by Shrek | Apr 15, 2020 | Noob Spearo Podcast, Spearfishing Equipment, Ultimate Guide's
The Timber Speargun Build Episode
From concept to shooting fish with Ed Martin from Killshot Spearguns
Download this episode on your iOS or Android APP here
Important Times
03:30 Ed Martin from Killshot Spearguns Introduction and all about the Florida Keys (his store is in Islamorada).
- Geography
- Water Temps
- Depths and bottom structure
- Seasonal issues
- Common species
16:00 The rationale behind this Wooden Speargun DIY build episode + Ed Martins spearfishing background and the Killshot Speargun story
23:25 Errol “What are the pros/cons of Wood VS Pipe speargun in your mind?
Duncan Henderson also asks “Why do you choose to work with wooden guns? whats the advantages in your opinion?”
27:50 CONCEPTING AND PLANNING | Making your first speargun advice!
- What are the crucial decisions to make before you start?
- SearchingForTheEdge on the spearfishing Subreddit advised prospective gun builders that the number one key is to build your gun around your spear. Don’t try to build a gun and then later try to find a spear for it. It’s much easier and faster to buy the spear and use it for all the measurements. Is this good advice?
- Sven Franklin “what is the ideal shaft overhang length as this varies from company to company and personal opinion among spearos?”
- Joe Pedro “Enclosed track vs open track, how to decide which is best for certain fish targeting setups?”
- Can we borrow or steal some ideas from the best manufacturers?
48:20 SPEARGUN MATERIALS
- Composite vs Solid one piece?
- Wood types? Mahogany, Sepo, Teak etc
- Glue? Resin? Sealant? Epoxy? What is the difference?
- Making a test gun
- What components should I buy rather than make myself? How do you make these choices? Where is a good place for buying components?
- To safety or not to safety?
- What tools do I require? What tools do I desire? Clamps, jigsaw, dropsaw, mitresaw, cordless drill, gloves, plastic, straight edge, file, masking tape, rubber for relieving clamping pressure, tape measure, belt sander, verniers, small chisel, router, drill press
66:15 How much time does it take to make a speargun?
69:00 Buoyancy and ballast | How do we work this out?
74:40 Daniel Mann “Why is oil a terrible choice to finish a timber speargun?”
79:00 Care and maintenance
80:30 Duncan also asks “What are the common problems with people’s homemade wooden guns?”
92:00 Rubber Powerbands
- How often do you replace them?
- Wishbones – the horror of metal wishbones
Links Mentioned
Noob Spearo Partners + Promotions
by Shrek | Mar 28, 2020 | Bluewater for Spearfishing, Noob Spearo Podcast, Spearfishing Photography & Videography, Ultimate Guide's
Interview with Barret Harvey | African Spearfishing Diaries
This interview with Barret Harvey starts off with the background behind several recent videos on the ‘African Spearfishing Diaries’ YouTube Channel. I was curious as I had seen the 2-3 of his latest videos and they are froth-makers. He has continued to pump out a new 8-12 minute spearfishing vid every week. We also chat about locations and species with plenty of practical tips and ideas along the way. At the 59 minute mark we get right into the skillset required to become a spearfishing videographer. Listen in and subscribe.
Download and Subscribe!
A Bit About Barret Harvey
Barret Harvey is a South African spearo probably best well know as the creator of African Spearfishing Diaries. He started Spearfishing at 15 years of age when he moved from Johannesburg to Durban on the east coast of South Africa. He has been spearing for 29 years. Barret first filmed himself and others spearing when he was 21. So he has been filming Spearfishing for around 25 years. He’s married and now lives and dives in Qatar in the Middle East. He works on a live broadcast team as the specialist Drone pilot but works on both drone and camera for most sports.
Important Moments
04:18 Barret Harvey Introduction
07:00 All About African Spearfishing Diaries
12:00 Spearfishing French Polynesia
37:00 Favorite Spearfishing Hunting Technique
41:30 Shot placement discusion
47:50 What has been your toughest moment in the water?
Barret Harvey with IIfafa Point Daga 38Kg
59:00 How to Make a Living as a Spearfishing Photographer
- Diving Competence
- Camera Equipment and Application within the Spearfishing environment.
