New Model Aquatech "Black Sea" speargun

[popgun pete]

A new model of the Aquatech "Black Sea" speargun is now available. You can see the new gun's shape on the Ukrainian version of the Aquatech web-page, it is not on the English version yet. There are both aluminium and titanium bodied models. Both operate at 100 Bar and use the hydropump charging system which is operated at the rear end of the gun. This method is considerably safer than muzzle loading against high pressure!
AQUATECH Speargun

The rear handle assembly screws off with the end cap of the hydraulic locking chamber as the hydraulic trigger mechanism is now connected to the end cap rather than the sidewall of the hydraulic locking chamber. This change means that the guns can be opened up for cleaning much more easily than in the past. Previously there was a bit more disassembly required, nothing onerous, but definitely not as quick or simple as the new system. The gun is also lighter at the rear end with these changes due to the elimination of the twin stainless steel plate handle sub-frame used in the previous version.

 

[popgun pete]

Just to show what I meant by the metal plate sub-frame, here attached is a photo of the previous model of the gun with the plastic side grips removed. Note the all important small bore transfer tube running from the rear end of the gun and disappearing into the back of the metal plate sub-frame. The trigger operated "control valve", which is the stubby metal cylinder seen in the large rectangular slot in the metal frame, opens up the outer end of the transfer tube to the surrounding environment when activated. The tube being water filled, this action instantly drops the hydrostatic pressure in the rear end of the hydraulic locking chamber as the transfer tube is directly connected to it via a radial drilling through the chamber's sidewall. The subsequent fall in hydrostatic pressure to ambient pressure unbalances the "trigger (or firing) valve" located inside the hydraulic locking chamber causing the valve to instantly fly back and simultaneously unplug the rear end of the inner barrel which up until then the nose of the valve was keeping closed. With the end of the inner barrel opened all the stored up water injected during the diver's charging efforts exits via the inner barrel, pushed along by 100 Bar plus of air pressure. I say "plus" because the 100 Bar is the start pressure before you begin cranking the hydropump lever! Hence the "Black Sea" gun is not a speargun to leave laying around cooking in the sun on a very hot day!

With the hydraulic mechanism elements all grouped together in one removable assembly the latest "Black Sea" gun can be transported as an anonymous looking tubular barrel while you keep the rear handle and hydropump in a separate carry bag. Plus while pulled apart the gun can completely dry out when you are not using it, a big advantage even though corrosion resistant materials are used in the gun's construction.

 

[popgun pete]

The Aquatech web-site has just been updated with photos to show the line release lever which is used to control the trigger position on the Aquatech spearguns. Swinging the line release lever to the open position holds the plastic trigger down and thus depresses the trigger control valve which in turn opens up the gun's hydraulic locking system, i.e. the system is no longer locked and water can pass freely through the gun to either flood it or purge saltwater out of it with freshwater after the completion of the dive. The trigger control valve is essentially a pilot valve in a servo-system for the operation of the hydraulic firing valve that will unleash the pent up water inside the fully charged up gun when you pull the plastic trigger. That is how you can release a spear shaft with 1,500 psi plus pushing on its rear end with next to no trigger pull!

AQUATECH Speargun

Explanatory schematics can be viewed on http://aquatech1.narod.ru/aquatech1.html. An English language version is obtained by clicking the Union Jack flag, it contains fewer diagrams, but the basic operating principle is the same for all the Aquatech models.

The trigger control valve can be indirectly manipulated by the user via the line release lever positioning for (a) gun charging (i.e. gun cocking) and subsequent shooting (the line release lever is closed, until the shooting line swings it open as the spear departs) and (b) gun pre-dive flooding of its internal hydraulic passages with seawater and gun cleaning/purging after the dive is completed with freshwater (the line release lever is kept open). Photos show the various positions of the line release lever, plus it can be reversed to stow the line on the other side of the gun if you shoot with the left hand rather than the right.

The hydropump lever loading system of the "Black Sea" version is easy to use, virtually anyone would be capable of loading it, however you need to keep your wits about you when you shoot the gun for obvious reasons as the spear goes a long way in a very short time.

