CuzzA
Wetwork for Hire
Hey guys. I've been considering spearfishing for a while but never bit the bullet. I recently had something for sale and got a trade offer for a Mares Viper Pro 100. I'm pretty excited to get out and give it a try.
First off, those who have this model, anybody had any issues with the line guide on the reel with larger fish? It seems to flex a decent amount when under load. Running the line through that small pin at the rear doesn't seem ideal, and Mares doesn't show them using it in their rigging video either.
Any recommendations for a first timer? It came rigged with the reel line directly to the shooting line via a swivel, which I think I like. I have it loaded as a double wrap. Is that ok starting out or would you start with a single wrap and closer shots? This will be used between Palm Beach and Miami, usually less than 50ft.
I don't freedive. Not yet at least. Do you guys run your catch up to the boat when under SCUBA or do you string it behind you? Float it?
Should I get a tuna clip for the grip?
Thanks for the help!
Not many tank divers are going to use a freedive gun like what you have there. It's definitely good to have one on the boat though because you'll often come into a school of pelagics where you'll want to drop in, freedive and land a nice Dorado, AP or Permit.
For reef fish tank diving you really want a gun you can load from the hip and is negative. A buoyant gun will end up on the surface. I did it for the first time on Saturday because I wasn't paying attention and forgot I shot all three of my shafts and never added ballast to my gun.
The bigger the gun the better as the longer shaft will help slow down a big fish with a poor shot. Not to mention a longer gun means a longer shaft and longer line wrap giving you longer range. The East Coast isn't really conducive to freeshafting due to currents so sticking with a line is a good idea, especially for a new shooter, but adding a second freeshaft is advantageous because sometimes it takes two or even three shafts to put down a big grouper, snapper, jack or cobia. Remember, unlike freedive spearfishing you don't have the luxury of bringing the fish straight to the surface to get it under control. You have to secure it at depth.
For a tank gun you have a few options. Biller, Ocean Rhino or a Koah Battle Axe. I am a fan of a teak gun as they will hold up to the elements for decades if cleaned and given a nice timber oil wipe once a year.
The Biller gun would be your least expensive option, but the company hasn't changed the design since they started making them. I cut the hand guard off and swap the muzzle for a Rhino or Sea Hornet Commericial muzzle. Both can be bought at Speargods in St. Pete, FL. The Rhino gun is solid as well, but is bulky, heavy, especially with spare shafts and there's not much modification you can make to the balance due to the custom molded integrated handle, trigger mech and butt design. Both the Rhino and Biller use the same shafts which are readily available and manufactured by Speargods. Both guns are open track and have the benefit of backloading which is a must in my opinion for freeshaft tank spearing. Not so much of a benefit with lineshafting.
The Battle Axe is an enclosed track gun that uses sharkfin tab shafts. All of these guns can quickly convert from freeshafting to lineshafting with a slide ring. The Rhino and Biller use a special shaft to allows for a slide ring with a notched shaft called the Evolution Shaft that was developed by Richard Taylor, who is the owner of Speargods. All of these gun platforms also allow for easily adding kill spikes, spare shafts and powerhead mounts. I would tie a bolt snap to the handle of any gun you use. Remember you are a diver first, shooter second. There will be times on ascent or during a safety stop/deco that you may need your hands free to deal with other gear and it's good to be able to clip your gun off while you take care of the issue.
As for a stringer, on the Gulf Coast most of us use the one handed stringer, again with a bolt snap or carabiner to clip to your hip d ring. I do not recommend keeping the stringer clipped on you with fish, rather just get in the habit of multitasking and carrying it in your hands, but if you must it's a good idea to incorporate a quick disconnect clip so that if a big Jewfish or shark grabs your stringer it isn't pulling you along with it. That said, on the East Coast they have a much smaller reef system than the Gulf Coast and with the number of sharks today it is more likely than not that you're going to have an encounter over there. So what some guys do is use a catch bag to sort of hide the visual that there's a fish with you. Of course a shark can still smell the fish blood in the water so it's unlikely it will leave you alone. The other option is to buy a bunch of small DSMBs. Piranha Dive MFG carries a small 24" or maybe it's 30" DSMB for around $20 or so. Make a small loop of stainless steel or heavy duty mono and clip a bunch of those DSMBs to it. Each DSMB should have a mono style stringer attached to it. This is just a piece of mono with a small stainless steel spike you put through the fish's eyes. Mako I'm sure sells them. This way when you shoot a fish you can string it to the DSMB and send it up to the boat and get it out of water and continue your dive.
Anyway, that's about all I can add at the moment. Good luck.
