I was bored when I got home from work today, so I decided that since I am going to be building a euro styled gun in a few weeks, I might as well practice on pine first. Anyway this is what I've got so far. I know its rough looking but it was all I could get finished today after work.
Does anybody have any suggestions for improvement? Also the real gun will be much longer.

more pics

you are getting the hang of this. I am making a gun at the moment similar to that one. I really like the arbalegno.com website for ideas about guns and this one looks similar like the many guns on there.

Today I did a little work on the gun...I am fairly pleased with it...I might even use it in the river for sheepshead:D I think there is still lots of room for improvement though.

srty

I really like the muzzle/band concept..

The relief for the bands to pull back in are really stream lined and very cool looking, But does the removal of that material reduce the gun stock stiffness. If the stock flexes under the compression that the bands puts on it your shot will be thrown off. I have never build a gun before but I have been doing a lot of homework lately. :corkysm60: Just making sure you did not forget anything.

The gun design looks good. I built a stock similar to this a while ago.

If I could do it over again, I would use a 1/2" band slot - this prevents your bands from moving around in the muzzle. It will also allow you to get rid of the bulge at the muzzle. You should be able to put the band slot close enough to the top of the gun so that you have enough wood left to make the bottom of the muzzle flush with the rest of the stock.

You don't need a lot of wood around the muzzle - IF you keep it totaly enclosed, i.e. no slot for pre-tied bands.

Kolt, I think you are right but I kinda like the way it looks and the real gun is going to have a poured epoxy enclosed track so that may take up a bit more space than the track this gun has.

Brothertodd- Thanks for the advice, I think the real gun stock will be plenty strong enough...I will be using a much harder wood then pine.

How long is the gun going to be? Why the epoxy track instead of a wooden enclosed track? In fact, you would probaby have just as good a gun if it was an open track.

Not trying to throw your ideas, but my thoughts about gun design are leaning toward minimalism and streamlining these days.

You know come to think of it...im really not sure why the epoxy track. I guess just because I wanted to try it out, but now that im thinking about it I will just do the wooden track, probably still enclosed.
As for the length it is probably going to be around 115-130cm

I keep reading about people wanting to make epxoy tracks, but it seems everyone of the posters backs out of it... which doesn't bother me, but it does make me curious. Anyone have a link of close-up pictures of a gun that does have an epoxy track?

I'm guesing that, as most epoxies are clear-ish, the track could be a solid color of somt sort (like a red or orange track? light-blue might even be nice on a blue-water gun).

Big Pig makes some awesome guns and he uses epoxy tracks...I think most people add graphite powder to make them black, but I think you can get them pretty much any color you want with the dies.

For me a big reason to not use epoxy for the track is because that shit is expencive...

Often times, I think we all like to over-engineer a bit. For a woody euro, a wooden track just makes sense - it requires the least amount of material to be removed, which goes hand-in-hand with a slim, hydrodynamic stock.

As far as minimalism goes: Why spend the time, money, and effort to make an epoxy track when there is no functional benefit? It is not "slicker" or more durable than a wooden track and anytime you add a procedure you increase the risk of a mistake. I have enclosed or semi-enclosed tracks on all my guns and none of them show any signs of wear.

I think he's come around to the wooden dark side...

If I ever find myself doing more spearfishing like that in Cedar Key, I will definitely build a 53" 1 or 2-band euro style, mabe even open track too. I strung every fish I shot except for one grouper at looooong range.

Ever since I read Steve Alexander's comments about shaft velocity test results that showed no difference between a Delrin track and wood ......I guess it has become a pet peev of mine:crazy::rant:

As far as minimalism goes: Why spend the time, money, and effort to make an epoxy track when there is no functional benefit? It is not "slicker" or more durable than a wooden track and anytime you add a procedure you increase the risk of a mistake. I have enclosed or semi-enclosed tracks on all my guns and none of them show any signs of wear.

I beg to differ. My gun Wong with a wooden enclosed track, has large gouges, chips, and cuts, while my epoxy enclosed track is still perfect. But, there is still no performance difference even with the imperfection. To me an epoxy track looks better from the start and will look better longer. Having said all that, I do not believe the damage done to the rack is from firing, but rather transportation.

I have enclosed or semi-enclosed tracks on all my guns and none of them show any signs of wear.I had a Riffe C2X which until the present time was my most used gun. I would oil it regularly. After about 3-4 years wood rot became apparent. It was prominent in thinner or worked areas, around the trigger mech and the upper edges of the track. I figured that the upper edges of an enclosed track are even thinner and as such more prone to wood rot. This is why in an enclosed track gun I'd opt for an epoxy track. I have seen the wood rot with my own eyes so it would be hard to convince me otherwise.

The reason I would like an enclosed track is to eliminate the pin, the shaft is held in place by the track and the shooting line can be routed straight down without going over the shaft. This gives me more alternatives of where to anchor the bands. Controlling shaft whip and consequently better accuracy if there really is a difference is just a bonus.

I think Wahoo is refering to wear or abrasion on the inside of the track(s) due to the flight of the shaft. Steve Alexanders tests found that while underway, the shaft does not touch the track, but is rather encapsulated by a thin film of water. Therefore, there is no difference in friction between track materials.

Any damage to the exterior of a gun is obviously from handling.

Edit: sorry to derail, John. Maybe a moderator could cut out this track buisiness and post it in another thread.

No worries, Kolt...I asked for opinions on ways to improve the design I was going to use, and the track is certainly included!

So we're still on track :)Steve Alexanders tests found that while underway, the shaft does not touch the track, but is rather encapsulated by a thin film of water.That thin film or water you described reminds me of diagrams of what happens when car tires lose traction and skid on a wet road, also called hydroplaning. A good marketing strategy for a speargun manufacturer, "Our enclosed tracks have a hydroplaning effect on the spear which translates into greater muzzle velocity etc. etc. "