Wetsuit'n

[Circlehook]

I have tried to figure this out on my own reading old posts, but I am sure I am not the only one trying to figure this out, so I'll start a thread and try to get the seasoned wetsuit fishers to chime in.

What is needed to get goin? Granted, a wetsuit, but beyond that, what are some must haves?

Are wading boots recommended, or flippers, or korkers over wading boots?

How about must have accessories?

Where do you put your truck keys while your swimmin? What do you do with a fish? Tie it to your belt and let is swim around till you come in?

Anything else that is needed? Dive knife? Additional Flotation?

My number one fear is saltwater at night, I think I can get beyond that, but I want to make sure everything else is in line so I don't get out to a rock and realize I forgot somthing important.

I know I sound like a mumbling idiot, but I am serious about this. Please help.

[tattoobob]

I am far from seasoned but here is what I know

I bought a Neosport 5 mm suit $179 at wetsuit warehouse.com
I bought Orvis Neoprine socks 2mm with gravel guards 20 bucks
Then for boots I went with Cabelas ultra lite wading boots and I bought
wearbar boot studs

as for the gear you need small plug bag eel bag and pliers
(to much gear to hard to swim)

I bring a back pack and leave it on shore with gear, smokes, Snacks,
and keys in it

[angler229]

I've really started getting into the wetsuit thing more and more the last few years and have come to realize one thing - keep it simple and carry as little as possible. On my belt I have a dive knife (for emergencies), pliers, a one tube plug bag (3 plugs) and a aquaskinz small pouch with leaders and whatever else I might need that night. Remember the more you carry the harder it is going to be get up on a rock. The only other thing I carry are eels, which i fish 99.9% of the time I'm in a wetsuit as standing in water knee deep with no dry area to land a fish in sight is not conducive to a bunch of treble hooks.

[redlite]

I have learned it all on my own thru trial and error, wasted a lot of money on the wrong gear that I thought I could cut corners using instead of the right thing and helped a lot of others get into it. What works for me doesn't necessarily work for everyone and I'm no pro, but its all I do and I think I got pretty well figured out..
Wetsuit-Not a Job Lot special.-
proper fitting. one piece rear zip. preferrably one made out a wind blocking material. Swimmin with a dry top on to block the wind is like tryin to swim in a trash bag. Current and water are a drag. did I mention proper fit??? regardless of where you are gonna fish, don't go less than a 5mm. any less you loose your buoancy factor. depends on water temp where you plan to fish if you need a 7mm. wear nothing under it. Grundel rash will lessen the more you get used to it. Just pee in the damn thing. Pull throat out and flush water thru it before you come out of water.

A polar plus knit hat. Will keeo you warm even wet and squeezes out and dries almost instantly We loose 85% of our body heat thru our heads. Even on a hot nite, with any wind, it cuts thru the wetsuit and radiantly freezes you like a human popsicle.

Socks-neoprene socks. preferably 3mm or thicker.

BOOTS, not sandals or sneakers- studded, lite that give good ankle support. Love the Korker boots with the interchangable soles. They all suck and will fall apart, so spend the money and get a good pair with an even better warranty. Wearing korkers sucks.

As little stuff as you can hanging on you the better. pliers, stringer rope, small caribeeners are your best friend. A belt that isn't a fast tec buckle. it does happen that while swimming you bump the buckle and it comes undone. good bye gear. I use an old hot pink camping sleeping bag strap. can still dump it quickly if needed.

knife.- get the deep-sea squeeze made out of titanium. about $85 beans, worth every penny. never, ever rusts and locks into sheath and is very easy to get in and out with one hand.

My most favorite must have option is an Aquaskinz d-ring to put your rod in so you have both hands free.

