Bass Fishing Forum - Westernbass.com

I've been having a discussion with some of my friends on the correct way to weigh a bass with the portable digital scales.

I feel that you should NOT stick the scale hook into the gill plate because you take the chance of damaging the gills thereby harming the bass. I've always just poked a hole through the thin skin membrane in the lower lip or on the side of the jaw.

So where do you hook the bass to get a weight?

I'm with you Mike,

The gills are a very sensitive area and even a little abrasion can cause hemmorhaging.

Lower lip is the way to go!

Use the XTools and you do not have to put any holes in the fish. You would be amazed at the size of the rips/holes in some of the fish that I see while weighing fish as weigh master. Sometimes it is the entire jaw area ripped out..................

I've used my float clips through the lip, then hang using the clip. Leaves a smaller hole and seems easier to get in than using the hook from the scale. Also, I've weighed multiple fish in a weigh bag, the release the fish and weigh the bag and deduct to get weight of fish - when I'm screwing around to see how my weight guessing is or when my brotheri -in-law is in town.

XTools works great, Life Tags on a scale work fine, or sticking the hook in the corner of the gill plate works fine also. You just have to be careful not to scratch the gill rakers if your hook point is sharp.

IMHO extra holes are NOT a good thing, and I do whatever I can to avoid giving them bubblers!

Roger

I, for one, would really like to see all weigh-ins use either a weigh bag or basket set up.
In that way no further damage is done to the lip/jaw of the fish.
Bill K

I use to just sharpin the hook on my scale and poke it through the lower lip. But now I use a mesh laundry bag. This way if I am not in position to weight the fish at that exact moment I can hold her in the water til I'm ready. I fish from a float tube in alot in back water where there is no shore line for me to get to. So this kind of bag really works nice.

Please consider using one of the bags made for weighing individual fish. During tournaments, we have used a culling bag which is a much smaller version of the bag used to carry your fish to the weigh in. It comes in two sizes. The fish is safer, suffers no holes, and seems to flop a whole lot less once in the bag. Of course, you have to deduct the weight of the bag but that is easy. ( bag em products, I think).

I think poking a hole in a fish, regardless of where you poke the hole, is a very bad idea. You are creating a portal for infection, and possibly permanent damage. If you take your time you can easily get the hook between the last gill arch and the gill plate. Just take your time and it causes absolutely no problems or harm. Cant say how many fish I have caught that have giant holes in their mouths because of scales/balance beams/cull floats, but it turns my stomach every time I see it. Franks tract is the worst.

Steve wrote:I think poking a hole in a fish, regardless of where you poke the hole, is a very bad idea. You are creating a portal for infection, and possibly permanent damage. If you take your time you can easily get the hook between the last gill arch and the gill plate. Just take your time and it causes absolutely no problems or harm. Cant say how many fish I have caught that have giant holes in their mouths because of scales/balance beams/cull floats, but it turns my stomach every time I see it. Franks tract is the worst.

I agree.. A buddy and I discussed this a few times and I see it this way as well..