recent La Jolla catches

[LaJollaFreedvr]

went down with my friend and his brother to windansea beach adn found it to be perfect conditions to explore the shallow fringe reef - usually too much surge here...

my searching yielded a 7-8 lb PIG kelp bass underneath a reef ledge. It was almost like a cave, down about 20-25 feet I peered in and saw the trademark crosshatch pattern and i could tell the fish was large but i didnt know this large. i squeezed the trigger and felt the fish dart to the back of the cave and i felt the slip tip engage (thank god!). after a brief tug of war i dislodged it and was shocked by its size...the biggest kelp bass ive ever seen...

 

[LaJollaFreedvr]

pic #2......

 

[LaJollaFreedvr]

stringer of sheephead and bass from awhile back before the closure

two sheephead and two kelp bass from the la jolla kelp beds

 

[Memo]

nice pictures but they are HUGE!!! 800x600 would be ideal for us to get pleasure from the pictures

 

[OceanSwimmer]

Nice job!

Great pics!
Don't worry about the photo size, one of the Moderator-types here can downsize it for ya.
The gun is very nice too; tell us about it. And your suit: 5mm?
The Sheepshead photo is very, very nice. Roughly when did you get those?
We had such a lousy summer with the Red Tide and all...I think I want to make up for lost time.
It has been good viz and minimal surge the past few days, thank God.
Although the surf boys will see some action come Sunday-Monday.
Way to go, LJF!

 

[LaJollaFreedvr]

oceanswimmer you're right, weve had generally a terrible year so far...the only excellent day i had was one day in october when it was 30 ft + vis in the shallows at the scripps pier and i saw a school of BIG (40lb or so) yellowtail in 15 feet of water, but unfortunately was equipped with my little gun that i use for hunting around the pylons...:waterwork

Surf however has been great...i surf too so im loving it, wish i could dive more though, between school and so much good surf hasnt been much time.

as for my gear

the gun: Riffe Competitor 1, with some modifications: AB Biller slimline slip tip modified Icepick style with a slide ring and some mono tucked between my bands. i normally run three 5/8 " bands on that gun, although only two are in the picture. im going to order three 3/4" inch bands though so i can get even more punch out of it...as is with 3 5/8 bands my range is about 10 - 12 foot effective, as i have 3 wraps of mono + bungee (no breakaway though, my float goes direct to my gun). i have a 50 foot floatline attached to some weird poolkickboard float i found that has all these holes in it for hands and feet that are perfect for me to dangle my stringer, lobster gauge, lobster bag, water, etc...

my suit: nope, not a 5mm...just a 3/2mm Xcel surfing suit, in the winter i throw a 2 mm longsleeve top over it, making the top 5mm...i dont get too cold that easy, and if its reallllly cold or im diving deep i wear a 7mm suit but normally i save that for scuba

sheephead were shot i THINK back in october but im not sure, it was sometime right before the closures, i know that though...that day they were EVERYWHERE in about 45 ft of water at boomers

 

[icarus pacific]

That's a very nice size kelp bass. They don't get too much bigger than that, at least before DB judge, "the Mighty Pudman" shoots 'em. :king

You have a nice time figuring out why your shots are going all over Hell and breakfast with those 3/4" bands. Bands that diameter over that short a gun might add a bit of punch for the holes, but velocity wise they do little but add torque to the shaft as well as your wrist. As the barrel length increases, that torque is diminished to just being a wristbreaker and the shaft goes pretty straight depending on your ability to keep the gun's stabilizers in the water. :blackeye Give a thought to going to 4 9/16" bands for the smooth trigger release.

 

[LaJollaFreedvr]

thanks for the tip, sven...karma ensues!

but quick question...would 4 9/16" bands be the same as the 3 5/8s i already have on there in terms of power, range, and recoil? i guess im just hungry to max that thing out in power. i know its not a metal tech so i cant throw 6 bands on it, but believe me if i could i would, i just dont want to split the wood! thanks

 

[icarus pacific]

4 9/16 bands at 80 pounds pull equals 320 pounds thrust.

3 5/8 bands at 100 pounds pull equals 300 pounds thrust. These numbers reflect new material.... older stuff is obviously less.

Give Kimmy at Hana Pa'a a call. Tell her Sven told you to get some high modulus blue 9/16 material (90 pounds pull) and then worry every time you load that thing up.

 

[LaJollaFreedvr]

biiiiig spider crab from off la jolla...took this bad boy by hand...i didnt eat any of it but my one of my friends ate the legs and said they were fantastic...note to self: catch another one

 

[LaJollaFreedvr]

haha i forgot to add, in that one above, my buddy is pointing out the "butt claw" on the back of the crab...never seen that before...