Making a hawaiian sling

[71st Ironman]

Getting things in motion for a 2 week vacation at the end of June on Oahu. My 2 oldest boys and I want to try some inexpensive spearfishing. We have looked it over and found the making of Hawaiian Slings pretty easy. My big question is about the shafts. Does anyone here know if standard aluminum archery arrow shaft would work? I am a bowhunter and have a few shafts hanging around. I know they are a bit shorter than the typical purchased sling shaft.......but hey if I have arrow shafts avaiable why not use them if they may work.

So if anyone has any thoughts on this thanks for the advice......

 

[JKPAO]

You may want to try a travel pole spear. They can be had for a little less than a gun, and it might give you a better idea of what you really want!
See you topside! John

 

[Capt Scotty]

arrows are too short. A good shaft means the difference between taking a fish home and just wounding a fish. Here in FL you can get a good shaft for $30.

 

[Chad Carney]

arrows are too short. A good shaft means the difference between taking a fish home and just wounding a fish. Here in FL you can get a good shaft for $30.

I agree, arrows will not work. Too short, too light, too easy to bend and buoyant probably.
Spring stainless steel is best, but cold rolled will work fine, just rust.
60" x 9/32" is about standard, with a single barb.
Go down to 1/4" for speed or up to 5/16" for impact.

Chad

 

[LunkerBuster]

i would advise you to get a 60 and a 48 or 52, that way you can have a little room to adjust if you dont like the length or wish you had more...the only problem with big shafts on a sling is your arm length limits you...as a bowhunter, I am sure you will be able to know what feels right and what doesnt

polespears can be had really cheap too, like 25-35 bucks at bass pro for a 6 ft fiberglass...not a bad starter rig with a single flopper tip or a paralyzer

 

[71st Ironman]

Thank you all for the responses. I will have to look into this a bit more. I have till June of next year to hammer this all out. We are trying to figure this all out and get the best bang for the buck. This is all stuff that we will probably only use for a total of a week out the 2 weeks that we will be there on the Windward side of Oahu.

The main plan of this is to one have fun while snorkeling the reefs right off the house we are renting and also to provide food while we are there. We are going to be deep seas fishing the 2nd day we are there.....but that is always hit or miss.....not to mention that alot of boats like to keep the majority of the catch. So any supplemental fish that we can come up with would be awesome......nothing like some fresh sashimi after a trip out in the water.

So once again thank for any and all the info.........anyone have a good website for reference as to what reef fish are good to eat and which ones to pass on? I would hate to kill something only to find out it would have been better to let it live because it was horrible eating......

 

[LunkerBuster]

The Delectable Fish of Hawai`i

you'll need to cross reference some of those for pics and regional names

have a great trip..seems like a dream spearo destination