Anyone got any pointers for using a hawaiian sling? Am looking at getting a Seahorse or Kawabunga but don't have much of an idea of how to drive one. Tips so far;1)Fire from slightly behind the fish so the prongs can enter between the scales so as to facilitate easier penatration 2)??????? 3)????????4)????????

Should be good fun though tackling a big boary at depth could be interesting (no float line remember).I think I'll give the Kingis a miss for the time being.

Cheers,

Why the hell would you want to use one? Your pulling everyones leg with your querry?

Have used them before on tank - great for goldies! Don't tell anyone I did it.

Barney Waring got a 15kg kingie with a Hawaiian sling. Your well known accuracy issues could be a problem.

Russ

No way man, I'm quite serious. The whole idea being that it would IMPROVE my accuracy issues. Besides , I can't think of any fish that would be difficult to land with a sling except kingies and big barry just proved me wrong it seems.

In some respects, a spear guns a bit of overkill ie Turkeys, johnnies,pinkies blues, goldies.....need I continue?

I used to use H.S in preference to a gun. I found them to be more than effective on some species and far easier to reload. I never had the guts to shoot big Kingi's with one. The only disadvantage was they can be cumbersome when fully extended and slower to bring around for a shot.  I found that they are easy to aim by holding straight out in front but pays not to muck around as the effective distance is obviouly limited by the length of the spear - Say effective 10-12 ft max - Use gloves as you have to rip the fish off the barbs by hand.

All up I say go for it

Jesus Russo,

Just re-read your reply. Goldies ON SCUBA!!!!!. Very sporting of you. A touch of cyanide fishing anyone?

Perhaps a spot of whale harpooning while we're at it.

A Turkey is a Tarakihi and yes John is dreaming if he thinks he is going to get close enough "all the time" to spear them with a Hawaiian Sling. Maybe the first one would wear it but the rest tend to hang off.

Johnnies , maomao and butters are about it for H.s. Kingies are a no go purely because all you are doing with an H.s is maiming them and that is not what the sport is about. Look at John, he does not maim any fish because he misses them most of the time - that IS sporting isn't it.

In summary , good for beginners , but limited in its operation. (H.S that is not John but you have got to wonder.

Russ

p.s I do not spear on tank - do not infact own tanks.

A big thankyou to Andrew Leys for your ideas. Seems there's at least one subscriber to this forum who knows his arse from his elbow when it comes to spearfishing!!!!

Scuba indeed!

Sounds like you ladies are having a great time on this forum. Thought it was about time to jump in and cast some aspersions around myself...

Ah, Long John, (or should I say 'Grasshopper') ... the hand spear is the weapon of the ancient Jedi Masters.  Only once you have learned to clear your mind can you control your weapon (that's what Debs said about Russ anyway).  It is with a handspear that all the past masters began.

In days of old, the art of handspearing was handed down from generation to generation, in my case beginning with the odd Black Angelfish, and leading to mass genocide against Red Mokis and eventually a few unlucky butterfish.  Yes, hand spears have been used by our past fathers to land kingfish of 15 kg and more in competitions even.  It is still in our bloodlines.  Old Ron can tell you about spearing the odd large snapper back in the pre-history days, Trevor Bodger wearing a shorty wetsuit in mid-winter, and  dive clubs selling Bugs and Kings to restaurants pay for their first boats (oops! Wouldn't cast aspersions so far as the old Reefcombers, that would be truly unprofessional and may get us all sued!). Other past masters such as Barney Rubble, Mark Blackie, and Jim the Jaw could no doubt tell you a thing or two about the art of handspearing, of handling one's own spear, or just stretching rubber around shafts, or maybe just stretching shafts...

Had you been schooled from a young age by someone in this, the true art of death dispensing, you would have known from an early age how to land the elusive turkey, but alas you were influenced by the easy path of  Russ's line fishing tendency and ways (and perhaps Russ's rear-ended desires?) and never went through a formative hand-spearing of Red Moki stage that is so necessary to developing a dislike for mass slaughter.  Russ's revelation as to goldfishing on scuba is an abomination against the good side, and only confirms our suspicions that he is lacking commitment to the cause.  We suspect he will revert to his true form in later life, spearing goldies blowing bubbles, raiding craypots for his bugs, line fishing for his limit of 26.9cm snappers every time he goes out, it's all such a 'crying shame'...

