....travel-speargun....

[subunit]

....just a short update since this thread is still alive....
so after the conversation in this thread last year i did send a notice to riffe to see what they have to say about ,
once again with very disapointing result for me. i send them an e-mail with a link to this thread , so they can read it themself and getting all the information that was shared and discussed here.

this is a copy of the email , send in march 2018, with the CORRECT LINK :

....hi there, i did bought two riffe travel breakdown shafts with the length 170cm last year in june.i had concerns about their strenght before and so i tried to find any report or info on them in the internet and also brought up the topic in the deeperblue.com forum. did not found any useful info previous, so i just ordered them. with dissapointing results. i dont want to write down the whole story here again, so i refer you to the link of the forum where you can read my full report. i have been using riffe guns and spears for over 15 years. first i did not want to send you a report because many years ago i was not too happy with your response to an issue i reported, but now i think i still want you to know about my experience with the travel-shafts. so if someone at your company would like to read my report, here you go....will take you about 10minutes to read....

https://forums.deeperblue.com/threads/travel-speargun.107187/

 

[subunit]

....and this was the answer from riffe send to me at 10.march 2018....

Dear _____ ,
Thank you for contacting RIFFE. I was able to start to read the thread but for some reason it is now showing an error on deeperblue.com
I am not familiar with your previous complaint directly with our company or products, but I was able to read a little on the thread and it seems you are discussing our older design travel shaft. The person you were conversing seemed to think our products are made in China, they are not.
Since then we have made improvements by using a slightly heavier shaft, allowing for the stronger shoulder near the threads.
I’m sorry to hear you were displeased with the results. You may find the new shafts work better. Please see link to our site showing the photos and options available.

https://speargun.com/collections/ri...break-down-travel-shafts-riffe-wood-spearguns

Kind regards,
Jill Riffe Salerno

 

[subunit]

....so i checked back on the link to the thread on deeper blue that i have send them, and at no time there was showing any error on it.
the thread was always fully showing.
but even though she is writing that the thread is showing an error she claims she was still able to read some part of the thread and is referring to someone taking about their shafts are made in china.

QOUTE : " I was able to read a little on the thread and it seems you are discussing our older design travel shaft. The person you were conversing seemed to think our products are made in China." QOUTE

i pointed out clearly that i did bought their latest (newest) design of the travel spear.
and i cant even recall that part of the discussion was about the spears have been made in china.


so i did send them a mail with a link to all the valid information on their product, including pictures and detailed report.
all i get is this disapointing email that shows me that they are unable (or unwilling ) to read the provided info and respond in an apropriate manner.

so after my first expirience with riffe customer service many years ago, this is certainly gonna be my last one.
one of my most frustating expirience of an unwilling, inefficient and incapable customer service.

 

[popgun pete]

I searched this thread using the search tool looking for "China" and this is the only other occurrence.
---- of these "Gunslinger" conversions, in fact I own two of them, but only one gun is complete. Riffe Enterprises don't make things that are not thoroughly tested, unlike stuff sourced and "mixed and matched" to produce a "model range" from sweat shops in China, but with a "Western sounding" name.

That sentence is actually saying the complete opposite! So this thread only received a cursory glance at best and did not pay attention to the word "unlike"..

Well you have an answer that they have made the shafts thicker at the threads, but you would need to have someone check just how much that was.

 

[subunit]

Well you have an answer that they have made the shafts thicker at the threads, but you would need to have someone check just how much that was.

..and that was the only answer they gave about the whole topic..
and it was and is nowhere proven or informed or discussed or that they have made new thicker shafts. not on their website or anywhere else to my knowledge. and i still believe i did had the (what she called newer/latest version) of those spears.
but then what really matters, she never bothered to really read the whole thread, to get all the information and pictures provided.
she never ask me any further questions where and when i bought those spears, where and how did i used them, or anything else that would show that she really cares and is intrested in the case . she also did not say anything about my expenses and lost of material and sure did not bring up any idea about compensation (wich i did not ask for, thats is correct).
so again the way she replied is completely unacceptable for a customer service from company as big and well known like riffe.
and to you sir pete, i believe you are a smart person, and you understood the problems wich was shown and discussed here in details.
i dont know your relation or your opinion to the riffe company, but after all you should be able to say your opinion about their reaction to this whole story here clearly. it would not hurt anybody....

