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why carbonfiber?

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.
jtkwest said:
you are telling me the air pocket inside the carbon barrell provides enough bouyancy to neutrally bouy the gun, but the air pockets in an aluminum gun do not? ,seems that it would be comparable, no?
Click to expand...

Think of the buoyancy from the airpocket as being equivalent whether aluminum or carbon is used. Just to use arbitrary numbers say it has a positive buoyancy of 4lbs. The aluminum barrel may weigh 3.5lbs and the spear weighs 2lbs so you have a gun that will sink when loaded with a spear but float when not. If you use carbon, again the airpocket has a positive buoyancy of 4lbs, but now the carbon barrel only weighs 1.5lbs and the spear weighs 2lbs....so you have a gun that will float even while loaded with a spear. Again arbitrary numbers so no need to tell me how wrong I am. :martial It's like every time I make a Star Trek reference and someone has to chime in, "But Dr. Spok never fires the photon torpedoes," At which time I stop talking to that person because 1. they're not really listening to what I'm saying to begin with and 2. everyone knows talking about Star Trek in public is really embarrassing and a great way to remain a virgin into your later years.
 
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I think Spock did fire the torpedoes you know? In fact didn't the photons have a carbon casing?
On a serious note! Carbon most definitely has its uses, very stiff in certain configurations & very flexible in others. Fishing rods & compound bows bend & recover very well, you would think there would be scope for for more radical speargun design utilising the amazing properties of carbon?
In the extreme end uses of carbon you could have an ultra stiff motorbike chassis or a 18mtr fishing rod that weights less than 2lb!
Speargun design has changed very little but maybe some more unusual designs could come falward using modern composites.
(roach poles are very long telescopic fishing rods, a few years ago 18mtr models were in use but many competitions now restrict the length to 12.5 mtr. A carbon 18mtr pole could cost £5000. +)
 
i was checking out my friends carbon guns today,and they ARE very light and seem pretty cool. RA and a Rabitec 140 and 150 respectivly. i seem to stand corrected on weight anyway. i still say my wood guns look cooler, and when i am finished with final mods. it will even be more "techy"
 
Like Pastor, I did not intend to get a carbon gun. Any weight difference is negligible in the water. Also, I quite a fan of aluminium - cheap, light, doesn't rust & modern alloys are quite strong. The one big advantage of carbon, for me, is the ability to mould it into optimum shapes - typified by the C4 designs. Although Omer have starting doing some innovative work with hydro-forming aluminium, which I am following with interest.

However, I recently bought an Omer XXV (hasn't everybody!), which has a simple carbon fibre tube barrel. So why did I buy it? Well, I had trouble sourcing the aluminum gun I was after (my first choice) and the clincher was the 25mm diameter barrel (most barrels are 28mm+) - that seemed like a difference which would improve performance. I was looking for a faster tracking, more agile, shorter gun. There are a some aluminium guns with 25mm aluminium barrels - Beuchat make one which is also quite cheap.

So why did I get the carbon one? Well I didn't know about the Beuchat until after I made the purchase. Anyway the Omer also had a slim new T10 handle & an innovative, versatile muzzle design that looked pretty interesting & a shorter than normal spear (which would again help tracking). Although not cheap, it was reasonably priced for current circumstances (more so a few months earlier when the exchange rate was better) - you tend to pay a premium for new models with new innovations. I was pleasantly surprised when it arrived (a common experience) -- it is so light. This is due to a combination of factors and the carbon barrel is probably a significant one (+ short, slim 6.3mm spear, no rail on mine, slim handle, no muzzle bungee/handle hardware/clips, slim barrel). I've yet to find out what difference this makes in the water but inertia & turning moment will be reduced. As a shore-based diver, I'll certainly appreciate the reduced weight & slimness/compactness on the longer walk-ins.

Actually it does look kind of cool -- but I wouldn't pay extra for that. They could use paint/transfers to make aluminium barrels look like that, or even cooler. Happily, carbon is pretty cheap these days and getting cheaper all the time.
 
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