Largemouth vs. Smallmouth

[roadwarrior]

Southern states produce larger smallmouth, including the World Record. What we don't

have are the fantastic numbers and NEVER a 100 fish day. Most guys consider a 6 lb bass

a "trophy" class fish and probably a Personal Best for 95% of all fishermen.

 

 

[Dwight Hottle]

3 hours ago, portiabrat said:

Where I fish, a 6 lb smallie isn't a trophy.

 

I don't follow professional fishing much, but you'd probably have to average around 5 lbs per fish on smallmouth waters like the Great Lakes or Mille Lacs to do well in a tournament. From what I've seen, that average is a lot lower on most southern lakes.

 

I have fished Lake Erie PA waters for about 15 years. Around here guys strive to catch 6lb smallies as a PB or trophy. 6lb-8oz through 6lb-15oz are definitely considered trophy class as to their rarity by the hard core bass fisherman. My consensus is a 6lb smallie from the great lakes is a trophy for most fisherman. 5lb smallies are great fish but just below the trophy classification for the great lakes because of the sheer numbers of them in the system. Smallies above 7lbs are rare as 11lb-12lb largemouth elsewhere. 

[tkunk]

9 hours ago, Dwight Hottle said:

I have fished Lake Erie PA waters for about 15 years. Around here guys strive to catch 6lb smallies as a PB or trophy. 6lb-8oz through 6lb-15oz are definitely considered trophy class as to their rarity by the hard core bass fisherman. My consensus is a 6lb smallie from the great lakes is a trophy for most fisherman. 5lb smallies are great fish but just below the trophy classification for the great lakes because of the sheer numbers of them in the system. Smallies above 7lbs are rare as 11lb-12lb largemouth elsewhere. 

On the WI side of Lake Michigan, I don't think it's difficult to catch 6 lb smallies in the spring. I can, and I'm not a good fisherman by any means. I agree that 6.5+ lbs is very rare.

 

[Further North]

On 10/13/2018 at 4:48 AM, portiabrat said:

Where I fish, a 6 lb smallie isn't a trophy.

Man...since we're both in WI, I'd sure like to know where you fish...

 

A six pounder up here is a heck of a fish...the only places where that's going to get exceeded...and it's going to be rare...is maybe Door County, or Lake Superior near Ashland.

[soflabasser]

On 10/13/2018 at 5:48 AM, portiabrat said:

Where I fish, a 6 lb smallie isn't a trophy.

 

The official word record smallmouth bass is only 11 pounds,15 ounces which means a 6 pound smallmouth bass is at least 50% of the current world record smallmouth bass. I am sure the vast majority of smallmouth bass fishermen consider a 6 pound smallmouth bass a trophy, just like most consider a 10 pound largemouth bass a trophy or a 5 pound butterfly peacock bass a trophy fish. 

[A-Jay]

On 10/13/2018 at 8:14 PM, portiabrat said:

On the WI side of Lake Michigan, I don't think it's difficult to catch 6 lb smallies in the spring. I can, and I'm not a good fisherman by any means. I agree that 6.5+ lbs is very rare.

 

I'm in the camp that believes that regardless of where they are caught, a true on the scale 6 lb smallmouth is certainly a trophy class fish. 

Just as a 10 lb Largemouth is a trophy.

And even in "the best fisheries on this planet" both are rare fish. 

Hope you can get some 6 lb plus smallies this spring and will be willing to share the pics here.

A-Jay

[tkunk]

2 hours ago, soflabasser said:

The official word record smallmouth bass is only 11 pounds,15 ounces which means a 6 pound smallmouth bass is at least 50% of the current world record smallmouth bass. I am sure the vast majority of smallmouth bass fishermen consider a 6 pound smallmouth bass a trophy, just like most consider a 10 pound largemouth bass a trophy or a 5 pound butterfly peacock bass a trophy fish. 

Check some smallmouth tournament weights in the spring at some of the famous locations. There have been some tournaments where it takes more than 6 lbs per fish to win. I'm pretty sure nobody's every had to average 10 lbs per fish to win a largemouth tournament.

 

I'm done trying to debate the distribution of bass weights by species across various lakes in the US.

