• Welcome to the DeeperBlue.com Forums, the largest online community dedicated to Freediving, Scuba Diving and Spearfishing. To gain full access to the DeeperBlue.com Forums you must register for a free account. As a registered member you will be able to:

    • Join over 44,280+ fellow diving enthusiasts from around the world on this forum
    • Participate in and browse from over 516,210+ posts.
    • Communicate privately with other divers from around the world.
    • Post your own photos or view from 7,441+ user submitted images.
    • All this and much more...

    You can gain access to all this absolutely free when you register for an account, so sign up today!

Shaft lengths ?

Thread Status: Hello , There was no answer in this thread for more than 60 days.
It can take a long time to get an up-to-date response or contact with relevant users.

RustyCompass

New Member
May 27, 2008
6
1
0
Which is more accurate ... a short shaft or a long shaft ?

~ a shorter shaft is lighter ... ?

~ a longer shaft has well, more length to it ... ?

Lets say your using the same 52" gun with the same bands .... which will give you a better shot ... ?



Cheers .................................................................:friday
 
I think they are equally accurate, but each with different ranges. The longer shaft goes farther. Most guns are accurate to 1.5 times the length of the shaft (measured from the end of the muzzle).

It would be different if you were to shorten the shaft without shortening the band stretch. The longer shaft would exit the muzzle slower, but might go straighter in the short run because if wont flex from the power of the bands. Of course it will also drop off sooner and shorten your killing range.
The shorter shaft might have some warping issues as it leaves the gun which would throw off your shot. However, it will also go farther and faster.
 
Im fairly sure that ther is an optimum length shaft for each size of gun. Your shaft should hang roughly 10 inches off the end of your muzzle. The longer the shaft the more accurate it is. There are certain variables to this equation you have to keep in mind.

IF the shaft is too long (for the particular gun) the bend caused at the tip of the gun from gravity will pull your shots down.

If the shaft is too short (for the particular gun/power) it wont be stable with the amount of power being used.

Most manufactures make there shafts the same size for each particular gun size. They do this for one reason, these lengths are the most accurate.
 
Last edited:
I just thought of a few more things to consider.

One would be the diameter of your shaft. Thicker shafts could probably handle being a little longer. But with the longer thicker shaft you are loosing momentum and power due to the added weight so It might be better to have a shorter thick shaft.roflThat doesnt sound too good

A thinner shaft wouldnt handle being too long because it would bend sooner, but you need added length for penatration.

I did a little research and found that what seems to be the tipical length of shafts compared to guns is that the shaft should be 40cm (~15.75in) longer than the gun size i.e. a 90cm gun has a 130cm shaft and a 110cm gun has a 150cm shaft.

If Im wrong I hope someone like Spaghetti or Miles will correct me:blackeye They seem to be the true masters.
 

What do you mean by unstable though? like your shaft "wobbles" as it travels towards the fish? I'm curious because my gun (which i built) only has two or three inches sticking off the muzzle. Could this be hurting my accuracy?
 
irtrogdor said:
What do you mean by unstable though? like your shaft "wobbles" as it travels towards the fish? I'm curious because my gun (which i built) only has two or three inches sticking off the muzzle. Could this be hurting my accuracy?
Click to expand...

Maybe not, but Ill bet that you could get longer more accurate shots w/ a longer shaft. what size, and how many bands are you using on your gun? and what is the diameter of your shaft?
 
Lets see... shaft is 48" i think and a standard diameter. Not the really skinny ones or the really fat ones. Band stretch is probably 40-44 inches. Bands are two 16mm ~27 slings. (I don't really know all the number off the top of my head cause I made everything myself. Except for the shaft of course )
 
Ok... So... I did a search and saw a privious thread you posted (im assuming when you built your gun) about band lengths so ther is no need to preach to the choir...but 27 inch bands seem a lilttle long. Is that including the wishbone?

a gun w/ a 41" band stretch closely equates to a 110cm gun which is what I shoot with (Riffe Euro). My shaft (stock) is 59.5inches long. Thats almost a foot longer than yours.

I have always been a fan of the phrase "if its not broken, why fix it?" so if your gun works well I wouldnt change a thing. If you are curious however you might try a longer shaft. 60" maybe.
 
Yeah, my bands are a little long. When I bought the rubbers I was quite a bit shorter and the rubber was really stiff. Over winter I grew some and the rubber stretched out so I have to experiment a lot to get the right amount of power from it. I've ordered a wishbone insertion tool to encourage

I would love to experiment with shaft length, but i'm just a poor teenager my money is tied up in fixing existing problems or testing things that cost less than $10
 
In the Winter 2000 issue of Hawaii Skin Diver magazine, Steve Alexander (a prominent American gun maker) gives his opinion on overhang.

He points out that longer shafts are heavier.

Heavier shafts need more power.

A heavier shaft will go farther than a shorter one if properly powered.

A heavier shaft will increase recoil, so needs a heavier gun.

A longer shaft is easier to see and so is easier to aim for many divers.

A short overhang will be easier to maneuver in tight quarters such as thick kelp or caves and will be a little less likely to bend.

After saying all that, he says that its mostly a matter of personal preference, and he doubts that most divers would be able to notice any difference in the way their gun shoots with as much as a 15% difference in shaft length. He sees no problem with as little as one inch or as much as 14" with a 5/16" shaft, and a little less with a 9/32" or 6mm shaft and a little more with a 3/8" shaft, assuming the gun is heavy enough to handle the recoil and is not overpowered.

OK, the end of the plagiarizing from Steve. I would just add that I think its mainly a matter of personal preference and style of aiming. When I was using a Wong Mahi gun, I tried a very short shaft and couldn't hit a thing, so went back to a longer shaft.

I notice that a good friend of mine has barely enough overhang to get his slip tip adapter off the muzzle, and he does just fine with it that way. Its a matter of what you are used to, and sticking with what works for you.
 
I have a 48" biller and bought a floridian shaft (48" long) due to the way that biller measures the gun the shaft hangs over about 4 inches. I wanted to get the 54" shaft which would have been optimal for me but they didn't have it in stock, and I'm a rather impatient fellow. My previous shaft was a thicker and longer shaft. Here's what I've noticed.
If I load the spear and forget to slip it through the bands, the shorter shaft allows me to flip the bands over the tip of the shaft without having to stretch them, thereby cutting down loading time. So that is one benefit. I also feel that the shorter shaft travels straighter than the longer shaft (maybe this is due to the difference in diameter as well??? not sure) but I find the shorter shaft travels straighter over the full range of its flight than a longer shaft does. As for accuracy and aiming I haven't had any problems. The gun is a little on the longer side so there is plenty to aim by. If it were a very short gun a longer shaft may help aiming, but on mid sized and larger guns I don't think it plays a substantial part (for me anyway). I put 2 5/8" bands on it and haven't noticed any shaft whip, and didn't notice any with the longer thicker shaft either. All in all, I wish I got the longer 54" shaft mainly because most guns have more overhang than I do so I figure that is how it should be, and the extra distance may help although I'm not sure 6" makes much of a difference; however, I really have nothing to complain about with the shorter shaft.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn more…