new OMER pneumatic!!!

[spaghetti]

after so much buzz and fuss, the new airgun by Omer has been displayed today at the dive gear exibit in Rome. It's all in all a pneumatic version of the Cayman HF bandgun. Inner barrell 11mm. Looks sexy.
full translation later:
Apnea Magazine - EUDI SHOW: MARCO CICERI SULL'AIRBALETE FUCILE NOVITA' OMERSUB

 

[spaghetti]

ok some more bits of info.
Unlike what rumors said in the last weeks, the Omer Airbalete will NOT have a built in Mamba system, but its designed ofr a very low pour-in of water, and a very wuick pour out.
It will be sold with a 6,75m shaft, but eventually it will also take 6,5 and 7mm spears, following users' preference.
Lengths: 80, 90, 100 and 110 cm (no short version for hole hunting).
Cayman style handle, Cayman stall outer barrell with hydroformed ellyptical section, and 11mm inner barrell like the Mares Cyrano.
The prototype is still under developement. They're designing a sort of wings for the muzzel to make it more stable.
I think it's going to be a very, very, very good gun.

 

[foxfish]

ofr a very low pour-in of water, and a very wuick pour out.
That sounds interesting, I wonder how that works?

 

[jtkwest]

what is a mamba system? are pneum. guns good compared to big band guns?, (130 cm plus? )

 

[spaghetti]

what is a mamba system? are pneum. guns good compared to big band guns?, (130 cm plus? )

ooh this would be a very long long debate.
briefly:
- Pneumatics are good, yes they are.
- A mamba system is a "kit" to attach to airguns: it seals the inner barrell to prevent water to flood in, so that when you shoot, the piston doesn't have to push up the water, and the shot is more powerful than in non-mamba airguns.

Now Foxfish, brother, I don't know exactly how the new Omer works. They talk about very large draining holes in the muzzle and an adjustable stainless steel ring to seal them...I can't be more accurate by now, sorry.

 

[foxfish]

Dude you are in for a treat - you better try the search button because mamba air guns are the business.

 

[Fondueset]

I will get one of these.

 

[azapa]

spago! just found this thread. you must PM me when you post a "biggie" news item like this. Im not too good at browsing around DB.

Will get one too! the more I use band guns the more I long for a good pneumatic!

Asso rebuild on the way. see other thread.


PS this page does a good ish translation of spago's link:

AltaVista - Babel Fish Translation

 

[jtkwest]

does it count for worlds records? if you use compressd air,i mean? It would SEEM the possibilities of a pneumatic gun are endless, my own experience with them has been limited(mostly a european thing, seems like?)the ones i have tried were really weak powered, but i never tried one like you guys are talikng about,(mamba etc.) but why isnt anyone up in arms? personally, i LIKE the "idea" of an air gun dont get me wrong i am salivating over this Mamba thing, and i dont even know what it is.it SOUNDS dangerous!!(keeps pressure in barrel?like a bubble?maybe?)

 

[Marwan]

JT
the Mamba is basically a modification kit you can install to any air gun or buy one already kitted of course, the whole idea behind it is that it keeps water out of the barrel, thus no resisitance against a water column and a very powerful shot that doesnt get weaker with depth like regular airguns.... you could get a 6m effective range on a mambatized 100 -115 cm airgun, which is a much loner range then a comparable length band gun for instance..the mambas/airguns have the advantage of being more powerful and more more maneuverable, but some of them do require a lot of care though so thats why some people like them more then others

 

[jtkwest]

there is a video of a guy shooting a homemade air gun on xtremespearfishing.com that looks insane! REALLY powerful. it would seem , from a tech. point of view, that air has better potential.than bands. In U.S., EVERYONE uses bands. in the dive shops around florida that I have seen dont really carry pneumatics. Maybe 1 or 2 models as compared to 15 or 20 band guns. the ones they DO have,(usually MARES, CRESSI)are short (2 to 3 ft) never the bigger more high tech models. Why is that? I would think that, worldwide, the US has a high % of spearos.? Maybe not. who knows? i shot a 3ft cressi at a garbage can in the dive shop where my friend works: it bounced off and hit me in the leg. Unimpressive. My buddy has a cayman hf 110(i think) and that gun shoots really smoothly. how does the pneu. rate, side by side? that would seem to be the perfect test. two identical guns in everyway, except, one with bands, one with air. maybe one of you crazy Euro spearos will make it to my humble island and we can do the test in the pool,(i got a perfect , huge pool)(not "mine") or maybe we could get a hogfish to sit still long enough. I got an idea: you could send me one, and i will test it out for the summer and get back to you? any takers?

