Gaff Technique

Prior to my maiden voyage in the ocean last Sat, I made a gaff, but never used it.  Lucklily my ling was hooked well enough to lift him into the yak via the jig.  I did attempt to gaff him, but it was awkward...

How do you guys gaff big fish?  In the mouth?  Just lift em under the gills with the hook?  Or do you actually stab the hook in their body?

Thanks in advance!
-Eric

Eric,

What kind of gaff do you have?  There are two basic types that we use here, one with a curved hook-like end (most common) and one with a straight end at a sharp angle from the handle (less common).

Here is an image from KzReelRods showing the two types of gaff "hooks"


Anyway, how you use your gaff depends on which gaff you have and whether you plan on releasing the fish.

With a hook gaff  you can gaff the fish in the jaw and often release it mostly unharmed.  However if you plan on eating that beast a nice solid gaff elsewhere will do just fine.  I would avoid gaffing the fish in the gut as their is little meat there to get a good hold on the fish.

Take a look at Sean (SCWAfishes latest video) to see some good gaffing action.


With the straight gaffs... a.k.a. slap or batt gaff the technique is bit different.  You hold the gaff in your hand like a bat and swing the sharp end down on the fish right behind the head.  Once you stick the fish you turn the gaff and fish over with a twist of your wrist and pull it up and onto your kayak.
 
Hope that helps.
Brian

 Eric , out of habit I gaff the lower jaw because it seems to do the least amount of harm, and is easy to penetrate. It also has lots of bones to hold good. That way you can release the fish. Headshot no messed up meat, may stun fish-but harder to penetrate, Body shot near spine won't tear out but messes up fillet, last gut shot, bad choice on big fish, may tear out.
 Main thing is to line up your shot and swing  deliberately. Play a big fish till it slows down enough to handle. Thrashing fish with sharp teeth-Bad thing!

With the commercial style gaff (slap gaff as Brian called them), Allen Bushnell's technique is to point the hook upward and draw the fish over the gaff, and in one motion, simply lift the point into the fish and continue lifting the fish up and into the boat.  Once the fish is on the deck, twisting the gaff in one direction helps to angle the point of the hook and pin the fish down to the deck. 

Allen is one who prefers that style of gaff for Halibut.

I've seen Brian use his "slap" technique with that kind of gaff as well and it's very effective.  Combined with his patented "die... die... die" yell as he is clubbing the fish really finishes the job nicely.

The key, as I see it, is to have an appropriately sized gaff for the fish you are targeting, keep it good and sharp, and don't overdo it... make a calm but deliberate pass at the fish in order to get the gaff placed just where you want it.

Like Fishshim, I have a tendancy to gaff lings in the mouth, but my big tournament-winning ling at Elk this year will probably get my gaff in the head just for good measure.  (sorry for the smack talk).

EK

Commercial style gaff...point of the hook is facing away from you.  You swing from the inside of the fish into the fish.  If you are just keeping the fish than a body (gut) shot is better than a head shot.  Head shots are hard to do and sometimes it will just bounce off the head because it is so hard.  On a lot of fish. The side closes to you and never on the outside of the fish and swing towards you.  But, I have seen it done.  But, if you miss...your yak or you will be the target.  Lingcod head is hard and a Halibut has no head to speak of.

Ken kickfish

On a lot of fish. The side closes to you and never on the outside of the fish and swing towards you. 

I guess I've been taught the way Ken says never to do it. When you do it this way extend out passed the fish, never swing....pull instead.  When you go from the underside there's higher probability that the fish will just get pissed and dart staright up and off the gaff.   

Art,

 Just checkout one of the VHS or DVD's at Michaell Fowlkes has.  They are called "Inside Sportfishing' or some of Bill Roecker's.  Look for the Big Tuna or Long Range.  These guys do it everyday and night.  And, yes I had a few lessons.  I had to gaff a few fish (tuna, tiger and hammerheads) for the deckhands.

Ken kickfish

Just lift...watch Jelly in the video for the right way, watch me for the "not" way...some of my lamest gaffing in a while. 

Hold the gaff with your thumb up towards the top of the grip and just lift with a little mojo...it doesn't take much.

Ken,
I don't doubt that but what I learned locally was over the top. 

I have a hook-type gaff.  I've seen hundreds of fish gaffed, don't know why I was having trouble.  My gaff just deflected off the fish.  Maybe it needs to be sharpened, and I don't think I was jerking the handle upwards hard enough.

Thanks, all.

You want the tip sticky sharp,just make sure you have a guard for transport and storage.

Thanks, it definitely needs sharpened then.  And yes, I have a cork stuck on it for safety.

For what it's worth I have used one of those orange fish grips in the mouth for all but the biggest fish for quite a while.

I think I'm admitting to catching fairly small fish, but whatever.

I only gaffed two fish last year, a ling and a halibut and lost the halibut cause I gut gaffed it and it ripped off. I did catch three 28" lings in about 15 minutes last year and boated two and released one, all with the orange things.

sad to say I have boated a couple legal lings and some underlings this year, I have yet to use the gaff, just the orange thing. of course underlings released. and legals eaten,  .

I also generally do not club my fish, just put them on the stringer.  (but fish big enough to gaff are big enough to club and I would club any halibut.) I guess I figured they'd stay fresh longer, not really sure about the question of blood in the flesh there. maybe it's also not so cool to the fish, but you never know something could happen and they could still escape, I figure give them every chance. That's one of the reasons I know that coppers can live through most anything cause I don't club 'em until I'm ready to fillet them.

J

I've still got the cuts on the insides of both thighs from two lapdancin fish Sat...  anything that comes aboard is getting clubbed from here on out.

I know for tequila shots it goes: lick it, slam it, suck it...  For lings and hali's it's:reel it, stick it, club it?

I just use a Berkeley lip gripper for all of my fish...except halibut. For big lings that you plan on keeping just lip grip, pull head out of water, and commence with the beat down.