Anyone spearfish?

j williams

j williams

Joined
Nov 14, 2005
Messages
11,135
This is something I wanna try my hand at this year.

Anyone do this regularly?

Know of any place that sells equipment for this?

Whats your technique?
 
do you mean with a spear gun or haiwian sling?? or by hand? I've always wanted to try fishing with a hand spear.... I've made afew nice ones.. but opportunities in my state are limited as the result of game laws. I might try for carp this year however.
 
I dabbled in fishing with a three prong, it's pretty popular in Hawaii. I would suggest getting a long three prong made out of graphite. (although alot of people have being going with the hybrid model for the added weight.) It depends to on the size and strength of your game fish.

Our Walmart carries graphite three prongs, I hope it helped.
 
Your walmart has spears? Damn, thats cool!!

Mine doesnt.

I am talking hand spearing, and maybe some sling spearing.

Who sells graphite spears online? Can you swap heads on em? Like if I wanted a bigger one, or one for frog giging?
 
around here it means chopping a big hole in the ice...and waiting for the big one to swim by.
 
while in PNG I swam the reef with a bunch of the kids and we used a sling, like a long rubber band and a straight, sharp piece of metal. I was able to skewer some small ones. I did not get the chance to go with them but the adults use the same type of equipment to get larger fish in deeper water. It was really fun.
josh
 
Jake,

I used to spearfish when I was a kid. I used a speargun with one or two rubber bands, not a Hawiian Sling. Usually this was while snorkeling along a reef although I learned to SCUBA dive when I was 15 and spearfishing was usually a part of each dive.

Spearfishing is hunting - NOT fishing. I've never speared a fish when I wasn't in the water wearing a mask.

-- FLIX
 
you can practice spearing papers on your front yard for aiming purposes, you need to be able to hold your breath under water and always take a partner. (just in case you black out)
 
Yup, takao's right on. I'm not a pro, but I do enjoy spearfishing. I like 3-prong graphite spears (hawaiian sling in mainland speak :p)in the 8' range for day diving, you need the speed. If you can get in close with a three-prong and get fish, you can definitely get em with a spear gun. For night diving, I like the heavier spears, fiberglass, and even aluminum sometimes. You can often find bigger fish (parrot fish, for example) simply sleeping, and the heavier spears are naturally better for the bigger fish. My uncle taught me how to spot octopus lairs in the reef; anything with a tip will work for that as you don't typically spear them.

Like takao said, practice with a buddy. Know your limits, don't push yourself too hard. Sometimes one gets tunnel vision on the hunt, and you forget to breathe and consequently black out. I don't need to tell you how dangerous that is. To work on holding your breath, start with holding your breath a few times during commercial breaks while you're watching TV; it gives you a regular training period and no one looks at you funny while you do it :)

Also be careful when you pressurize your ears, there is a risk of barotrauma. There are various methods to properly achieve equilibrium underwater, i can send you a link later if you want Jake. At work now, but I'll be back later.

ETA: looking for the link now, Jake.
 
Last edited:
It does help to practice out of the water even though the action of the spear out of water might not be exactly as it would be in the water. Like takao said its pretty popular in Hawaii and I used to go every weekend in the summer. I go barebones, just a three-prong, a set of goggles, and a mesh bag. Using a mesh bag is pretty dangerous when you have to consider sharks like I do (I don't know why I don't use a float). But if sharks aren't around then a bag is all you need, just brain the fish before you put it in or else it could jerk you around. I used to use a half and half, a spear that was half aluminum and half graphite. I found that it gave me better aim. I think that in the case of spears, longer is better.
 
safetyman said:
It does help to practice out of the water even though the action of the spear out of water might not be exactly as it would be in the water. Like takao said its pretty popular in Hawaii and I used to go every weekend in the summer. I go barebones, just a three-prong, a set of goggles, and a mesh bag. Using a mesh bag is pretty dangerous when you have to consider sharks like I do (I don't know why I don't use a float). But if sharks aren't around then a bag is all you need, just brain the fish before you put it in or else it could jerk you around. I used to use a half and half, a spear that was half aluminum and half graphite. I found that it gave me better aim. I think that in the case of spears, longer is better.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I had a half and half too, best of both worlds I thought. The meshbags are fine in most open spots, but once you get into brackish water like near stream/river outlets, that's when you need to be careful. I like the floater because it allows me to keep mobile, especially if you're fighting current, but mesh bags are great for grab and go :thumbup: You didn't use fins or a weight belt, safetyman?
 
Last edited:
I think this is it Jake, a lecture and some good concise material by Dr. Kay, a diving physician with UW:

http://faculty.washington.edu/ekay/

http://faculty.washington.edu/ekay/MEbaro.html

You know, BF member oakietree does spearfishing up here on the Mainland, he'd be the one to talk to you if you want to get started up here Jake. I've never spearfished up here before, all my experience is in free-dive 3-prong spearfishing in warm Hawaiian waters :) Hope to change that soon though.
 
Last edited:
I've played with it here and there a bit. Myself, if I'm out of the water, I like to keep the point in the water so I don't have to compensate for the change. I've cheated for the most part except for a couple times (a couple LONG waiting times) and used my hawain sling spear.

Don't invest in an expensive one by george! You are going to miss lots, and it hits rocks.
 
Does bow fishing count? I do that a bunch. Mostly I do this while drifting in a boat but when you find a school of running sand bass and stir them up it turns into a riot. I got one or two in mid air.

I also have done a little bit of spear fishing but for that I used a bamboo shaft with sharpened end/frog gig or some large fishing hooks that were bent straight. Not a whole lot of luck but still a bunch of fun.
 
orrey, next time you go you HAVE to video tape that. I just think its the coolest thing!!!!
 
I have a friend who bow fishes for carp and I had fun the one time I did that, but I never spear fished:(


RescueRiley said:
do you mean with a spear gun or haiwian sling?? or by hand? I've always wanted to try fishing with a hand spear.... I've made afew nice ones.. but opportunities in my state are limited as the result of game laws. I might try for carp this year however.
Click to expand...

John, get that License I told you about. There are some reseviors that I see dozens of 30+ pound carp cruising the shallows.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top