 

[Fondueset]

3 feet is pretty close to as long as they get (maybe 3.5). The Mares Cyrano is pretty much the state of the art for out of the box pneumatics. A cyrano 970, unmodified, shoots an easy four meters. This gun differs from the Cressis and guns like the Mares Sten in that it shoots a lighter shaft and has a smaller diameter piston - which means less water column to push; hence greater velocity. The only upgrade is the mamba kit - which, I am guessing, adds another meter or two. They all shoot further than band guns of comparable length because the shaft is under acceleration for a longer distances relative to the length of the gun. Some of the designs - like the hydro-pneumatic - have ways of adding more power after the shaft is loaded, but they are mostly prototypes and have not really caught on probably because of the simplicity and efficiency of the mamba kit. I believe a 110 pneumo with a mamba kit has an effective range close to 8 meters.

Spearguns in general do not perform well out of the water. It can also be very damaging to shoot a fully charged pneumatic out of the water.

 

[azapa]

yes, as fondue mentions, you will destroy a pneumatic firing out of the water, the piston will smash into the piston stop unabated by the water resistance. After two or three shots you'll be looking at a rebuild.

owning pneumos and band guns I can say:

band guns are more accurate, generally because they are at a high evolutionary state re materials, triggers, guides etc, and mostly because seeing the whole spear (especially with open muzzles) give a very nice natural aim. I would say that after a little practice smallish fish (<2Kg) can be hit up to 4M.

pneumos are very powerful, driving thicker and heavier spears 5 o 6M and still bouncing off the end of the line. Even non-mamba are incredible. Shorter lengths are very possible and powerful too, great for cave or bad viz hunting. As the spear is hidden though, natural aim is lacking, and long shots are harder. BTW, pneumatic guns don't use external air sources, or loose air whilst shooting. They have an "air spring" that is loaded against and released.

My ideal comp. float would have one of each strapped on!

a bit off topic, but should clear up some of the rasied doubts.

 

[Fondueset]

Woth noting - some of the Med guys are very accurate with Pneumos - doing very long shots on small fishes. I think they've just got used to aiming with them - as azapa pointed out; it's different and awkward at first. I think Omer is catering to this market with their 'airbalete' - with the in-line grip and hyrdroformed barrel it should be easier to aim - and the light shaft should be very quick.

 

[foxfish]

Get your order in now Fondue rofl

 

[Fondueset]

I've been talking with Mark L about this gun since last July I've already sold a gun to make room for it.

 

[Mr. X]

Here's the Google translation of the page (mainly jibberish I'm afraid): Translated version of article

 

[settingsteel]

WOW the waits been long are they even in production yet? I'm contemplation a 110, holding to see this guns review...Spago you heard anything your part of the world?

 

[popgun pete]

The new Omer "Airbalete" sounds interesting. I note the Omer "Skorpion" with its formed forward conical body has been discontinued, leaving only the Omer "Tempest" which is similar to many other pneumatic spearguns of this type. One of the main limitations on pneumatic speargun power is shaft bending during loading as the spear has to transmit the force to push the piston down the barrel until it can be latched by the trigger mechanism.

I have been using an Aquatech "Black Sea" hydropneumatic speargun charged to 100 Bar (approximately 1,400 psi). The spear is easily pushed down the barrel as no loading action takes place while the gun's hydraulic trigger valve is open. The trigger mechanism consists of a small pilot valve which unbalances an inner barrel plugging main firing valve in order to discharge the gun. Pulling the trigger trips the line release as well as opening the pilot valve as they are interconnected, so no chance of the spear being pulled up by the shooting line not being freed. To load the gun the spear is inserted, the line release lever is reset, thus closing the pilot valve and then you crank a rear lever to force seawater in incremental amounts into the gun. Full power is achieved when enough water has been injected to be the equivalent of the inner barrel volume. The gun can be fired at lower power using less strokes of the lever operated hydro-pump because the spear tail has a relief valve to allow it to exit the barrel even if the water column has stopped pushing it.

The "Black Sea" gun is extremely powerful, accurate and virtually silent, you just hear a soft clink as it shoots. It is more powerful than my old Mares Mirage and that is a gun that can be charged to 40 Bar.

Only problem is feeling comfortable with a gun containing 1,400 psi when transporting it in my car on a very hot day!

 

[foxfish]

Hey Pete, could you post a pic of your gun?