Halibut

[Amphibious]

ok - hunting Halibut this Feb in BC. I've hunted flatfish before - but never over rock (always sand). so I'm woried about penetration. A 5prong or simmilar tip seems to be the answer - but what about holding? Is it going to hang on to a struggling fish that's heading deep in a hurry?

my current caddy is a JBL NW Special w/3 9/16 bands. I also have 96cm beauchat w/flopper.

Comments?

Jefe Sven?

 

[LaJollaFreedvr]

slip tips, my friend!

like you, i've always hunted hallies over sand bottoms, but ive used a variety of tips on them. due to their habit of fighting hard, even with a gillplate shot, a slip tip is a pretty good idea (JBL makes a cheap pretty good one....Riffe Icepick if you can afford it). California halibut, the ones we have here in socal, are amazing fighters. usually i can sneak up within 4 - 5 feet of them and i use an AB Biller double flopper with a fairly high success rate (very few tear-outs). Just a tip, shoot the thing RIGHT in the middle, in the spine if possible, just below the gill plate. this wont really stone the fish, but it will be a lot more difficult for the tip to tear out cause halibut have soft, tender flesh...best of luck to you!

 

[Amphibious]

I looked at the slip-tip Idea, I wonder if It would make much of a difference given the tip I have now:

http://www.jblspearguns.com/products/spearpoints/844.html

a 3" slip tip might be better though - less penetration needed for a good hold. What do they go for?

Willer

 

[icarus pacific]

mmm... butts!

Hola Willer.

There's a couple ways of looking at your sweet dilemma. One is to use a five prong tip and turn the thing 90 degrees so when you shoot it, it crosses the spine of the fish, giving you five chances to nuke the thing without it beating you all over hell and breakfast. The other is to use a tip like yours but with a breakaway cable that once you penetrate it, the fish fights the cable and leaves that $35 shaft in something resembling a straight line.

Your gun is the primo tool for you up there, as well as here for those tasty flattys, so you're smooth there. I might suggest you go to 5/8 bands for that little extra oomph, and a floatline to the gun so you can find it later in the day...

JBL has about the best detachable going for the price and availability.

One last little something... score a pair of good gloves with Kevlar patches on them and spread some Aquaseal goop mixed with sand on the palms. These but's have a slime factor and some really, REALLY serious teeth that you don't wanna have anything to do with. Shoot the thing, back off and pull the slab up to the boat where you can do the coup de grace on it with a 12 gauge.

Good luck and I wanna see the pictures!


jefe sven

 

[Amphibious]

right on. good advice -

I've got my gun rigged with a break-away. effective range of 9ft. short, but never needed any more for flat fish. my Fire & forget rig.

I can put 3 X 5/8 or 4 X 9/16 if I make them with Cable wishbones

If I was going to grab one of those JBL Break-Aways what length do most of you use? they have 3" , 4", 5". anybody know a dealer?

12ga? Marlin .45-70 comming along, hope that will be enough :duh

Pictures? do ya one better - your welcome to join us - will be a little north of Vancouver. Have a couple yanks coming up from Washington too. camping along the shore. going to get some scuba in too - Wreck dive on HMCS Chaudiere.

(I'll add that anyone is welcome to come along. the more the merrier - if we can get enough people, maybe get a charter or two going)


I'll see If I can post a pict of a BIG "flat" from home (sometime tomorrow)

Willer

 

[unirdna]

Hey amphbious,

I don't know the first thing about halibut, but I do get most of my JBL stuff from www.leisurepro.com. They are in the States (NY I think), and their prices / shipping are pretty fair. Being in BC, you shouldn't have to pay a whole lot more for shipping.

Just go to www.leisurepro.com. Type JBL in the search box; go to pages 8-10. You'll find the spearpoints there. Hope this helps.

Ted

 

[russell helsley]

Are you talking Pacific Halibut? I've found them to be very elusive...if you know how to find them freediving I'd be happy to hear from you!!

When I've hunted them in the past (not ever seeing one) I was set up with a JBL Sawed-Off Magnum XHD with a detachable rock point tip, 4" wings. I don't know your setup but if you're hunting for the pacific halibut, using a floatline with float would be wise

russell
seattle area

 

[Bill]

Aloha Willer
Three of us had this discussion about 30 years ago. One used a tri-wing detachable, one a smallish slip tip and the other a two wing detachable. We had all lost fish when they hit the end of the 200 feet on the reel. Jim came up with the idea of getting rid of the reel to cover more ground, using a 5 prong to stun the fish and letting the gun go. I started to use his method with my tiny gun (105 cm mid handle with lots of rubber) and scored 100 % on 20 -30 fish up to 45#. Maybe not a fair score because I only take 'good' shots. Line the 5 prongs up at 45 degrees and go for the spine. Any one hits the spine and you have lots of time. The 5 prongs got twisted up bad but back then they were $3-4. If you're head on, just put it between his eyes. I never had one even move after that.
Of course, I remember going to Campbell River in '52 and they told me that I should'a been there last week. Some one hauled in one that weighed about 800# and had the pictures to prove it. If I saw one half that size, I'd be tempted to leave her alone.
best wishes
Bill

 

[fuzz]

800 pounds??!!!

I think I'd soil myself

 

[Amphibious]

Big flat from back home! not a halibut....

 

[Amphibious]

another shot - and it was shot freediving - you;ll notice a scuba tank on the cart - from a salvage I was doing earlier in the day.

By the way - these taste like ass - still ate it though...

 

[fuzz]

That's awesome, wish I could pimp around my neighborhood in a golf cart


Oh yeah, nice catch

 

[Amphibious]

The compound was small that I lived on that we all drove them around like little cars...

I just tossed that bad-boy on the roof and drove around - got some good looks.....

My Spearo Mobile..... Sand tires you see....

Willer

 

[Hapakid808]

anyone know where i can get a 5 or 6 prong tip? The kind that are 6 inches for guns and are barbed? I know undersee has them but im not sure i wanna pay the shipping from oz.

 

[icarus pacific]

National Divers Supply probably has them on your local shop's wall.


sven

 

[Amphibious]

Omer sells a Mustad 5-prong job - anyone have any exp. with them?

Halibut opens Feb 1st, I'll be there two weeks later - hoping for good luck, also will be much shallower then most boat fisherman.


I can taste the Fish & Chips already.....


Willer

 

[Dogmatrix]

hey Amphibious a little off topic here but you mentioned that you were free diving after scuba.... are there any concerns/dangers with this to your, or anyones knowledge? just wondering if residual nitrodgen could cause problems ect...

 

[icarus pacific]

While I've not used a multi prong from OMER per se, Willer, pretty much any multi prong will work, with a tip from Mustad having some quality to it over some dog^*it unit from some dump. NAtional Divers has a few nice ones too. Tell Karl he owes me.

And yes, Dog there are serious questions and liabilitiies to freediving after SCUBA. There's a thread here somewhere... Bottom line is to use your noodle and give yourself a bunch of surface interval and treat your freedives, at the surface and all, like a repetitive dive.


sven

 

[Amphibious]

will be freediving AND scuba. will be switching up the days, alternating.

Thanks Sven - will check out NAtional Divers.

HEading over to Saudi Arabia in a couple weeks, got word the rod and reel boys are pulling 100cm - 120cm Talang Queenfish off my favorite spearing spot.... eager eager eager....

Willer

 

[andrsn]

What's a queenfish, if I may ask?

Anderson