Floatline- How to prevent tangling and how to shorten them...

[MozSpearer]

Hi guys.

I thought I'd make a post that will hopefully help some beginners that struggle with tangling lines and float lines that are too long.

Here goes:

IF you're diving in water of 5m, use a 6m-10m float line.

If you're diving in 10 m water use 15m.

If you're diving in 15m water use 20m.

So basically use a line a third longer than your diving depth.

When it comes to shore diving, a tangled float line can be a nuisance and hazardous. To shorten it effectively use the following method:

Leave about 2-3m of line between your float or gun and the spot you want to make the loops. Loop it like the fisrt pic.

You should then make a double hitch knot to prevent the loops from unwinding again.

Your setup should eventually look like the last pic.

Hope this helps the folks who can only afford one float line or shore dive. Let me know what you think guys..

Hope to hear from you guys!! Regards
P.S. Credits to ultimatespearfishing.com for photos

 

[MozSpearer]

Come on guys, let me know what you think!! I see I've gotten 68 view already. Tell me if it helps or if I have to improve it!

 

[Apneaddict]

Look into the neptonics float line clutch.

Super-trick part!

 

[Bill McIntyre]

I don't have time now, but I'll just say that your advice is totally inappropriate for diving with a float line in California kelp. Your line is the wrong material, and your advice about length is wrong.

I'll explain later.

 

[Bill McIntyre]

OK, I'm back from taking my wife out to dinner. Sorry for the rather abrupt reply, but you were asking for feedback.

I realize that not everyone dives in kelp in California, but a lot of people do. When you make a blanket recommendation, you may mislead them. I've seen a lot of beginners who seem to have taken advice just like what you gave, and regretted it.

First of all, ditch that float. You can't pull it through the kelp. Here are a couple of photos of the surface matt of kelp. Both of those spots happen to be 60 to 70 feet deep. If you tried to pull that float through the kelp, even if only only on the surface, it would bring you to a screeching halt.

But lets assume you could pull it through on the surface. If you dove, you would pass under horizontal strands of kelp and come up on the other side. The float would have to follow you. It wouldn't. You would come to halt.

Same goes for that float line. I've tried lines like that. The friction through the kelp drove me crazy.

 

[Bill McIntyre]

So what we need in California is a slick float line that won't create friction. Neptonics makes good choices.

A lot of CA divers have nothing at all on the rear end of their line, or maybe just a knot a few feet from the end to warn them when its almost all pulled through their hand. I compromise with this small float that doesn't provide any buoyancy to fight a fish, but at least give me something to grab when it hits the end. It has saved me ass a few times.

 

[Brakestuf10]

Good advise Bill. I to use smooth float line with a small float on the end. I use the same set up when abalone diving. If I run out of air or just get tangled up I just let go of my ab bar


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[Bill McIntyre]

Now about length. Your advice to use a line just a bit longer than the depth works if you can get straight over the fish, be we can't do that in the kelp. A fish zigs and zags, goes up and down, and uses up all the float line, maybe without ever getting to the bottom. Depth of water is almost irrelevant.

Example- a friend shot a 60 pound fish in 25 feet of water with a 100 foot float line. The fish ran to the bottom, went under thick kelp, and ran off horizontally. When the end of the line hit his hand, he was being pulled under, struggling back up for a breath, and pulled under again. He was on the verge of turning loose when the boat arrived and he was able to grab the swim step. It didn't matter that the water was only 25 feet deep. His 100 foot line wasn't long enough.

Another example. Year before last I shot the 63 pound fish in this photo. The water was 45 feet deep, and my float line is 120 feet long. The fish went under some thick kelp about 15 feet down, and then ran off horizontally. I put all the pressure that I could on the line without being drowned, but I couldn't stop the fish before that little float on the end of the line hit my hand. I kicked as hard as I could, but was pulled under water repeatedly. I would struggle up to get a breath, then be pulled under again. I was on the verge of turning loose when the fish seemed to stop. After making sure that it seemed to be wrapped up and not going anywhere, I started following the line. It turned out that the fish was wrapped up about four feet below the surface.

So the 45 foot depth was irrelevant. A fish took all of my 120' line without going over 15 feet deep. The water could have been 15" feet deep and I still would have used every bit of that 120' line.

Sorry if this seems a bit negative, but on an international forum, making blanket statements about equipment may not always be appropriate.

