Newbie Needs Help with Floats/reels

[Bill McIntyre]

Ah, now I see it. Very elegant solution, and I can see how to rig the Riffe the same way.

I notice you are using simple eye-spliced braided poly rope as float line? I keep thinking this is an easier and smarter solution (cheaper too)... why does everyone use the spectra/nylon filled PVC/rubber tube floatline setup? Seems to me like it will get stiff if it gets cold, bulkier to manage.

Is poly line is cheaper, but its really not as good. Its much more likely to tangle. Once its all strung out, its fine, but the big pain in the ass about float lines is getting them into the water from the boat, and the slick plastic lines are much easier to handle. And when you are coiling them back up, they lay in a nice coil much better than the poly. I only have that poly line as a cheap loaner for guests on the boat.

Come to think of it, I only HAD that line as a cheap loaner, and a guest detached it somehow from his gun next to the boat and we went off without it.

BTW, like Miles, I don't like floatlines for all the reasons he mentioned, and I use a reel for almost all my diving now. If I ever go again to a place where I have a shot at a large tuna, then I will surely rig with a breakaway, but its just too much bother for the diving I do in California.

 

[tbgsub]

I am late to this forum, but have two cents to add.
I am currently rigging my 100 CM COBRA to go from a single band, reef gun without reel (attached to the gun with a shock bungy) and then change to the Double band, breakaway configuration. I am working on making the change over a tool-less option so that I can switch to breakaway easily.

Now I am wondering how many times I will see large fish in Reef mode, and how many times I wont see large game in breakaway mode.

good luck using the 110 it all comes down to getting close enough, even with the long range guns. I hunt with dinner in mind, and like the idea of dropping down to a single band on the fly, and spearing a nice reef meal if the pelagics are sparce.

 

[billder99]

Gonzalo,

This is Bill from Loreto. How are things over in Babalooland? How did you and Antonio do when you went out in La Paz?

I've been out using my Riffe E100 with the new breakaway as described by Bill Mc. In 5-12m of water it is adequate for <5kilo pargo, cabrilla, cochi, etc.. As soon as I move into 15-25m water, I need a bigger gun. Yellowtail (and in summer Dorado) swim at a distance, unless you've got a LONG downtime. You can stone big (>5kilo) cabrilla & parrot if you are right on them, but 3m away and my spear bounces off.

Jay Riffe suggested I add a 3rd band, upsize my spear to 0.71, and get an Ice Pick breakaway, which I will do as soon as someone is headed down this way (when are they going to figure out how to ship things down here reliably?). Before the Dorado start to run I'm getting a blue water gun.

I'm using 75' Riffe float line and a boat bouy for a float, but plan to rig up a boogie-board float... sweet looking setup where you can bring a 2nd gun for a backup shot. Don't get a reel here in the Sea of Cortez... too many big fish to take you on the spearo-rodeo. I am afraid I would drown before I would let go of my gun, but you just don't think about that when you are on Mr Toads Wild Ride.

We went out to Santa Cruz last week... 1st fish I shot was a nice parrot... a seal was there before I could get tension in my line and ripped it off the spear... bastard. My buddy shot 3 cabrilla and a YT all > 8kilos. Me? Let's just say I'm glad my buddy is a good shot.

 

[Pinggene]

Has anyone gone off Rocky Point in the Northern Part of the Sea of Cortez? Will be there 2nd week in April...looking for some good spots to try it out..I'm from Wisconsin & have only done Freshwater.

What are the regulations in Mexico? Also, where can I find a fish ID & which are the best eating species?

Also, Bill...have you tried a reel and then have your float line tied to your gun? Yes, if it is a large fish, you let go of the gun & follow the float, but if it is a small one, you can tire the fish out with the line from your reel...allowing you to get to the surface.

Any info on Rocky Point & Species would be appreciated.

Gene

 

[Bill McIntyre]

Also, Bill...have you tried a reel and then have your float line tied to your gun? Yes, if it is a large fish, you let go of the gun & follow the float, but if it is a small one, you can tire the fish out with the line from your reel...allowing you to get to the surface.
Gene

Yes I have, and its a nice compromise.

Ideally, if I'm going to bother with the floatline, I'd like to use the breakaway so that the gun is out of the chain and safe in my hands. But with some guns, its hard to have the shooting line at a length that is ideal for both the reel and the breakaway. You can have two shafts, one with the shooting line right for breakaway and the other for the reel, but of course that is more expense and more stuff to carry on the boat. And then there is the bother of taking the reel off and on the gun.

Since I usually use a reel any more, on the rare occasion when I want a float line, I just clip it to a loop of mono on the butt of the gun. Come to think of it, there is one spot where I've decided that I should do that all the time. Its close to the town of Avalon on Catalina Island, and there is a lot of boat traffic. I think the reel is all I need to fight any fish I'm likely to shoot there, but I like to have a big orange inflatable float in hopes it might make it slightly less likely that I'll be run over.

