Florida Freedivers Forensic Files
Today's product spotlight- 4 different Flasher Rigs that are designed to bring the fish to YOU!
We'll be taking a detailed look at 4 of the most common flasher rigs on the market used for freediving but also usable for tank diving as well. We'll be looking at the Rob Allen Ghost Flasher Rig that so many often mention or ask us questions about, the Rob Allen Kamikaze Flasher, the Rob Allen Crazy Chicken Flasher and the SpearMaster Mirror Ball (Disco Ball) Flasher.
(If you haven't read about our new product review initiative here at Florida Freedivers, check it out here! http://spearboard.com/showthread.php?t=163001 ) :thumps:
Let's first look at the Rob Allen Ghost Flasher. We see lots of talk and questions regarding this flasher setup both here on the forums and also in our store. Until now, there were never any good photos of the Rob Allen "Ghost"- (Pun intended).
The Ghost is in total about 35 feet long and is composed of 3 separate sections...
-a 15' section of clear mono filament line that has a loop on either end of it,
-a 24" section of stainless steel braided cable that holds the actual flasher modules along with some plastic beads and spacers,
-another 15' section of clear mono that also holds two 4" long in-line floats
The Ghost Flasher is designed to be used a little different than most other flashers available. It floats with the included floats, either along side the diver when on the surface, or above the diver when descending and when hunting on the bottom like a spearo ninja. The flasher gets it's "Ghost name" because the flashers hang from the 15' clear mono float section and appear to be suspended in the water.
To better describe how the Ghost Flasher can be practically used, I've decided to quote some knowledgable text that fellow board member "florfreediver" posted quite a while back here on SpearBoard....
"Speaking with my freediving cap on, I firmly believe there is a significant difference between the ghost flasher system and just "attaching some flashers on your float line" The ghost flashers have two small floats attached directly above them which will tend to keep the flashers in a vertical postion above you, even when you are ascending. This is not so with a standard (neutral or negative bouyancy) floatline.
Example: If you are laying on the bottom, (applies to Scuba spearing as well), without the small floats, the flashers, depending on their weight and local current etc, could in some circumstances tend to sink right next to you. With the small floats, the flashers should be about 15 ft (more or less) above you. With a little up and down movement on the back of your gun, the flashers should be inducing fish towards you.
The flasher system is attached to the back of your gun, either in additon to your floatline or instead of your floatline. (eg reel gun setup). The floats are small enough to not hinder you whilst diving but are big enough to keep the flashers in a vertical position. Without the small floats, the flashers would probably just trail straight behind you and the action would be less." -florfreediver
As with the other Rob Allen Flasher Rigs listed below, the Ghost is made of top quality materials and components. It looks to me that the stainless steel flashers are polished to get there shine which will hold up to salt water great as opposed to being chrome plated which will pit with salt exposure. Also, stainless crimps are used and the mono line appears to be 500# thickness! That thick mono will make line tangles near impossible on the boat which is a typical issue with a lot of flasher rigs. The "eye balls" and reflective materials are held to the stainless flasher wings with adhesive.
The Rob Allen Ghost Flasher set sells for $79.95.
Next up is the Rob Allen Kamikaze Flasher. This flasher is composed of a single braided stainless cable that runs through the center of 3 polished stainless steel flashers with a multi-colored 20 oz weighted "squid" on the end. The Kamikaze uses color coordinated plastic beads as spacers in between the stainless crimps and the spinning flashers. The squid has a weighted head and silicone "tentacles" that are very flexible and will flow nicely in the water.
**I'll note that the flasher modules used on the Kamikaze are NOT same pieces that are used on the flasher section of the Ghost above. that Kamikaze's flashers are about 100% larger, but are the same identical design.**
The Kamikaze is a "traditional" style flasher that typically a diver would hang from a float or line and either allow the waves on the surface or their hands to "bob" the flashers, in turn causing them to rotate and reflect light. The Crazy Chicken below works on the same premiss. The Kamikaze uses a stainless snap swivel to attach itself to your line and it measures 64" in total length.
The Rob Allen Kamikaze sells for $80.95.
Following is the Rob Allen Crazy Chicken Flasher. This flasher uses a double parallel braided stainless cable configuration that suspend three seperate 7" long paddle flasher modules. There is a multi-colored 20 oz weighted "squid" on the end. The Crazy Chicken uses color coordinated plastic beads as spacers in between the stainless crimps and the spinning flashers. The squid has a weighted head and silicone "tentacles" that are very flexible and will flow nicely in the water.
**Both the Kamikaze above and the Crazy Chicken use the same identical weighted squid part.**
Like the Kamikaze, the Crazy Chicken is a "traditional" style flasher that typically a diver would hang from a float or line and either allow the waves on the surface or their hands to "bob" the flashers thus spinning them and reflecting light. The Kamikaze is about 8" in total width and is 60" in total length. It uses a stainless snap swivel to attach itself to your line.
The Rob Allen Crazy Chicken sells for $79.95.
Last up today is the SpearMaster Mirror Ball- John Travolta not included. :fro:
This funky little disco ball clearly isn't like the 3 flasher sets above; It's a simple design and it works incredible. Essentially it's a 5" diameter mirror panel covered ball that spins freely around a thin gauge stainless steel wire shaft with tie loops on either end.
Just in case the light bouncing disco inferno wasn't enough, SpearMaster also put rattling beads inside the ball to really get those fish in the mood to boogy. The hollow ball has two 1/4" holes drilled in each end (4 holes total) that allow the ball to fill and drain. I'd imagine in the water this ball has about neutral buoyancy. It's very light weight above water and doesn't take up much room at all in a dive bag.
Some neat things to note about the SpearMaster mirror ball are that it can easily be COMBINED with any of the above flashers or your own custom flasher by simply snapping this in-between your line and flasher. It only adds about 8" of length to your rig when it's ran in-line. Also, the Mirror Ball comes with it's own padded transport bag with draw strings so this can be bagged, and just thrown in the with the rest of your gear. No other special care is needed to protect the mirrored glass. Also, I'd imagine the light weight of the hollow ball would probably not do much damage to itself if it was to be dropped on the boat deck.
The SpearMaster Mirror Ball sells for $59.95.
This about wraps up the word portion of this Florida Freedivers Forensic File. We hope you were able to gather some knowledge and intel about these two great products and ultimately we hope that the effort we put into this will help you make a more educated buying decision if/when it comes time for you to purchase a proven flasher set up if the building route is not for you. We have personally used all of these flashers and have found them perform really well, or else we wouldn't carry it in our store.
PLEASE FEEL FREE to ask any questions that you may have about any of these flashers and please submit feedback here if you have personal experience with these product so the community can really gain from this thread. This thread is now open for OPEN DISCUSSION. :cowboy:
If you would like to call us, email us, or swing by the shop to ask any more questions or to place an order for any of these items, You can call us Monday-Saturday at +1 561-848-0678 or all the rest of our contact info can be found here. We always have these items in stock and ready to ship out the same day internationally. :)
Thank you all!
-Nick Nardone