The one YOU now serve was of course trained in the old ways and the force is strong in him.  He is in fact, a master of the art of hand spearing himself.  You must however complete your training with the light side so you have the strength to fight the dark side when you need it most, the future of the galaxy depends on it...

Imagine if you will a competition only with handspears between the dark side and the Bluetits for the trophy which we by now hold by default?   Imagine the money to be made by selling Pic-ass handspears with Riffe drop-off heads, new 20mm rubbers at $100 each... oops, steady on...

But it would solve the excess fish problem at Nationals (although the Bluetitis didn't seem to have much of an excess problem somehow last year).. food for thought, Grasshopper, food for thought... what models do you stock?

Check out:

http://www.freediver.net/freedivelist/faqstuff/faq_polespears.html">http://www.freediver.net/freedivelist/faqstuff/faq_polespears.html

http://www.geocities.com/freedivespearo/">http://www.geocities.com/freedivespearo/

I told you that the force was strong with this one, Russ...

Ah Mr. Reidfish,

So, you did not know she was your sister. Obewan was wise to hide it from you (inhale -exhale)

Good to (finally) have you aboard.(inhale-exhale)

Live long and prosper.???????   !!   ???????

A the risk of upsetting some of you guys, my son and I have had success against both Snapper and Trevally recently.

There's some big Tervs out on the reef from Big Manly bay, well there's a few less now!

Also the Rakino Island Snapper numbers have gone down a few since we last went out there.

All caught on a Hawaiian Sling. My son is learning to spear and I used to spear 30 years ago. We are having a ball.

HS are cheep, easy to use, simple with maintanence, and easy to learn from. Yes you need more power if you want to get through kingis or big fish. I dont know if it's still legal to use .22, .303, or 12 gauge shells any more in the tips. Of course this was only possible with shots away from rocks!

Ross

Ross - I know someone else that dives that reef at big manly - he reports a few John Dory. Great to hear your experiences with the Hawaiian sling. Try Northern side of Army Bay (no swell needed) as there are plenty of snapper there and Tiri can surprise anyone with quality of fish present. I may dive at the Ahahas/noises area this weekend - had good reports from here with snapper up to 8kg speared in the last month. Do you berley them?

Long John/ Reidfish - what further evidence of the affects of prolonged breath holding can there be than reading some of the previous posts.  It is clear to me that they share the same braincell. What is really scary is that they BOTH belong to my club!!

Anyone know what happened to Paul Mathews???

Russ

Reidfish ,

Just checked out those links. Wicked!!!!!

Kawabunga dude!!!

Im here!!!

Im always here.... lurking... waiting ....

Truth is its really hard to post to the list when I have nothing to report.

The weather hasn't been that great.... altho without going into too much detail I had a report from a vary reliable source who was buzzed by three King Fish on the Wellington South coast on the weekend.

Two were in the 35 pound range and the leader was estimated at 60-70 pounds so I might go out and  have the bast@#d this weekend, putting me in pin contention. Temp was down at 12-13 degree's.

Also interesting, he found 1-2 hundred in berry female crays sitting out on the sand in about 20 meters. Just chilling out in the open. Apparently they were all pretty good size to.

Later

The first 100 were good, but he apparantly didn't boil the 2nd one hundred long enough and they needed more salt!

**** Disclaimer *********

I have on occasion been found to be partial to bullsh@tting unless its about the size of a fish or my tackle

**** End Of Disclaimer ****

Hey  Reidfish,

Im a first timer in this group,

maybe you can shed some light on where all the the oldies have gone,

like Jim Thornbury, Dave Sheilds, Dave Maran, Lintin Diggal, Trevor Bodger, Dave Casling, Ron Eves, Mary & Dick Meads, John Anderson, Kevin Thompson, Peter Feilds, Murry Brighouse, John Derling, just to name a few i remember, i lost track of them for so long,

i remember the Reef Combers guys selling up house and moving off down to Stewart Island,      plus the adventures on the float plane to Never Fail Rock,

