Bungee & Floatline for Bluewater Hunting

Bungee and floatline for bluewater hunting and targeting large pelagic fish. Speargun-to-float rigging systems with a core made of dyneema, heavy-duty swivels and hardware made of stainless steel.

Bungee and Floatline for Bluewater Hunting

In bluewater spearfishing — practiced in open water in pursuit of pelagic species such as tuna, wahoo, amberjack, marlin, etc. — the connection system between speargun, shaft, and float is not a secondary element. It is the component that, after the shot, absorbs the energy of the fleeing fish, prevents the loss of the fish, and protects the spearfisher from sudden jerks and dangerous tangles. In this category you will find bungee and floatline rigged with AISI 316 stainless steel hardware, heavy duty anti-twist swivels, and Dyneema cores with breaking loads up to 880 kilograms.

The products available cover the needs of bluewater spearfishing at every level: from the occasional session targeting medium-sized species to the most demanding battles with large pelagics in the open ocean. The selection includes Deep Blue branded products — built in-house and field-tested by some of the world’s leading experts over years of trips targeting species such as large yellowfin tuna, bluefin tuna, dogtooth tuna, wahoo, and billfish — together with Rob Allen products, an internationally recognized brand in bluewater hunting.

Product types

Bungee

The bungee is the elastic component of the system. Positioned between the speargun and the float, and connected in line with a floatline, its function is to absorb the sudden runs of a wounded fish, reducing the risk of damage to the gear and of losing the fish through flesh tearing. The highest-performance bungees in this category are made from natural latex, a material that provides progressive stretch and superior elastic recovery compared to synthetic materials.

The Tuna Bungee Deep Blue has a diameter of 14.0 mm and is built with a UV-resistant pure latex compound. It reaches an elongation equal to four times its resting length, with the limit imposed by an internal line with a breaking load of 530 kilograms. It is available in five lengths: 1.5 — 3 — 5 — 10 — 15 meters, allowing setups suited to different situations. The Pelagic Bungee Deep Blue is an alternative based on the same construction principle, also available in five variants. Both Deep Blue branded bungees are rigged with heavy duty stainless steel anti-twist swivels and AISI 316 stainless steel shackles for quick attachment to clips, floats, and floatlines.

Rob Allen offers both a standalone bungee available in multiple lengths and a combined Blue Water Float Line Bungee version that integrates both the elastic section and the fixed section into a single element, simplifying the overall setup.

Floatline

The floatline is the fixed connection between the bungee and the float. In bluewater hunting contexts, a traditional polyethylene rope floatline is more prone to tangling, but its strengths are low weight and affordable cost. Plastic floatlines solve these problems thanks to their semi-rigid tube structure, which tends not to tangle.

The Bluewater Floatline Deep Blue is built from 9.0 mm diameter plastic tubing, with a 100% Dyneema internal core with a breaking load of 880 kilograms. It provides 30% stretch before the core comes under tension: a 15-meter floatline becomes 20 meters under load, while a 30-meter floatline reaches 40. This behavior reduces sharp shock loads on the system during the fight. The ends are rigged with heavy duty stainless steel swivels and AISI 316 stainless steel shackles. It is available in various lengths and colors to make it easier to see in the water or organize on board.

Rob Allen offers polyethylene floatlines in two colors — orange and olive green — available by the meter or in pre-cut lengths, with eight variants each. Olive green reduces visibility in the water, an option appreciated by those who prefer a less intrusive approach. Rob Allen also offers the Floatline Pouch, which acts as a last-resort safety line for landing giant fish: it is a special pouch containing 40 meters of additional floatline, which deploys only in cases of extreme need.

How to choose a bungee and floatline for bluewater hunting

The choice of bungee depends primarily on the size and type of fish you intend to target, but also on the specific environment.

Using long bungees is preferable with highly pelagic species, over deep bottom where there is no risk of the fish coming into contact with the bottom or the coral drop-off.

When the risk of bottom contact increases, the length of the bungee must necessarily decrease, up to the complete removal of this element. At the same time, the length of the floatline (the fixed part of the line) must necessarily increase, but not excessively; it simply needs to be long enough to allow operation on deeper dives. In this case, the absence of a bungee or the use of very short bungees reduces the risk of the fish reaching the bottom, holing up, and damaging the gear.

