THE
NET RESULT
by
Peter J Horsnail
INTRODUCTION
by Editor, Nick Caine.
Choosing a frame and net for your lure-fishing
is much more straightforward than some people would have you believe. Peter
(PJ) Horsnail is a very experienced, enthusiastic all-round angler. A couple
of decades ago he tried his hand at lure-fishing for all sorts of predatory
species. Like most of us, he soon found-out that his traditional small-mesh
net was useless for lure-fishing. Here's PJ's story and suggestions about getting
the right net for your lure-fishing.
FINDING THE RIGHT
FRAME & NET FOR LURE-FISHING
When you began piking, how many of you ever went-out with lures or dead-baits
and with a small-mesh landing-net only to discover that you spent more time
getting your treble hooks out of the mesh than you did fishing and more importantly
that you also possibly endangered the pike? Go on, admit it! Because I did,
for one! And that's because at the time I didn't know any better and nor did
the owner of the tackle shop who sold me the net in the first place even though
I had told him exactly what I'd be fishing for and how.
FISH-CARE
FIRST!
The subject of what sort of mesh is best for lure-fishing has been
talked about on-and-off for years, sometimes in the angling Press, monthly magazines,
Club publications, Conferences, Fish-Ins or in commercial product catalogues
and now on Internet web-sites! In fact only the other day a friend of mine showed
me some banter about nets on one of the Message Boards. This really got me going
so I thought I would write about my own experience in finding the right net
for my lure-fishing.
For starters then, I'd like you to please believe that I really do know what I'm talking about and I'm only telling the truth about nets as I have found from years of practical experiences, some good and some bad. For example, need I bother to even mention the small and micro-mesh nets usually used by other coarse anglers? No, I thought not! Good! Fish care and handling must come first i.e. before any other personal and piking preferences and cost! As far as other specially-designed meshes for lure fishing landing nets go, loads of people have come-up with all sorts of ideas, theories and sometimes just plain marketing hype.
Some companies have tried to give their particular net meshes credibility by getting this or that well-known angler to endorse them. I'm sure you all know of examples of this as well as I do. I've got to be brutally honest and say that this sort of endorsement stuff doesn't carry any weight with me and I sincerely hope that it doesn't mislead any anglers new to lure fishing.
The trouble is that it's usually only after you've paid-out good money for a nice new mesh net that you discover that you've been sold a duff. The main points of this article are to hopefully prevent anglers making the same fairly expensive mistakes that I have done and thus save them money and give them more lure fishing fun and less grief and time with treble hooks getting stuck in the mesh and most important of all, to minimise any possible harm to pike and other predators.
The sad thing is that a lot of the debate is very misleading to say the least; I've read stuff by people who I know have never actually used the nets that they are either praising or criticising. Fact! Amazing but it's true .. and they all know who they are! Anyway, back to the main points of my message.
FRAME:
Material, Strength, Size and Shape
Frames need to be both light-weight and strong. I've used re-enforced plastic
ones, plastic-coated metal ones and aluminium alloy ones and I have to say that
I prefer the plain alloy ones. I have had trouble with plastic ones breaking
and with the plastic coating on others getting damaged and water getting inside
and corroding the metal frame. Until recently I had been using a good plain
alloy frame with a circular cross-section but now I'm a convert to the ones
with a square cross-section for the simple reason that they're so much stronger
and not much heavier!
My choice of frame shape e.g. circular or triangular, and size e.g. 30, 40 or 50 inch, is first to get the best fish-care and handling that I can and secondly to suit my own convenience. I prefer triangular frames for a number of reasons:- (1) there is no frame along the edge over which I draw the pike when I'm landing it. (2) the frame can be quickly and easily collapsed to fold it away for easy carrying and storage.
I
know that a lot of anglers prefer circular frames and I can see why. It's just
that they aren't (usually!) collapsible or foldable and I find that they are
generally that bit more cumbersome to carry and store. As for size of frame,
unless you're regularly catching 20 and 30 lb pike (I wish!), something of 30
to 40 inches is OK for everyday use. I use a 40" triangular frame and am very
happy with it but I regularly fish with other pikers, quite a few of whom seem
to prefer the circular-framed types.
I've netted big pike with both types and my own personal opinion is that maybe, just maybe, my triangular-shaped one has the edge in most respects but in snaggy situations when the arms of my triangular net sometimes get stuck in the reeds, the circular frames are sometimes easier and quicker to get under the pike. It's also a lot easier to walk through undergrowth with a circular net compared with a triangular one and easier to wade with one too .... my goodness, I've almost converted myself!