[J Francho]

I have not caught a 6 lb. smallie, and I would not call it a trophy. I’m very proud of my 5-12 and the dozens over 5 lbs I’ve caught. That said, right after I scaled that PB, my buddy scaled a 6-1. I’d say over 7, and maybe. I’ve seen a few 7+ in my days. They’re pretty magnificent. Biggest LMB I’ve seen was a near DD FLS LMB. Biggest northern LMB, 8-5. I’d call that a trophy up here. 

 

At at any rate, I love my smallies, but most of the big green fish (over 6) fought as well as any smallmouth, save my PB NY fish. 

 

King salmon still rank rank the highest for fight. Bass don’t even compare, regardless of species. But like I said, I’m not in it for the fight when it comes to bass. Kings are easy if you know when and where, which is also easy. 

[ww2farmer]

2 hours ago, J Francho said:

I have not caught a 6 lb. smallie, and I would not call it a trophy.

Maybe not on the Great Lakes, or attached bodies of water.

 

But on our inland bodies of water a 6lb smallmouth most certainly is a trophy....especially from the mud puddle I fish.

 

Instead of saying "this size fish is/isn't a trophy"...I look at it as body of water dependent.

 

for example:

 

In 25+ years of bass fishing I have seen exactly, and have knowledge of TWO legit 6lb smallmouth from my home lake, and I have caught them both, almost 10 years to the day apart. And that's after seeing a lot of tournaments here won with 20+lb bags ofall smallmouth, none of which contained a 6+ lber.

 

I'll say the same about a 7+ largemouth, at least from this body of water. I know of two legit 7's that have been caught (neither by me) And for 3/4 of decade my tournament PB stood as the biggest fish anyone has ever caught, in ANY tournament, not just the ones I run, on this lake. That was recently eclipsed by a 7-1 another guy caught this summer, one of the two known 7lber I have seen come out of this lake.....ever. I am still hunting for my first 7+ on this lake, and have dozens of 6's.  Now move one lake over to the east on my other "home" lake, and it's a different story.....at least with largemouth.

 

I can only view this through the filter of a tournament and/or serious recreational bass angler, as that is who I am/what I do, and who I hang around and keep track of as far as other people's catches. Is there any unknown to me trophy hunter on this lake who is fishing for and catching 7's, 8's, or 9's........maybe. Or how about a crappie, or a perch, or a walleye, or a pike fisherman who has tussled with a couple huge largemouth and/or smallmouth and no one knows about it? Again a "maybe"

 

 

[TnRiver46]

8 hours ago, A-Jay said:

I'm in the camp that believes that regardless of where they are caught, a true on the scale 6 lb smallmouth is certainly a trophy class fish. 

Just as a 10 lb Largemouth is a trophy.

And even in "the best fisheries on this planet" both are rare fish. 

Hope you can get some 6 lb plus smallies this spring and will be willing to share the pics here.

A-Jay

Ditto. I have been fishing smallies since about age 2 in the state where the world record came from and I don’t know if I have ever gotten a 6. Closest I have come was probably this 21.5 inch prespawn . 6 is a trophy anywhere in My book. Now I think my girlfriend did get a true 6 maybe 6.5 jigging  up white bass with a 5’ ultra light and 4 lb line. 22.5 inches also prespawn in March. Methinks that fish was eating white bass 

[J Francho]

I'd agree with body of water, to a point.  It's the same reason I don't count any of the big LMB I've caught outside of NY.  I think of it more as a locale thing.  Silver Lake isn't that far from Erie.  So, if you're hunting trophies, you should fish Erie.  Same for LMB.  There are bodies closer that hold bigger fish, but I still fish the City Dump.  I mean, it's 2 minutes to the launch.  It's an oddity that my PB comes from the dump.  It's not known for kicking out monsters.

[ww2farmer]

1 hour ago, J Francho said:

  Silver Lake isn't that far from Erie.  So, if you're hunting trophies, you should fish Erie. 

Not my game... besides, I have a 16.5 foot, 25hp problem that keeps me off big water.