 

[popgun pete]

I know Jill Riffe, she is Jay's daughter and elder sister of Julie. The problem is they are extremely busy people and reading some threads can be rather time consuming as some topics meander and are full of derails and irrelevant info. Not all forum threads are as concise as they generally are here. Yes, it would have been better if the matter had received closer attention, however think of all the message traffic that they receive in a day. Riffe is a major presence in the spearfishing business, but it is not a large company in terms of staff and much of the day to day running is undertaken by the extended family.

When you thread shafts together, and there have been triples as well as doubles, they really need an overlap section to improve their strength, but the greater the overlap the more expensive the shaft. I use breakaway tips on my two-piece shafts.

 

[Andrew the fish]

Sub unit,

when you area sending a link to the forum to someone who is not registered on Deeperblu, the only part of the thread will be shown, first page or even half of the page, followed by a prompt to log in if you want to continue reading. So, Riffe could genuinely not be able to read the whole thread. That is one thing. I must say that you are asking too much from customer service fella, whoever that may be. Reading some threads is hard work, ESPECIALLY if English isn't your first language. And lastly, I can see how someone can mix up "made in China" with "not made in China". It was mentioned in a long sentence and not directly, with multiple negatives like "don't make...not thoroughly..unlike..." etc. Read it yourself.

To be honest, I find customer service at any spearo online stores mediocre at best. Spearfishingworld for example simply cancelled my order yesterday, when I mentioned that I am unable to pay with Canadian credit card, and ship to US address. No explanation given. I have legit address, my summer house. Leisurepro customer service is downright useless, ridiculously unaware of what they carry or any details on any product, knowingly ship incorrect size speargun, when their correct one is all of a sudden becomes "backordered" etc. Tricks of trade I guess. Europeans are no better, I had a few issues.

What I am trying to say, by dropping Riffe you will steer from one poor customer service to another.

 

[popgun pete]

The real issue is the Riffe travel speargun is a eurogun and these days people associate euroguns with integral tip shafts and then as an option a slip tip. Years ago euroguns all used screw on speartips and for larger specimens you changed the double flopper tip for a breakaway version. Single flopper screw on tips were only used on small fish and the shorter models of the guns. Shaft sizes were often just 5/16" or 3/8" and the two and three piece shafts were generally 3/8". So if you follow the dictum of matching the gun and shaft to the prey then bigger fish need more heavyweight equipment unless you can stone or disable them.

 

[subunit]

Sub unit,

when you area sending a link to the forum to someone who is not registered on Deeperblu, the only part of the thread will be shown, first page or even half of the page, followed by a prompt to log in if you want to continue reading. So, Riffe could genuinely not be able to read the whole thread.

..andrew, if that is really the case then you making a valid point here. to my defense, i did not know that. if i did know i would have considered the fact.
but even if they have not been able to read the whole thread, they could still show more intrest in the case.
and i also think i do not expect too much of a customer service from a company as big as riffe.

 

[popgun pete]

Why not log out and then come back and see what you can read?

 

[subunit]

The real issue is the Riffe travel speargun is a eurogun and these days people associate euroguns with integral tip shafts and then as an option a slip tip. Years ago euroguns all used screw on speartips and for larger specimens you changed the double flopper tip for a breakaway version. Single flopper screw on tips were only used on small fish and the shorter models of the guns. Shaft sizes were often just 5/16" or 3/8" and the two and three piece shafts were generally 3/8". So if you follow the dictum of matching the gun and shaft to the prey then bigger fish need more heavyweight equipment unless you can stone or disable them.