Eels -in a bucket- not mesh bag. most of time you are not in the water and if in mesh bag, wind drys them out dead quick. plus then you have eel slime all over your wetsuit leg which makes your car seat reek. mayoniase jar with an old duffel bag strap. i do carry a small aquskinz mesh bag for puttin my dead eels in as the nite goes on. That's about all they are good for- a cemetary.

water proof bag to put pretied leaders inside dime bags and then into and to keep my rinny tinny dry. i RARELY even carry plugs. if so, small aquaskinz rag of a bag on belt. will often jam a few riggies in it instead.

water bottle bag that goes on belt that I "liberated" from a boy scout camping trip. holds a gatorade bottle and put my rubber cores and a bug wipe in the bottom of.

Spare tiny waterproof princeton tech light either in water proof bag or plug bag incase get blasted off rock and loose headlight.

headlight- $10 rayovac-buy a couple at a time- i try to keep my head from going under water.

TWO eel rags- one tied in a knot on my belt as a spare for when Back Beach looses his...........usually retired t-shirts riooed up. Make sure you squeeze all the water out of it before you try to use it to grab an eel.

I am usually within about 2 pounds on weight of fish, so no need for boga, just something else to get line wrapped around.

When swimming, you don't really swim. You just float along, usually a side stroke with one arm. Don't bother kicking, just wastin energy and attracting sharks. I usually push myself along with my rod like a push pole. helps to keep me from getting pushed back in from waves.
I rarely am swimming, usually just real deep wading. A lot of times if you swim out, you swim thru the fish and they are behind you. cast at shore as well if way out and water is more than 3 feet deep between you and shore. You'd be surprised. Most of the time wet suit is just so that you can wade out a little deeper past the safe capabilities of waders to get out past the mung weed line.

You if don't got a Van STall, you a fool and ain't cool. Absolute necessity.

When coming back into shore and there is surf, keep knees bent and out in front of you so you can push off rocks and not get flipped faces first into the rocks in the wash/ shore line.
Relax and don't panic. Be supa safe and smart. Watch how waves are breakin before you go out to a rock, figure how you are gonna get up on and off rock at different parts of tide. Make sure that if you do get washed off, you ain't gonna get mashed into a rock behind you. alot of times if there is surf washin over a rock, you are better off swimmin wide and comin on from front as a lot of times it creates a backeddy behind the rock and you will get caught in it and kill yourself with exhaustion tryin to swim the last 3 feet to the rock.
Put your fish on the stringer if you are gonna keep them. One fish sucks cause it just swims laps around the rock all night and you end up gettin tangled and jump ropin all nite. after a couple, they chill out and stay in one place. Remember that once a wave goes by, you gotta be prepared for the wave grabbin the fish on the stringer and pullin you off the rock.
EVERY TIME before you get in the water make a check of your gear to make sure everything is secured.
NEVER< EVER jump off a rock into the water. ALWAYS sit on yo arse and slide in. Easy way to break a leg and an even better way to end up under water losing your hat and headlight.
I rarely use flippers. Depends on current and how far I'm swimmin.

I am scared SHATLESS of sharks, so I usually spray my partner down with pogy oil before we swim. I don't gotta be a fast swimmer, just faster than them.
It is a very expensive start up cost- VS $900; wetsuit$350; knife $85; Boots $100+; wetsuit socks $30; pliers $20; rope $10; caribeeners $5 x 4= $20; headlight $10 X 4= $40; spare water proof light $40; mayonaise jar $10; other assorted gear $30-$60; flippers $85;

Its a big investment financially then take into the factor that just cause you are in a wetsuit doesn't mean at all that you are gonna catch more or any bigger fish than if you were in waders. It is more of a safer way to fish. You still gotta spend a lot of time, for me years, to figure out places, where, when to fish, how to fish, etc.....Its a whole new world to learn.
Take that all in to consideration before you make the plunge.
From me, that's it in a nut shell.

[ProfessorM]

very interesting mike. Not my cup of tea but was always curious on how you guys did it. Thanks for the explanation. Good luck next week. P.

[redlite]

Oh yeah, keys go under a rock somewhere by truck.....other alternative is between the cheeks............

[Bronko]

Thanks Mike.


John R... Sticky?

[numbskull]

Even if you don't plan to swim in it, a wet suit makes wading through awful rock/weed a lot easier. The neoprene protects you better when you fall, and there are no issues with filling your waders and ruining your night.

