Beachat 125 Marlin Carbone Elite Set Up for Rig Diving

[Raleigh]

I just won a Marlin Elite Carbone gun from the Aqua Aces Rodeo. Sweet looking gun. It came with two 30" long 18mm thick bands and a euro flopper shaft at 6.75mm thick.

I need some advise on how to set it up. I dive blue water and the rigs in Louisiana mostly. I know that shaft will bend the first AJ or Pelagic I shoot. Also, the flopper is useless here.

I was planning to buy a euro 7.5mm thick shaft with a threaded tip from Mako. Will that fit the gun?

Do I need to shorten or thicken the bands to maintain accuracy\distance?

Will the handel to barrel connection hold up to more band tension without bending?

What about putting cable on the connection from the shaft to the reel?

Thanks for the help!

[SpearoTastic]

The 7.5mm Mako shaft should work fine. Most euros can go swap shafts from 6.75mm to 7mm to 7.5mm without affecting accuracy, significantly. It is when you go to 8mm (5/16") that it becomes an issue because the Euros are so light.

Since you are going to a heavier shaft, recoil will go up, but if the bands are at stock length it should be manageable.

If the added recoil is causing the muzzle to flip and the shaft to shoot low, add some weight to the front of the barrel, using stick-on wheel weights.

I would not overpower it past the maximum band configuration Beuchat lists. If that is two 18mm bands, stop there. The continental Euros, when compared to the other railguns, tend to be built for finesse and maneuverability, rather than power.

If you switch to cable, the added mass may affect the effect range of your spear. If you need to have it, there is some 1/8" diameter 300 lb test cable that Neptonics sells that should work.

Try it out the way it is rigged and see if it shoots accurately. If it does, you may be able to stone your prey consistently and decide to keep it as-is.

Good luck and dive safe.

[Raleigh]

Thanks for the responce.

The web site said
Maximum resistance of the mechanism is 290Kg
The maximum load on the 2nd catch is deliberately limited to 50Kg on the standard model.

Nothing about a max band diamenter. What does this mean?

[SpearoTastic]

290 Kg = 638 lbs, so that is the maximum the trigger can handle before it fails.

50kg = 110 lbs, but I am not sure what the second catch is.

The site I checked, http://www.spearfishingworld.com/beu...FUgDQAodijCxxw said it has two 16mm bands, which are good for ~200-220 lbs of band force, so that is more than 50 Kg.

I think it refers to the force acting upon the trigger sear, so that the trigger pull will stay the same, even when you exceed 50 Kg of band force.

[Pankrationist]

In my experience when a high load is placed on the Beuchat Marlin handle the trigger becomes very light.

Other Euro handles behave the opposite requiring more pressure to fire.

[Raleigh]

That Neptonics site is pretty sweet.

7.5 mm shaft and slip tip on order from Mako.Beuchat reel on order too. Can't wait to stretch these bands.

Do any folks tune your guns in a pool? Switch bands, tips, cables, Ext? I've been shooting JBL's for years. They are grip and rip. This euro seems a little more tuner-ish.

[SpearoTastic]

Shoot it the way it is right now, in your pool, so you will have a baseline for comparison, and take notes as to where it hits and at what distance.

Then do the same once you have added the reel, cuz the added mass will increase stability and reduce recoil.

And then, one more time after you swap out the shaft and shooting line.

This way, you will always have a point of reference.

You've got a refined straight six and you are used to a big block Chevy with a lumpy cam, so you will need to calibrate your senses before making any changes.

[spearq8]

For rig diving I would recommend one wrap and kevlar rope. An advantage would be a slide ring type of gun so that you can use kevlar rope as it does not pass over the bands. I recently dusted an old 60" ABBILLER gun simply because it had a slide ring setup which really works well in oil rigs. You could try adapting the Beuchat shaft that is made for their roller gun for your use as it has a slide ring, but not sure if the length will be OK on a 125. If you plan to use the gun as is then I would avoid the typical Beuchat wrap over, where the line goes twice over the two front line guides over the spear ... that is a perfect recipe for your rope to get tangled with your bands. Better is to use the Beuchat front muzzle clip to secure the shaft and have your line simply go over the side of one of the line guides. If you scuba dive oil rigs your shots are usually close range, and you really don't want the fish to swim all over the place, thus the advantage of one wrap and if possible double floppers as you tend to manhandle the fish rather than let it swim around (assuming scuba) and double floppers have less chance of tearing. The biggest concern for oil rig spearfishing is to not get your a fish wrap around a pipe, as even 400lb mono will cut through very easily. With Kevlar rope you should be fine and even Spectra should work ... but then you need to make sure you have a setup where the rope won't get tangled in your bands.