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How to make your floatline..?

Thread Status: Hello , There was no answer in this thread for more than 60 days.
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ebusso

New Member
Oct 16, 2002
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Hi there:

A few months ago I read someone telling exactly how to rig your own floatline, using vinil tubing, threading a kite line through with the help of a vaccum cleaner, passing the nylon line, rigging the ends, etc... Can anyone refresh my memory with the correct spec... thank you ....:cool:
 
Get some 5mm vinyl tubing from your local hardware store, I chose 10m and 20m lengths.

To thread either mono or dynema I used a pulling line (builders plumbing line) to get the thicker material (ie the mono) through.

Attach the builders line to a steel nail and use a magnet to pull the nail and line through the tubing. It needs to be a strong magnet and the feed of line into the tube needs to be nice and straight. It only takes a few minutes to get the pulling line through and then use it to pull your actual main line through.

Crimp or tie off to barrrel swivels which you then push back into the tube and glue into place using eurothane glue. Put a tie-off knot between the crimp and swivel for added security.
 
Thats pretty much it, but a couple of notes from what I learned when building my first.

1. I used a magnet but the fastest way is to tie a cotton ball that fits the tube tightly to a guy line. Then use the vacum cleaner to pull this through. Tie your mono (400lb works fine) or dyneema to the guy line and pull back through.

2. The vinyl will stretch, which is a good thing. To allow this make sure you use more mono. or dy. than vinyl. Say 50ft vinyl and 60ft mono (allows 20% stretch plus the mono will give a littl;e more too).

3. Get good quality swivel barrels like sampo and 250 lb minnimum. They should have a soldered ring on both ends.

4. Lube the vinyl:hmm with some polysulfide caulking (worked great for me but any of the following will work: 3m 5200, silicone, hot glue) and work the swivel in.

5. Use waxed whipping twine from your local boat store to tie the vinyl, as tightly as possible, imbetween that ring i was talking about and the main swivel body.

6. Slip over a piece of head shrink tubing to make the whole thing look proffesionl.
 
I just cut and pasted this from an earlier thread on the subject...I included a sketch that some guys found helpful



Sure, you can get lock washers at your local hardware store. It is a washer that is not fully closed. The brass ones are the best. Just find the washer that has the an inner diameter that is equal to or slightly larger than that of the outer diameter of the vinyl tubing. I use barrel swivels to plug the ends. I put a ss split ring on either side of the swivel, this gives you a spot for the lock washer to bite into. The area between the split ring and the swivel is the perfect spot to crimp the washer onto. Just set the floatline on the concrete and use a hammer to crimp the washer just behind the swivel. Then put a little piece of heat shrink tubing over it.

Our floatlines are pvc with a 4-700# blue mono core. Plugged by large sampo barrel swivels with split rings attached to both ends of each swivel. One end of the float line has a tuna clip attached to the split ring by the coil at the back end of the clip. The split ring on the other end of the floatline is attached to a 1" diameter ss ring. This gives a quick/easy point of attachment for a tuna clip. On my floats I have tuna clips permanently mounted so I can switch lines easily. I also use a few inches of clear silicone at each end.
 

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about the vinyl stretching

This thread has been really helpful. Thanks everyone.

I'm making a floatline and have a question about the mono-to-vinyl ratio if the line is simply intended for dragging a float for safety, but not spearfishing.

I take it that the benefit of the vinyl stretching is that it acts like bungee to slow the fish more gradually?

And if I'm the only one pulling on it, and not a fish, I would think that it would be more durable to have the mono and the vinyl of equal lengths so that the mono bears all the stress. However, the advantage of making it the other way is that it could double for spearfishing, too, if I start doing that, or a spearfishing buddy wants to use it.

So, does anyone--defofthecrown??-- know how the vinyl wears over time? Any thoughts?

Thanks,

Clinton
 
Windrifter, the reason (for spearfishing) why the vinyl stretch is important is b/c it's a shock absorber that isn't for slowing the fish, but to help keep the spear from pulling out.

When i get a 'Nantucket sleigh-ride' on the stripers here I like to fin along slowly as well to keep as little pressure on the fish as possible. After a little while they'll stop running and try to shake the spear out. That's when I swim in (hand over hand on the line, not pulling the fish to you) and grab them under the gills.

The strech just gives them less leverage to throw the spear if it's not a perfect shot (like that would ever happen to me...:hmm ).

As far as the vinyl wearing you'd need some info from the 'old timer's' here. It should last a long time but store it out of sunlight to keep it from yellowing/degrading and try and keep it from chaffing on rocks. Although it will withstand a good a mount of abuse.

Your mono will also have a little strecth, but i see no reason why you wouldn't have the extra feet of mono. Rest assured that the vinyl will take the stretch if you follow those ratio's I gave earlier.

hope this helps.
 
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defofthecrown,

Great. That's helpful and i'll use your specifications. I probably should have written the sentence: "to slow the fish more gradually so it doesn't jerk abruptly." But thanks for the clarification, anyway.

