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Reef hunting techniques for 14 yo spearo!

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

Active Member
Nov 19, 2013
184
31
43
Hi all.

I'm gonna be heading to Inhaca island(mozambique) in December. I might be heading out to a reef in the deeper sea. It's between 9-15m reef(not really sure) and it's 4 km out from the island. I'll be taking my dad's boat out there.

Probably gonna be me, my dad and brother in water with 2 guns. I got a 1000 tomahawk Roballen and a freediver's of the same length. Is this a good gun for this type of hunting? I might also be doing some drifting in the sea with flasher.

Any tips on positioning on bottom? Any ''secret'' fish attracting tips?? I can swim 36m under water on 1 breath. Is the reef a bit deep for this? MY breath hold in water is 3:05min.

Any tips appreciated thanks!!
 
Hi MozSpearer, got your message. We are all happy to see youngsters who are keen on spearing post to the forum but are also a little wary about offering advice, lest it prove dangerous.

Glad to read that you will be with both your father & brother while in the water - are either/both experienced spearos/divers? Mozambique is a dream spearing destination for most of us - there are others on the forum that will be better able to offer advice specific to that location, but it has a good reputation for having excellent fishing.

If I recall correctly, the Tomahawk is an older green-handle model Rob Allen railgun - is that right? I believe they were/are good. I think there was some concerns about the strength of their early European-made mechs. when subjected to the rigors of long, double-banded guns but seem to recall that RA modified them accordingly ( - but please correct me if you know better). I guess the 1000 is a 100cm barrel - quite long for a 14-year old to load but relatively modest in length for Africa my most accounts - you are probably "in the ball park". Miles in Cape Town considered 110cm quite short & that is what he used on reefs. 110cm & 120cm seem to be popular sizes in S. Africa, 130/140+ and more for serious big game fishing. 100cm is likely close enough for a youngster starting out.

Don't spear fish that are too big for you to handle -- some big fish require large floats and/or double floats and sophisticated breakaway rigs to handle them. Don't shoot old, docile Potato Bass. I would think sharks might be an issue in Africa - so think about what you will do with the fish you catch (which will likely release blood & fish oil into the water around you).

Don't push your breath-holding & make sure your dive buddies have a plan for what to do if anything goes wrong. Have you heard of "Shallow Water Blackout" ? Terry Maas published a good piece on the dangers of this [search this forum &/or Google for details}. Your breath-hold will usually, naturally starts out poor on a dive and improve throughout the day (and throughout the season). 9-15m is quite deep. Around 10m is about as far as I will typically dive on a breath and more often much less. Bear in mind, if you spear a large fish while you are down you might need a little extra time/strength/breath to deal with it and ascend - if your spear is attached to the float via the float-line & speargun, you will likely have the option to ascend before having to deal with the fish.

Spearing is, I think, a "grown-up activity" - so try to adopt that frame of mind: a calm, sensible, cautious, methodical, responsible approach. But enjoy it too! You may get yourself into positions where only you can sort it out. Try to think before hand about what you might need & how you might prepare - do you have a sharp safety knife/what happens if the boat breaks down/what if your father or brother is the one needing help/first aid kit & training... Have some back-up plans. The fact that you posted here suggests to me that you are already preparing and thinking about such things - good.

Flashers look fun, visibility here in the UK is rarely good enough to try them. Strung fish (which bleed & release fish oil) & gutted fish will often attract other fish in (in Africa, beware of sharks & other predators - you & family & friends will probably know more about that than us).

Good luck
 
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Reactions: Hayden and foxfish
Thanks for all the advice. I'm 6 foot and loading the gun isn't a problem for me. Me, brother and dad are all good freedivers and my dad has spearfished before. I read a lot about SWB and I don't push myself a lot. I swim a lot so am pretty fit. The tomahawk is a older version rob allen.

The gun only has a single 16mm band on. I was planning going mainly for reef fish. And the odd smallish gamefish. Our boat will be closeby and will put the fish on the boat. Me and the potato bass are buddies!! I wouldn't dream of shooting him! There was one at the reef(in reserve) that used to be there and we were always diving together. The sharks could be problem though.

I have done a first aid course so shouldn't be a prob. Me and my dad are also good boat motor mechanics.

Thanks a lot for the advice MR. X. I'll be sure to let you know what I shoot!!
 
: Woot:
ola amigo ´so que tenho a dizer é boa pesca, muito cuidado e respeite o mar;valeu
 
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Reactions: MozSpearer
Please post in English (rather than Portugese)
Google translated:
"<The original post in Portugese>.: Woot:
'so hello friend I have to say is good fishing, great care and respect the sea, earned"
 
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