The choice of floatline color affects surface visibility: bright colors such as orange and lime are easier to spot from the boat; olive green is preferred by those who want to limit the underwater visibility of the line.

Hardware is an often underestimated aspect: anti-twist swivels at the ends of the bungee eliminate the buildup of torsion generated when a large fish rolls on itself. AISI 316 stainless steel shackles ensure long-term resistance to saltwater corrosion.

Materials and technical features

Some bungees in this category are built from natural latex, an elastomer derived from the Hevea brasiliensis plant. Unlike synthetic elastic materials (silicone, TPU, TPE, Norprene, EPDM), natural latex has progressive elastic recovery and superior energy dissipation under dynamic loads, features that are especially important when the fish produces sudden and unpredictable runs. Deep Blue bungees are formulated with a UV-resistant compound that slows surface degradation caused by prolonged sun exposure. Inside, the safety line (530 kg in the Tuna Bungee) prevents the bungee from stretching beyond its structural limit, protecting both the gear and the spearfisher.

Plastic tube floatlines differ from traditional polyethylene lines thanks to their outer sheath, which reduces knot formation during retrieval and repositioning. The 9.0 mm diameter of Deep Blue floatlines allows a secure grip even with wet hands and gloves. The Dyneema core — UHMWPE (ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene) fiber — has one of the highest strength-to-weight ratios among technical textile materials, with an 880 kg breaking load at a low weight. The 30% stretch of the plastic sheath before the Dyneema core engages creates a two-stage system: first it cushions the impact through tube deformation, then it stops it with the Dyneema.

All hardware — swivels, shackles, and clips — is made from AISI 316 stainless steel, the stainless alloy with added molybdenum that offers superior corrosion resistance in saltwater environments compared to AISI 304, making it the appropriate choice for intensive marine use. Heavy duty swivels reduce torsion transmitted along the floatline when the fish rolls, preventing system tangles.

Practical use

The floatline + bungee system is assembled between the shaft/speargun and the specific float for bluewater hunting, following a precise sequence. The shaft or speargun is connected to the floatline; the bungee is placed in line between the floatline and the surface float. In some configurations, or depending on user preference, the order of bungee and floatline may be reversed, but the previous setup remains the most commonly used in most situations.

During the fight with a large fish, the absorption sequence is as follows: the fish takes off on a run, the bungee stretches to its maximum (four times its resting length in the Tuna Bungee), then the internal line comes under tension and stabilizes the system. Meanwhile, the floatline stretches slightly (up to 30% in the Deep Blue plastic model) before the Dyneema core stops further elongation. This system reduces instantaneous tension peaks that could cause the shooting line or shaft to break, or simply cause the fish to tear off.

For spearfishing in the Mediterranean Sea targeting species such as large amberjack or bluefin tuna, setups with 5–10 meter bungees paired with 15–25 meter floatlines are suitable in most situations. For ocean trips targeting large pelagics — wahoo, tuna, marlin — where fish runs can be considerable, longer bungees (10–15 meters) are used with floatlines up to 20–30 meters.

Floatlines and bungees should be stored neatly between trips, avoiding leaving them compressed or exposed to sunlight and excessive heat.

Available brands

Deep Blue produces both the bungees (Tuna Bungee and Pelagic Bungee) and the Bluewater Floatline in-house, assembled in its own workshop. The materials used and the stated technical specifications are the result of years of field use on pelagic species and in a wide range of ocean environments. AISI 316 stainless steel hardware, heavy duty swivels, and the quick-connection system using shackles and clips are construction features found throughout the in-house branded range.

Rob Allen is a South African brand with a long history in bluewater spearfishing. Its bungee and floatline line is appreciated internationally for its robust construction and availability of flexible formats. Rob Allen’s Blue Water Float Line Bungee is a combined product that integrates the functions of bungee and floatline into a single component.

Conclusion

Bungees and floatlines are technical components that play a precise and decisive role in bluewater spearfishing. The bungee absorbs the energy of the most violent runs, the plastic tube floatline provides the fixed connection while reducing the risk of tangles, and AISI 316 stainless steel hardware ensures reliable connections over time in the marine environment. The products in this category cover a wide range of uses, from compact setups for the Mediterranean to the most robust combinations for ocean hunting of large pelagics, with solutions offered by Deep Blue, Rob Allen, and other brands.