# anybody do any free shaft spearing



## seanmclemore (Aug 20, 2008)

been watching some videos of some guys up the east coast shooting pretty sizable fish free-shaft. haven't tried it before, but i have the gun now that will shoot w/out the cord and am thinking i might try it next time i go. doesn't look like the fish fight nearly as hard when your not tugging on their brain. they kinda just go find a spot to hide...but if i'm wrong it seems like freeshafting could get quite expensive with shafts swimming off in a aj's head. what do you guys think...it seems like it would be a way to not bend a shaft with the 40+ lb aj's and big cobia.


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## Telum Pisces (Sep 27, 2007)

> *seanmclemore (10/5/2009)*been watching some videos of some guys up the east coast shooting pretty sizable fish free-shaft. haven't tried it before, but i have the gun now that will shoot w/out the cord and am thinking i might try it next time i go. doesn't look like the fish fight nearly as hard when your not tugging on their brain. they kinda just go find a spot to hide...but if i'm wrong it seems like freeshafting could get quite expensive with shafts swimming off in a aj's head. what do you guys think...it seems like it would be a way to not bend a shaft with the 40+ lb aj's and big cobia.


From what I understand, freeshafting is not for shooting big fish like AJ's and Cobia unless you are real good or have deep pockets for more shafts.


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## FenderBender (Oct 2, 2007)

I tried it for awhile a couple of summers ago, I liked it for the first 4 snapper I shot then I shot a big grouper and lost my shaft. No morefor me, too expensive for new shafts.


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## Clay-Doh (Oct 2, 2007)

Haa haa...I was there for that Josh...thats when that big 10 foot shark came in I was gonna powerhead that you didnt see and then you thought I was gonna powerhead the cobia that swam up to us...you were chasin that dang shaft all over!


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## seanmclemore (Aug 20, 2008)

josh i was thinking the same thing, but i have watched these guys killing some studs (50+cobia and aj's) so i know that you can kill big fish free shafting but i think im going to keep the shock cord. yo clay doh...when you bringin sexy back and bustin out the hidef helmet cam biatch!!!!!!!!!


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## Clay-Doh (Oct 2, 2007)

Haa haa...both my underwater cams need fixin now. :doh


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## Evensplit (Oct 2, 2007)

The way some of ya'll go through shafts in a regular season I'd think you could claim to befree shafting.


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## Clay-Doh (Oct 2, 2007)

I resemble that remark Jim! ha!



By the way, found my SS tip. After my whining that Fritz musta stole it while at my party and made me buy it back...it was in the glove compartment..:doh



Will be in for mono rigging soon.


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## seanmclemore (Aug 20, 2008)

clay;what you mean you'll be in for mono rigging...you gotta have someone else rig yo sh!t...puss...why don't you get your woman to help you...i hear she is a better diver than youand she's makin youdropp all your dive buddies.tell her to make me a sandwich!!!!!!!

you need to rig that biatch with some steel cable and a ski rope handle so that the next time you get dragged by a shark you can get up on plane....:moon :takephoto

i gotta go get wet....i think i need to run to the alabama pyramids and go kill some big red snapper, my freezer is getting empty cause of those stupid ass limits.....:bpts


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## no woryz (Oct 2, 2007)

Sean, I thought I heard you were freeshafting grouper off the "O" about a month ago??? A warsaw wasnt it.....


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## Clay-Doh (Oct 2, 2007)

I do rig my own...I just don't buy a whole thing of mono, so I go up there to buy some from them fool.:moon


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## Corpsman (Oct 3, 2007)

Free shafting is more of a natural bottom affair than the type of diving we do around here. I have a SS gun set up for free shafing and never to it that way here. We tend to shoot fish more in the water column, and they tend to pin them to the bottom.I have had some sucess with slower moving fish like sheepies or trigger, but hunting for bigger game has resulted in several lost shafts.


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## Snook_Reaper (Oct 26, 2008)

Freeshafting is very popular, almost the norm where I dive out of Tampa. Most of my buddies do it because they can shoot much further and most of them are pretty damn good at it. I have my gun set up for line or free shaft and shoot both depending on the circumstance.

The main reason I have mine set up that way is because every time I am stringing a big fish and pulling my line shaft out (tangled mess).........thats when I see the STUD staring at me wondering what the hell I am doing. Then I drop everything, grab my free shaft out of my spare shaft holder and shoot the big one that was staring at me. I carry a spare shaft just for that reason.

The main thing about freeshafting is you cannot or should not even try to shoot the mid column fish with the free shaft....it is almost a gaurantee lost shaft. Especially an AJ or Cobia because the fish will either swim off with the shaft or it will come out. I have shot big hogfish and had my shaft sail through them like I shot a loaf of bread. Also my buddies lose alot of fish because the fish thrash off the trigger end of the shaft before you can get to the shaft to stop them on that end. 

I hate losing a fish that I know is going to run off and die.


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