I can't imagine using my rod for a wading staff in the stuff I stumble through...the reel would get bashed on underwater rocks. This year I've been using a foldable Simms wading staff and like it a lot (too soon to know how long it will last...prior years I used a hardwood mop handle and EVA grip). Pricey, but breaking your leg in some inaccessible place is worse. Really speeds you up and adds fishing time over the course of the night if you do a lot of walking, wading, and hunting in the rocks (I may cover several miles and be in and out of the water dozens of times). Unnecessary if you plan to just set up and wait for fish on a favorite rock.

I'd also note that plenty of LI guys fish plugs in wetsuits. A 4 tube square bag with big drain grommets and attached to your belt is great. 3" tubes will hold a water bottle. I use a small lip gaff to handle fish and find it adequate. I hang it on the bag strap and the point is covered with surge tube looped first on the base of the hook. Supposedly you can carry a boga on a strong retractor clipped across the small of your back instead.

As for footwear.....read this http://www.striped-bass.com/Stripert...e-korkers.html

By the way, whatever happened to carrying eels in burlap? Mayo jars? Watch out people will think you're from Franklin.

[Back Beach]

Redlite's longest post ever...never knew there was that much info packed into that head of his...

In all honesty, Redlite pretty much encouraged me do do the wetsuit thing, then mentored me at every turn. I pretty much do what he says(besides peeing in my suit, but my courage is building) when we're fishing together. Still haven't figured out how to catch fish like him, but the wet suit thing is a lot of fun and keeps you on your toes.

Kind of scary when a big swell hits you chest high and nearly takes you off the rock, but it is fun and exilerating when done right. I would also add if you're climbing on rocks in a big surf you find a perch with a lot of water around it so when you get swept off its water on bone as opposed to rock on bone.

When you initially start up, your skill set will have to be redeveloped as being in the water differs greatly from being on dry land. Simply tying on a new hook can be a burden if you're getting pounded and trying to maintain your balance.

[Rmarsh]

Great post redlite:
You shared that tip about the D-ring with me a few months ago at a seminar at SWE, when I asked about what to do with the rod when you needed both hands free. I haven't taken the plunge to wetsuiting yet but that d-ring is very useful while wading too, I use it everytime I fish now! Funny how something so simple solves a problem.
Thanks again

[Back Beach]

One other thing too...don't think donning a wetsuit will put you into more fish. My catch rate is about the same and probably lower than fishing on dry land. There's a couple neat places you can get to in a wetsuit, but it has not resulted in more angling success for me, save for a couple decent fish.

You still need to know how to fish, which is my biggest problem.

[numbskull]

Originally Posted by Back Beach

One other thing too...don't think donning a wetsuit will put you into more fish. My catch rate is about the same and probably lower than fishing on dry land. .

Not when you count dogfish, however.

[Circlehook]

Thanks everyone for the advice. This is exactly the response I was looking for.

I am not looking into wetsuiting because I think it will automatically get me into more fish. I just think that since my learning curve is so high right now, I might as well start there.

[pmbrac]

Great thread!! thnx for all the info

[Diggin Jiggin]

Excellent thread...

I've just started going down this road and I've been trying to make do with equipment I usually use with waders and its just not up to it. The k 5000's suck to swim in. My knife's got more rust than it usually does although I just keep sanding it off.

There's atleast 5 things in redlite's post that I gotta upgrade

The 2 main rods I use when fishing rocks in waders/korkers are 2 older allstar rods (1145-2 and 1085-2). Love the action of those rods but they are 2 piece and in thewetsuit I worry about the 2 halves slipping apart if I use the rod as a push pole.

The knife and footwear are the 2 biggest things I need to upgrade.
That and a good way to carry spare hooks and a drink. I'm tired of the hooks rusting before they get used

Any recommedations for a small waterproof bag ?

[JohnR]

Cool thread, very cool.

Been researching Fat Man Wet Suits myself. Even before getting scolded by the chewing one .