 

[lobonacci]

Pinggene,

I have been to Rocky Point and have been diving there regularly for the past couple years. Send me a PM or email if you want to talk more about it- since it's not exactly along the lines of this thread. The fish there are actually hard to find. It's been fished out by the local commercial fishermen but it is still possible to find some Leopard Grouper.

Other fish around there would be Barred Pargo, some Snapper, Triggerfish (abundant) and Gulf Grouper- endangered. Occasionally we will see Broomtail Grouper, Golden Grouper or other rare types, but I don't shoot them. Depending on how deep you want to go and what resources you have, you can find some spots just off shore or go to the reefs accessible by boat. The reefs are anywhere from 45-80 feet deep and seem to shift a little depending on sand deposits. That area has a wicked tide shift that moves the bottom sand around a lot. On that topic, there is a rough current on the points there that is responsible for more than one lost-at-sea incident (even for young, athletic swimmers), so be careful and it's best to dive with a buddy and on slack tides as much as possible.

Are you diving on SCUBA or breath-hold? I only shoot fish on breath-hold but there are some other spots you could reach on SCUBA if you want to make that ecological choice. I can help you find some spots and even dive with you if it looks like a good weekend.

Nice to see Rocky Point show up on the forum.

 

[Bill McIntyre]

Are you diving on SCUBA or breath-hold? I only shoot fish on breath-hold but there are some other spots you could reach on SCUBA if you want to make that ecological choice. I can help you find some spots and even dive with you if it looks like a good weekend.

Isn't illegal to spearfish on SCUBA in Mexico?

 

[tbgsub]

Pinggene,

I only shoot fish on breath-hold but there are some other spots you could reach on SCUBA if you want to make that ecological choice. I can help you find some spots and even dive with you if it looks like a good weekend.

"if you want to make that ecological choice."

Nice to see Rocky Point show up on the forum.

just what do you mean? that area sounds pretty sketchy for Apnea fishing.
please tell us you arent suggesting SCUBA SPEARFISHING.:naughty

 

[lobonacci]

This thread has been really helpful but does anyone have any advice on building a bodyboard float? I have searched the forum for this project but have found only one link to another site that everyone says is so great, but it is no longer a valid link.

I planned on taking a boogie board, running a bungee through the hole, around the board and through another hole in the back, and then tied off. If anyone has any advice, it would be appreciated. Does anyone have an idea how buoyant a boogie board is compared to a Rob Allen float or some other standard lifeguard style float? What size fish could a bodyboard handle before being crushed? Thanks

 

[lobonacci]

Oh, and tbgsub, I am not at all advocating SCUBA spearfishing. My personal credo is that I don't eat commercially caught fish and don't spear except on breath-hold. I just didn't want to sound too judgmental of others who do.

"...if you want to make that ecological choice," is just my way of trying to say I don't really approve and it's your karma if you want to participate in that kind of an impact on the ecology.

But it's nice to know I could voice more criticism of SCUBA spearing if I wanted to. And yes, Bill, it is illegal to spear on SCUBA in Mexico. Unfortunately, the enforcement of these laws isn't top priority- despite the visibly depleted condition of the Sea of Cortez. Gulf Grouper are taking a special beating, so I never shoot them.

It is not the best place for apnea diving, but it's the closest water to me so I take what I can get.

 

[billder99]

Caution on Spearfishing in Mexico

Amigos,

(this should probably be in a new post, but...) Regarding Bill McIntyre's post above, YES, IT IS ILLEGAL TO SPEARFISH WITH SCUBA IN MEXICO. This is true of all Mexican waters. There are also areas, especially in marine parks, where any type of spearfishing is currently prohibited. Outside of marine parks and other prohibited areas, freedive spearfishing is allowed with the same catch limits as sportfisherman have to adhere to. Only banded spearguns with one shaft are allowed... no pneumatics.

If you come to spearfish in Mexico, please keep it low key! The pangueros are not happy when they see gringos parading around with 30# plus pargo, cabrilla, yellowtail, etc... believe me when I tell you they can cause you problems.

I am not discouraging spearfishing in Mexico... quite the opposite. Just make sure you know the rules, follow them, and be very low key about what you do and you will not have any problems. If you want to dive in my area, around Loreto, I highly recommend diving with our local spearfishing pro... he is amazing! and follows all rules... he will keep you out of trouble and has a very nice boat. If you want to contact him, PM me and I will send his contact info. (he is very low key and has clients fly in from all over the world)

 

[Pocoshower]

Re: Caution on Spearfishing in Mexico

Outside of marine parks and other prohibited areas, freedive spearfishing is allowed with the same catch limits as sportfisherman have to adhere to. Only banded spearguns with one shaft are allowed... no pneumatics.

Hi Bill

Actually we don't have the same catch limits as the other sportfishermen. The NOM-017-PESC-1994 says:

4.9 La pesca subacuática tendrá como límite máximo de captura cinco ejemplares de
cualquier especie de peces marinos o de agua dulce por pescador y día.

So It is just 5 fishes per day per spearfisherman while it is 10 fishes (with some limitations regarding some species) for the other sportfishermen.

Saludos para Loreto

Carlos

 

[atom10]

Welcome!

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