Fish Scales...taking the estimating out of the equation

[BeeGuy]

There seems to be a great disparity between what people think a fish weighs based on a picture.

There also seems to be a general consensus that scales are often wrong/poor quality.

Can anyone suggest a quality [accurate] scale that is a reasonable price and more importantly, will not cause undue harm or stress to a fish.

I know that any extra handling causes undue stress, so, for the sake of argument, lets assume that a scale which does not hook in and around the gills to be appropriate. Leave the other commentary out of this thread please.

So, what are y'all using to get quick, accurate weights??

Cheers,

LB

[BBJTKLE&FISHINGADVENTURES]

You can only buy cheep inacurite scales , If you want a real weight go spend a pretty penny on a government balanced scale I think they call them . Then its official . Not very portable though LOL .

[BGSH]

the berkley one for 49.95 is very accuate digital scale, it works like magic

[BeeGuy]

Ya, I'm trying to avoid carrying a triple-beam balance around the water....

[BeeGuy]

Ha. Does magic require batteries?

[TyreeUM]

Get a chatillon, they are as accurate as they come...digital scales are garbage..http://www.chatillon.com/Our%20Produ...fishscale.html

[BGSH]

this scale works great

[billie]

Weigh the fish in the net and deduct the net to reduce stress.

Pull one scale against another when you pick one out. They should read the same. Try a few and different brands to ensure accurate readings.

[BeeGuy]

Tyree, those are pretty nice. Starting at about $100. My wife says it's out of my price range. Also, does it hook through the mouth?

I suppose you could rig up a light weight craddle for one of those pretty easily.

Not a bad idea. I'll go throw a toonie in the swear jar.

[BeeGuy]

Weigh the net, brilliant Billie!

[Geezle]

Originally Posted by best guide shawn homeniuk

this scale works great

I use the same one...no complaints so far

[icefisher11]

Boga Grips by far the best ive ever owned. It is a little expensive but a great tool.

[Cal]

Or just keep track of the dimensions, no matter what scale you use people are going to argue if the fish looks small. The tape measure doesnt lie and a fat 40" pike doesnt fight any harder than a skinny one. The lbs stuff is just for the ego.

[BobLoblaw]

Who needs a scale?
Just put a pic up on the AO forum.
If you think the fish weighs around 15 lbs, say you weighed it & it was 20 lbs.
You'll instantly have about 20 of our resident experts tell you the exact weight of that fish. Their expert guesses will range from 6 lbs to 12 lbs; take the average of those weights, add 40% to account for angler envy & you'll have a very close estimate of the weight of your fish. This method is scientifically proven to be 100% accurate 36.25% of the time.

Personally, I don't really think much about weights of fish; a picture & a measurement is plenty good for me.

[TrollGRG]

Like the others mentioned - just weight the fish in the net - unless you are using a seine net from a west coast fishing boat, it won't make much difference anyway.

Besides - you are going to lie about the weight anyway.

[pickrel pat]

weigh the net by itself, weigh the fish in the net, subtract the net weight. most higher end scales nowadays are pretty darn accurate. you get what you pay for.

[TyreeUM]

Originally Posted by BobLoblaw

Who needs a scale?
Just put a pic up on the AO forum.
If you think the fish weighs around 15 lbs, say you weighed it & it was 20 lbs.
You'll instantly have about 20 of our resident experts tell you the exact weight of that fish. Their expert guesses will range from 6 lbs to 12 lbs; take the average of those weights, add 40% to account for angler envy & you'll have a very close estimate of the weight of your fish. This method is scientifically proven to be 100% accurate 36.25% of the time.

Personally, I don't really think much about weights of fish; a picture & a measurement is plenty good for me.

haha this is brilliant...60% of the time this method works everytime!

[boot]

Originally Posted by BobLoblaw

add 40% to account for angler envy & you'll have a very close estimate of the weight of your fish

Lol, too funny... yet true!

[horsetrader]

Originally Posted by best guide shawn homeniuk

this scale works great

No wonder your fish are so heavy BEST your starting out 8.7 kg ahead.......

[thorne]

Originally Posted by Geezle

I use the same one...no complaints so far

X3 on this one...I have the older digital model, have had it for about 10 years or so and check it periodically to insure accuracy

[chubbdarter]

Originally Posted by best guide shawn homeniuk

this scale works great

nice pic...thanks for posting and sharing

[BGSH]

your welcome chubbdarter

[chubbdarter]

last saturday i found a huge pike with a pelican jammed in its mouth.

[TyreeUM]

Originally Posted by chubbdarter

last saturday i found a huge pike with a pelican jammed in its mouth.

how much of the pelican's body has to be exposed to disqualify it counting towards the weight of the pike?

[pickrel pat]

Originally Posted by chubbdarter

last saturday i found a huge pike with a pelican jammed in its mouth.

i found a huge pike with a berkly digital scale in her mouth!

[horsetrader]

Originally Posted by pickrel pat

i found a huge pike with a berkly digital scale in her mouth!

Hey thats mine lost it at wizard

[chubbdarter]

Originally Posted by horsetrader

Hey thats mine lost my virginity to a manatee

...................

i saw dead pelicans

[BGSH]

wow horsetrader thats interesting

[Zuludog]

Originally Posted by icefisher11

Boga Grips by far the best ive ever owned. It is a little expensive but a great tool.

x2 and they don't harm the fish like some other grips do.

[horsetrader]

Originally Posted by chubbdarter

...................

i saw dead pelicans

Originally Posted by best guide shawn homeniuk

wow horsetrader thats interesting

Ya i thought it would be more interesting then dead pelicans