- Production Skills
- Customer Skills and Safety | Building Trust
- Defining Roles
- Working with Professional Guides
- Ultimate Goals and Longevity
- Passion and Belief
Equipment Bag
98:00 Funniest Moment out Spearfishing
103:00 What’s in your Divebag?
105:00 Spearo Q&A
Connect With Barret Harvey African Spearfishing Diaries
Noob Spearo Partners + Promotions
by Shrek | Feb 19, 2020 | Free Diving, Training and Breath Hold for Spearfishing, Noob Spearo Podcast, Ultimate Guide's
Interview with Adam Freediver Stern
Adam Freediver Stern is the Steve Irwin of freediving. His contagious enthusiasm has inspired thousands of people to discover the joy of freediving and freedive spearfishing. It was with much excitement that I got on this call with Adam and we had a great time exploring his freediving journey including his struggles overcoming the ‘hard charger’ mindset and dealing with the resulting issues. We also get into a heap of questions from the Noob Spearo Community and really get into equalizing issues. There is a tonne of info in the interview that smashed some of my ideas and I found this conversation sensational. Love to hear what you think about it in the comments!
Adam Stern lives on the Central Coast, NSW and is an Australian 8 x Australian freediving record holder.
Download this episode on your Podcast app here!
Time Stamps
5:00 Welcome Adam to the show
9:00 What is the difference is between freediving and spearfishing?
11:00 Adam’s non-romantic but quite intriguing introduction to freediving
18:00 Adam Freediver Stern age:31
19:00 Overcoming the ‘Gung Ho’ and reprogramming the mind
30:00 Kurt “Can you give us a rundown on what the various freediving course levels are?”
37:30 Sven “How can we level out properly when at depth without causing issues of lung squeeze etc (leveling out at depth goes against everything we are taught to do for deeper dives)?”
39:30 Jason “Fantastic, I love Adam’s positivity and mindset. Maybe any questions regarding tips on how he enters a state of calmness during a dive to increase bottom time. I feel like I get caught up in the moment sometimes and get too erratic.”
43:00 Discussion about Deepweek and what I think about it
45:40 Todd “Adam stern was and still is huge inspiration for it just myself, but everyone in our dive group SinkPhase. We all started out watching his YouTube videos and that’s how I learned to Frenzle. Some of us are part of his Patreon. Please thank him on our behalf of us. The dive group was talking about breathe ups we learned while getting certified. We all had a slightly different breathe up. I started with a 4/1/8/1 but went to a 3/1/10/1 after my course. What breathe up does he personally think works best? We are spearing if that changes it.”
52:50 Cameron “I suppose this is a pretty common question but would be interesting to hear Adams opinion: What can a beginner do to see the most improvement in their breath hold?”
56:40 Kyle “How can duck dive effectively with a gun in hand?”
58:00 Adams spearfishing life
73:00 Veterans Vault: Equalizing Masterclass
The Basics. What is equalizing and why do we need to do it?
- How to frenzal VIDEO GUIDE by Adam
- Handsfree equalizing VIDEO tutorial
- How to fix sinus issues VIDEO guide
- Fixing equalizing issues VIDEO guide
- MRI equalizing VIDEO
- Most common equalizing issues and how to approach them.
- What to do when one ear equalizes but one doesn’t.
- Luke asks “I’ve been struggling with Sinus infection past few months. What is the best way to recover from Sinus / cold symptoms to get back out diving?”
- Kelly “Hands free equalization. I got his course. I just can’t do it 😩”
- How do you clean your ears?
- How do you keep your ears ok for multi-day diving?
“Be patient with equalizing as you are trying to do something really weird with your muscles to do a really weird activity.” – Adam Stern
98:00 What is one of the funniest things you’ve experienced out spearfishing or freediving?
102:00 Spearo Q&A
What does the spearfishing experience mean to you in one sentence?
Who has been the most influential person in your freediving journey so far?
What is the single best resource for spearfishing or freediving?
Connect with Adam Freediver Stern;
Noob Spearo Partners + Promotions
EVERY Online Immersion (Ted Harty) class available at www.noobspearo.com/ted
- 28-day Freediving Transformation – Want to increase your bottom time? Want to lower your comfortable operating depth? Want to increase your breath hold? In 4 weeks, you can transform your physiology to improve your performance as a free diver. Additionally, learn the proven strategies competitive free divers use to strengthen their performance.
