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Shark clips (also widely known as longline clips or tuna clips) are heavy-duty, spring-loaded fasteners made of marine-grade stainless steel wire. They operate on the exact same fundamental mechanism as a standard safety pin, but they are engineered to handle immense tension and harsh underwater environments without opening accidentally. [1, 2, 3]

Here is exactly how they work and how they are used:

1. The Locking Mechanism

• Spring Tension: The loop or coil at the base of the clip acts as a powerful spring. This spring constantly forces the long arm upward and outward against the locking gate. [1]
• The Gate: At the tip of the clip, the wire is bent into a specialized geometric “hook” or gate.
• To Open: You manually squeeze the long arm inward (compressing the spring) and slide it sideways out of the hooked gate slot. [1]
• To Close: You squeeze the arm again, guide it back into the channel, and release it. The natural outward pressure of the spring snaps and locks the arm securely inside the gate. [1]

2. Main Applications & How They Are Deployed

• Commercial & Recreational Longline Fishing: Anglers use these clips to rapidly snap short fishing lines (called “traces” or “snoods”) onto a main thick backbone line. They allow you to attach and detach pre-baited hooks in seconds as the main line is fed out or reeled into a boat.
• Spearfishing & Freediving: They are heavily used to tether essential equipment together. Divers commonly use a shark clip to connect a speargun to a floatline, attach fish stringers to their float, or lock heavy-duty rigging gear in place underwater where standard plastic clips would snap.
• Integrated Swivels: Many shark clips feature a heavy-duty barrel swivel built into the base loop. This allows whatever line or float is attached to spin completely free, preventing the thrashing of a fish or heavy water currents from twisting and ruining the line. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]

Are you setting up gear for spearfishing rigging, longline fishing, or another application? I can provide specific steps or knots for connecting it to your line.