How to set up a speargun reel

ADRENO staff member, Taylor Slattery, runs us through how to set up a reel on a speargun.

Reel guns are useful for many hunting situations to mix up your diving. They have become extremely popular amongst spearfishers for the freedom they offer the diver, but it is also important to consider when it is and is not appropriate to use a reel over a float line. A lot of the time it will come down to where and what you prefer to hunt. Reel lines are great in that they give you a lot of room to work with relative to float lines in a compact space. However, it’s important to always have a dive buddy around when using a reel so that they can keep an eye on where you are. A float line is usually a good indicator of where a diver is when conditions are not clear, so using just a reel line in murky conditions and targeting larger fish probably isn’t the best way to go.

Before purchasing a reel, ensure that it can fit your gun. You’ll need scissors, a snap clip and D-shackle, a lighter, a reel line and the reel. 

Firstly, you mount the reel to the gun using the reel rail. To attach the line to the reel, you pass the line through the reel and tie a stopper knot as shown in the video. You can lightly burn the end of the knot to prevent the line from fraying. Once you’ve done this you wind the line in applying pressure to the line and spreading it evenly across the reel to wrap up the line neatly. 

Attach your D-shackle to the end of the barrel and loop the line through the D-shackle and then attach it to the snap clip using the simple knotting technique shown by Taylor. Melt the end of the line with a lighter to prevent it from fraying. 

Slide the shaft into the gun and attach the shaft line to the snap clip, making up for lost tension using the reel.

Remember to always use a float when using a reel!

Enjoy our spearfishing videos? Show them some love so that we can keep producing them!

To view our full range of spearfishing equipment, head to www.spearfishing.com.au