Hi all,
My name is Dan, currently living in Miami and fishing the South East area. I'm originally from England but now live permanently in the US with my wonderful wife Cristina. I've been slowly getting to grips with a very different set of fishing challenges than those back home in the UK, but with some trial and error and a little help from the locals I've landed some nice fish over the last year living here, mostly from shore.
I started out after snook, tarpon etc and had a blast, but then I realized how many sharks there are down here and that people were targeting them from shore, so I've been totally addicted to that ever since. I read as much as I could find about light tackle sharking (I couldn't afford shark gear at the time - immigration lawyers are expensive!) and used google earth to locate some likely spots. So first trip out I hooked up and landed a very nice lemon, around 6'5"... on a penn 209 and a bionic blade bass rod...! 
You may laugh, and I don't blame you, but that's all I had available at the time, so I did my best to rig it to handle small sharks. This also meant coming up with a castable shark rig as I didn't have a kayak, but with a little sweat and a lot of luck my first shark was on the beach.
Testament to Bass Pro Shops - they make a very strong bass rod! I wouldn't recommend it for sharks though. 
The next time out I had a bit more of an idea what I was doing and landed the beauty in the pic! 7'6"... again on the bass rod! It took 300 yards on me but eventually with the drag locked down and my thumb burnt to a crisp on the spool I managed to stop and turn it. It completely destroyed the reel (it sounds like an old coffee grinder now ) But I got that shark on the beach. I'll post a video some time for everyone's amusement. 
Anyway, I invested in a couple of senator set-ups for medium-sized sharks, belt, harness etc and am looking forward to going after them correctly armed at last. I'm always down for a fishing trip and being quite new to the area I'm looking forward to meeting some local shark fishers who share the passion. I fish hard and am totally committed once I get to the water. My current 'shark crew' is just me and my wife, who is a little gem when it comes to landing big fish and generally assisting on the beach, but we would love to build or join a crew of dedicated shark fishers so we can go after the big boys a bit more safely.
PM me any time, I'm almost always available if there is fishing on the cards. 
Tight lines and all the best.
#1 How did you here about us? Google searches
#2 How long have you been shark fishing? 6 months
#3 Where do you fish mostly? Miami, Everglades, Keys
#4 Do you fish land and boat and if so where? Land mainly
#5 Do you fish the South Florida and the Keys any? Yes, often
#6 Would you like to get together with us and learn more? Absolutely!
#7 Are you interested in becoming a shark club member? Yes
Hey Dan. Welcome aboard.I'm sure you will be able too hook up with board members and get out there and spend some time fishing. What gear do you currently have? Good luck and we look forward to your reports.
Welcome aboard - you will find lots of information and people to fish with here - congratulations on the great catches !!
Thanks! Florida really does have some great fishing.
I currently have a couple of 40-80lb ugly stiks with Senator 6/0s which I thought would be adequate to handle sharks to 8 or 9 feet. What do you think? With just my 98lb wife as crew at the moment I would have a job to beach anything bigger. I have them spooled up with 500 yards of 100lb power pro + 200 yard topshots of 100lb Berkley big game. Once I've beached a few medium-sized sharks I will look at investing in the big gear, but having only landed 4 good size sharks I want to get some more practical experience first.
Dan
Welcome. Those 6/0s are set up perfect with the braid backing and the mono topshot is necessary for South Florida conditions. They are fine for sharks up to around 8-9ft, unless theyre foul hooked. You will get a lot of action out of them this jan-feb during the blacktip migration in palm beach, but once march-june comes i would try to save up for atleast a 12/0, or just skip that step and buy a used 14/0 from somebody. EVERYBODY NEW to sharking thinks a 12/0 is overkill, as did I when i bought mine, until i got spooled twice. Most sharks from shore can be landed with a 9/0 or less, but when you hook the big ones you are going to want to be prepared to land them and not just hold onto your rod and watch all of the line leave the reel!
Thanks for the advice cmoney, I will certainly be looking to upgrade my tackle when I start deliberately targeting the bigger sharks. Those 14/0s are beasts though! I had in the back of my mind the idea of buying an old international 2 80 class and spooling it with braid and a topshot for those big sharks. Would this work as well? I was thinking that the additional drag pressure from these reels would make up for the smaller line capacity compared to a big senator. whenever I look at those big penns they remind me of some sort of industrial winch. 
