My favourite topic!
Taiwanese Union Spearo Dagger + RA Limpet Sheath
I use the popular & cheap Tawainese made Union diving dagger (sometimes called Stingray, Econo-spearo dagger, etc.), and I have an unused duplicate that I should probably sell (I lost my first knife first dive but my second knife has lasted years). It's not a particularly sharp knife, having the thick diamond cross-section of a dagger, however, I have sharpened the blade aggressively over time, so the blade is becoming slimmer, which I like. It actually comes with a pretty neat and unusual sheath, which could probably be used on leg or arm. But as Foxfish suggested, I use a Rob Allen limpet sheath - which is a simple flat sheath with thick elastic leg bands (for your calf) & no buckles or clips to fail; it holds a flat knife very securely and unobtrusively, and is unlikely to cause a snag or drag. I bought the sheath before knife, I love the simple effectiveness of its design and construction. [Other railgun companies produce similar products, I think Pelaj call theirs a pancake sheath (because its flat).]
Iki-Spikes & Stringers
But I rarely dispatch with my knife these days. Most recently, I have used the small spike on my inexpensive nylon belt stringer (from apnea.co.uk in Jersey). For bigger fish I prefer to use the much larger and sharper spike of my much loved Rob Allen float stringer (a great piece of kit
). I experimented recently with some home-made iki-jimi spikes. These are basically a cheap awl with the handle replaced by a cheap thermo-plastic chainsaw-file handle, and a scabbard made from a section of old car antenna, the 2 pieces connected by a 3mm bungee cord loop, which also acts as a wrist loop and the fastening mechanism for hold it to my weightbelt). They work quite well but I lost the first having used it to dispatch a large mullet in very shallow water. I was so pre-occupied with sorting out my floatline & spearline in the dense weed that I forgot to re-secure the darn thing to my belt (all of my other kit is secured to something, even in use).
Dream Set-ups
I think ideally, I'd like a
Sporasub Snake spearo dagger fitted to my waist but:
1. My waist is already surround by a weight belt and it is already full of weights.
2. the knife is too expensive, and so would make me hesitant to drop my belt in an emergency.
Alternatively a
Rob Allen iki jimi spike on my weight belt - a nice looking and practical piece of kit but again too expensive to jettison or loose. And hard to justify for our relatively small [and less valuable ($$$)] British fish.
OMD likes his Titanium mini-dagger. There is certainly something to be said for good, small, light, simple gear (as my little OMer XXV speargun has helped me appreciate).
Lower Cost Alternatives
A less expensive alternative that really appeals to me is the
Omer USA mini-dagger (I like the plain, simple handle and the superbly shaped blade, and small blades are safer to use when dispatching fish I think), or the old
Omer Hunter (same blade, rubberized handle, odd but cool rubberized sheath). It took me sometime to realize the attraction of mini-daggers after it was first suggested to me by somebody at apnea.co.uk. I'm not sure where I would wear them though - arm/wrist/waist/thigh/calf? [On my Italian spearing DVD, Georgio Daparin (sp?) wears an inexpensive little Seacsub Samurai* - sometimes on this upper arm and sometime on a belt, if I recall correctly, to dispatch his fish. He sometimes wears two weight belts.]
What Now?
On balance, I'm pretty happy with my current set-up. The flat knife at my calf is retained for emergencies and heavy duty work - it rarely gets drawn other than for cleaning & sharpening. I find reaching for a calf knife a little ungainly/gauche. The waist stringer is close at hand, on my waist - and so allows for fast dispatching, and the fish can be quickly thread onto the mono to act as a fish attractor, camouflage & scent trail (I have mixed feelings about waist stringers but it's what I am currently using - not recommended for sharky waters, obviously). My float stringer's larger spike is used to kill large & hard headed fish, and to string them; I don't like to keep too many fish on my waist , as they also add weigh & drag.
* Seacsub Samurai knife sometimes available on ebay.co.uk (I think from a/the dive store in Paignton Devon, which also sometimes has very good deals on Seacsub spearo fins ).