I was there at the start of the Blue Fin Spearfishing Club, when we use to train in the Swimarama Pool and then some South Africa guy joined the club and said you ever played underwater hockey so we challenged a few other clubs  but 3 or 4 years latter i got married and just driffed away you know life go's around, 

Cheers Lethal

Hiya Lethal,

Dave Moran is running Dive New Zealand magazine, Trevor Bodger pops up every now and then but is no longer active in the Bluefins, Dave Shields is around, spends time in Omaha and works at Moana Pacific and does some diving still (His son Darren is a legendary diver and runs the spearfishing shop Wild Blue at 131 Rosedale Rd, Albany), Ron Eaves has been coming to the Bluefins a bit lately, he lives at Ti Point and is very fit and well, haven't seen Dick Mead for a couple of years, but he's still around somewhere.  Alan Langton is running Pro-dive, making wetsuits, although we haven't seen him for a few years.  Brian Horton was running a dive shop just off Constellation drive, Mairangi Bay.  I'm a bit too young to know the others.  There's an auction of Kelly Tarlton's old stuff (and some stuff from his museum) coming up, and I wouldn't be surprised to see a few of those old blokes there - check out the ad in the latest dive magazine.

I can email you some contact details if you want. My old man (Dave Quinlan) may know of a few more around the traps.

The float plane incident is still talked about - Bob Rosemergy told me about it last year - he's in Wellington and is diving still, and running NZUA's spearfishing commitee. If you haven't been around the scene for a while you might like to know that Bob shot a 400+ lb queensland grouper at the Hen & chicks a couple of years ago (caused quite a stir!).

Up North, Cookie is diving still, and having a good life, we see him in comp's often.

The Bluefins is still going strong - about the same as it always used to be, just different people.  Of course there's more south africans in the club now, but we just put up with them!  You should pop in to a meeting some time - see the club website (and monthly newsletters) online at:

http://www.geocities.com/bluefinsnz">www.geocities.com/bluefinsnz

Reid Quinlan

Bluefins Freedioving & Spearfishing Club

Lethal wrote

"plus the adventures on the float plane to Never Fail Rock"

Sounds like a good story here!!!

Tell me more?

Lethal, this one's over to you, I get into enough trouble myself without slandering the reefplunderers - oops, reefcombers.

Reidfish

Thanks for that Reidfish

yer im a bit old now LOL only due to the fact ive be here longer than you, going 55 now, so i don't shoot them anymore i gaf em, had a 40lb king come along side the other day and pulled him clean out of the water with the gaf bit of a buzz, made me thing about the ones i had speared all those years ago before they brought those dam box nets into play i did have the biggest king in the club for a few years went 82lb but i remember getting a letter saying some pilot nailed a bigger one some years ago,    thanks for the info on those folk, and im sure your Dad would remember some of the other names,                                                                                                    Another question John Anderson in your club is he old?    Did he own the South Auckland  u nderwater Dive Shop,   if so i started my diving career with him.                                                                                                                 im a true blue rod & reel fisherman now, gave up plundering the crays and scollops 2years ago, the cold is what stoped me.  Congratulations on your 20ld snapper i loved reading your exploits on spearing it, brings back memories, i should take you out sometime to where i fish in the last two trips we managed four over 20 in 60ft of water on 12lb line i have them all on film, on a CD that can play on your computer, but what im really after is someone to film them for me underwater i have the camera, mybe we can get togetter one day soooooooooooooooon, 

Cheers Lethal                      

Thanks Reidfish im not sure if this is the right place,  it should be told in pub with lots of beer already consumed and lots more sitting ready to be consumed,

from what i remember it went like this,

four divers got up one early morning hoped on this float plane down where the container wharf is now and flew over to Never Fail Rock here they landed and prodeced to shoot about 6 kings around the 40 to 50lb mark and a few snaps up to18lb they got back in the plane to go home with there bounty when they relized the plane could not get off the water so out come the knifes and a lot of gutting and a few heads went out the door but by now the inside of the plane looked like a slaughter house with the kings protesting about being cut open started kicking and flaping around anyway this let the plane just get airborne so they flew back around the top of Coro to get home, when they arrived the NZ Herald took some photos and published them the next day making them all heros and these guys did all this before they started work that Day, no one was ever alowed to hop on a float plane again if he looked like a spearo............. 

the mad old days     Cheers Lethal

Hi Lethal , I have been with the Bluefin Club for 10-15 years now (am 37) and know alot of the names you mentioned. Used to go to Matai Bay with Dick Mead , Ren Waring ,Ted Blackburn (my 2nd uncle?- he is my mothers first cousin) . THey were the ones that first got me into spearfishing-something I will never forget.

