Salvimar polespear

[Trident13]

Hi everyone,
Has anyone used a Salvimar polespear? I'm considering one for use here in Scotland where viz is never more than 10m and often much less... for many years I've used my kayak to get to good spots and freedive for scallops and lobsters... I was wondering if a polespear is difficult to master? I have used a speargun successfully in the past.
Thanks

 

[Leander]

I use a short 1m diy polespear for lionfish. Other fish I shoot with a gun. The polespear is so much more fun, natural and lightweight that I sometimes think of selling the gun and building a >2m polespear. With the polespear I feel like I'm just another animal swimming around to find food, with the gun I feel like a human who's trying to invent his way around and against nature.

Even with the little 1m lionfish spear I sometimes try to go after reef fish like spinefoots and parrots, but 1m is just too short for my breath hold (any fish will come close if you can just lay still long enough).

One think I really like about a polespear is that when you don't charge it, it's just a dumb stick and it's impossible to load it without holding it, so it's very hard to present any danger to yourself. A speargun otoh can be loaded while not in use, so, as a recent fight with an octopus wrapped around the tip of the speargun demonstrated, should really be seen as a live grenade.

It btw becomes an extension of your arm. But it won't happen on day #1; you need to use it a lot.

* The short/thin Salvimar polespear felt in the store as if it would not have any power. medium weight with a very thin rubber band. The big/thick polespear felt unnecessarily heavy. Also there is the issue of Salvimar-specific connectors between the tip and the spear. I would recommend to build your own! It's just an aluminium rod, and even to make it multi-part isn't that difficult. A cheap source of qualitative and powerfull polespear rubber is the Theraband latex tubing. I use the black one on the lionfish spear.

 

[Trident13]

I use a short 1m diy polespear for lionfish. Other fish I shoot with a gun. The polespear is so much more fun, natural and lightweight that I sometimes think of selling the gun and building a >2m polespear. With the polespear I feel like I'm just another animal swimming around to find food, with the gun I feel like a human who's trying to invent his way around and against nature.

Even with the little 1m lionfish spear I sometimes try to go after reef fish like spinefoots and parrots, but 1m is just too short for my breath hold (any fish will come close if you can just lay still long enough).

One think I really like about a polespear is that when you don't charge it, it's just a dumb stick and it's impossible to load it without holding it, so it's very hard to present any danger to yourself. A speargun otoh can be loaded while not in use, so, as a recent fight with an octopus wrapped around the tip of the speargun demonstrated, should really be seen as a live grenade.

It btw becomes an extension of your arm. But it won't happen on day #1; you need to use it a lot.

* The short/thin Salvimar polespear felt in the store as if it would not have any power. medium weight with a very thin rubber band. The big/thick polespear felt unnecessarily heavy. Also there is the issue of Salvimar-specific connectors between the tip and the spear. I would recommend to build your own! It's just an aluminium rod, and even to make it multi-part isn't that difficult. A cheap source of qualitative and powerfull polespear rubber is the Theraband latex tubing. I use the black one on the lionfish spear.

Thanks for your feedback Leander. I have considered making one, but they're inexpensive to buy at £40 here. I don't think I could make one as good for that price... I last saw Lionfish in the Egyptian Red Sea.. beautiful but poisonous! Can you eat them?

 

[Diving Gecko]

You can eat them - haven’t tried myself but there are videos on YouTube about how to filet them safely. Supposedly they taste quite good.

I think the Salvi polespears are actually very decent for their price. Possibly the best mass produced option out there unless you want to spend a fair deal more on a gatku or headhunter.

If you happen to know someone with a metal lathe or can befriend a local machinist then making adapters is easy. Or cutting the right thread on a cut down discarded gun shaft for that matter.
That said, I think for smaller fish if you can get close enough a three prong is a very good weapon - but check your regulations to see if they are ok to use. And if you can keep from shooting into rocks then a slip tip is a better choice than a shaft tip on a polespear. Shaft comes third in my book. Now, you might think slip tips are only for big blue water fish but not so on a polespear where they really help landing even small fish. Reason being a polespear offers way more resistance and “leverage” for the fish to fight against than a regular gun shaft. So, a fish will have an easier time ripping itself off of a polespear with a shaft tip than a gun shaft. Hence why slip tips are often preferred.


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[Leander]

Can you eat them?

Hell yeah! They're delicious! Steamed, sashimi, on the grill and in the soup. A very versatile fish.

My lionfish spear was €7 to make, it could've been €4 if I had drilled connectors with a lathe, a standing drill or a normal drill in a jig (no real connectors, just drilling a hole and threading it is enough). I now glued in inserts with a female thread and glued in a piece of threaded rod to the other part, but this meant I had to use a rod inside a tube to create mass, which made it a little more expensive but doable with just simple tools (just a steel rasp and glue). It took about two hours to make. If I would've had an angle grinder it would've been a few minutes.