- Equalization Masterclass – If you are free diver who struggles to equalize your ears in the 15-30 ft range this course is the answer. 14 videos discuss every equalizing problem and coach you through the difficulty. Say goodbye to Valsalva and hello to Frenzel and make equalizing easy.
- Tuesday Ted Talks Freediving – 19 one-hour live Instagram episodes where I discuss a variety of freediving topics and answer peoples question live on Instagram.
- Free online courses – How to take a 20-30% bigger breath and how to make the mammalian dive reflex work for you. www.FreedivingSafety.com – Free online safety resource.
- View all of Ted’s online freediving classes @ www.onlineclasses.ImmersionFreediving.com
by Steven Domokos | Feb 2, 2020 | Noob Spearo Podcast, Spearfishing Trips & Travel, Ultimate Guide's
The Noob Spearo Podcast – Interview with Philip Van Zijl
This episode of the Noob Spearo Podcast – Interview with Philip Van Zijl covers this legend’s spearfishing journey from the jump to competition diving starting in Cape Town, South Africa to New Zealand and plenty of places in between. He’s a champion of the sport, an absolute legend. He’s a major contributor to the spearfishing community, and a big proponent of paying it forward. Something he’s coined “The Spearfishing Mafia”. Our community, sport, and the hobby are niche. It’s even more niche than SCUBA diving. Take advantage of it, and build your network.
Big thanks to Philip for taking the time to “pay it forward” on the Noob Spearo Podcast!
Download this episode on your Podcast app here!
Time Stamps!
10:00 Introduction
Philip Van Zijl began diving in Cape Town in 1968 at the young age of 16, without wetsuits and just basic gear taking the train to get to where he needed to be. Yellow tail, crayfish, and other good species were some of his earliest accomplishments, always a good feed! A master of limiting out on crayfish during his years in school. He even paid for a year of his time at university from the fruits of his diving! A strong proponent of speargun awareness, make sure you listen to find out why…
Philip personally procured one of his 120cm spearguns from the legendary Rob Allen, what a story! Think you’re bad about keeping old gear? Philip still has his first catch bag he bought in the 60’s.
26:00 Early struggles spearfishing
- Personally, rigging your own speargun was a bit more difficult without YouTube…
- “If you give out kindness, it comes back to you.” – Pay it forward!
- Learning new spots, on your own – pays dividends later on!
- Sharing your expertise, and knowledge, doesn’t necessarily mean sharing your spots
- Proper weighting, weight secure locations (Harness vs. Belt)
31:35 Most memorable catch
His last dive in Tauranga, NZ with a mate who brought him to a secret honey hole. 15-20 meters visibility, perfect conditions. Kingfish, historically uncommon for the area but are making a comeback. He was diving with some friends, stomach started to sour, and then returned to the boat. After viewing a bait ball of Kahawai, he grabbed his gear and jumped back into the water. Viewing a school of Kingfish, he pulled the trigger and bagged a PB weighing in at approximately 27 kilos! To hear his second most memorable catch on a “popgun”, tune in to 35:43!
38:50 Favorite species to hunt
Snapper, hands down. A challenging quarry, requiring a combination of burly and stealth. 3-4k tops, but no monsters like on the GBR. Additionally, slow movements, be calm, don’t look directly *at* them, and let them get within target range. Maintain gun awareness so that when the shot presents itself, it can easily be taken. Learned from losing a 6k Trevally years ago. Learn about the duality of the gun safety discussion here!
42:50 Scariest moments in the ocean
While shooting a Blue Moki, the bugger got off the spear and high-tailed it into a crevice. Meanwhile, a surge came and pushed Philip into a crevice in which he was stuck. Every spearo’s nightmare. Trying to remain calm, he additionally considered that a surge which can push you in, can also pull you out. Going for broke, he expelled the air in his lungs to reduce his physical profile and was able to get pulled out on the next surge out to sea. Probably the scariest moment of his life. Lesson learned – be very careful when working a crevice while fishing for crays or otherwise.
48:00 Veterans Vault: The “Spearfishing Mafia”
- Giving back to the spearfishing community is as important as the sport itself. Hospitality within the spearfishing community is unique to the sport – PAY IT FORWARD!
- Bring your gear as often as possible when traveling so you never miss an opportunity!