....look pete, not to get into anymore assumptions and further technical visions and flashbacks.
they offer a product for a particular purpose. i buy it and use it for that particular purpose, and the product fail. once, and twice.
you already did your portion on studying and researching the topic. not only on this forum.
i , and you too, expect riffe to test any new product serious before releasing it on the market.
i was thankful for your provided infos before i bought the shafts.
i had doubts about the strenght of the shafts before i bought them. i was also not surprise that they did fail.
but i am surprised about how serious riffe have tested those shafts, and about that they not provide any info and prove on their testing.
and now i am once again surprised about their customer service on that issue.
this whole thing dont bother me much. didnt expect much in the first place, case closed for me.
i shooting some good fish lately, and i am really happy i dont have to use riffe spears anymore....

 

[subunit]

Why not log out and then come back and see what you can read?

....you sure you understood the post before ?

 

[popgun pete]

....you sure you understood the post before ?

Yes.

 

[popgun pete]

If you are going to shoot fish that put up a strong fight then use the threaded end two-piece shafts with a detachable tip. Even single piece shafts can be bent and that is why manufacturers offer threaded end shafts. Seemingly most new spearguns today come with integral tips (Hawaiian or Tahitian or staggered double flopper) but they are not suitable where you may be striking rocks on a regular basis with either a miss or driving straight through the fish. The integral tip has crept into pneumatic gun offerings and are not much use to me, so I replace the shafts as I am often shooting around the rocks or boulders as the case may be.

Obviously a threaded end shaft gives you the further option of a detachable tip. That is the reason why I spoke of euroguns (in post #48) having originally been supplied only with screw on tips, no one had heard of a Tahitian shaft until years later when home-made, long spear single band guns were used by Tahitians for shooting small fish, the spears being only 1/4" diameter.

 

[valdim]

Hello guys,
I am reading with interest the posts of subunit and the consequent replies.
I was wondering if it is feasible to buy a travel series riffe. I asked Qatar Airways how much would be the cost to take my speargun with dimentions 180*35*35 cm from an EU capital to Oman. They said 330 euro, one way. On this ground, it seems the detachable version of a 110 speargun can save its cost even (and appr.) with the 1st trip. Right? With price of 777 USD one saves 660 euros and has the pleasure to use his own gun...

I checked the product description here, and the connectiing of the shaft is desrcibed like this: "A semi-permanent threadlocker (included with a Euro Travel Speargun purchase) must be applied before joining the sections together. Make sure to tighten with a wrench to ensure a secure and strong connection."
I am wondering why Riffe did not put a pic of this threadlocker. Subunit, did you buy your shafts with such threadlock (I think - no) and if yes - how does it look like?
Do you know about other detachable speargun brands?
Thanks!

 

[popgun pete]

The "threadlocker" is Teflon tape which you wrap on the screw threads, same stuff as plumber's tape, it is very thin plastic tape.

How to Use Teflon Tape: The Right Way to Apply It on Pipes

A quick and easy guide for wrapping thread seal tape to prevent leaks Do you want a simple way to seal your pipe connections so they're easier to screw together without any leaks? Then Teflon tape (plumber's tape) is the perfect choice,...

www.wikihow.com

 

[valdim]

"teflon tape"?!? You must be joking, man... I can't believe.

 

[popgun pete]

"teflon tape"?!? You must be joking, man... I can't believe.

No joke, in fact you get a spool of the stuff with the JBL Travel Magnum.

 

[valdim]

@popgun pete: I couldn't get u, but on the other hand I learned about the JBL MAGNUM.
I read here a useful review about this speargun. Have you used it?

 

[popgun pete]

@popgun pete: I couldn't get u, but on the other hand I learned about the JBL MAGNUM.
I read here a useful review about this speargun. Have you used it?

Yes, this is my Travel Magnum. I have used it many times, it is not my favourite gun, but works OK. When I bought it in the nineties there was nothing else like it. I have two of the JBL Travel Magnum gun cases, one got water damaged. Some years prior there was the Nemrod Gaucho weekend gun that broke down into 3 pieces, however I never thought much of those guns being cooked up to use parts from the Nemrod Silver series pneumatic gun.

For confirmation of the use of tape read this: https://www.makospearguns.com/Threaded-Slip-Tip-Adapters-p/mtsta.htm