The jOhn Anderson in the club is a youngster but a damn fine diver all the same. ONly been in the club less than 2 years but already one of the finest the Bluefins have ever produced. PLease come to one of our meetings - the boys would love to hear some stories.

Russell Nelson

"coach" Bluefin Spearfishing Club

Hi Russell

i would love to do that, maybe you can jack Trevor Bodger up to come along as well, i really did get along with him as we dived almost every where together even Stewart Island when they had the NZ spear fishing champs down there is he still married to Sue?

Let me now when the next meeting is and i will see if can make it....

Cheers lethal

HANDSPEAR/WORLD COMPS-1969

I WAS A MEMBER OF THE 69 NZ TEAM TO ITLAY,DUE TO A POLITICAL UPRISING THE COMP. WASCANCELLED AND RELOCATED TO OKINAWA/JAPAN EDDIE DAVIDSON      NZ REP.ONLY HANDSPEARS USED.

THE NZ TEAM E.DAVIDSON,DAVE SHIELDS, JIM THORNBURY TRAINED IN FIJI FOR TWO WEEKS USING HANDSPEARS AND MANY LARGE PELAGICS WERE LANDED DAILY. UP TO 50 lbs.PHIL LEYLAND EX-BLUEFIN LANDED A 55 LB PUKA USING A HANDSPEAR, SO WITH THE RIGHT PRONGERS, PATIENCE AND A GOOD BREATH YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO LAND MOST SPECIES.

Hiya Sous marine,

Tell me, how did they set up their handspears in those days?  Regular 5/6 tine prongers or barbless 3 prongs?  What makes for a good handspear in your opinion? Did they use any floatlines? If so how did they attach?

Those were the days, eh? Puka with a handspear - us young'ns may never see a puka freediving ('cept His Longness - he could be freediving to 80m+ in the next few years if he wanted to try or if he went and did some training instead of eating pies and watching porno on the Wild Blue computer all day long)

Reidfish

Hey buddy, watch ya mouth!

A few pies never did a man any harm. Ask Jim Jaw

Anyone interested in covering some distance in L. Poo-puke as training?

 Could take a gun as well. Might even get me a Wilberforce (Russ, ask your kids)

Lots of big snappers being taken around the traps. Two 20lb+ on Friday (G. Barrier) and 3 in weekend ( Coro 22lb &South of C. Brett 21lb +25lb).

So, the question is.....Who's taking me diving this weekend?

THE SPRONGERS FOR LARGE FISH WERE 180 mm IN LENGTH (6) WITH THE BARBS FACING INWARDS. AFTER SHOOTING/IKI AND THEN PLACE THE FISH BETWEEN YOUR FLIPPERS AND PUSH THE FISH OF THE SPRONGER WITH YOUR FEET.

NO SINGLE BARBS OR DROP OF HEADS WERE USED AS SPRONGERS WERE THE IN THING.

A LIGHT FISH LINE /FLOAT  SAME AS TODAY.

Hmm, the handspear approach sure makes life difficult. After many dives looking for the Tarakihi in Deep Water Cove, I finally saw some. 

And so I'm there at 20 metres with handspear, swimming slowly after this little tarakihi who has no cover to hide in, so he just swims, and swims, and swims, along the side of the reef.   You know how fish know how far a speargun can shoot? Well, this guy knew the range of a handspear, and kept about 6 inches out of it.  Finally he bolted and after a long dive I surfaced with an empty spear.

Blair tagged and released 2 (as he does) and finally shot one so big it looked like a Porae, and even he thought it was for a couple of seconds, as it lost its stripe on one side where it had been shot. Nice fish.  I saw another, but it was too late in my dive to get.

But, the handspear did collect a Johnie on a weedline at Oki Bay.  Unfortunately, no kingies at Whale Rock (but I saw a monster old sick looking snapper on the front of the reef).

Spottie

Reidfish