New To Hunting

[CDFDiveMaster]

Well, I bought my first speargun....a 42" AB Biller, complete with stringer and all. The gun is still virgin and not been used yet. why? Well, I'm a bit concerned about the sharks...can anyone make any suggestions or have any advice. I'm familiar with sharks, I've dove with them before however, being in complete competition with them concerns me. Awaiting scubaboard members responses before shooting.
JC

 

[shooter226]

They usually don't bother you much. When they do, shoot it. Power heads work well. http://www.spearfishing.cc/ Try these. If you don't have one, a shaft in the gills works too.

Kevin Bruington, owner of Spearfishing Specialties http://www.slinginsteel.com/ told me if one was being a nuisance and not aggressive to shoot it in the dorsal fin. The shaft would bounce off and the shark would take off for parts unknown. I have not done this but he has very reliable information in the past.

Do not give the shark the fish you speared. This conditions them to look to divers for a handout.

Post some pics of the fish you spear.

Good luck and have fun.

 

[Wayward Son]

Everything you ever wanted to know about spear fishing & more:

http://www.spearboard.com/forum/

I like scubaboard just fine, but the hunting section is relatively lightly travelled. Spearboard is dedicated to it.

Personally, I suggest that a newbie find someone with some experience that's willing to take you out & show you how they do it. Chad even has spearfishing classes & I think he's down in your area, you could get some professional instruction & get up to speed quickly.

Sharks are of varying amounts of trouble. Some places & people just have a lot of problems, others hardly ever.

 

[Chad Carney]

Well, I bought my first speargun....a 42" AB Biller, complete with stringer and all. The gun is still virgin and not been used yet. why? Well, I'm a bit concerned about the sharks...can anyone make any suggestions or have any advice. I'm familiar with sharks, I've dove with them before however, being in complete competition with them concerns me. Awaiting scubaboard members responses before shooting.
JC

Sharks are rarely a problem, really. I've only had a few that I felt like I had to dispatch, in over 33 years of spearing.

A more important thing to consider, would be to take your unused 42 back and get a 48 or a 54. I've lived here in St Pete all my life and dive all over as well. I do not own a gun shorter than 50". The 42 is a good bay gun, but will limit you hugely in open water.

E-mail if you'd like more info, or a quote on shooting or other advanced instruction from a spearfisherman's perspective.

Chad

 

[2Dive4fun]

If you are looking for dinner, you can find a fish with the small gun no problem. Let the trophy fish stay healthy and reproduce.

 

[pescador775]

In Florida, with its clear waters, the 42 is a hole gun. However, you can take open water fish such as the spanish mackeral, as well as snapper and the like with the 48. The most dangerous time is immediately upon hitting the fish. Although rare, sharks will appear when they hear the fish get smacked with the spear. They will follow blood, but that is mostly an exaggeration unless you are chumming or trailing a big load of fish over a period of time. The good news is that the intruder will make usually make his run at the speared fish. If you have a buddy he can dive on the shark or barracuda and smack him with something. A powerhead would be nice but usually not necessary. Try not to shoot the shark with a barb as it will take your gun and run. If you are scuba diving you might hang on but who knows where or how you will end up. Sometimes sharks will show up and circle and shake. This is because you have seen them. Sharks don't like it when they have been spotted. If you are like the typical diver and just look down, kind of like a robot, the shark may charge and slam into you. The good news is that they usually won't bite unless they can actually see the fish such as when it is on a stringer and not in a bag. If you are wearing a suit and are not scraped the shark will leave. But the shark will be back.

 

[Amphibious]

Everything you ever wanted to know about spear fishing & more:

http://www.spearboard.com/forum/

and......... see my sig line....

Kevin Bruington, owner of Spearfishing Specialties http://www.slinginsteel.com/ told me if one was being a nuisance and not aggressive to shoot it in the dorsal fin. The shaft would bounce off and the shark would take off for parts unknown. I have not done this but he has very reliable information in the past.

that's just about the worst advice I have EVER read, anywhere. Period.

I really hope that was a joke. either way it;s not funny. you NEVER shoot anything you do not intend on killing.

 

[Hank49]

Awaiting scubaboard members responses before shooting.
JC

Stone em'. I believe the trembling in the death throe is what attracts sharks from farther away long before they smell blood. I'm still learning but it seems they come in after I've shot more than 2 fish in a small area and didn't stone them. I free dive only spearing so as soon as I can, I put the fish in the boat too. But as Chad and Wayward said, it's not a big problem.... so far. But it's part of it. If you spear for a while, you'll see curious sharks for sure.

 

[shooter226]

Originally Posted by shooter226-
Kevin Bruington, owner of Spearfishing Specialties http://www.slinginsteel.com/ told me if one was being a nuisance and not aggressive to shoot it in the dorsal fin. The shaft would bounce off and the shark would take off for parts unknown. I have not done this but he has very reliable information in the past.

and......... see my sig line....
that's just about the worst advice I have EVER read, anywhere. Period.
I really hope that was a joke. either way it;s not funny. you NEVER shoot anything you do not intend on killing.

I was not joking. Kevin was a commercial spear fisherman in the gulf and recently retired to devote more time to his company Spearfishing Specialties. He has shot thousands and thousands of fish.

This makes sense. Why kill the shark if you don’t have to. The fins are make mostly out of cartilage and if you shoot one that’s out a ways with a tethered spear it should be going slow enough not to penetrate very deep. If you wanted to kill it aim for a more lethal part.

By the time you shoot one it would have been acting very aggressively and was probably pushed off a couple of times already.

 

[Amphibious]

Still doesn't make it right. Kill it, or don't shoot it. Wounding an animal is pretty low on the ethics scale.

How many spearo's are accurate enough to shoot a moving target the size of a dorsal fin AND judge distance underwater well enough to ensure the target is "out a ways" ??

not sure about your guns, but mine will still poke holes in thick fish even at the end of 2 wraps. last thing I'd want is have my $$$$$ speargun teathered to a pissed of and wounded shark.

If the sharks are that much of a problem leave the water and hunt elseware.