Dan
me personally wouldnt get a international. i just dont like them. if i were to get a 80w i would look in to the avet 80ws lots of drag and great line capacity. dantheman on here and jwidmann have 1500 yards of 200lb power pro and are only at half a spool. if you dont want a 80w look in to a 50w trx the size of a 9/0 but holds alot of line due to the spool design and they are tipping the scales at 116lbs of drag in full.
Will do, thanks for the tip. Those Avets do look nice! Pricey though. I think that will be a purchase for the new year.
Dan
they are pricey but very well built reels and they are all made here. internationals are made over seas i think. accurate are nice but very pricey and worse then any thing. i know some one that had a smaller accurate and had it blow up pulling against a 3/0
If you can get a deal on an old international two speed that would be fantastic and save you a few bones getting started. You have an excellent attitude about starting and working your way up to the bigger fish - its better for both you and the fish. Your reels you have now are set up perfect and you can accomplish more than you think with them - as stated though when you do hook a bigger fish or foul hook one and it gets into current you will understand that sick feeling of having as much pressure as your gear can put out and watch it still not be enough. The 80w class reels are the perfect shark fishing reel and will catch all but the biggest monsters under the worst conditions. The superior drag and the two speeds are priceless in that regard. Winter time is a good time to start looking as many of the boats are swapping out gear or getting newer stuff and used reels can be had at good prices. Learn your gear and how to service it yourself - it pays off in the long run not only monetarily but also having the confidence that you know every inch of your reel and that it is in top notch fighting condition. Good luck to you and we look forward to seeing all of your future fishing adventures !!
Thanks for the advice cmoney, I will certainly be looking to upgrade my tackle when I start deliberately targeting the bigger sharks. Those 14/0s are beasts though! I had in the back of my mind the idea of buying an old international 2 80 class and spooling it with braid and a topshot for those big sharks. Would this work as well? I was thinking that the additional drag pressure from these reels would make up for the smaller line capacity compared to a big senator. whenever I look at those big penns they remind me of some sort of industrial winch.
Dan
way to go brother Dam hope you enjoy this shark fishing family..we will always have fun fishing together especially on the big hammerhead challenge that may be next year will have another name i heard that...its a rumor.......anyways Dam i wish we can fish together and have fun...enjoy it bro.... 
Welcome to the site, And trust me I know how it is to learn a new way to fish. I am in germany and they fish so much different then we do back home. But at the same time I have changed some of my old ways of fishing because their way is better. I like the way they fish the bottom. By flatting the rod out and using a wine cork to keep the line tight and see the strike that is great for freshwater catfishing One thing I will Never ever do, GO OUT CARP FISHING. LOL
I have an Avet 80w and thats my go to shark reel for all of my big sharks. In my opinion, it is much easier to use than the Penn Senators that i have because of the two speed function. It reels in line so much faster when the big hammers are charging, and gains line easily on the big heavy bulls that dont want to be beached! If youre going for a 2speed reel, definately get atleast an 80w. I'm not saying that the Penn Senators don't work, because they do and have landed an uncountable amount of giant sharks from the beach, but i believe that the technology is increasing and we should take advantage of it.
I'm glad I'm along the right lines then - I'll be looking at an 80w when the time is right. Thanks for all the posts guys, what a great welcome!
Dan
I'm glad I'm along the right lines then - I'll be looking at an 80w when the time is right. Thanks for all the posts guys, what a great welcome!
Dan
for a reel that puts down that kind of drag and is as light and well built as an avet they are pretty cheap ur not gonna find a leverdrag 80 class reel for 650 or lower. i mean u might get a good deal on a tiagra but they retail for 800 or more. and after fishing with a 14/0 the weight difference is incredible its like fishing with a 6/0. the line cost me about 70 bucks for each reel 50 for the power pro and the hardcore cheap bullbuster on top. I do like small reels a lot though, fights more fun, only thing is i want my bait out to where i want it depending on where i fish. line capacity to me isnt just for the hammers its also versatility cuz fishing from land has a lot of obstacles, such as far sandbars and things that require long drops. I remember looking at the prices on reels and just being like wtf hahaha im glad i invested though. It doesnt have to be expensive i keep it simple two shark rods, kayak, tackle, i used to haul around so much crap i looked like an idiot i got a backpack with my stuff and my rods and sleep on the sand NOTHIN BETTER.