Question about competitive spearguns (Black Sea conditions)

[free_G]

Hi everyone,

I would like to ask for some advice from more experienced competitive spearos here. I’ve been diving for many years and this will be my third season competing in spearfishing competitions in the Black Sea (Bulgaria). Lately I’ve been thinking about upgrading my guns and I would really appreciate some opinions.

At the moment my setup looks like this:

• Meandros Sting 60 cm, M4 head, single 18 mm band with a 4‑prong – this one I will definitely keep. I use it mostly for holes and tight situations and I’m very happy with it.
• Meandros B28 Open with 2x14 mm bands and 6.5 mm shaft.
• Seac Sub Twin Thunder 95 cm (my first speargun from 15+ years ago), also with 2x14 mm bands and 6.5 mm shaft.

I’m mainly wondering whether I should replace the last two guns, or maybe just the big 95 cm one since it’s really old already. I’ve been considering moving towards carbon monoblock spearguns, maybe something around 70–75 cm and 85–90 cm, specifically for competition use.

For those who are not familiar with the Black Sea — visibility is often poor. If we have 5–6 meters we are very happy, and during competitions there are often areas with only 2–3 meters visibility. Most of the fish we target are small species simply because that’s what we have. During our June–September competitions, the award for the biggest fish is often won with a fish weighing around 2 kg, just to give you an idea of the conditions.

Recently I learned about the BOAT & FISHING SHOW 2026 – SEA & TOURISM EXPO in Athens, Greece. I’m planning to visit even though it’s a long 12–15 hour drive for me. I want to see different high-end guns in person and maybe combine the trip with some diving around Thessaloniki and Athens.

My main question is: does it really make sense to go for top-tier brands like Bleutec, BlueGreen, El Greco or other high end brand for this kind of competitive Black Sea fishing? After watching a lot of videos I really like the Bleutec ACID, maybe around 85 cm as a main gun to replace my 95 cm, because besides being old it also lacks maneuverability and for our sea and the type of fish we hunt I feel I need something more agile.

The reason I’m considering changes is that last season I missed quite a few fish mostly due to lack of maneuverability and sometimes because of not enough shooting distance. I’ve also noticed that many of our best local competitors are moving almost entirely to 6 mm shafts, which makes their guns much faster and more precise. Since we don’t target big thick fish, 6 mm seems to work best in our waters.

No matter what I decide, my current idea is to tune my setups with a 6 mm Devoto Ergot shaft and 2x14 mm Cetma Magnum Plus bands, and I will keep the small 60 cm gun as it is now set up for hole hunting.

I would really appreciate honest opinions — especially from people who compete in Mediterranean or low-visibility conditions. Is upgrading to high-end carbon guns worth it for this type of fishing, or should I focus more on optimizing what I already have?

Thanks in advance and dive safe!

 

[rollerGR]

Spain/Portugal champs are probably the ones you want to look at when it comes to poor visibility, I have an interview with A. Domingues a couple years back and he uses/used a 95cm aluminum speargun with closed muzzle, single pair of rubbers. Most of the time it's chamber (hole) fishing in spots you know beforehand, competitions are actually more about logistics, good boats and boatment as well as fast pace - much different than the spearfishing most of us are used to. It's more like a job

Carbon makes no sense unless it's a gun with good shape for tracking + heavy setup. But that's not really something you'd use in a competition. A custom made wooden cuttlefish would probably be better, for a relatively small/average size you get good tracking + mass for recoil + buoyancy (huge plus, ease of use)
But it'd still be close to a simple close muzzle aluminum gun with no shaft guide (=better tracking)

if you want a carbon gun from bleutec you can ask them about labraxgun or black eyes, but be aware that they tend to oversell (exaggerate) the performance of their guns. Bluegreen spearguns are chunky and El Greco even chunkier

I would suggest 6,25mm for 2x14 bands or a single 1x19mm pair, 6mm is good and light but because of it's very low mass it decelerates very quickly due to water resistance: it "bleeds" kinetic energy which a 6,25mm is more resistant to

To conclude
"Is upgrading to high-end carbon guns worth it for this type of fishing, or should I focus more on optimizing what I already have?"
Not worth it imo, diminishing returns. Performance gains are minimal but the amount of money you'll have to spend are not minimal at all. A wooden gun shaped the way you want it would be cheaper, you could even ask for a 26mm hole insert at the muzzle so you can get a closed muzzle in (with no shaft guide for better tracking)

 

[free_G]

Thanks a lot for the detailed answer, really appreciate you sharing all that. Honestly, what you said about comps being more about logistics, pace and efficiency than chasing high-end gear hits very close to what we experience here too.

You mentioned you did an interview with A. Domingues a few years ago — I’d really love to check that out if it’s available somewhere. Is there a link or a place where I can read/watch it?

Thanks!

 

[Mr. X]

Doesn't 2x14mm overpower a 6mm shaft?

