Speargun for Trout

Hey Folks,

We live in a Lake community and its stocked with Trout, they are good sized, maybe 5-7 pound or so, good eating.

Since I am planning to hop in the lake about twice a week or so, I thought it would be fun to try spearfishing there!

Problem: I have never done it and dont have a gun.

I read lots of posts in the hunting section, but most equipement discussions circle around pretty serious guns and big fish...it seems to me that a 48inch 2 band gun is overkill for a trout.

I noticed that there are "minis" out there, such as the JBL D6 Mini - is that maybe more what I should be looking for?

My purpose is just to have fun and maybe shoot a trout once in a while, most of the time I just cruise around for "treasures" or do navigation stuff, so I thought a smaller gun would also be less intrusive and easier to lug around?

Also, it should be simple, low on maintentance, reasonably durable and not break the bank!

Any comments are welcome!

cheers
cd

I don't know about Canada, but in the US, I don't think that it is legal anywhere to spear trout.

Trout should only be taken by a flyrod. Unless you are a child then you can use live bait like worms on a cane pole. Just my opinion.

I would be surprised if spearing trout is legal anywhere with the possible exception of spearing fish by Native Americans under some conditions.

Spearing Trout is illegal here in Quebec (as is sturgeon, muskie and salmon). I am pretty sure it is the same for the rest of Canada

But like the above poster mentioned, if you are Native, some of the laws don't apply to you, as you are allowed to live off the land.

I'd think something in the 36-42" range would be all you need. The really short guns can be difficult to shoot straight over a decent distance. The shortest gun I use is a 42", but a couple of my friends shoot 36" (for small stuff obviously) and they don't seem to complain about them too much. You can go smaller, but I think you're going to start losing range and accuracy much below that. Oh, and like the others said, check into that whole legality issue too.....

Hey Folks,

Yep - will check the legality question again - since its a private lake, I do believe that a number of the general fishing regulations in our province do not apply, but better safe than sorry...

Thanks all for your replies - especially Suprasteve - who posted the ONLY reply that actually tried to answer my question!

I tried a JBL mini carbine once on some greenling in the Seattle area. It was hard to get close enough to make a shot that would penetrate. I'm thinking trout would be even harder get to close enough to for a decent shot.

Take a look at the MAKO Spearuns website. This link provides some good information about picking out the correct gun and also inludes information on range etc.

MAKO Spearguns - Why Railguns Are Superior

The size of a speargun is often dictated by the visibility and the desired range. If the visibility is 10-20 feet, a 90 cm MAKO predator pro with a single 20 mm band would probably work great.

If the visibility is less, then a smaller gun might be better and if it is over 20-30 feet, maybe a 110 cm would be better. You can pick up an excellent gun for around $200.

Best Wishes!

Elkfriend:

Thanks all for your replies - especially Suprasteve - who posted the ONLY reply that actually tried to answer my question!

Click to expand...

you're welcome