 

[DiveHacker]

The Salvimar polespears are very good. They are not top of the line of course.

I think you should get a cheap, 2 meter or so one piece polespear if you will be going near home. That is what I started with, and I still have it and love it. It was an ultra cheap fiberglass special with a decent three prong tip made by trident.

I moved overseas and could not bring it, so I got a salvimar 2 meter, 2 piece polespear with a three prong and a flopper tip as a backup. It is definitely nicer than my fiberglass special, the fact that it is 2 piece does not matter, it functions very well along with being much more portable. The Salvamar three prong tip is very good too.

If you get more into it you may want to get a longer one some day. But for now I would say go two meters. It is really a nice sweet spot to teach you how to get close to fish yet not being too cumbersome.

Further, I watch these guys on youtube, and one thing i notice is good spearfisherman are NOT always good with polespears. I have learned stuff I would never have learned if I would have spearfished for 1000 years from some of these Greek guys. I mean jesus christ what do they do over there, put polespears in their hands when they are born? But I recommend NOT swimming around with the polespear cocked. That is insane! Now if you are doing that for a very specific reason, or a very specific skittish fish... ok. But, do yourself a favor, don't swim with it cocked. Relax and slowly reach back and cock it as you see a good fish, which is not always ideal but it is better than swimming around all day with a cocked pole spear haha.

As far as the difficulty, do 20 minutes of target practice on a plastic bag your first day, and you will seriously be good to go.

 

[Diving Gecko]

The Salvimar polespears are very good. They are not top of the line of course.

I think you should get a cheap, 2 meter or so one piece polespear if you will be going near home. That is what I started with, and I still have it and love it. It was an ultra cheap fiberglass special with a decent three prong tip made by trident.

I moved overseas and could not bring it, so I got a salvimar 2 meter, 2 piece polespear with a three prong and a flopper tip as a backup. It is definitely nicer than my fiberglass special, the fact that it is 2 piece does not matter, it functions very well along with being much more portable. The Salvamar three prong tip is very good too.

If you get more into it you may want to get a longer one some day. But for now I would say go two meters. It is really a nice sweet spot to teach you how to get close to fish yet not being too cumbersome.

Further, I watch these guys on youtube, and one thing i notice is good spearfisherman are NOT always good with polespears. I have learned stuff I would never have learned if I would have spearfished for 1000 years from some of these Greek guys. I mean jesus christ what do they do over there, put polespears in their hands when they are born? But I recommend NOT swimming around with the polespear cocked. That is insane! Now if you are doing that for a very specific reason, or a very specific skittish fish... ok. But, do yourself a favor, don't swim with it cocked. Relax and slowly reach back and cock it as you see a good fish, which is not always ideal but it is better than swimming around all day with a cocked pole spear haha.

As far as the difficulty, do 20 minutes of target practice on a plastic bag your first day, and you will seriously be good to go.

I actually bought the Salvi three prong paralyzer and while it’s ok I think its stainless steel makes it softer and less springy than the carbon steel offerings of other brands. I’ve def had to spend some time now and again to get the prongs just somewhat straight but maybe that’s normal even for the carbon steel ones?

That said, for smaller fish and for a first spear I’d say it’s prolly still quite an OK tip.


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[Trident13]

You can eat them - haven’t tried myself but there are videos on YouTube about how to filet them safely. Supposedly they taste quite good.

I think the Salvi polespears are actually very decent for their price. Possibly the best mass produced option out there unless you want to spend a fair deal more on a gatku or headhunter.

If you happen to know someone with a metal lathe or can befriend a local machinist then making adapters is easy. Or cutting the right thread on a cut down discarded gun shaft for that matter.
That said, I think for smaller fish if you can get close enough a three prong is a very good weapon - but check your regulations to see if they are ok to use. And if you can keep from shooting into rocks then a slip tip is a better choice than a shaft tip on a polespear. Shaft comes third in my book. Now, you might think slip tips are only for big blue water fish but not so on a polespear where they really help landing even small fish. Reason being a polespear offers way more resistance and “leverage” for the fish to fight against than a regular gun shaft. So, a fish will have an easier time ripping itself off of a polespear with a shaft tip than a gun shaft. Hence why slip tips are often preferred.


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. Sounds like you have lots of experience... I'll get the Salvimar. Thanks for the advice

 

[Trident13]

The Salvimar polespears are very good. They are not top of the line of course.

I think you should get a cheap, 2 meter or so one piece polespear if you will be going near home. That is what I started with, and I still have it and love it. It was an ultra cheap fiberglass special with a decent three prong tip made by trident.