Seriously though, if I had to make the choice between circular and triangular frames, I would say use a big triangular one if you are an out-and-out big piker, and if you are an all-round lure-anger who catches all sort of predators, large and small, then a circular frame would probably be better. Sharpes do a frame that I like because it's so strong, with a square cross-section and made out of aircraft specification aluminium alloy.
NET
MESH
In my opinion,
there's no need for any more debate about knotted mesh because excellent knotless
meshes are available these days that are virtually completely knotless except
for some round the frame loops and for sure this is indeed one of the most critical
areas needing close attention when you're landing a fish.
Some tackle designers have spent time and money on new designs, some good, some hair-brained, but the key issues are whether or not they do the job i.e. are good for fish and bad for treble hooks and whether they can be manufactured and sold at a profitable price in what must be a much smaller market than the micro-mesh one. Not an easy compromise, and believe me. A lot of things in life and fishing are a compromise.
NET
MESH: Hole Size
I guess mesh size is probably the feature of meshes that creates
the greatest debate. Too small, and the mesh will trap those trebles and may
injure the fish and/or you the angler. Too large, and fins may get stuck in
the mesh. What's the optimum size then? Well, I've used the frames and nets
from Sharpes for a good few years. The mesh is nice and soft and has a knotless
mesh of about 18 mm square, 25 mm across the diagonal. I've read a lot of stuff
about mesh sizes but I've rarely if ever heard anyone talk about the diagonal
size which after all is the largest dimension!
NET: Mesh Diameter
and Depth
The actual diameter of the woven fibres or whatever that are used to make
the net is also fairly important, I think. Once again, I've used nets with what
I call standard diameter and large diameter.
The depth (drop) of nets is another issue that seems to cause a lot of ill-informed debate and from what I can gather a lot of people who say this and that about depth of nets can't have caught anything of any size otherwise they wouldn't say what they do. A depth of 25 or 30 inches is fine for everyday piking and lure-fishing. For big pike then it makes sense to maybe go for a deeper net and I guess that big pike can crop-up anywhere, anytime, but mainly they're in big waters with plenty of prey fish, aren't they? Anyway, I digress!
NET: Mesh Material and
Texture
The
texture of the woven fibres and other materials used to make the mesh is another
very contentious matter but for the life of me I can't imagine how a soft mesh
can be more harmful to pike and other predators than a rough, tough mesh. Once
soaked with water, my mesh doesn't seem to pick-up much slime at all from the
fish that I catch. I have read (too often!) that a non-absorbent hard mesh is
better for fish - my response to that is unprintable! I mean, if that's the
case, why don't we use tough, hard unhooking mats then? Again, there's the very
difficult Catch 22 type situation where you want the mesh to be kind to fish
and at the same time to be tough and unkind to trebles i.e. reducing the number
of times that trebles get stuck in the mesh.
HANDLE,
BOSS, JOINT OR HINGE
After trying most different types of handle and joints, folding, fixed and telescopic,
I have finally opted for a compromise on the basis of strength: I no longer
use a folding net, but instead for several years now I have had a gye net with
a fixed handle and a leather carrying strap that also acts and an extension.
This set-up has a very strong boss where the handle joins the frame and handle.
FISH CARE ESSENTIALS
Whatever
the frame or net you choose and use for your piking, there are some other essential
accessories that all pikers should carry: there's no point in having the best
frame and net in the world if you promptly dump your beautiful pike on hard
ground while you unhook it. An unhooking mat is good to carry.
Also a pair of very tough wire-cutters or side-cutters are essential to cut hooks free from the net or elsewhere if and when necessary. Long-nosed pliers are better than forceps in a lot of situations too. Also it's no good netting a big pike carefully, unhooking it on a nice soft wet mat and then picking it up and holding it against your dry clothing, buttons, zips etc., while you have your photo taken, is it?
Also, please don't keep any fish out of water any longer than you absolutely have to. I don't like being held underwater and I'm sure that pike don't like being kept out of it either.
SUMMARY
: THE NET RESULT
Frame: 40 inch or larger triangular frame for all-out piking; 30
inch circular alloy frame for general all-round lure-fishing. Net: Soft, woven,
knotless mesh with largest dimension of holes not more than about 20 to 25 mm
(1 inch) across the diameter, with a depth of 25 to 30 inches or more. Accessories:
Always carry side-cutters and a good pair of long-nosed pliers. Unhooking mats-come-weigh
slings are very handy too and offer top-notch fish care. Careful Holding, Unhooking
and Release ... in the water!
And finally, if at all possible I don't net my fish at all, or take them out of the water! After all, unless you must weigh and photograph it, there's no point. Whenever I can, gently hold and unhook fish by hand without taking them out of the water. I hold them gently to make as sure as I can that they have fully recovered and then release them. No net, no unhooking mat!
Peter "PJ" Horsnail