 

[benjamin2130]

i need to know the price of this model,and more information i wany to buy sea black or maco2 what its better? here in mexico you can caught big fish,thanks and sorry for my english thanks

 

[popgun pete]

My friends in California have told me that only band powered spearguns can be used in Mexican waters, otherwise they would have considered buying the "Aquatech" guns to spear in Baja when they head south of the border for the big fish. For the price of an "Aquatech Black Sea" you have to write to the web-site contact address, I don't know the current prices. The "Maco" is an expellable gas gun, either powered by carbon dioxide or very high pressure compressed air, a type which has been banned in Mexico for some years now as it was too easy for commercial spearfishermen to shoot big fish that were holed up. Unfortunately because it is hard to tell the difference between expellable gas guns and pneumatic closed cycle or non-consumptive (of gas) guns if you are not very familiar with them (both have tanks and are muzzle loaded in that you insert the spear down the barrel), the Mexican authorities have banned both types.

 

[benjamin2130]

hi pete,in mexico can use this tipe of guns pneumatics etc,only fire guns or speargun whit cartridge are prohibited,in baja has influence of many american from california come to mexico and use only band powerered speargun for no has problem,but any kind air speargun can use in mexico (air),now i use a sten .70,its exellent but short distance and i whish to has something more powerfull.
thank you

 

[popgun pete]

hi pete,in mexico can use this tipe of guns pneumatics etc,only fire guns or speargun whit cartridge are prohibited,in baja has influence of many american from california come to mexico and use only band powerered speargun for no has problem,but any kind air speargun can use in mexico (air),now i use a sten .70,its exellent but short distance and i whish to has something more powerfull.
thank you

Well being allowed to use pneumatic spearguns is going to be news to the Californian guys, I have sent them a reference to your comments here. Here is a post which I just found by "Baja Haha" who is a long time expert on diving and spearfishing in particular http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/underwater-hunting/131876-spear-guns-mexico.html. Something must have brought about this relatively widespread belief in the US, maybe the law and how it is interpreted by border officials has been a factor, they could be two different things! It will be interesting to find out one way or the other why they believe the guns are banned.

 

[Don Paul]

hi pete,in mexico can use this tipe of guns pneumatics etc,only fire guns or speargun whit cartridge are prohibited,in baja has influence of many american from california come to mexico and use only band powerered speargun for no has problem,but any kind air speargun can use in mexico (air),now i use a sten .70,its exellent but short distance and i whish to has something more powerfull.
thank you

Do you have a Mexican fishing license ? It used to say ''rubber powered spear only''.
I don't have any old license laying around to check.
Locals get to do allot of things with out issue.
Cheers, Don Paul

 

[popgun pete]

If there are no prohibitions on these guns in Mexico then the advantage of the "Black Sea" gun is that being muscle powered you don't have to worry about running out of gas like you would with a "Maco". However whether that is a concern or not will depend on how many shots you plan to take on a given spearfishing trip. These guns are not floaters after the shot, unlike your "Sten 70" (or "Medisten"), so you have to take that into account in terms of how and where you usually spearfish. When you spear with a more powerful gun you are less inclined to pull the trigger, thinking that it will be better to find a bigger specimen rather than waste a shot on a lesser one. It is possible to shorten the reloading time by using less hydropump lever strokes for fish that are able to be taken at reduced shooting power, but then you might as well be using a standard pneumatic. If you want to shoot further then you need a longer gun such as a 90 cm or an 110 cm model. Charging the gun up from the rear end is, in my opinion, the main advantage of the hydropneumatic "Black Sea" gun. You don't really need to carry a loader and the risks of losing control of the spear during muzzle loading are completely eliminated. It just takes longer to reload the gun each time if say you have to put 14 lever strokes into the gun or maybe more depending on the length of the gun (the water volume of the inner barrel is the determining factor, the bigger the inner barrel volume the more water you have to pump). If you can take your time between shots and spend a lot of that time searching for a particular victim and then lining one up then the higher power guns are good, as long as you don't miss!