Went spearfishing the other day and had a reef tip (white) follow me in. It got a little hairy. This thing was a rather large one. I am under the impression it was 5 ft. Which probable means it was 2 ft before the oh shit factor. Have any of you speared a shark before and would you recommend for or against.

I do not have a powerhead and will not be able to get one.

Coming across sharks when you are sperfishing is a fairly normal occourance in some parts of the world. Relax, read up a bit, learn about their body language, for the most part they just hang around like stray dogs hoping for a free fish meal from you.
They really aren't that big a deal.

Some people do spear smaller sharks for a feed, but beware, they are extremely powerful animals and can get angry if you spear them.
A few divers have landed big sharks, more out of neccessity than for sport but you need specialized gear.

You can make your own powerheads and though it's not hard, a powerhead is not the answer to your problems.
A device is being produced in Australia called the sharkshield which emits an electric field which repels them, though a little costly it's good for peace of mind. http://www.sharkshield.com

Some good forums are;

http://www.spearfishing.com.au
http://www.spearfishing.com
http://www.deeperblue.net

try out http://www.spearboard.com
def the best website out there for spearfishing. i have never shot one came close with a couple, had to give them a friendly nudge with my gun.

why cant you get a power head. a cheap alt. if you shoot a 9/16 shaft is one of ray odors ppd http://www.spearfishing.cc
rays the man for shafts, stringers and other accessories.

Having had a few sharks on a fishing line, I'll say that putting a spear in one would be hazardous. Even a 'little' 4 footer can take a pretty good chunk out of you, and they do not die easily. Maybe if you want to hit a little 3' sand shark, okay, but nothing bigger!

I fought down a 7' bull shark once (about 30 minutes, 80 lb test line), got it to the boat, and when my buddy put a gaff into it, it came to life, thrashed, jerked the gaff out of his hands, and proceeded to fight me for another 30 minutes....with the gaff buried in its gills, bleeding all the way.

Even fully fought down and near dead, they try to snap at me while laying on the beach or in the bottom of the boat. Watch those toes...

With several bullet holes from a .40S&W, through the head, they keep fighting... I would hate to piss off one while in the water! For sure, don't strap the speargun to your wrist unless you want a ride!

quote:

I do not have a powerhead and will not be able to get one.

Why not? They are not classified as a firearm. They exist for a reason!

Don;t worry about the sharks. they are grossly over rated and most often just very curious. Been Freedive Spearfishing for 12yrs, most of it in tropical waters and never had a major problem with one. they're just a big nusance.

http://www.deeperblue.net
the worlds Largest Freediving and Spearfishing resource

If, for whatever reason, you cannot have a powerhead, try to get hold of a 'shark billy', just a 3' long shaft with nails in one end and a handle at the other. Use this to fend of the sharks. Don't try to spear them, you will just piss them off, and attract every shark in the area.
Offshore's P.O.D. seems to work O.K, at least our Navy guys reckon it does.

Cheers, Dave.

quote:

Don't try to spear them, you will just piss them off,

Wasn't my experience. Lived on Guam '63-'65 and shot quite a few of them. They are lively when speared, there reaction largely determined by spear placement. Actually it's a fair way to distract a building frenzy if you've been spear fishing and don't want the audience following you over the reef. Take the spearhead off and poke 'em in the gills. Their buddies...well, they eat their own. Having said all of that, I was young and fearless then, don't know I'd want to be doing that today. I might have learned something along the way.

I just picked this thread up again...I shot a large shark in June this year - it was creating a lot of trouble for three of us in the water and there was a slight misunderstanding. Anyways I'll post the pics here when I get them from my friends. The shark measured 2.6m or 8ft6" and took about 40 minutes to bring to the surface.
When I get the pictures I'll write up the full story.
Our new forum member George Balbino happened to be there at the time too, he might chime in at some time too.