speargun advice needed and would be highly appreciated

[Big Bad Brown]

i am in the us army currently deployed in Afghanistan and hopefully will be back to the great waters of Hawaii soon. i am a newbie to spearfishing but have done a little with a cheap pole spear from Walmart before and i got hooked! i have been trying to do a lot of research on all the big speargun brands i.e. omer, riffe, jbl, mares, mako, cressi, and a few others. i am having a pretty hard time deciding which to get. i want around a 110-130 cm non-wood preferably with 2 bands and a reel in the hopes it can be somewhat of an all-around speargun, also i would like a floating speargun. but i have heard of some defects in a few of them. first the jbl magnum 55" has a loading issue that requires the shaft needing extra force for it to click, the omer cayman e.t. camu 3d has the noisy metal wishbones of course but also in order to load a second band without the shaft shooting off the second you let go of it you apparently have to jam it into the trigger mechanism which i highly doubt is good for it. also the mares phantom v carbon fiber has a barrel bowing when 2 bands are applied, and info on the viper pro is hard to find. i haven't heard hardly anything bad about mako, rob allen, cressi, and i haven't heard anything at all about ocean rhino. the only thing i have heard about hammer head is the red bands scare fish. also is there really a noticeable difference in barrels with an enclosed track and ones without? i'm sorry for the long post but i am really hurting here lol. please give me as much info as possible, thank you very much for your time and thoughts

 

[foxfish]

Hi, welcome to the forum.
I think you can read anything about any product in the World, if you want a good report you can find one & visa verse...
110 - 130 there is quite a lot of difference between the lengths with a 110 being the, upper limit of easy loading as the stretch is not to bad but 130s are big guns that require long arms & very good technique to load.
Tracking issues & barrel flexing are going to be more of an issue with longer guns but cuttle fish shaped barrels will stop flexing & possibly help tracking!
Small diameter round alloy barrels are not going to be the best bet for a 130!
Noisy wishbones are very easily rectified by fitting dyneema cord.
i have never heard about red scaring fish! red in fact is the first colour to fade & blend in underwater!
Wooden guns definitely play a part when we are thinking about long guns as they absorb recoil by having a high mass & neutral balance.
Hopefully someone with more experience will help you out with the specific guns mentioned...

 

[Scoobaru]

i personally would speak to someone else who is quite successful and spearfishes in roughly the same area and then ask them about their setup, and why they chose that specific setup, im sure there are members on here from the same area who will give you advise via pm.

i know people that use long (up to 160cm) rob allen guns with no problem, but i also know people who use mares phantom double banded guns again with no problem. so most of it is personal preference, but one thing to bear in mind is if these problems with the different guns were common then the manufacturer would redisng the guns in question to eliminate the problem, as the manufacturers are very competitive against each other and strive to achieve customer satisfaction.

sorry i cant be more helpful than this

 

[Big Bad Brown]

thank u both for the info. yeah i know red is the first color to disappear under from the bass fishing i used to do, but someone was saying that the fish still see it but as a shade of gray and i guess it supposedly has a bad effect on them. but idk. and yeah i can the personal preference having an affect on the guns people use of course i am just worried of getting something im not happy with or has a problem shortly after

 

[Scoobaru]

Most of the guns now days are built to last and as long as you look after it (wash it in fresh water after each trip and inspect the rubbers and wishbone regularly) you shouldn't have any problems what so ever. Just stick to the popular brands and choose one you like the look of, but also one you can get spares easily ie rubbers or dyneema and you'll be fine. I agree with foxfish tho, if you do get a gun with a metal articulated wishbone I would recommend changing it to dyneema, as dyneema is quieter so doesn't scare fish as much but also safer with regards to it slipping out if the notch. But there's plenty of threads in here regarding DIY methods of changing the wishbones over.

Good luck with purchasing your first speargun

 

[Big Bad Brown]

does anyone happen to know if there is a way to specifically talk to people in my area?

 

[Bill McIntyre]

I'm not sure why you specified a non-wooden gun. But if you are willing to reconsider, you should talk to Dr. Daryl Wong.

Wongguns.com

He lives in Honolulu, dives in Hawaii, and knows what works. His guns may cost a bit more than metal guns, but they will last forever and are backed by a lifetime warranty.

I've been using his guns for 12 years and presently have four of them.

He will be willing to talk to you and determine what best fits your needs.

 

[Scoobaru]

I'm not sure why you specified a non-wooden gun. But if you are willing to reconsider, you should talk to Dr. Daryl Wong.

Wongguns.com

He lives in Honolulu, dives in Hawaii, and knows what works. His guns may cost a bit more than metal guns, but they will last forever and are backed by a lifetime warranty.

I've been using his guns for 12 years and presently have four of them.

He will be willing to talk to you and determine what best fits your needs.

And they also look the nuts like something that belongs in a James Bond film. Good recommendation bill, I didn't even think of those guns.