My favorite spearguns for murky UK waters have 6.3mm shafts, which seem thin but adequate to me, for their default 18mm screw-in band. I've tried 19/20mm bulk rubber too but soon switched to 16mm bulk rubber, which feels more appropriate/ "balanced", much like the good original screw-in 18mm bands. Mine have no rail (cheaper & available) but there is a railed version, which was popular & successful for a few forum members & staff, particularly in the 80-85cm size.

You don't say how long your second speargun is?

I switched from a big RA90 railgun with sturdy 6.6mm spear & single bulk rubber loop of various sizes, 16mm-20mm, to a slim Omer 75cm without rail for some murky Dorset conditions and that did fix the maneuverability problem I had previously experienced . Fast passing grey mullet & even the occasional mackerel then became my prey.

I then additionally bought a similar light, slim Omer 90cm speargun w/o rail and with 6.3mm spear, which worked very well in clearer conditions ( e.g. sometimes in Cornwall & S. Devon) But I think a single slim, light 80-85cm speargun would likely have provided a better, more versatile , general purpose, single speargun option for many/most GB conditions.

When I started, I think the relatively inexpensive, light aluminum- barreled Cressi Comanche was favoured by the current (Italian?) world champion, in various sizes from 60cm, 75cm, 90cm, etc. It came with a single screw-in rubber, probably 16mm or 18mm? 60cm was considered unusually small by most British spearos at the time (and possibly still?).

I now also have an Apnea 60cm ST-60 (with reverse trigger mech. so effectively 65cm? But perhaps not, the spear is just 90cm) railed speargun with 2x14mm bulk rubbers, which sadly I haven't used much. I don't recall the spear diameter and my micrometer needs a new battery, but it measures around 6mm-6.5mm.
I think a slightly longer ( e.g 65cm/70cm) speargun would have been more useful/versatile for me - but perhaps that is missing the point, the shortness is specifically intended for confined spaces (reefs, caves, gulleys, wrecks).

I have tried using my 90 & 75 spearguns in confined spaces, with varying degrees of success. Not a problem in dense weed so much, but in rocky gulleys and caves, shorter would definitely have been much better, as you have apparently already discovered Georgi!

 

[free_G]

@Mr. X
Thanks a lot for sharing your experience, really interesting to read — UK murky water conditions actually sound very similar to what we have here in the Black Sea.

You might be right about 2x14mm on a 6mm shaft — it’s something I’m still experimenting with. I’m also aware that shooting around rocks with a thinner shaft can be quite rough on the spear, so it’s probably a trade‑off I need to consider carefully. The idea behind it was to keep the setup fast but still have enough reach, but balance is definitely more important than raw power in competitions.

My second speargun is a Meandros B28 Open in 75cm, currently with a 6.5mm shaft which I’m thinking of changing to a 6 or 6.25, a standard classic aluminum speargun with 2x14mm bands, so very close to what you described with your Omer 75 — and honestly that’s the one that already feels the most “alive” in the water for our conditions.

Interesting point about the 80–85cm being the most versatile size — that’s actually why I’m currently considering something around 85cm as a main competition gun.

Thanks again for the detailed insight!

 

[BrooksHaverhill]

Spain/Portugal champs are probably the ones you want to look at when it comes to poor visibility, I have an interview with A. Domingues a couple years back and he uses/used a 95cm aluminum speargun with closed muzzle, single pair of rubbers. Most of the time it's chamber (hole) fishing in spots you know beforehand, competitions are actually more about logistics, good boats and boatment as well as fast pace - much different than the spearfishing most of us are used to. It's more like a job

Carbon makes no sense unless it's a gun with good shape for tracking + heavy setup. But that's not really something you'd use in a competition. A custom made wooden cuttlefish would probably be better, for a relatively small/average size you get good tracking + mass for recoil + buoyancy (huge plus, ease of use)
But it'd still be close to a simple close muzzle aluminum gun with no shaft guide (=better tracking)

if you want a carbon gun from bleutec you can ask them about labraxgun or black eyes, but be aware that they tend to oversell (exaggerate) the performance of their guns. Bluegreen spearguns are chunky and El Greco even chunkier

I would suggest 6,25mm for 2x14 bands or a single 1x19mm pair, 6mm is good and light but because of it's very low mass it decelerates very quickly due to water resistance: it "bleeds" kinetic energy which a 6,25mm is more resistant to

Habanero section​

To conclude
"Is upgrading to high-end carbon guns worth it for this type of fishing, or should I focus more on optimizing what I already have?"
Not worth it imo, diminishing returns. Performance gains are minimal but the amount of money you'll have to spend are not minimal at all. A wooden gun shaped the way you want it would be cheaper, you could even ask for a 26mm hole insert at the muzzle so you can get a closed muzzle in (with no shaft guide for better tracking)

That point about 6.25mm seems like a sensible compromise. In poor visibility I’d rather have a setup that tracks quickly and stays balanced than chase maximum power. The diminishing returns argument makes sense too - an expensive carbon gun won’t necessarily make you faster or more efficient in a competition.