I already know the answer to "Does it make me look fat?"

[t.orlando]

Originally Posted by JohnR

Cool thread, very cool.

Been researching Fat Man Wet Suits myself. Even before getting scolded by the chewing one .

I already know the answer to "Does it make me look fat?"

NRS Grizzly, ain't pretty but it works.

[JohnR]

Originally Posted by t.orlando

NRS Grizzly, ain't pretty but it works.

Do you wear a top over it of any type? Will take a look at other styles too. Don't know if I'm up for suiting in a wife beater. Besides, me thinks you want everything covered up tight because bug spray is not an option. Thanks T!

[eskimo]

I looked for threads like this a while back but its seemed all the good info is scattered about in different threads.

Not sure if anyone mentioned it but I wear gloves as well. Climbing rocks suck when your shorter and you basically have to jump and flop on them. I leave nothing on dry land as I rather move parallel along the shore from where I am while staying in the water unless I'm moving to a completely different area.

I smoke as well so I use dive rite weight pouches on my belt with a pelican case. I use a produce sealer for all pretied leaders and terminal tackle and just bite them open.

When I started I made the mistake of always getting on the furthest rock I could get out on but that sucks. Makes it a bigger project to move so you don't. If the fish are at the end of your cast then move out but if they aren't there they aren't there so move.

I think a discussion on types of wetsuits and brands will help people as well as I remember searching for it and coming up short. I use a xcel infinti x-zip 5/4. Just a upgrade from my older one. The bigger debate is a dive vs. surfing vs. whatever. Some say more stretch with a surfing wetsuit but less durability then a dive suit etc.

[milo]

I also read some time back about a potatoe.Do u guys throw the potatoe in the water to see which way the current is running or thro it on the hook for bait?

[tattoobob]

Has anyone thought about Identification just in case something went wrong?

[t.orlando]

Originally Posted by JohnR

Do you wear a top over it of any type? Will take a look at other styles too. Don't know if I'm up for suiting in a wife beater. Besides, me thinks you want everything covered up tight because bug spray is not an option. Thanks T!

I wear a thin short sleeve thing underneath. got a 5mil jacket top to go over the whole deal. Then the life-jacket lol.

[Spiderman]

Been wetsuitn near 20 years now, hard to believe. Excellent info from Redlite. I am a big fan of scuba divers retractors for holding pliers and boga grip but not my knife as I dont want it to slip out of my hand and flying back to stab me. In the summer if Im not really swimming much, I sometimes fish in a 7mm farmer john with a long sleeve rash guard underneath. I like the protection on the knees and shins.Remember also the thicker the neoprene, the warmer you are and the more you float so if you get into trouble a 7mm will float you higher.
I agree about the boots for ankle support. The wearbars studs work well in boots. Ive tried them in Chota and Simms boots and my only complaint is they are kinda heavy to swim in.
I like a 5 mm neoprene sock. Here a good idea. Pull the leg bottoms of your wetsuit over the top of your booties and boots to keep rocks and sand out of the boots. some even duct tape them also.
I keep a single key to my truck on a piece of dacron around my neck tucked into my wetsuit and lock the rest of my keys in my truck.
Another eel option is to put each individual eel in a baggie with an ice cube. To hook the eel, hold the baggie and hook the eel through the baggie and rip the hooked eel through the the baggie and stuff the ripped baggie away.
Prior to Van Staal we used penn 704 and 706 and some still do. It requires a lot of service and maintenance though.
When you get to the rock you want to fish from, once you get up on it try to stand up as quick as possible to get your body above the wave and not get washed off. If you see a bigger than usual wave coming at you, that you think may knock you off,lean into it and instead of knocking you off it may just stand you back up.
Scout out fishable rocks during the day at full or new moon low tides and take land marks to find them at night. Take a swim with fins and look for white water splashes indicating rocks. Be careful of areas with a lot of current.

[GattaFish]

The only thing I can add to Redlites post is if you do a 3 mil suit and its not boyant enough you can get a cheap neoprene vest for like $40 to keep your core warmer, help boyancy and stop the cold trickle down your back ....