 

The big water is a special place right now, and I would never call it "easy" fishing, as that would degrade the truly good fisherman who spend a lot of time out there and excel. But I also know a whole bunch of local idiots who can go out there and have the days off their lives who can't catch limits on Silver and Conesus.

[J Francho]

By easy, I was referring to kings during the run, not bass.   You pick the right time, and it's a huge window, the fishing is easy.  Anyone can catch.

[Steven Yeun]

Size of fish is always great, especially during tournaments. But if I have to pick. To me, river smallies are un-beatable when it comes to “fun”. They can be 12” and fight great! I grew up next to the fox river and chased smallies often. 

[Further North]

Getting back on track...and keeping in mind that I believe the smallies fight harder than largemouth...

 

Do we have any objective data to support that?  Or is it all subjective? 

 

I guess what I'm asking is: Has anyone developed an objective measurement for how a fish fights?  I can't find one, but my Google Fu is weak.

[TnRiver46]

3 hours ago, Further North said:

Getting back on track...and keeping in mind that I believe the smallies fight harder than largemouth...

 

Do we have any objective data to support that?  Or is it all subjective? 

 

I guess what I'm asking is: Has anyone developed an objective measurement for how a fish fights?  I can't find one, but my Google Fu is weak.

As a wildlife/fisheries biologist that has read through thousands of scientific experiments that really don’t mean anything, I feel as though this is a non quantifiable entity. Unless of course you tie a string to each species tail and shoot off a pistol!!! Hahaha

[Further North]

8 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

As a wildlife/fisheries biologist that has read through thousands of scientific experiments that really don’t mean anything, I feel as though this is a non quantifiable entity. Unless of course you tie a string to each species tail and shoot off a pistol!!! Hahaha

That's kinda where I was heading...

 

Our experience is so tainted by preconceived ideas that there's little hope for objectivity.

 

Not that we need it, it's OK to just have fun catching fish.

[deadadrift89]

Spent 2 months in Minnesota this Summer fishing. First thing i noticed about smallmouth is they never give up compared to largemouth even after getting in boat, trying to get a treblehook out of them is always an adventure. I fish lots of texas rig soft plastics for largemouth and noticed when fishing tubes for smallmouth they seldom hammer it like largemouth usually do. Fished only lakes no rivers, also noticed was way more largemouth in South get airborne than the smallies which really surprised me from what I had heard. Best thing about smallmouth to me is how aggresive they are if you put a topwater around them. I wore out a LC Sammy on them 80% of the time no matter time of day?Can't wait to get North again!!  

[RHuff]

A 5lb smallmouth will outfight a 10lb largemouth

[Jleebesaw]

On 10/13/2018 at 5:48 AM, portiabrat said:

Where I fish, a 6 lb smallie isn't a trophy.

 

I don't follow professional fishing much, but you'd probably have to average around 5 lbs per fish on smallmouth waters like the Great Lakes or Mille Lacs to do well in a tournament. From what I've seen, that average is a lot lower on most southern lakes.

 

Absolutely. Bassmaster elites on the st lawrence river had 50 25+ pound bags on the first day of the event last year.

[billmac]

Not sure if it's true because it's hard to compare, but I've read that for their size, bluegills are more ferocious fighters than their larger cousins.

 

[J Francho]

I guess, if spinning in circles is "fighting."

[TOXIC]

Personally, I think a smalljaw fights harder than a green bass.  River fish of both species fight harder because of their environment.  As for a trophy, I have -0- replicas on my wall right now because my goal for a trophy is a smallmouth 7lbs minimum and a largemouth 12 minimum.  I have been close but no cigar.  It's the chase that keeps me coming back and when I retire this year I plan on putting in some serious time on the water, all over the country.   

[J Francho]

I've seen two smallies over 7 at weigh ins.  One, a 7-6 wasn't even the biggest fish in the guy's bag!  There was also an 8-5 largemouth.  Over 7 is my target as well.  Once they get over 5, they're incredible animals.

[TOXIC]

I have had a 6lb smallie on St Clair and my fishing partner did catch a 7 in the St Clair river pre fishing for a tournament.  He was so quick to put it back, they weighed it and didn't take any measurements.  That one would have been a replica on my wall for sure.  The pic is a 5 and change.