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What Spear Gun for carp
- Thread starter Quebec 11
- Start date
Thread Status: Hello
, There was no answer in this thread for more than 90 days.
It can take a long time to get an up-to-date response or contact with relevant users.
It can take a long time to get an up-to-date response or contact with relevant users.
Welcome, Quebec 11.
I'm new to freshwater as well and I've been getting geared up. Check out the great ssticky threads on the Beginner Spearfishing board. They have a good overview of gear.
As far as the length of the gun is concerned, the visibility of the water dictates the appropriate length. A spear will shoot about 2.5 times the length of the spear beyond the tip of the spear. So a longer gun can shoot fish from farther away. The long guns are slower to maneuver and aim, and they are harder to load.
I'm targeting carp in WV, USA. I wound up buying two guns. One lake near me has low vis (6-8 ft max) so I went with a Mako Speargun 55cm. I had the choice of one 16mm band or two 14mm bands. I chose two 14mm because they are MUCH easier to load than the 16mm, and I can choose to load only one of the bands (you just let the second one dangle) if I'm targeting smaller panfish, such as crappies.
The other lake near me, Summersville Lake, usually has excellent visibility 20-40ft in some places. So I bought a Rob Allen 110cm gun. The gun is large.. the 110cm is only the barrel measure and doesn't include the grip or the spear overhang. If I had to buy again, I might go with a slightly smaller gun, like a 90 or 100. If I put the gun on my chest, I can't quit reach the bands. There is a special technique to allow loading it, but a slightly shorter gun would have made it easier for me.
So your visibility will dictate length. You need to be able to see the tip of your spear
plus a couple feet extra.
I'd suggest two 14mm bands. Since you're just starting out, I'd recommend a Mako Speargun. It's very good value. You'll get a very solid gun for the money, and it comes fully rigged with a loading pad. (I had to pay $18 extra to have a loading pad on my Rob Allen gun.). They really stand behind their products, and are a pleasure to do business with.
Also, if you have varying water visibility, like me, you might start out with one target vis and one gun to see if you like the sport.
I hope some of that helps. That's my debrief from my last two months of research and gear buying.
I'm new to freshwater as well and I've been getting geared up. Check out the great ssticky threads on the Beginner Spearfishing board. They have a good overview of gear.
As far as the length of the gun is concerned, the visibility of the water dictates the appropriate length. A spear will shoot about 2.5 times the length of the spear beyond the tip of the spear. So a longer gun can shoot fish from farther away. The long guns are slower to maneuver and aim, and they are harder to load.
I'm targeting carp in WV, USA. I wound up buying two guns. One lake near me has low vis (6-8 ft max) so I went with a Mako Speargun 55cm. I had the choice of one 16mm band or two 14mm bands. I chose two 14mm because they are MUCH easier to load than the 16mm, and I can choose to load only one of the bands (you just let the second one dangle) if I'm targeting smaller panfish, such as crappies.
The other lake near me, Summersville Lake, usually has excellent visibility 20-40ft in some places. So I bought a Rob Allen 110cm gun. The gun is large.. the 110cm is only the barrel measure and doesn't include the grip or the spear overhang. If I had to buy again, I might go with a slightly smaller gun, like a 90 or 100. If I put the gun on my chest, I can't quit reach the bands. There is a special technique to allow loading it, but a slightly shorter gun would have made it easier for me.
So your visibility will dictate length. You need to be able to see the tip of your spear
plus a couple feet extra.I'd suggest two 14mm bands. Since you're just starting out, I'd recommend a Mako Speargun. It's very good value. You'll get a very solid gun for the money, and it comes fully rigged with a loading pad. (I had to pay $18 extra to have a loading pad on my Rob Allen gun.). They really stand behind their products, and are a pleasure to do business with.
Also, if you have varying water visibility, like me, you might start out with one target vis and one gun to see if you like the sport.
I hope some of that helps. That's my debrief from my last two months of research and gear buying.
Excellent advice above. Any size of the MAKO guns will take 4-10 lb carp. You want to calibrate the gun size with the visibility.
Here is a very rough guide - just from the top of my head:
60 cm visibility less than 5 ft
70 - 80cm long gun: 5- 10 ft visibility
80-90cm 10- 20 ft
90-100 cm maybe 15 - 25 ft visibility
100-110 over 25 ft
120 -130 over 25 ft
130 -140 --- open blue water visibility 30 to 150 ft
Most likely, you will want 60 to 90 cm, but I don't know your expected visibility. There is not real value in using a gun that can shoot farther than you can see.
A couple of pics our customers recent sent us. I think they are using 80 or 90 cm guns.. not really sure.
Here is a very rough guide - just from the top of my head:
60 cm visibility less than 5 ft
70 - 80cm long gun: 5- 10 ft visibility
80-90cm 10- 20 ft
90-100 cm maybe 15 - 25 ft visibility
100-110 over 25 ft
120 -130 over 25 ft
130 -140 --- open blue water visibility 30 to 150 ft
Most likely, you will want 60 to 90 cm, but I don't know your expected visibility. There is not real value in using a gun that can shoot farther than you can see.
A couple of pics our customers recent sent us. I think they are using 80 or 90 cm guns.. not really sure.