Spearfishing

[Scott Brady]

Spearfishing is one of my favorite extreme sports, so I thought it would be fun to talk about the equipment, etc.

Chuck sent me this cool video link today, which got the excitement up:
http://www.spearfishingvideos.com/ (go to the trailers link)

I am a "free dive" only spearfisherman, which is the only sportsmanlike means of taking game underwater. That means you must hold your breath while diving, and have to fight the fish back to the surface so that you can get air. Fishing with scuba gear is like going to the zoo with a handgun and then bragging about your kill.

Equipment: http://www.speargun.com/history.htm

This is the gun I use: http://www.speargun.com/comp.htm
http://www.speargun.com/images/compseries.jpg

Riffe also makes a very nice knife:
http://www.speargun.com/images/silencer_s.jpg

http://www.expeditionswest.com/adventures/2004/baja_spearfishing_3_04/images/DSC01440_JPG.jpg

[erin]

Yeah, I have a buddy who dives in the Indian Ocean quite frequently, who took a 12' hammerhead with a Mad Dog bowie. He seems to think this is the best way. I guess if it works for him?!? :xxrotflma

What are the rules regarding spear fishing?

Are there seasons/permits req. etc?

[Scott Brady]

There are areas where spearfishing is not allowed, and there are also protected species. In Mexico and the US, all that is required is a standard fishing license.

There are several species in Mexico that are now protected, like the Jewfish
http://www.cellar.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=6438&stc=1

About: http://www.fishing-boating.com/articles/gamefish/jewfish.htm

Most colored fish are protected from harvest as well.

[Nullifier]

Fishing with scuba gear is like going to the zoo with a handgun and then bragging about your kill.

Absolutley classic line scott! :xxrotflma

I did some a few times with a hawian sling . That is all you can use in the bahamas. Man it was great. Nothing like swiming around looking for the right fish. Really gives you an interesting perspective on the food chain.

[Ursidae69]

I've done some snorkelling in SoCal and some in Baja, but I'm still a newbie at it. When I dive down below like 10 feet I feel like my ears are going to explode. How do you clear that? I want to learn scuba one of these days, but maybe I'm not cut out for it!? I've tried holding my nose and blowing to pop my ears, but it still hurts like hell??

[datrupr]

Chuck, the trick is to clear your ears before you atart to feel the preassure build up. When diving I am always clearing my ears on my way down. Start at about 5 feet when you first feel the pressyre and then just go at it almost continuously until you reach the depth you want to be. My scuba instructor from years ago taught me that many moons ago when I was going through certification, I had the same problem.

[Scott Brady]

I've done some snorkelling in SoCal and some in Baja, but I'm still a newbie at it. When I dive down below like 10 feet I feel like my ears are going to explode. How do you clear that? I want to learn scuba one of these days, but maybe I'm not cut out for it!? I've tried holding my nose and blowing to pop my ears, but it still hurts like hell??

That is how you do it. Close eyes and push tongue hard against roof of mouth sealing off the snorkel, then grab your nose with your hand and equalize. You must do it every 8-10 feet. As I make the bottom dive, I am clearing constantly.

Some with bad sinus problems can never dive deep. Even a sensitive tooth will end dives deeper than 15-20 feet.

[Scott Brady]

Really gives you an interesting perspective on the food chain.

Until that Hammerhead comes along :smileeek:

[Skillet]

Spearfishing / Abalone diving Equimpent


Though I am a certified SCUBA diver with many aqualung dives under my belt, it is for observation only, not hunting.

Like Scott, I am also an avid freediver, however, my experience with hunting lies mainly with the elusive abalone and lobster.

Though I have been spearfishing for years, I don't have many kills under my belt. The gun I used before now was a fairly small, old aluminum deal made by Voit which I stole from my Pop years ago along with the simple but effective Hawaiian Sling. There have been a few big ling cod fillets on my grill c/o the sling.

I recently bought a much nicer gun for my trip to Mexico. It is, however, not as nice as Scott's Riffe.
Mine is a A.B. Biller 48" LTD Teak gun.
I got it for $350 which is much less than the Riffe of similar size.

Mine differs from other Biller guns in the sense that it is a 1 piece stock, like the Riffe, with the grip and trigger mechanism fitted into the wood as opposed to two separate pieces of wood which make for a weaker, less stable design (so I have been told).
If you have the dough, get the Riffe.

I am going to start going after white sea bass here in the Monterey Bay and will probably move up to the Riffe as well.

