Lucky Craft Man

I always enjoying seeing what peoples “lists” would be when it come to fishing. As James said, this is a list for where he is from and where he fishes. My list would probably have 3 or 4 spinning rods, because I fish the Great Lakes mostly. I just love the variety in fishing.

I have had 3 replicas shipped from Wisconsin to Pennsylvania and one from California to Pennsylvania. All arrived in great shape. Those replica makers know how to package those works of art. I don’t think I would worry.

I have to admit, I have always loved this debate. Actually, I like thinking about all the major species I fish for and what their size equivalence would be compared to the Gold Standard of the 10lb Largemouth. What makes it a challenge is all the different fisheries and the “depends where you fish” argument. However, I like to think of it as there are no constraints where you can fish, what would the comparison be. Since not many of us really have that opportunity and data, except for maybe Dwight due to his years of being able to fish prime Smallmouth and Largemouth waters, I would have to defer to his opinion. With that being said, I know Dwight has also fished prime water for walleye, musky, northern pike, lake trout, etc. and I would love to hear where he thinks the trophy threshold is for all those fish when compared to the 10lb. Largemouth.

I am going with a Burbot. I’ve tried in some harsh conditions at night to try and catch one, but have yet to do so.

That is the one thing about Joe Fittante, you will wait a while for one of his masterpieces. In my opinion, it is worth the wait. I remember you posting you were thinking about ordering a replica from him. Make sure you post a picture when you recieve it. As I mentioned, I love seeing different replicas.

This was my 5th Replica and I love looking at every one. I hope I am lucky enough to catch more Replica Worthy Fish and have my house look like a Cabelas (though, my wife might veto that idea, but that's my plan). Joe does a great job capturing that dynamic still pose. Thanks Dwight! I know there are much bigger Walleye out there, but I figured I coulldn't wait as I never fish for them and just like designing replica poses..haha. Thanks A-Jay. No, the pictures don't really do it justice as the most captivating part is the merging of the 2-D image with the 3-D look of the Walleye, Rocks, and Lure. Thanks Thanks again. I appreciate the comments. Thanks. Joe does incredible work. I just need to catch more fish for him to do before he decides to retire one day. I don't have a back up guy since Lyons & O'haver closed.

I posted about catching this Walleye in the Spring... I debated about whether to get a Replica made of this Fish or not (as there are certainly bigger Walleye out there). However, I realized a nice Walleye Replica would look better than any decoration my wife may choose (don't get me wrong, she has good taste in interier design, I just think a good looking Replica Display is like a work of Art and something I would prefer to look at). Instead of shopping around for guys who could do the work, I went back to the guy who did my Smallmouth Replica Display and Musky Replica (Joe Fittante of Fittante Taxidermy & Fish Replica). I figured why look around when you already found one of the best. Here's the work he has done for me in the past... As I like to do, I made a sketch of how I wanted the Fish and Rocks to be made and sent it off to Joe. Well, Joe took that drawing and delivered gold, like he always does. The Replica and Rocks arrived a few days before Christmas and were put up for a Christmas Day Surprise (the surprise was mostly for my wife as she didn't know I ordered it and I figured she couldn't tell me to take something down that Santa delivered, could she?) Without the bow... The best part of the Surprise was that my wife actually liked it. She said it "had character with good colors and clean presentation," vs. the Musky replica that she is not a fan of, because it is "too big" (a problem I was happy about). I hope you guys don't mind me sharing my Christmas Gift with you all as I do enjoy seeing other Replicas people have done. Also, Happy Holidays to you all and may 2021 bring a Replica Worthy Fish Catching Year.

Make sure to post pictures of the replica when it’s done. I love seeing those works of “art” as I an quite the collector as well...haha.

Who is doing your replica?

A bump board is a wonderful thing. Your office may have to institute a measuring device requirement (i.e., Bump Board) into this contest to help eliminate the need for photographic interpretation. I’m not sure of the prize, but if I were the other guy, I think he has a legitimate argument over the skepticism of 41” for your fish (assuming theirs is real close to that, like 40.5”).

My buddy and I thought maybe we would give the Lake Trout run a shot as we never really targetted them before. After floundering for most of the day trying to figure out what to do and where to go, we stumbled upon what looked like just a stack of fish on the bottom. About the third cast into this spot, something hit HARD. After a nice fight, we slipped him into the net... Not a giant by any means, but it certainly was a fun catch.

My Buddy and I were out fishing and not doing particularly well. During the really slow period we started talking about different fishing techniques when he asked if I had ever caught a fish on an A-Rig. I told him I had an A-Rig (I bet all of us do), but never even fished it (like I assume a lot of us haven’t). He then said, “Well, if you have it, I challenge you to catch a fish on one today.” I figured, what did I have to lose as we weren’t really doing great on anything else, so Challenge Accepted. I untangled the wires from the hooks of other lures and threw on whatever paddle tails I had. Then I chucked that hunk of bent wire and flailing rubber out into the vast expanse. Well, it didn’t take long as this fish absolutely crushed that A-Rig on my second cast. She had a belly that was so abnormally fat, it looked like it is trying to bulge out of the picture. She went 6lb 6oz., which is a fish that will turn around any slow day. After I released the fish, I turned to my Buddy and said, “Challenge Complete.”

WOW! That is a BIG Flathead!! Great Story and fish. Thanks for sharing.

