Speargun maintenance checklist.

Five minutes at the tap. Skip this and salt eats the mechanism inside a season.

• Fresh-water rinse the whole gun, inside the muzzle and trigger mechanism
• Soak the gun for 10 minutes in clean water if it was a shallow, sandy dive
• Rinse the shaft separately and dry before putting it back on the gun
• Uncock fully before transport — never drive home with a loaded gun
• Dry the reel line (if fitted) by unspooling into a clean bucket, then respooling
• Wipe shock absorber and line release with a damp cloth, then dry cloth

Do this on Sunday night if you dived twice or more that week.

• Inspect rubber for surface cracks, oxidation, or chalky white film — all three are signs the rubber has aged out
• Check the muzzle for cracks around the shaft slot and band anchors
• Roll the shaft on a flat surface — a wobble means a bend, and a bent shaft shoots wide
• Inspect the line bridle on the shaft tab — fray or kink = replace before next dive
• Check the trigger release for grit — a gritty pull means salt inside the mechanism
• Test the safety — it should click cleanly on and off without force
• Inspect the handle-barrel joint for looseness or hairline cracks

A proper sit-down service. Set aside 30 minutes with good light.

• Strip the mechanism and flush with fresh water, then a drop of silicone oil on moving parts — not petroleum-based oils
• Re-grease the O-rings if fitted (check your model)
• Check line tension on the reel — too loose catches on the spool lip
• Sharpen the spear tip with a fine file — ten strokes per side, maintain original angle
• Check the flopper (tab) hinge pin — stiff = replace, loose = tighten or replace
• Inspect the wishbone on each band — braided line frays, quick-release clips metal-fatigue
• Wipe the barrel inside with a long dowel wrapped in a lightly oiled rag

Even if everything looks fine. Rubber has a shelf life. Sharpened spears have a count.

• Replace rubbers — UV and stretch fatigue mean a 12-month-old rubber loses up to 20% of its power
• Replace the shooting line and any worn bridles
• Replace wishbones (braided line ages, metal clips stress-fracture)
• Deep-clean the mechanism — strip fully, inspect the sear for wear, lubricate
• Replace the shaft if you have been sharpening for over a year — tips get too blunt and metal fatigues
• Inspect the band anchors on the muzzle for wear grooves — if deep, replace the muzzle insert
• Check reel gears and internal line swivel — a seized reel on a big fish is how you lose a gun