- Reaching out on social media prior to travel and networking can be an incredible asset
- When traveling with spearfishing equipment, keep “gun” out of your vocabulary. Just refer to it as fishing equipment. It can save you valuable time
- Cooler bags can be worth their weight in gold when traveling
- Sharing spearfishing equipment when mates are traveling can not just save on cost but strengthen relationships
- Be a good host – it comes back around; when you aren’t, well then it won’t will it?
- How to avoid losing a knife – use some paracord or dyneema, tie it off to a pencil or other instrument, then tie that to the end of the knife. This way, when you drop the knife (not if, but when) it will stay secured
75:00 Equipment Bag
Additionally, catch-bags are a must, saves you from going back to your plat “float boat”. Avoid harassment from sea lions, seals, or the tax man by simply using a catch-bag. Actually, saved a fishing competition by using one as the sea lions were going from float to float getting chubby on the hard work of humans. Carry two knives – one on thigh and one on arm. To avoid losing knives, use some paracord or dyneema, tie it off to a pencil or other instrument, then tie that to the end of the knife. This way, when you drop the knife (not if, but when) it will stay secured.
1:06 Spearo Q&A
- Describe what the spearfishing experience means to you?
- Single best piece of advice ever given for spearfishing?
- Most influential person in spearfishing to you?
- Spearfishing/Freediving library?
- 99 Tips to get Better at Spearfishing!
- Had to start all over, what would you do differently?
- Who is the best person to go spearfishing with now?
- Where can people connect with you?
- Any parting guidance or wisdom for the community?
Noob Spearo Partners + Promotions
Immersion Online freediving classes @ www.onlineclasses.ImmersionFreediving.com
- 28-day Freediving Transformation – Want to increase your bottom time? Want to lower your comfortable operating depth? Want to increase your breath hold? In 4 weeks, you can transform your physiology to improve your performance as a free diver. Additionally, learn the proven strategies competitive free divers use to strengthen their performance.
- Equalization Masterclass – If you are free diver who struggles to equalize your ears in the 15-30 ft range this course is the answer. 14 videos discuss every equalizing problem and coach you through the difficulty. Say goodbye to Valsalva and hello to Frenzel and make equalizing easy.
- Tuesday Ted Talks Freediving – 19 one-hour live Instagram episodes where I discuss a variety of freediving topics and answer peoples question live on Instagram.
- Free online courses – How to take a 20-30% bigger breath and how to make the mammalian dive reflex work for you. www.FreedivingSafety.com – Free online safety resource.
- View all of Ted’s online freediving classes @ www.onlineclasses.ImmersionFreediving.com
by Shrek | Jan 4, 2020 | Bluewater for Spearfishing, Noob Spearo Podcast, Ultimate Guide's
Interview with James Beckman @southernspearfishing
Hunting Southern Bluefin Tuna
Download This Episode
The episode covers the equipment, techniques, mindset, buddy system and personal lessons learned by an avid Southern Bluefin Tuna chaser. James Beckman @southernspearfishing is one of Melbourne’s local legends and as such, I organized an interview with him live in the Adreno Melbourne Store (thanks to legend Patrons for funding the trip!). Along with the SBT chat I discover stories and insights from James’s life spearfishing.
Big thanks to James for taking me out for a day spearfishing and harvesting scallops in Port Phillip Bay:) Jetski spearfishing is pretty fun!
Important Moments
5:00 James Beckman introduction and spearfishing background. Chasing small fish in the shallows, calamari and discovering the stoke.
10:00 Early struggles spearfishing.
- Overcoming loading challenges.
- Selecting a correct length speargun.
- Meeting mentors, dive buddies and finding a community.
- How to get out on boats. Rules, etiquette basics and paying
19:00 Most memorable catch. WA Dhufish (20+kg)
21:45 Scariest moments in the ocean. Surge hunting on the back beaches of Melbourne
33:20 Veterans Vault: Spearfishing Southern Bluefin Tuna Guide
- Southern Bluefin Tuna (Australian Fisheries Guide)
- Background targeting these fish in Victoria
- Finding where they are located (bait, workups, behaviour)
- Equipment (an added section with more info at end of interview 80:00)
- The hunting system (roles, preparation, communication)
- Caring for your catch
- Preparation
- Etiquette with Line Fishing Boats
- Connect with James on Insta @southernspearfishing
72:45 Funniest Moments out on the Water
75:00 James Beckman Equipment Bag
“Spearfishing is the most expensive way to catch free fish”
80:00 Parting comments and advice on hunting Southern Bluefin Tuna
Download This Episode
Noob Spearo Partners + some spearfishing discounts
Immersion Online freediving classes @ www.onlineclasses.ImmersionFreediving.com
- 28-day Freediving Transformation. Want to increase your bottom time? Want to lower your comfortable operating depth? Want to increase your breath hold? In 4 weeks you can transform your physiology to improve your performance as a freediver. Learn the proven strategies competitive freedivers use to strengthen their performance.