Abalone is a great sport and a tough one, mainly due to the conditions in the oceans above San Francisco, which is the only area left in California you can legally dive for Abalone. Very cold water, rough, rocky conditions and, if on a Zodiak, you may be diving up to 50' deep on a breath of air to get the big ones.

Usually, when I freedive, I adhere to the K.I.S.S. method and use as little equipment as possible.

For Abalone:

*4/3 O'Neill surf suit in all conditions and a good hood, gloves and booties.
When you ab dive, you are usually very active and you stay warm so a thicker suit is not necessary or advised as it is harder to maneuver in.

*Ab bar / Iron
I use the aluminum Ab-Grab which is a favorite as it is lightweight and has a built in gauge on the handle. Abs must be a minimum of 7" in diameter to keep. Though, after diving for them for a long time, you get to know the legal ones by sight, it is illegal to dive for abalone without a gauge.
There are specific restrictions on what you can use for a bar, the main thing is that the bar has a dull end on it. If you cut an abalone that is too small, it will bleed to death since they are hemophiliac by nature.

*Good freedive fins. I use International divers Frogfeet. Love them.
The old fashion ScubaPro rubber vent fins are very good as well.
Don't make the mistake of getting some fancy shmancy fins. Remember, K.I.S.S.

*I wear 14 lbs of weight, always have, probably always will. It is perfect for me for some reason. I am 200 lbs +/- and just under 6' tall. The belt is one of the rubber ones with the simple bullet shaped 2lb lead weights. The belt has been in existence for 40 years as it was also my Father's before I was born and it still functions perfectly.

*My mask is a an anti-reflective coated true color, low volume, black silicone hunting mask. The black sides keep the excess light out so you can focus on your quarry. Hence the term, 'hunting mask'. It is a Seadive Superba.
I have had many masks and this one is by far my favorite. It is one piece glass as my large, Neanderthal brow gets in the way with the two window ones.

*Snorkels are a personal preference. I like the cheap, non-vented ones. Basically a curved tube. I cut mine shorter for easier clearing and breath acquisition. The vented ones always seem to have water in them. To each his own.

*As for a knife, I have a couple but rarely wear one, unless I am diving in a lot of kelp. If I do wear one, it is on my upper arm with the handle facing down towards my hand for less hang-ups in the kelp.

*Abalone tube, which is basically an inner-tube with a nylon netting wrapped around it and a zipper to put the ab in so you can continue hunting without fumbling with them and bring them to shore securely. I use a small diameter rope and a plastic utility clamp attached to the tube to secure it to large pieces of kelp while I dive.

**For spearfishing, I just substitute the tube and ab bar with a gun and fish stringer (looks like a big safety-pin).
It is best to float the stringer on a long rope away from you as having bloody fish around you is not advisable, especially not here in the Red Triangle.

If I get into the white sea bass thing, I will be purchasing a camo wetsuit for stealthy hunting.

Oh, and always have frosty beer waiting to wash the salt out of your mouth AFTER the dive!

Hope this aids for you interested in this sport!

Here are some pics of some gear, area, and some of my clown friends haming it up for the camera. :D

:beer:

[Bergger]

I used to do a lot of free dive spear fishing off the coast of Block Island (Rhode Island) growing up. Man I miss that. Kind of hard to do here in Colorado. I actually found my old gun when cleaning out the garage a few weeks back. Just tossed it in the trash. It was a mess. One of my fondest memories is spearing a 30 lbs striper and wrestling it to the beach. It sure did taste good but his spines left some marks on me!

[xcmountain80]

Wow Scott I didnt realize you were into spearfishing as well, I guessed I just should have assumed based on the picture on your website. I to spearfish here in FL, it's what we do for a month each summer in the Florida Keys. We have a blast lobstering and spear fishing. Last year my brother using two guns simultaneously shot 2 Hog Snapper. We prefer to shoot Grouper, Snapper, Tuna "on occasion". Though unlike you we use pneumatic spear guns. There is some heated debate which is better but since our fish dont get over 35lbs. and we aren't using float buoys to track or wear the fish out, I prefer the pneumatics. Dont get me wrong I love the craftmanship in the Riffe's I sold them for a few years at a diveshop. Have a great day!

Aaron

[ZooJunkie]

This is interesting read!!! Spearfishing is one sport I would love to try! Thanks all for sharing.

[ZooJunkie]

Questions: how close/far do you get before you pull the trigger? What's the range of some of these spearguns and how effective are they at distances?

[Skillet]

Questions: how close/far do you get before you pull the trigger? What's the range of some of these spearguns and how effective are they at distances?

Well, depending on how good you are...

