific yellow color and grain structure make it excellent. Its also rock hard. It also doesntreally matter if you put it vertical or not, if the wood is gonna bend, its gonna bend.

 

[doyenofcastle]

iroko or mahogany if both available in same price ?also when u use oil as finishing does the soak oil increase the buoyancy of th stock and need more lead ?

 

[DTKreten]

iroko or mahogany if both available in same price ?also when u use oil as finishing does the soak oil increase the buoyancy of th stock and need more lead ?

I prefer Iroko. You can create a lighter design and still preserve strenght. I only use epoxy finishes, so i don't know about oil.

 

[foxfish]

Here is one I am building at the moment = alternative Iroko & mahogany 4mm laminates!

 

[DTKreten]

Here is one I am building at the moment = alternative Iroko & mahogany 4mm laminates!

Why is it flat at the front and the back? Roler?

 

[foxfish]

It is just in a basic shape at the moment, I have uses blue & green colourer epoxy between the laminates so I hope that once I shape it up they will show though.
I don't think I will build a full roller but the band (s) will loop under the muzzle, mid handle & reverse mech.
I quite often use that basic shape to achieve various designs...

 

[doyenofcastle]

It is just in a basic shape at the moment, I have uses blue & green colourer epoxy between the laminates so I hope that once I shape it up they will show though.
I don't think I will build a full roller but the band (s) will loop under the muzzle, mid handle & reverse mech.
I quite often use that basic shape to achieve various designs...

is there any update? i just want to know which MAHOGANY u used ?I want to buy african mahogany from local store but heard a lot of stories about its a nervous wood and easily change dimension once catch the water ,they said south american Mah. ,sipo and kosipo is more stable than african mahogany or sapelli ,what do u think ?

 

[foxfish]

Hi mate, I dont think it makes much difference in my case as the laminates are thin, and encased with epoxy!
I tend to choose wood for colour and grain pattern rather than strength, once you have a few bits stuck together the strength becomes inherent
If you just want to use three or four laminates then the wood would need to be strong.
I don't actually know what variety of mahogany I used, there are many types, I have a stock of reclaimed wood from table tops but I also buy from my locale wood store. They never know what type of tree it comes from!

 

[doyenofcastle]

american cherry is what a available in store near my home just visit them ,all mahogany from africa and non of the pieces I check was straight all is bent and its 3m length ,cherry is medium hard 49 Mpa ,is it strong enough ?