sounds like a good day if not a good dive.
I am away again this weekend but I am dying to get out with you guys...BBQ on the 21st or 22nd?
Yea man, can't think of a better way to spend the day regardless of fish caught; though that is always a nice bonus. 
I will be in the Keys spearing Marathon that weekend, but the following I am down for sure for the spear/BBQ day.
Hau, sdeisen, Scott, nice hunting and BS'ing in the lot with you yesterday. I only managed the one snapper but it was certainly a nice day all in all; just need to get a smaller yak; that monster was killer coming in against the wind and current. Hopefully the weather will improve by the weekend and we can get out again. Slainte. 
Definitely be careful about which school you go to in the Caribbean since many of the med schools there make it difficult to get licensed and get your residency programs needed to graduate. I had a friend go to one down there and she was told that it wouldn't be an issue but found that not to be true when she tried coming back state side for residency. Just be sure to really research and check their accreditation with the boards, not just at those schools; they have funny ways of bending and contorting words in legal but misleading ways.
That being said, does Univ of the VI's have one; think it's on St John? That would be epic though.
As one of Irish decent I love that song. Go raibh maith agat (thank you). Slainte.
Beautiful pics too. Can't believe I still haven't made it to Ireland yet.
I was wondering how to do this the other day when making my FL. I have an FID that came with the rope. I saw a method that entailed actually unraveling the end of the rope and weaving the individual strands into the rope (this was for making a loop like Ben mentioned).
Here are the links:
http://www.animatedknots.com/splice/index.php
http://www.fish4fun.com/boat-rope.htm
Anyone ever try these methods? Do they work well or better than the other method?
I just used a Mtn climbing style knot (figure eight on a bight) for attaching my clip on the end of the FL but I think a splice would be a little more streamline.
Nice post Paul, that was a great way to start the morning off. Where do a find a lady like that? 
Those are some sick air rifles, look like sniper weapons. Man, I haven't thought about shooting since I left the service; I used to love it. I was on a sniper team for a few years. We would do 3 gun matches and sniper competitions all the time; even won a few sniper comps against some SF guys. Makes me wonder if I still have that deadly accuracy I once had. Rabbit and squirrel shooting was how I got so good at shooting when growing up; if you can get a kill shot on a rabbit or squirrel at distance while there are running that is a damn good shot; especially on iron sights. May have to head to the range soon and see what I have got. :attack2:
Though I agree with you guys I feel we forget how many A-holes these guys deal with on a daily basis and perhaps speaking to them in hostile ways just adds to that. I use to do similar work (inspections of vehicles) on a closed military base and when everyone (and most do) give you crap it is hard to be courteous; plus they/we are trained to approach every person as a possible threat; this is for safety so not to let your guard down. I have a buddy that is a FWC officer and he could vow for how hard it is to deal with people like that every day. At some point you just want to go and get it done and not worry about pleasantries because 90% of the people there will be rude just b/c you stopped them. In the work I did, and I am sure there's is similar, those who are being nice may be attempting to hide something; so overall being nice about things isn't really in the cards and is just part of being on the water; though an annoying part. My buddy Mike and I would get stopped every time we went out fishing by Marine Patrol back home. Some officers do take being an ### hole as part of their job requirements though and take it too far. Catch 22 I guess.
Glad you made it over brother. The Keys trip should be great. Feel free to head over to this coast anytime and we'll head out; lots of good beach diving here.
The plastic handle on my knife broke a while back so I picked up the only one the local DS on my way to the shore. I wanted a titanium knife since they don't rust but now am not sure they are worth the extra cash. I keep mine cleaned and oiled after a dive and it doesn't rust and IMO seems to hold a better edge than the titanium ones. What are your opinions on the two, seems to me titanium isn't really worth the added cost but I always like to get multiple opinions.
I still have the knife blade and would love to find a replacement handle if anyone knows where to get one since it's the same one I have had since I started 15 years ago.
good luck shawn...be safe
Thanks man, will do. Hopefully Poseidon will give it a rest for the day.
good luck out there dude... it looks rough as hell...
Thanks man. Hoping the wind lays down by tomorrow morning a bit or we may have to scratch it all together or just head out and just fish H&L style. Update to come.
Anyone in the Marathon area have a weather update? I am renting a boat from Capt'n Hook's Tomorrow and we're trying to get our final assault plan laid out.
I got a Mutton (one and only) about a month ago in 70'. My trick...lots of luck. It was a long shot, about to the end of my line, and I followed him long enough to get him curious/annoyed enough to go broadside to check me out. Like I said it was a long shot and I knew he would run after this so I let it go and I hit him pretty low;he tore free so I had to reload and pin him to the floor. Like I said lots and lots of luck.
Hau, I wish I would have seen your post this morning. I met two guys from SB in Hollywood, when I got there it was as you described. But the one drove from Homestead and wanted to go since he drove an hour; if it were me I would have gone home. I was lucky since this was my maiden voyage for my boogie board float I had something to hold onto; and it was needed. seas were 3'-5' and you couldn't see the bottom till you ran into it. We did our exercise in futility for the day and after several dives we all decided to head back in. Vis was ~4' at best. On the up side the float seems like it will work great and for the shore dives it is nice to have a rest platform. Plus the last 30 yards or so I was able to ride in a nice wave to end the trip. Next time I will read this section first, .
Thanks Dan, I will have to think more about the speed rig; but either way I think I am going to go with the mono line.
Which speargun are you using?
I don't think that speed loading kit is for freedivers.
I am using a JBL magnum. I think they are designed more for Ocean Rhino type guns but I can't think of a reason it wouldn't work on my gun. I used a buddy of mine's gun with one on it and I loved it, very useful. I have a speed load band (essentially a rubber tube) zip tied to my current line where it loops at the front of the gun now and it seems to work well. I was considering replacing the stock line on my gun and figured I would just buy a speed load kit with the clips and band already in place.
What would the difference be between the system being used for freediving vs. not? Do you see a way this could be a hindrance?
I know this is a bit of a repeat but I couldn't find a clear answer in previous post. I am going to replace my shooting line and was going to get the speed loader kit from Spearfishing Specialties, I think Divers Direct has them for under $20. The only concern is that is only comes with mono and I have never used mono, just a braided line. Are there any serious drawbacks to using the mono, i.e. line memory, potential to knot up/twist, stretch, etc. If mono is not your preferred line, what would you suggest? Thanks.
Shallow, the buoyancy available from a wooden float depends pretty much on the density of the wood and how big of a float. From the link I provided, a cubic foot of basswood typically weighs from 20-37 pounds, while a cubic foot of water I believe weighs around 62 pounds for freshwater. Thus, a 1 cubic foot float would give about 25-42pounds of lift if made from basswood and in freshwater, and even higher if made of balsa.
Yea, I figured I was revealing my lack of engineering/physics skills with that one. <img src= " class="smiley" srcset="https://spearfishing.world/forum/images/smilies/emojione/1f606@2x.png 2x" height="23" width="23" loading="eager" data-tooltip="biggrin" aria-label="biggrin"> I was sure if Dan was considering it it probably did. Good to know though. Perhaps I will revisit the idea later.
Does wood have the buoyancy characteristics (lift lbs) to act as a float? I mean in the event you tagged a nice cobia or something similar. I ask because I had though of that as well and discarded it because I couldn't think of any.
Sounds good man. I will keep ya posted. Probably in the next few weeks.