I moved overseas and could not bring it, so I got a salvimar 2 meter, 2 piece polespear with a three prong and a flopper tip as a backup. It is definitely nicer than my fiberglass special, the fact that it is 2 piece does not matter, it functions very well along with being much more portable. The Salvamar three prong tip is very good too.

If you get more into it you may want to get a longer one some day. But for now I would say go two meters. It is really a nice sweet spot to teach you how to get close to fish yet not being too cumbersome.

Further, I watch these guys on youtube, and one thing i notice is good spearfisherman are NOT always good with polespears. I have learned stuff I would never have learned if I would have spearfished for 1000 years from some of these Greek guys. I mean jesus christ what do they do over there, put polespears in their hands when they are born? But I recommend NOT swimming around with the polespear cocked. That is insane! Now if you are doing that for a very specific reason, or a very specific skittish fish... ok. But, do yourself a favor, don't swim with it cocked. Relax and slowly reach back and cock it as you see a good fish, which is not always ideal but it is better than swimming around all day with a cocked pole spear haha.

As far as the difficulty, do 20 minutes of target practice on a plastic bag your first day, and you will seriously be good to go.

Thanks for your in-depth advice. I look forward to target practice

 

[Diving Gecko]

. Sounds like you have lots of experience... I'll get the Salvimar. Thanks for the advice

I built my own carbon fiber three-piece polespear a few years back and spent quite a long time educating myself on the subject before that. And while I often bring it in my bag, I have to admit I still reach for spearguns most of the time.
Also, my spear is a bit of a different animal as it’s super long at around 4m and quite high powered - I made it for bluewater hunting. But I’ve ended up using it a lot more with just two sections and a shortened band which makes it about the size of the longer of the two Salvi models.
I’ve also used a few friends’ polespears but my advice on the different tips comes not only from what I have gathered from other people but indeed also from using all three types on my own spear.

 

[Mr. X]

Thanks for your feedback Leander. I have considered making one, but they're inexpensive to buy at £40 here. I don't think I could make one as good for that price... I last saw Lionfish in the Egyptian Red Sea.. beautiful but poisonous! Can you eat them?

SpearfishingStore.co.uk used to sell a couple cheaper than that. Maybe £22-26 Don't know if they have any left in their closing down sale. Worth a look though.

£17 https://www.spearfishingstore.co.uk/sfs-2-metre-3-piece-fibre-glass-pole-spear.html?search=Pole

Also some tips and rubbers if you search for "pole'.

 

[Mr. X]

I was thinking about making a wooden pole spear. Shouldn't be too hard. Might learn something useful (e.g. better to buy an aluminium pole! ).

But I think my days spearing have become too precious to me to mess around. We'll see.

 

[Leander]

I was thinking about making a wooden pole spear.

I don't think wood will give you the wanted stiffness in small diameters, or you have to go for expensive hardwoords. Aluminium is cheap, strong, relatively stiff, corrosion resistant and very easy to work with.

 

[Mr. X]

I have some old ski poles
that I could use, seems a shame to junk them though.

Re. wood, I was thinking hazel or ash pole. I believe Saxon and Viking spears were usually/often made of ash. How about bamboo (technically a grass)? Perhaps the buoyancy would be a problem.

Probably best for me to stick to spearguns this year now.

I see SpearfishingStore.co.uk also offer a screw-on Tahitian barbed tip option. Any thoughts on that? I like the idea of a slip tip, or RA slip-barb, but they're very uncommon in the UK as we don't have many big fish - but interested to read that you think it would be useful for even small fish with a pole spear.

 

[Trident13]

SpearfishingStore.co.uk used to sell a couple cheaper than that. Maybe £22-26 Don't know if they have any left in their closing down sale. Worth a look though.

£17 https://www.spearfishingstore.co.uk/sfs-2-metre-3-piece-fibre-glass-pole-spear.html?search=Pole

Also some tips and rubbers if you search for "pole'.

Thanks for the tip

 

[Diving Gecko]

There’s a video somewhere on YouTube about a Japanese guy harvesting a piece of bamboo, making a polespear out of it and then catching fish. Don’t know how easy it’ll be to find but it’s out there somewhere.
I’ve seen a few other examples of wooden spears but been too long for me to remember what kind of wood was used. But I think it could work if not using crazy high powered bands. Also, you’re supposed to twist the spear 0.5-1 turn as you load it. This will vastly reduce the band’s tendency to bend the spear and on skinny polespears this is even more important. And it’s also the reason why you can actually get away with using powerful rubber on a skinny shaft.

Ski poles are great. The diy crowd in Japan has used them for a long time and if they are tapered they offer the advantage of less drag at the very ends of the shaft which makes tracking easier. The long Japanese carbon fiber polespears tend to be tapered too for that reason - but they are also often twice as long as the western spears.


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