Hey Guys, In this video, we will compare a CONVENTIONAL SPEARGUN to a ROLLER SPEARGUN. Both spearguns are 100 centimeters long and both guns have two bands.

Before we get started, its important to note that all Mako Titan Elite speargun components are completely interchangeable. This means you can easily convert your conventional speargun into a roller speargun and you can convert your roller speargun into a conventional speargun. Its very simple and you don't need a new barrel or a new handle and the muzzles and barrel floats are available on our website.

The first thing you will notice is the difference in power band configuration. On the conventional speargun the two bands go from the muzzle, straight down the barrel to the sharkfin tabs at the back of the spear. On the roller speargun, the two bands are affixed to the underside of the barrel and first go around the roller muzzle, and then down the barrel to the sharkfin tabs.

Now lets compare band drive. Band drive is the distance a band drives the spear and is determined by measuring from the start to pull point to the rear sharkfin tab. On this roller speargun, it has a band drive of 42 inches. And, on the conventional speargun, the band drive from the start to pull point to the sharkfin tabs is only 31 inches. So, in this comparison, the roller speargun has eleven more inches of band drive than the conventional speargun. This means the roller gun will have considerably more power.

Let’s now compare this 100cm roller speargun to a 130cm conventional speargun. As you can see the band drive is approximately the same. But, what is important to note here is that although both guns have the same band drive, the roller speargun is propelling a 140cm spear and the conventional speargun is propelling a 170cm spear which is much heavier.

ANOTHER reason this is important is because when a spear is fired, initially, the back of the spear travels faster than the front of the spear, resulting in the flexing of the spear, which reduces power and accuracy. And, the longer the spear, the more it will flex. Additionally, if the spear is made from stainless steel, instead of carbon steel, the spear will flex even more, which means more loss of power and accuracy.

So, the 100cm roller speargun will have the same band drive as the 130cm conventional speargun. But, since the 100cm is shooting a shorter spear, the 100cm roller will have more power and more accuracy than the 130cm conventional. And because the overall length of the 100cm roller is much shorter it will be easier to swing , track, and shoot a moving fish. And for you guys who travel, traveling with a shorter gun is easier and in some cases less expensive.

One other advantage of a roller speargun is the dramatic reduction in recoil. But, to achieve this reduction in recoil, the speargun must be properly rigged with what is called, FULL PRE TENSION, and NOT PARTIAL PRETENSION. Full pretention is where the bands extend the full length of the underside of the barrel and attach near the handle. This is the correct way to rig a roller gun. PARTIAL PRETENSION is where the bands are attached at or near the middle of the barrel. This is the wrong way to rig a roller gun.

A roller speargun, rigged with FULL PRE TENSION, eliminates recoil and maximizes the roller guns fullest potential.

As for any disadvantages of a roller speargun, I'd have to say it's when hunting in holes for small to medium size fish. At close range, the spear can easily go through your fish and into a rock. However, with a conventional speargun, you can take one band off before taking the shot as you probably don't need the added power of the 2nd band. But with a roller speargun, you can’t remove a band. So you're stuck with the increased power the gun gives you.

When hunting in tight spaces there is a safety factor involved. Before taking a shot with any speargun you must be sure the spear will not hit a solid object before it clears the band drive. Otherwise, the spear can hit an object and propel the gun backwards resulting in injury. So in tight spaces the longer band drive on a roller gun becomes a liability. And the shorter band drive on a conventional gun becomes a benefit because it is not driving the spear as far down the barrel.

As for loading, it’s a bit faster and easier to load a conventional speargun than it is to load a roller speargun. To load a conventional speargun, you just grab a band, pull back and rest the wishbone on the sharkfin tab. However, when loading a roller speargun, you can’t get your fingers in here to grab the bands so a load assist is needed.

As you can see, there are advantages and disadvantages to both spearguns. I hope this video helped you in deciding which gun is right for you. For more information on our MAKO Titan Elite Spearguns, as well as our full line of high performance, spearfishing gear, please visit our website at MAKOSpearguns.com. Dive safe.

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