That 48" gun I have is supposed to be fairly accurate out to about 12' but I would proable have to get the tip of the spear within a few feet of the fish with my skills.

The smaller the gun, the less distance you get and the less penetration power you get. Mine has three slings but I generally only have two loaded.

I know nothing about pneumatic guns.

[Scott Brady]

Fun to see this thread alive.

My gun has a 15' range, three 120 lb bands and a break away system. I bought the size of gun I have to support most blue water hunting, which is the most thrilling you can get. Think jumping into the big blue miles off shore, chum the water and wait on a drag line for something interesting to come along.

The best asset is breath holding, which can be improved with exercises. Over a minute freediving is getting into the right range, some can go for well over three minutes.

Florida has good hunting off the Keys and plenty of sharks too. The Pacific near San Diego and the pinnacles are prolific hunting grounds. Baja is heavily fished but beautiful.

[xcmountain80]

Fun to see this thread alive.

My gun has a 15' range, three 120 lb bands and a break away system. I bought the size of gun I have to support most blue water hunting, which is the most thrilling you can get. Think jumping into the big blue miles off shore, chum the water and wait on a drag line for something interesting to come along.

The best asset is breath holding, which can be improved with exercises. Over a minute freediving is getting into the right range, some can go for well over three minutes.

Florida has good hunting off the Keys and plenty of sharks too. The Pacific near San Diego and the pinnacles are prolific hunting grounds. Baja is heavily fished but beautiful.


Yes those damn sharks! Seems like we are always in the news for that. But to be honest I see them occasionally maybe because they dont want to be seen! We have only had a problem once or twice mainly eating the fish on the way up but like I say and you will agree better to eat the fish than me. We also depending on the area carry a spear gun tipped with a bangstick 45cal "nasty surprise" though weve never had to use it. The biggest thing we shot would be about a 110lb Grouper OMG I thought it would never make it into the boat much less live throught the ordeal. Chaulk one up for my mom on that one. We have more run ins with baracuda than sharks. The only time I haveacctually been "scared" was when we were diving a wreck in the keys 60' from the top of the ship to 125' sea floor. We got in the water and on the way down spotted two enormous Jew Fish "pc term (goliath grouper). I'm not one to tell fish stories but they looked to be the size of our Chevy Suburban, I dont doubt it could eat a diver whole!!
http://www.fishing-boating.com/articles/gamefish/jewfish.htm
Ok so after the 25% magnification we are lookingmaybe the size of a 4Runner, hmm I ride in my truck so yeah eat a diver. :)


Aaron

[Scott Brady]

http://www.reeflighttackle.com/i/More%20pics/Jewfish_opt.jpg

They released the Goliath, caught with tackle. The Jewfish is illegal for harvest.

[ZooJunkie]

That's a big fish. I remember seeing those as a younger kid on National Geographics.

How deep will a minute of free diving get you?

[Scott Brady]

not too deep, as the bottom time is what you are looking for. I rarely dive deeper than 40'

[Skillet]

How deep will a minute of free diving get you?

Not much depth, and the more energy you expend, the less bottom time you have, i.e. looking for abalone in all the cracks and crevasses or chasing a big croaker around.

I have dove for abalone in 50' but that is rare, usually around 20'-25'.

Personal best is 70', sat on the sand for about 15 / 20 seconds and headed up, once I started to realize my terrestrial existence. ;)

[portaladmin]

BTT Test

[bjordnolf]

My brother Teets on the forum and I both freedive spearfish with polespears and guns I actually hand built a few spearguns which turned out great. We should do an Expedition Portal spearfishing expedition down in central america or somewhere some time.
thanks
:REOutArchery02:

[xcmountain80]

Last few days
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/xcmountain/Found%20Stuff/P7260330.jpg
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/xcmountain/Found%20Stuff/P7240321.jpg
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e31/xcmountain/Found%20Stuff/P7230306.jpg


Aaron

[euro.love]

Just found this thread. I just got all my equipment, minus the gun the past summer. Its really hard but def worth the work. The pictures is of my old boss who got me into it. He is ranked somewhere in the top ten in the world. Hes freakin nuts, he just got back last week from Panama to fish. I have sliced up a 56lb Striper that he shot once. That was a big fish.

http://www.spearboard.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=68720&stc=1&d=1201614379
http://www.spearboard.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=66323&stc=1&d=1197866442
http://www.spearboard.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=66329&stc=1&d=1197866570
http://www.spearboard.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=66337&stc=1&d=1197866745

And a pic of what else was in the waters they fish in. SCREW THAT!!
http://www.spearboard.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=66338&stc=1&d=1197866796