After pulling the trigger on that amberjack last month, I've come to realize two things. 1. I need to do that again - even try my hand at bluewater hunting. 2. I got lucky as hell that I stoned that fish, because I'm not sure that I was prepared to fight that guy without a float system.
Here's what I've put together for the next time I travel to the ocean.
The reason I made this system this way, instead of using a standard float line system, is because I want the flexibility to NEATLY change the length of the line for any water. I don't want to be using a long line in 30 feet of water. And I also don't want my depth to be limited by my line. The spectra will be more than strong enough to hold any fish. The only issue I might run into is that it will not be as durable [as a standard line] because it is not protected by rubber tubing. So, I'll need to take care when shooting large fish around the reefs or wrecks. I'll also need to be more aware of possible tangling, so I'll always carry a knife, and be keen about using the reel to keep the slack line wrapped up. It also won't be as easy to handle as a standard line, however, the cleat system will compensate for that when battling a big fish. The line pulls through the cleat very easily, and then "bites" down. So, any progress I make on the fish will not be lost. I can also let the fish tire himself out on the bungie without me tiring, as well.
The main buoy is a Riffe torpedo float, which provides 80 lbs of lift. The reel is made by diverite. I spooled it with 100 feet of 1400lb Spectra line. The reel is pretty strong, and has a drag mechanism and lock built into it, but I'm not relying on it to hold if I were to shoot a large fish. So the line runs through a sailing cleat, with I "creatively" assembled with some hardware. The inline cleat is made by Spinlock, and is rated to handle up to 600 lbs of pressure. The line is then coupled to a bungie using a 400 lb swivel, and the bungie attaches to my gun (or a breakaway system) with a 600 lb tunaclip. The loop on my gun handle consists of two wraps of 300 lb, rubber-coated, stainless steel cable, enclosed in a sealed loop of 1/4" tygon tubing.
The final step in creating my "mini big-fish system" will be to have Mori build me a 7mm shaft with sliptip.
As for my freshwater spearing... I'll continue to keep that simple. I rarely ever spear in water deeper than 25 ft, and there is never a worry about losing gear to FW fish (not even a 50lb carp could rip a gun from your hand). This float system consists of an "Inshore" Aimrite float that is half the size of the Riffe float, and a very large (20" x 16") dive flag. The aimrite float is more resistant to puncture, and inflates/deflates 10 times faster than the Riffe float. The float line is 25 feet of 1/4-inch Norprene line, that can stretch to 50 feet.
Here's what I've put together for the next time I travel to the ocean.
The reason I made this system this way, instead of using a standard float line system, is because I want the flexibility to NEATLY change the length of the line for any water. I don't want to be using a long line in 30 feet of water. And I also don't want my depth to be limited by my line. The spectra will be more than strong enough to hold any fish. The only issue I might run into is that it will not be as durable [as a standard line] because it is not protected by rubber tubing. So, I'll need to take care when shooting large fish around the reefs or wrecks. I'll also need to be more aware of possible tangling, so I'll always carry a knife, and be keen about using the reel to keep the slack line wrapped up. It also won't be as easy to handle as a standard line, however, the cleat system will compensate for that when battling a big fish. The line pulls through the cleat very easily, and then "bites" down. So, any progress I make on the fish will not be lost. I can also let the fish tire himself out on the bungie without me tiring, as well.
The main buoy is a Riffe torpedo float, which provides 80 lbs of lift. The reel is made by diverite. I spooled it with 100 feet of 1400lb Spectra line. The reel is pretty strong, and has a drag mechanism and lock built into it, but I'm not relying on it to hold if I were to shoot a large fish. So the line runs through a sailing cleat, with I "creatively" assembled with some hardware. The inline cleat is made by Spinlock, and is rated to handle up to 600 lbs of pressure. The line is then coupled to a bungie using a 400 lb swivel, and the bungie attaches to my gun (or a breakaway system) with a 600 lb tunaclip. The loop on my gun handle consists of two wraps of 300 lb, rubber-coated, stainless steel cable, enclosed in a sealed loop of 1/4" tygon tubing.
The final step in creating my "mini big-fish system" will be to have Mori build me a 7mm shaft with sliptip.
As for my freshwater spearing... I'll continue to keep that simple. I rarely ever spear in water deeper than 25 ft, and there is never a worry about losing gear to FW fish (not even a 50lb carp could rip a gun from your hand). This float system consists of an "Inshore" Aimrite float that is half the size of the Riffe float, and a very large (20" x 16") dive flag. The aimrite float is more resistant to puncture, and inflates/deflates 10 times faster than the Riffe float. The float line is 25 feet of 1/4-inch Norprene line, that can stretch to 50 feet.