 

[MozSpearer]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I can see what you mean that it wouldn't work for kelp diving. I wasn't recomending this for kelp diving.

I gave this advice specifically for guys that dive reefs or open water. I should've mentioned it so that nobody gets confused. Sorry about that.

Thanks a lot for feedback though!! Really appreciate hearing from more experienced divers! Since I'm in a place where we don't have kelp but have big fish, I just naturally wrote about the conditions I dive in. Hehehe.

Good advice from Bill McIntyre. If you dive kelp go that way. Regards

 

[MozSpearer]

Look into the neptonics float line clutch.

Super-trick part!

Hi apnea addict. Thanks for the reply and I'll look into that.

 

[MozSpearer]

Any others want to give some feedback to me?

 

[kwtony]

Been wrapping lines like that for many years. I just tie line in the center. I lie the idea if both ends being secured tho. Much cleaner.

 

[MozSpearer]

Now about length. Your advice to use a line just a bit longer than the depth works if you can get straight over the fish, be we can't do that in the kelp. A fish zigs and zags, goes up and down, and uses up all the float line, maybe without ever getting to the bottom. Depth of water is almost irrelevant.

Example- a friend shot a 60 pound fish in 25 feet of water with a 100 foot float line. The fish ran to the bottom, went under thick kelp, and ran off horizontally. When the end of the line hit his hand, he was being pulled under, struggling back up for a breath, and pulled under again. He was on the verge of turning loose when the boat arrived and he was able to grab the swim step. It didn't matter that the water was only 25 feet deep. His 100 foot line wasn't long enough.

Another example. Year before last I shot the 63 pound fish in this photo. The water was 45 feet deep, and my float line is 120 feet long. The fish went under some thick kelp about 15 feet down, and then ran off horizontally. I put all the pressure that I could on the line without being drowned, but I couldn't stop the fish before that little float on the end of the line hit my hand. I kicked as hard as I could, but was pulled under water repeatedly. I would struggle up to get a breath, then be pulled under again. I was on the verge of turning loose when the fish seemed to stop. After making sure that it seemed to be wrapped up and not going anywhere, I started following the line. It turned out that the fish was wrapped up about four feet below the surface.

So the 45 foot depth was irrelevant. A fish took all of my 120' line without going over 15 feet deep. The water could have been 15" feet deep and I still would have used every bit of that 120' line.

Sorry if this seems a bit negative, but on an international forum, making blanket statements about equipment may not always be appropriate.View attachment 38038

No worries. This is exactly the feedback I wanted. I now realize I should've stated what type of float setup would work for which areas. Thank you for correcting that

 

[MozSpearer]

Been wrapping lines like that for many years. I just tie line in the center. I lie the idea if both ends being secured tho. Much cleaner.

Thanks for the comment. Where do you dive?

 

[Bill McIntyre]

Since I'm in a place where we don't have kelp but have big fish, I just naturally wrote about the conditions I dive in. Hehehe.

And where would that be? I couldn't find any indication on your profile.

When people give advice, its a lot more meaningful if we know where they dive.

 

[MozSpearer]

I dive in Africa. Mozambique mostly and going for first spearing trip in RSA this Saturday. So its open water hunting basically.

 

[Bill McIntyre]

I dive in Africa. Mozambique mostly and going for first spearing trip in RSA this Saturday. So its open water hunting basically.

If you had said that up front, I probably wouldn't have bothered to say that your advice wasn't appropriate for California.

Do you work for ultimatespearfishing.com?

 

[MozSpearer]

No I don't. I'm still at school. I'm 15 years old. Just go spearing in vacation. You're right, I should have said it up front. Thanks for pointing that out!

 

[pufferhal]

Hi !

We dive in the mediterranian sea , and use the float attached to our belt. we have floatline that has a tube inside , and we attache a small float just about 2-2,5 m to keep the line away from our leg the time of accending. it is very usefull even in bluewater.
Good trick what greek divers use .

 

[Nicko]

Hi !

We dive in the mediterranian sea , and use the float attached to our belt. we have floatline that has a tube inside , and we attache a small float just about 2-2,5 m to keep the line away from our leg the time of accending. it is very usefull even in bluewater.
Good trick what greek divers use .

Sounds interesting pufferhal, could you post a photo please.