Greek version

Better late than never — or at least that’s what I tell myself before writing this post about something I did 7–8 years ago. Back when I was 15–16, I had just caught the spearfishing bug from my best friend, George I. Back then, we went fishing with his gear every chance we had — at first only in the summer until we got wetsuits, and then all year round, even when the sea was 13°C!

I wanted to have my own speargun, but not any speargun, I wanted one made out of the best material there is: wood. So, I decided to make one and build it exactly how I wanted! After some time, having built a speargun for myself, as I enjoyed the whole process so much I decided to build a second speargun for my friend George with many improvements.

Wooden spearguns, so they don’t get ruined in corrosive seawater, have to be made from wood that can endure and keep its shape, and remain in the water with a load for hours. The most suitable wood is teak, which comes from countries in South Asia such as India and Myanmar.

I designed a 105 cm double-band speargun with a 140 cm, 6.75 mm shaft. With the help of a carpenter friend to cut the wood with the proper tools, I began shaping the wood, as seen in the images below at various stages of the build. I also bought a Dremel to make an ergonomic handle — something I started by first making a handle out of modeling clay and haping it in my hand to find the ideal grip. It took a very long time, but the result was perfect!

It might sound a bit crazy, but 1–2 years after starting my first speargun, on a trip to India I found and bought another piece of Indian teak. I carried it back home to make a second wooden speargun, learning from all the mistakes I had made on the first. I wanted to make this one for my friend George, who would also help with the build.

The Indian teak was just as good, and in fact, the piece had very beautiful grain. I placed the most striking part on the underside of the gun so it would be visible while also giving the speargun more mass.

Now, the only thing left is to take them fishing!