Removing fish scales

[Kokaneeranger]

Just wondering if anyone has any unique way to remove scales, especially on white fish. Anyone have an old family secret? , special tool handed down from their grand dad?, . I seem to make a heeluva mess taking the scales off the whites.

[WayneChristie]

I used to just gut them, slice along the back and peel the whole skin off with a pair of pliers. I dont like eating fish skin :bad_boys_20:

[Gust]

We have a doo-hicky that is essentially chopstick tips on a rotating disc,, and a wire brush.

[Mike_W]

It's messy ...do it on the ice.

[Gust]

It's messy ...do it on the ice.

I heard that this was Nike's original motto, but then they shortened it to save money with their Bangladeshi embroiderers.

[BPman]

Fillet them with a Rapala filleting knife out on the lake but leave a piece of skin on until you get home then slice it off too. If just taking off the scales, do it out on the lake with a wire brush used by welders to take scale off a weld or rust off steel.

[anthony5]

Best way to remove scales on any fish is take your fillet knife and scrape them off starting at the tail and working towards the head. Whitefish have large scales and will make a big mess in the work area.

[Mike_W]

Whites have a large fat/blood line I fillet mine boneless and remove this blood line. I have left the skin on in attempt to make it nice and crispy (love salmon skin with scales) but it never seems to crisp up nice when scaled.
For the mess I don't see any benefit to scaling whites.

[Gust]

Fillet them with a Rapala filleting knife out on the lake but leave a piece of skin on until you get home then slice it off too. If just taking off the scales, do it out on the lake with a wire brush used by welders to take scale off a weld or rust off steel.

The trick to getting a new brush to working really well is to get a tiny bend at the end of each wire on the brush,, you can do this with a hammer. just a bit of a curl is needed. it takes care of the scales with less damage to the skin.

[EZM]

The bit of fat and discolored meat right under the skin (bloodline) does not taste very good.

I'd suggest filleting them and removing that disgusting skin ......

[Zanzibar]

Best way to scale a fish is with a pressure washer. Make sure it's on rinse, step on the tail, and start spraying from the tail forward. You're gonna have scales everywhere but the fish. Might be able to use the clamps they have on the walls to hold your mud flaps when you wash them.

[Advantage Taxidermy]

I saw. A thing a a lodge once beer bottle. Caps nailed upside down on a peice of wood worked real slick

[Flieguy]

if you do it at home, do it underwater in your sink or bathtub (latter only recommended for bachelors). This way the scales won't fly everywhere.

[Kim473]

Do it on the lake. Gut and bleed. Do the rest at home.

[bessiedog]

if you do it at home, do it underwater in your sink or bathtub (latter only recommended for bachelors). This way the scales won't fly everywhere.

Works great!

Fill the sink and off you go.

[Red Bullets]

For whitefish the best thing I have found is a tablespoon. Put the spoon so the top of the spoon is what goes against the scales and skin. Should come off in long strips if done right. Do it over a newspaper or a basin. Shouldn't be any flying scales. Then dress or fillet the fish after scaling.

Whitefish skin will crisp up nicely if done in clarified butter. Whitefish skin is fatty so you almost have to treat the skin like bacon. Takes a few minutes to golden the skin up.

[wbaj]

:shark:I saw. A thing a a lodge once beer bottle. Caps nailed upside down on a peice of wood worked real slick

This works well but do it on the ice. Nail about 10 beer bottle caps upside down on a short piece of 2 x 4. Grap the fish by the tail and scrape forward using the upside down bottle caps against the skin. The scales fly off!
I like to smoke them with the skin on as it tends to keep the fish moist. I like best them with the scales off.

[Redfrog]

We used to catch lots of perch and bass and scale them.

Power drill and a used reamer. Easy peasy. The scales do not fly all over the place and it only takes a few seconds to do a fish. I always used a corded drill,but cordless would work well on the lake.:)

[Papacorn]

Get one of these and you'll never use anything else.

http://www.equinenow.com/store-item-29733

[Geezle]

Get one of these and you'll never use anything else.

http://www.equinenow.com/store-item-29733

With this being your first post and you suggesting a product I thought you might be a spammer, but you're right, a curry comb probably would work well :)

[EZM]

Found a small stainless steel wire brush at Canuck Tire with a plastic handle. Head is roughly 4" long x 1.5" wide and works very well .....

[fishtank]

get a serrated knife( some fillet knife have a a serrated section on the blade) then work against the scale from the tail side

[cube]

Personally I have used one of these for about 40 years now. Works great, much faster than a knife and dirt cheap.

http://www.basspro.com/Fish-Scaler/product/104333/

Of course if you have a lot of fish to do something like this http://www.theultimatefishscaler.com/ would be nice.

[Mark]

I like a welder's wire brush. I haven't found anything better.

[ak-71]

Any knife tail to head before gutting (can be messy with a flexible knife). For whitefish even your thumb nail should work for the most of the fish if it's not dry or frozen.
I smoke or sometimes bake them with scales and peel the skin of when done.