Best Five

[SDoolittle]

When comparing notes about a day's fishing, my friends and I always seem to estimate what our bag would have weighed if we were in a tournament. IE: "My best five was probably 15 lbs, and my big fish was 4 1/2 lbs." How many of you do this? Do you actually weigh your fish, or do you estimate?

[tomustang]

Well I think when it gets to the point of weighing so many, an estimate is used since you have a general idea.

I still carry a scale since you never know what you might run into

[Goose52]

I weigh all my fish 14" and above. This is mostly about comparing the weight/length ratio of the fish in my little lakes compared to other, more productive fisheries (factual data in the event that I ever make an appearance at our Lakes Committee meeting to try to get the fishery improved). Anyway, assuming I've caught at least 5 fish 14" or above, I can calulate exactly the weight of the top 5.

(My best 5 here was February 7th of this year - 19.51 pounds out of 39/40 degree water!)

[Bluebasser86]

I usually estimate unless the fish is around 4 pounds or so, then I usually weigh them. It's a good day when I have a 5 fish limit of fish big enough to be worth weighing. My 5 best, excluding trips to Mexico, went 30lbs 2ozs 2 years ago in February from a powerplant lake in Kansas on a swimbait.

[Dwight Hottle]

I weigh mine. Here is a post from this spring which weighed 23-4 for four smallies.

Posted May 12 2011 - 08:37 PM

Went out by myself today hoping to find some clear water & hungry bass. Since the water had cleared nicely overnight I decided to try a shallow jerkbait & a deep jerkbait. Dead sticked the deep & worked the shallow. Hit my first fish of the day & was pleasantly surprised. 22.5" by 16" girth. She weighed 6lb-7oz. Second fish hit the shallow jerkbait. 5lb-8oz. Switched the deep jerk to a 2nd shallow bait. Third fish hit the previously hot bait. She weighed 5lb-6oz. Fourth fish hit the newly switched out shallow bait. She weighed 5lb-15oz. I thought I was on a roll. Kept trying for the fifth bass but it turned out to be walleye, dinner. The bite quit as the wind blew from the east & dropped the surface temp from a starting temp of 50-51 degrees to 47-48 degrees. Best day this year for quality.

[Red]

I am still working on catching five keepers in a single outing. This is a feat I have only accomplished once!!

[lazeebum]

I don't worry bout it too much. If I am on fish, I fish.

[Marty]

I've twice had a best five that weighed over 20 but less than 21. All were weighed and both were from the same body of water. I generally weigh only if I think the fish could potentially be 4+, but I'll weigh 3s if I sense something good going on.

[J Francho]

I always think In terms of best five. I weigh them if I can.

[1234567]

I weigh them if I think it's a DD bass. A couple years ago, I quickly found out 7 pounders were only 5 pounders With that said, I really havn't weighed any in a couple years.

[00 mod]

For sure one of my best days..... 23 lbs +

Jeff

[zip pow]

I always weigh my scale keeps up with the number of fish and total weight for the day easy to tell what my best five is

[preach4bass]

Always. Even if I'm fishing a farm pond, I'm fishing a tournament in my head.

[Bassn Blvd]

Only if I catch a decent fish over 7 pounds do I say "I wish this was tournament day." Remember, if you best 5 were 20 pounds, then chancses are very good that a lot of others in the "tournament' would have done well too.

[SirSnookalot]

Only time my fish get measured or weighed is if some else is around with a scale or tape. I estimate the length with my shoe, 2 shoes I've got a 23" fish which is somewhere around 7#, close enough for me.

[flippin and pitchin]

Sometimes my buddy and I will do a best five if the fishing is really good. October 2010 I had 5 smallmouth for 24.2 and caught all in about an hour. I still get Goose 52 bumps remembering that trip.

[piscicidal]

I keep a fishing journal. In the upper left hand corner, I note the "best five" weight. +15lb gets one star. +20gets two stars. +25gets three stars.

This helps me quantify the success (or lack thereof) of each trip and gives me a quick reference that I can consult later. I can quickly scan last years journal looking for stars, look for similar conditions, and this gives me a starting point for the trip. Its been a useful tool for me.

[tholmes]

I weigh them if there over the length of my forearm, about 18 inches. It's pretty rare, at least on the lake that I fish the most, to catch 5 bass that size. I really couldn't tell you what my "best 5" weighed.

Tom

[Goose52]

Sometimes my buddy and I will do a best five if the fishing is really good. October 2010 I had 5 smallmouth for 24.2 and caught all in about an hour. I still get Goose 52 bumps remembering that trip.

Ha - I'd get at least 52 "goosebumps" if I caught 24 pounds of smallies too!

[webertime]

Last Spring (Late April) 3 days after the ice went out on my local pond I got 6 Fish weighing 26.2lbs. The biggest 5 would have been 24lbs. The biggest was 6.2lbs on a hippy jig, the rest were all 4.5+ on 6" Hudds. Not bad for 40 degree water in Vermont!

Here's a 4.9

[Fish Chris]

I'm really not fishing for 5 big fish. So even though I always have a scale + a backup + a backup for my backup, it's really rare for me to catch 5 fish in one trip worth weighing. Once 9 years ago, I weighed five largemouths for 40.2 lbs. About 5 years ago I weighed 5 Smallies for 24 lbs.

Of course I'd rather weigh just one 19 lb Largemouth, or one 9 lb Smallie....

Just saying...

Peace,

Fish

[flippin and pitchin]

I'm really not fishing for 5 big fish. So even though I always have a scale + a backup + a backup for my backup, it's really rare for me to catch 5 fish in one trip worth weighing. Once 9 years ago, I weighed five largemouths for 40.2 lbs. About 5 years ago I weighed 5 Smallies for 24 lbs.

Of course I'd rather weigh just one 19 lb Largemouth, or one 9 lb Smallie....

Just saying...

Peace,

Fish

Yeah you California guys have some special water. At Clear Lake, a 20 LB limit doesn't even get a second look. 27 lbs will get you a nod.

[Shad_Master]

Since my club works on the catch-measure-picture-release method, weight is usually not something that I am tuned in to. I always carry a measure board, but usually estimate and think in terms of a "limit of Missouris" vs. a "limit of club fish". (Missouris are fish that are 15" or over).

[Fat-G]

My PB five fish limit is 29 pounds, caught in February 2 years ago.

I don't weigh until I'm positive they're over 5 or 6.

[Fish Chris]

Yea', Clear Lake is a really special lake for me. SOOO many nice 3 to 8 lb bass..... great catfishing.... the Crappie have been (at X's) unbelievable !

Only tough thing about Clear Lk. is that legit double digit bass are very rare. For a large # of reasons.

Fish

PS, I caught that 40.2 lb limit at a little lake called Coyote Res.

Yeah you California guys have some special water. At Clear Lake, a 20 LB limit doesn't even get a second look. 27 lbs will get you a nod.