New Missouri State Record Largemouth!

[eric1978]

Cool that he let her go. The trotline part...meh, no real accomplishment in my book. The goldfish did all the work.

[ness]

The goldfish did all the work.

LOL

[Mitch f]

State record on a trot line.........

Sung to the tune of dueling banjos:

Would you play sum lynyrd skynyrd please

Give me three steps or Mr Breeze

Would you play sum Lynurd Skynyrd please

[Chief Grey Bear]

Cool that he let her go. The trotline part...meh, no real accomplishment in my book. The goldfish did all the work.

That not really fair to say. I think any record by any legal means is an accomplishment.

I know when I was younger, dad and would go out after dark during the week, after he worked all day, with a Coleman latern and get leeches. And before it got dark we would work the creeks for black perch. No other perch would do. And they couldn't be too big. We only wanted the one in the 4 - 7 inch range. We would get home about midnight and then have to put the bait away and take a bath. He would then be at work at 6 the next morning.

And that was the easy part. The building and setting a trotline is not as easy as just tossing it in the water. Dad made all of his own. Plus he had a certain way of setting them that you would never know they were there. You had to know where they were. Then you have to take the time to run them and bait them. It just a heck of a lot of time and effort to operate a trotline. A lot more than just tossing a crankbait here and there.

Not busting your chops. Just don't know if you have spent time messing with trotlines and if you are aware that it is one hell of a lot of work.

[eric1978]

I'm sure it takes some physical effort to set a trotline, no argument there...but it doesn't take much skill to put a goldfish on a hook. He didn't fool that bass, the goldfish did. That was my point.

[ness]

I've got a buddy that fishes for cats just like what you're describing Chief. I've never done it, but can appreciate what goes into it.

Do you still do it?

[Stoneroller]

That confirms my belief that length/girth measurements don't accurately reflect the actual weight.

length/weight conversions are based on extrapolation of qualitative and quantitative data analysis. What does that mean? They measured a whole bunch of fish, then put those measurements on a graph. the majority of fish at a given length fall around a certain weight. So that is the 'average' weight for that class. (I say average because it could be the 'mean' I don't recall which and it might actually depend on the actual conversion table in use.) There are many, many variables that effect the actual weight of any given fish.

an average 23.5 inch bass would be around 7.75lbs based on the table you were looking at. and yeah, he would have gotten shorted had he simply converted. the better tables use length and girth measurements to determine weight. still not as accurate as a certified scale, but certainly better than just length.

[Chief Grey Bear]

I'm sure it takes some physical effort to set a trotline, no argument there...but it doesn't take much skill to put a goldfish on a hook. He didn't fool that bass, the goldfish did. That was my point.

You are correct in that the simple action of placing a goldfish on a hook doesn't seem like much of a skill. And niether is tying on a crankbait. You didn't fool those brownies you caught, the crankbait did. I understand where you are comming from. Simply pulling a fish off of a trotline as it is envisioned, doesn't seem like much of a feat. But there is a lot more involved than most think.

I've got a buddy that fishes for cats just like what you're describing Chief. I've never done it, but can appreciate what goes into it. Do you still do it?

I started back into last summer. My son after listen to stories from his grampa, wanted to try it. So we did over Labor Day weekend and scored pretty good. It wasn't a long one like my dad used to do but we had about 15 or 20 hooks. I think we averaged about 7 fish a day all round 5 lbs.

It really was a lot of fun. I think we will do it some more this year. As close as I live to Grand, which is where I cut my trotline teeth, I should set some over there. At least some jugs. I think dads biggest on a jug was 65lbs. I have also seen some 6/0 hooks bent straight.

[eric1978]

You are correct in that the simple action of placing a goldfish on a hook doesn't seem like much of a skill. And niether is tying on a crankbait. You didn't fool those brownies you caught, the crankbait did. I understand where you are comming from. Simply pulling a fish off of a trotline as it is envisioned, doesn't seem like much of a feat. But there is a lot more involved than most think.

A crankbait is worthless without a human imparting action to it. The same can't be said for live bait. The only skill involved in setting trotlines is choosing what color baitfish, tying good knots, setting the line in the right place, and not drinking so much beer afterward that you can't find it again later.

[Chief Grey Bear]

A crankbait is worthless without a human imparting action to it. The same can't be said for live bait. The only skill involved in setting trotlines is choosing what color baitfish, tying good knots, setting the line in the right place, and not drinking so much beer afterward that you can't find it again later.

Opposed to simply turning the handle on a reel???