I can't stress the importance of knowing you have a push pole especially if you ever cramp up.... the suit will suck the water out of you when you do lots of walking. also the fit of the suit. Last thing you want is a suit that chafes you.

[Thumper]

I gotta get some socks, booties filled with water last night and got heavy. What do u guys recommend? I also really like that 5mil farmer john luds posted but concerned when it gets colder. I guess I would have to get a jacket? I have a 3 2 body glove have been warm in it but would like some more buoyancy so looking for a 5mil
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

[ivanputski]

I hear you thump... I have 3mm neoprene socks, and they are fine while standing on a rock, but when I hit the shore to move to another spot, they trap water inside and add some serious weight! Maybe I need to double up on the socks because the boots we both have fit well for length, but have some unnecessary space above your foot and toes...

[Pete F.]

What I'd add
A waterproof case, I use some green thing from West marine. My angler registration card, smokes and lighter fit inside. I stick it down the front of my farmer john.
My keys go around my neck on a refferees whistle thing and get tucked in also.
I had a one piece suit and hated it, had to keep taking it half off to pee. Got a 2 pc 7mm and added a pee zipper. When it's hot out I wear a rash guard on top and a basic breathable raincoat over, colder and I have more neo.
I don't swim to rocks or at least hav'nt to date. I use my rod as a staff and my 704s survive as long as I open them up and reoil/grease them.
I use a small bronco 3 tube bag on my belt in addition to the normal asorrtment of stuff, and a really chintzy 3 tube BW bag to put eels in. live ones go in ziplocks/ as part of there last moments they each get individual cells and riggies share cells.
AMy suit is hyperflex so the bottom stretches over my wading boots. I have some Hodgman wading socks ant they have a builting gravel guad that I don't use for it's intended purpose but it makes the top of the boot tighter and possibly keeps the sand out. Last night I stood in an rivermouth on moving sand in waves and had hardly any sand in my boots. If they seemed loose I would add a closed cell insole to take up the space, that might solve the water issue that some have.
I am way more comfortable in a wetsuit than waders, I always ended up getting blasted as soon as my jacket was open or falling over or some other water intrusion issue. Now I am wet already.

[Frankiesurf]

Couple of things.

UK (Underwater Kinetics) Vizion Headlamp. A couple of extra bucks than your regular Sports Authority lights but fully waterproof. It is actually a dive light. One button, one press on/off. Red setting, spot and diffused setting is actually controlled by a rotating knob. Good product and easy to use.

I leave my keys hidden on/under my truck. No need to bring them with you. If you do a little searching on your ride you will find a good spot. You would never find my keys even if you saw me put them away.

I carry an aluminum water bottle that I got at Target for $3.99. It is clipped to a carabiner on my bag strap. A bit of a pain in the a$$ but it will work for now.

If you get too hot in your wetsuit just open the zipper. It will let air in on the walk and when you dunk your self it is mighty refreshing. Will also flush the urine right out.

Tattoobob mentioned carrying ID. I have thought about it before but forgot all about it. I do have a little pouch near the zipper in the back of my suit I can use for that. It will a fit a little card that I will laminate with my name, address, phone number and maybe blood type. Thanks for the reminder.

[JohnnyD]

Originally Posted by redlite

Put your fish on the stringer if you are gonna keep them. One fish sucks cause it just swims laps around the rock all night and you end up gettin tangled and jump ropin all nite. after a couple, they chill out and stay in one place. Remember that once a wave goes by, you gotta be prepared for the wave grabbin the fish on the stringer and pullin you off the rock.

You mentioned in another thread that you don't bleed your fish. If you bleed them, they'll only swim around you for a minute and then float for the rest of the night. No dealing with them swimming around and tripping you up.

[redlite]

Originally Posted by JohnnyD

You mentioned in another thread that you don't bleed your fish. If you bleed them, they'll only swim around you for a minute and then float for the rest of the night. No dealing with them swimming around and tripping you up.

blood in water = shark attractant