Since I'm in Philly--at least until September--I'd love to know if you recommend any diving/spearfishing locations in the Maryland/Delaware/Southern NJ area. If you want, email me through the public email on my profile.

Thanks,

Clinton
 
The man to talk to in this part of the world is Matt from Pirate Scuba or spearfishinggear.com. He's located in Ocean City, MD and you should try and stop into his shop when you come down to spearfish. He gives me all my spots for spearfishing which need shore access b/c I only have a kayak. He's also really good about answering all my annoying guestions

If you have access to a 'real' boat (please don't crucify me kayakers) he carries books for all of the ship wrecks along the East Coast.

Another source is the Diamond State Skindivers, a spearfishing club in Delaware. They have tournies on some weekends at the Cape Henlopen State park in Delware (next to the Cape May-Lewes ferry port).

I go down there once a week or so and have an extra kayak to use so if your interested drop me a PM and we'll try and get a time set.

For your freediving I believe there are some nice quarries a little west of you in PA. Check the freediving guys here and they'll help you out. Do a search for 'Freediving buddy in Maryland' and I think a clubs web page is linked.
 
Ja ... I posted that a long time ago.

I also promised that an article on maing your own line would be published on DB. But, alas, I reckon it got lost in the mists of time. Here is one of the original files (MS Word document with pictures and text)
 

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This is what my rig looks like.

You'll notice the bungee line attached to the spear ....
 

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Thanks Ivan ... here's another ....

Stop Drooling!
 

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hi

Sweet nice gun seems have a better paint job then mine, think its time I go and dig my Railguns out of the cupboard and clean em up :D

cheers
 
SO I am new to this and I want to find out a few things about floats and lines and all that.. I have a new JBL Woody Mangnum that is totally stock. I dont have a clue what type of fish I will be catching with it yet. I live in San Diego if that gives any one an idea of the fish out here.. I am guessing I will just use the gun "as is" for a while until I get a better idea what I will be catching but when will I know? I dont want to loose my gun or be draged ot to sea by some crazy fish. Some people have a reel on their gus and some people have the float line setup. What is a better way to do things? I have read about so many different ways I just dont know where to go.. My gun has the cheep rope that it came with and I want to at least replace that with some better line like the expencive guns have. Should I get a bouy that I can attah alot of line to and also use it as a "fish holder" after I catch them? Should I use the "breakaway" method and reduce the gun loss risk? ..... See how new I am!! =)
 
Chris- Get over to the dive shop and ask about the whereabouts of a dive club in your area. It's the best way to get a lot of exposure to everything that's being used in the waters around you as well as the very many and varied types of divers using them. I refered OceanSwimmer to this resource and her knowledge of the sport has increased huge and smooth enough to be included in the Smooth and Stylin' Tour next month.

For your first uses with the JBL, stick to the stock setup, it's built that way for a reason. Don't sweat needing anything else other than a buddy that knows what they're doing, a stringer on the float with a flag to warn off the boats, and one of those laminated fish ID cards sold at the dive shops. Get all that together then do this... leave the gun home, take the card and the buddy and go diving and see what the fish look like. Repeat often, then take the gun and see how it pops the kelp. Repeat oftener. Then go get dinner. :cool:
 
So far I have gone swiming with OceanSwimmer a few times and hearned alot. We met up after talking on here and we have a good time going diving. I am going to go to the meeting she knows about next month but I am antsy and want to go out more and learn more. =)
What is the Smooth and Stylin' Tour?
I am still in need of a suit and weights. After going deep and seeing how cold it gets the suit is top on my list. I have a way to get things at holesale price at West Marine so I am going to make a float setup and flag holder. I guess after I practice the rest will come with experience but I am impatient and want to just go out and swimm.! =)
 
So far I have gone swiming with OceanSwimmer a few times and hearned alot. We met up after talking on here and we have a good time going diving. I am going to go to the meeting she knows about next month but I am antsy and want to go out more and learn more. =)
What is the Smooth and Stylin' Tour?
I am still in need of a suit and weights. After going deep and seeing how cold it gets the suit is top on my list. I have a way to get things at holesale price at West Marine so I am going to make a float setup and flag holder. I guess after I practice the rest will come with experience but I am impatient and want to just go out and swimm.! =)
 
So far I have gone swiming with OceanSwimmer a few times and hearned alot. We met up after talking on here and we have a good time going diving. I am going to go to the meeting she knows about next month but I am antsy and want to go out more and learn more. =)
What is the Smooth and Stylin' Tour?
I am still in need of a suit and weights. After going deep and seeing how cold it gets the suit is top on my list. I have a way to get things at holesale price at West Marine so I am going to make a float setup and flag holder. I guess after I practice the rest will come with experience but I am impatient and want to just go out and swimm.! =)
 
here is my floatline ...mighty yellow norprene tubing filled with parachute chord...stretches more than three times it's original length. It'll be for blue water hunting (if I ever get invited to San Diego or Mexico by my spearfishing buddies down south) I will be attaching it to a 2 person dive kayak...i don't think the fish can sink the kayak.
 
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