Nice! Classic pose. I think you will be more than satisfied. I have had my display for over 2 months and I still just stand there and stare at it in admiration. I suspect you will, too, once yours is finished.

Congratulations on the Catch! What pose did you choose and are you getting anything special done (e.g., rocks, wood, etc.)?

Thanks and I have to say, I enjoyed the side banter about world records.

Well, I appreciate the kind words. I was using 6lb. Test on a Medium Light Spinning Rod, but Walleye aren't the worlds greatest fighting fish...haha. However, I will say, I wasn't really thinking Walleye after I knew it wasn't a Smallmouth, because all the other Walleye I have accidently caught did not pull like this sucker did. She did pull the drag out some, which made the whole fish catching experience fun.

It was on Lake Erie, which for that waterway, people certainly catch bigger ones. However, being that I never fish for them, I may go the rest of my life without catching one larger. Thanks Roger! You may need to post those categories for all the main species of Freshwater Fish for reference (I would be especially interested in your Smallmouth and Musky Class Levels). That was very useful in putting the fish I caught in perspective. Thanks A-Jay. I'm pretty sure you know that place. And I agree, that maybe one of my better "presentations" as there was so much belly fat, I could tuck those fingers right in to make for a "clean" hold (which consiquently makes the fish look really big...heh heh) I don't know about a Trophy Catcher as this one was totally by accident. Now if I was targetting Walleye, then I would be a little more proud of this catch, but as my hat says, this was a "Lucky" happenstance. As far as a replica goes, I mentioned to my wife if she would be opposed to another fish on the wall and she said, "As soon as my home improvement projects are paid for, you can get a replica of that fish." That is a code phrase for "Never."

I apologize for my ignorance on this subject as I am not a Walleye Fisherman by any means. I have caught a handful of Walleye by accident over the years Smallmouth fishing, which was the case this past weekend. I hooked this Walleye on a drop shot and thought I hit pay dirt with a big Smallmouth. After about 10 seconds, I realized the fish wasn't coming up, like Smallmouth do, and I had something else on. It turned out to be this 31.5" x 17" Walleye that weighed 10lb. 10oz. I know where the Trophy Threshold is for Smallmouth Bass, Largemouth Bass, Musky, Trout and Steelhead lie (all fish I persue regularly), but I have no idea what guys in the Walleye World consider a Trophy Fish. I do understand this is a big fish, but in searching for what people consider a Trophy, I have seen guys who say a Trophy is over 10lb, but other guys say you don't have a Trophy on your hands unless you break 13lbs. Also, maybe length is more of a consideration, like for musky. If so, what would a Trophy length be for a Walleye? I really have no clue (I am so out of touch with the Walleye Community). I figured I would open up the Question here as I don't really participate in any other fishing forum. Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

The thought of killing any one of those fish wouldn’t even cross my mind. I have too much respect for what that fish had to navigate through to survive that long to reach that size. Plus, with artists like Joe out there, I think a replica for anyone considering wanting a fish hanging on the wall is a no brainer. Also, A “Golden Stringer” Replica would be a cool display! I may need to come down to Florida and spend some time down there learning to catch a 10 pounder, as I wouldn’t mind adding one of those to my replica collection. Yeah, those Gobies really fattened up those Smallmouth. However, even with an endless Goby buffet at their disposal, I’m not naive to understand how rare a 7 pounder is, hence why I felt I needed to commemorate such a lucky achievement. As far a guide goes, maybe if I had a guide, it wouldn’t have taken me so long to have broken that threshold...haha.

Oh Man, that’s a blast from the past!

I have three little girls and I asked them if any of them would want to hang that display in their house when they got older. There didn't seem to be much interest, so you may see this in a yard sale sooner than later...haha. Well, for me three 7 lb. Largemouth would be incredible being that the biggest largemouth I have ever caught was 5 lbs. It's hard to fish for Largemouth when you have a Smallmouth fishery like Erie not too far away.

I have to admit, I have been very lucky in the replica realm. I have 4 (King Salmon, Shark, Musky, and those Smallmouth) and they all turned out very well (with proper lenghts and paint jobs). But as you mentioned, with each one, there is always that fear they will not turn out well and I will be in the position to refuse it. I think the best thing someone can do who is looking for a replica is research and pick a guy who you can work with that has demonstrated a history of excellence in his work. As you saw firsthand with your Dad's Smallmouth, getting a fish to look good really requires an artist and I suspect you would echo the importance of finding somone who can do the work at a high level is worth to price.

Quote from fishballer06: "Those are the best looking smallmouth mounts I have ever seen. The colors and lines are perfect. I've seen so many smallmouth mounts that all look either turd brown or a washed out green that I've always said that I'm never going to get a smallmouth mounted." Fishballer, I agree. There are a lot of subpar Smallmouth (and other fish ) repica's out there. It's hard to commit to spend a lot of money on something that may come back unsatifactory. I did a lot of research before I selected Joe (as I mentioned before, Joe did my musky replica and did an incredible job with it, so I don't know why I didn't go to him first as that would have saved me a lot of time). Here is his work on my musky replica... I think Joe proved to me that it doesn’t matter the species of fish, he can reproduce it with excellence.

Thanks Dwight. You know you really were the one that allowed me to gain the confidnce to travel out on the big water and how to effectively aproach such a vast area. I greatly appreciate your guidance and friendship over the years and even though you are in Florida, I know those Smallmouth up here still quake at the sound of your name. Thanks again, Buddy!