Help!

[NaturalHunter]

I'm brand new to the sport, and I just signed up for a freediving course nearby. Can anyone give me a link to a site that explains everything? Like what does "breakaway rigging" mean? or how to set up all my gear? should i attach my line to my float and my speargun? i really just need some super basic info.

thanks for any help you can provide.

 

[landshark sa]

Hi NaturalHunter,

You're at the right place if you want more info regarding spearfishing and freediving.

It would help if you describe what spearing kit you have in order for us to give you some info on how to set it up.

As for breakaway rigging - the name pretty much gives it away
It's a rig one would use for the spear to break away / from your gun and be directly attached to your float system. This is generally used when targeting really big fish or in the case where you are concerned that the drag of the gun would rip the spear out of the fish. Some guns are designed around this system and some guns may be retrofitted with a breakaway rig.

Doing a freediving course is a great idea. This will also potentially put you in contact with other spearo's as the easiest and safest way to learn the tricks of the trade is by rubbing fins with more experienced people.

 

[Mr. X]

Search for "Dummies Guide" on this forum. Miles wrote 2 articles and started 2 discussion threads (one on spear fishing, the other on rigging), they are excellent introductions.

Speargun->Float-line->Float, as you suggest, is a good way to start I think (as you are not tied to anything and if you drop your gun you can retrieve it, also good for big fish, also simple). However there are other ways (e.g. reel on gun, float-line to weight-belt).

Break-aways are interesting but really a more advanced configuration for very large fish. Miles & Bill McIntyre show how they do it on the threads above (and some others). Browse around the forum - I had many of the same questions that you have.