- Equalization Masterclass. If you are freediver who struggles to equalize your ears in the 15-30 ft range this course is the answer. 14 videos discuss every equalizing problem and coach you through the difficulty. Say goodbye to Valsalva and hello to Frenzal and make equalizing easy.
- Tuesday Ted Talks Freediving. 19 one hour live Instagram episodes where I discuss a variety of freediving topics and answer peoples question live on Instagram.
- Free online courses – How to take a 20-30% bigger breath and how to make the mammalian dive reflex work for you. www.FreedivingSafety.com – Free online safety resource.
View all of Ted’s online freediving classes @ www.onlineclasses.ImmersionFreediving.com
by Shrek | Nov 1, 2019 | Free Diving, Training and Breath Hold for Spearfishing, Noob Spearo Podcast, Ultimate Guide's
I Dive Alone | The Spearfishing Dilemma
A dilemma is when the two choices in front of you are difficult. If you want to go spearfishing but you don’t have a dive buddy then your choices are; to dive alone or stay home.
One choice involves a higher level of risk but also the possibility of fun, solitude and all the other wonders we experience when spearfishing.
The other; less risk but a missed opportunity to spend the day out in the water.
“Your spearfishing buddy is your only true piece of safety equipment when diving”. This is as close to Gospel truth in spearfishing as it gets, so why dive alone?
This episode is a frank chat about diving alone. Pro’s, Con’s, everything.
Listen to this episode and subscribe to the Noob Spearo Podcast on Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Stitcher
MORE on the Spearfishing Dilemma
A dilemma is sometimes described as being stuck between a rock and a hard place. In spearfishing this isn’t just a figurative illustration though, it’s a reality. Especially when chasing crayfish (lobster) or another hole dwelling tasty creature. And caves aren’t the only risk, not by a long shot. Let’s add shallow water blackout, boat/jetski traffic, cramp, current, sharks and all of the other less likely risks to the list. The fact is that having a buddy drastically reduces/mitigates every single one of these risks…
BUT….
Let’s be honest.
Some spearfishing buddies are so shit you might as well be diving by yourself anyway.
AND…
There are other appeals to diving alone despite the greatly increased risk of doing so.
This conversation with experienced spearfisherman Pat Swanson is an open and candid chat about the reality of diving alone.
I’d love to hear your thoughts about it in our spearfishing community on Facebook here.
Mentioned in the show
Join us at Adreno for an evening with Shrek from Noob Spearo to discover Melbourne spearfishing insights and tips for spearos of all levels with @southernspearfishing legend James Beckmanis!
Also happening on the night:
• Live Q&A session with Club Spearfish President Sven Franklin, Adreno Store Manager Luke Latham, James @southernspearfishing and Shrek
• ’99 Tips to Get Better at Spearfishing’ book signing
• Light refreshments & snacks
WHERE: Adreno 1184 Nepean Hwy, Cheltenham, Melbourne
WHEN: Saturday 9th November 5PM – 7:30PM
Free on-site parking available!
Noob Spearo Partners + some spearfishing discounts
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28-day Freediving Transformation. Want to increase your bottom time? Want to lower your comfortable operating depth? Want to increase your breath hold? In 4 weeks you can transform your physiology to improve your performance as a freediver. Learn the proven strategies competitive freedivers use to strengthen their performance.
-
Equalization Masterclass. If you are freediver who struggles to equalize your ears in the 15-30 ft range this course is the answer. 14 videos discuss every equalizing problem and coach you through the difficulty. Say goodbye to Valsalva and hello to Frenzal and make equalizing easy.
-
Tuesday Ted Talks Freediving. 19 one hour live Instagram episodes where I discuss a variety of freediving topics and answer peoples question live on Instagram.
-
Free online courses – How to take a 20-30% bigger breath and how to make the mammalian dive reflex work for you.
www.FreedivingSafety.com – Free online safety resource.
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