We mainly catch bass and panfish while fishing and have a shallow rubber net for that. But on occasion we will catch larger fish like Northern Pike, Walleye and Musky. Earlier this year my son caught a Musky and I had to scoop the tail end and lift it out of the water with the fishing line. Yes, my net was too small. So after looking at nets online I can't tell what size to get. The Musky nets are very expensive. How do you size and pick out a good net?
Fishing Equipment
How to pick a net for fishing.
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I have the same problem jbird. I have a smaller rubber net that's good for bass and I've gotten a couple walleye around 28" in it. But bigger pike or musky no way, and the water I fish has both. I run a bass boat and honestly just the rubber net is already a pain as I can't stow it anywhere, but its helped me land some pig bass so it's worth it. All my compartments are full and all I keep on the deck are rods. I decided against a bigger net or even a stow away net as it's just more of a hassle for me. I keep a kevlar fishing glove that's helped me land some 30"+ pike ok and hopefully bigger if it comes to it. Those fish never saw the inside of the boat, grabbed unhooked and released boatside. For me landing 1 big fish isn't worth the hassle of an extra or bigger net. If I lose a fish of a lifetime of a species I never fish for at the boat so be it. Lost a 40"+ musky last summer and I'm fine with it. I fish alone so I'm not getting any pics anyway. Your situation may differ however.
When I was ~12 years old my dad lost the biggest fish of my life while trying to net it up on LVD. To this day he still tells the story about how the pike was rainbowing a good foot out of either side of the net because it was a shallow rubber net. It clearly haunts him a little more than me, all I remember is him waist deep over the side of the boat trying to grab it as it swam away.
Anyways, he purchased a cheap but deep poly net after that. Still used the rubber one 9 times outta 10 because it's more convenient with less tangles. Deep poly net ~$30-50, deep rubber/musky net ~$100-150. You can't put a price on the fish of a lifetime.
I have a Stowmaster musky net that I bring along when I am fishing lakes that have musky even if I won't be fishing for them. The Stowmaster folds up nicely for storage, I don't have the largest size, mine is the next size down, and seams to be good enough for musky. Unfortunately your going to spend a lot for a musky net.
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