I am going to attempt to start freeshafting, I have a 48" Rhino with 2" smaller bands. How far will the shaft propell in the water? I know that when I fire the gun in open water, it will give a pretty good tug on the line so I know that it will go atleast 20 feet. Will it go 30 feet without a line? 40 feet? I am not talking accuracy, I am just asking in case for some unlikely unheard of reason I miss :whistle:

It will go out of your sight depending on the angle you are shooting,.depending on the newness of your bands a shaft can easily travel 30 feet on a horizontal shot, free shafting you want to get the compound angle, slightly down and from rear of gill plate out through opposit front gill plate/eye, this helps eliminate donating a shaft to the fish (stones him) and losing a shaft that dissapears into the abyss

When possible, use the compound angles described above. When hunting at the bottom, you can usually use structure as a back stop if you either pin a fish to the bottom, or shoot through them.

Do you ever find that they shake off if you go most of the way through it cause there is nothing on the back side if it is not a great hit?

Hit-em in the head,,, they tend to stop moving.:D;)

Hit-em in the head,,, they tend to stop moving.:D;)

That's what I was thinking yesterday when I stuck a freeshaft in a big ole kingfishes head :D...Guess I'll be paying a visit to Ray.

How many kings did you guys see?

Do you ever find that they shake off if you go most of the way through it cause there is nothing on the back side if it is not a great hit?

short answer-yes

long answer- you try not to take those shots first of all. second, once you shoot, if you didn't stone it, you bust ass to get a hold of the free end of the shaft because with enough wiggling, that fish will come off the end & go hide somewhere. third, we don't take shots at fish it's likely to go through. for example, we see some large yellowtail snapper on the thunderbolt (wreck we hunt down here frequently.) however, we rarely shoot at them because we know the shaft is most likely going to travel straight through the fish & the fish will swim off, leaving our shaft lying in the deck. therefore, we just don't take that shot. if we really want yellowtail snapper, we'll take a line gun.

Longer shafts when free shafting help with preventing the fish from coming off, as said above shot placement and situational awareness are important.

Jess, whats the latest on that calendar?

it's at the publishers! haven't you seen the threads? here's where you can buy the calendar http://www.thefra.org/calendar.htm
here's a couple threads with some teaser photos http://www.spearfishingplanet.com/showthread.php?t=2389&highlight=angels+calendar
http://www.spearfishingplanet.com/showthread.php?t=1805&highlight=angels+calendar

How many kings did you guys see?

1...Smoker

I've found this - you'll have a lot more "lights out" shots free shafting because it's more accurate. But, after being frustrated by "close" to kill shots where the fish shook loose, I got some 5/16" ID hose and slid it up from the back end. This adds little to no drag on the shot, but if it catches anything hard at all on the fish, it'll drastically cut down on the "shake offs" and give you extra time to subdue the fish.

I also toyed with running a couple very thin finish nails through the hose, which helps, too.

Not a miracle cure for lost shafts or anything, but has helped me lose less fish and shafts:

Gumshoe, that is good idea.

Greg did you shoot freeline today? How were the cressis? Talk to me brotha:beer:

thanks Jess

I didn't freeshaft, but I did use the Cressi's they were good, but I need socks cause they were killing my feet.

Go to one of Spear One's seminars. You won't regret it.

Don't take a shot unless it's a good shot.
(When in doubt, DON'T!)

Aim for the "sweet spot" on the head using a compound angle as described above.
(Shot placement! Shot placement! Shot placement!)

Carry more than one shaft & learn to reload quickly.
(I have 3 on my gun &, at times, wished I had more.) :D

"Freeshaft because you want to. Lineshaft because you have to." -Spear One

Good Hunting!