Definition
Fishing — Fishing is the downhole operation of recovering or removing lost, stuck, or broken equipment (a "fish") from a wellbore using specialized tools such as overshots, spears, and jars so drilling or completion can resume.
Also known as: fishing, fishing operation, downhole fishing
What fishing involves
Fishing is the recovery of anything lost or stuck in the hole — a parted drill string, a stuck BHA, a dropped tool, or junk on bottom. The object to be retrieved is called the fish. A fishing operation begins by identifying the fish and its top, dressing a fishing string with the right catching tool, and running in to engage and free it. Success depends on accurate diagnosis of what is downhole and why it stuck.
Common tools and technique
An overshot grips the outside of a fish, a releasing spear grips the inside, and taps and dies thread into or over a fish. Jars and accelerators deliver impact to free a stuck fish, while junk mills and junk baskets grind and collect debris that cannot be caught. Locating the free point and performing a back-off may be needed to recover the free portion of a stuck string before fishing the remainder.
Why it matters for rentals
Fishing is unplanned and tool-intensive, so operators seldom stock the full range of catching, milling, and jarring tools.
Our fishing tools cover the full recovery kit for rental — contact us with your fish description and we’ll assemble a fishing string.