Is It Wrong To Mount A Bass?

[AirbusAngler]

So I have only been actively bass fishing (by active I mean every chance I can 4-6 times a week, a lot from shore and sometimes my inflatable on the weekends) for about a year now. And this will be the first year I fish all seasons in order. My PB lmb is only 4lbs 4ozs. I am always catch and relase and try to handle every bass as gently as possible. However I always wanted to have at least 1 bass mounted for my wall as I have a few trout mounted. I told myself if I catch a solid 5lber this year I will mount it. Is this a bad idea or do you think I should not feel guilty and do it?

Of course I still gotta catch the 5lber too

Also 5lbs may not sound big to you Eastern fisherman but out here in the dessert 5lbs is pretty big.

[00 mod]

There are tons of people that can make a replica mount from pictures and length/girth measurements. Best of both worlds

Jeff

[Crestliner2008]

Definitely look into a replica. Call around, get pricing and what exact information they will need - ahead of time! Then you will know what to do, what it will cost and how to give the folks the information they need to make your trophy a truly memorable one.

[bayouXpress]

if you catch a trophy bass you can do whatever you want to it. I see absolutely no problem with having a real life mount or even 2 or 3.

you won't affect the population what so ever. I know if i catch a 6lb-10 its going on my wall. I let go anything over 4 and nearly everything during spawn. I do keep a good bit of the little ones to eat and I believe that is what helps the current population of the area you fish produce bigger fish.

Now with that being said If i ever catch anything over 10lbs I do believe I would get a replica. But I don't think thats ever going to happen.

[Tony Monticelli]

i don't think its wrong, not at all. its a trophy to you, you want to display it and etc, in a way your respecting it on art level. the only shame end of it is that its dead and you didn't eat it but on the other hand a mount is kinda more than food it last allot longer it something you look tords and call your trophy. its an art form, taxidermy is an art.

in general fake mounts are fake, there is a difference but its not a bad solution to a moral issue with mounting a fish...

with a fake mounts you cant get the same detail in the fins, gills, mouth and body texture.. there is a big different in the art. also you don't have to catch that fish for them to make you a fake mount. a real skin is going to cost you allot more to have done. the fake come as cookie cutter projects, all a taxidermist has to really do glue the fins on them and air brush it, they would rather make fake fish all day there less time in it and just as much money for them if not more. anyone with an air brush can mount fake fish really, just send them the specs and order it, assemble and spray. if you can make a simple model plane you can mount your own fake fish.

[WookieeJedi]

I decided when the fiberglass replicas came out that I would get it done that way when the time came. My brother had a couple of skin mounts done back in the early 90's and they have not fared well over time. The fake ones stay nice for a long time. My goal for a mount is 10 or over, so it hasn't come up yet. When I do get that fish on the wall, I'm putting a pic of the fish with it along with the measurements, just so no one questions the catch. I also like the option of releasing a big fish like that alive. I don't object to keeping and eating fish, but those big ones are not as tasty, and I would rather leave them in the lake to grow and breed.

[Tony Monticelli]

I decided when the fiberglass replicas came out that I would get it done that way when the time came. My brother had a couple of skin mounts done back in the early 90's and they have not fared well over time. The fake ones stay nice for a long time. My goal for a mount is 10 or over, so it hasn't come up yet. When I do get that fish on the wall, I'm putting a pic of the fish with it along with the measurements, just so no one questions the catch. I also like the option of releasing a big fish like that alive. I don't object to keeping and eating fish, but those big ones are not as tasty, and I would rather leave them in the lake to grow and breed.

either it was done poor or to much heat,,, don't put them in direct sunlight and don't put them over a fireplace that you use... that's what will ruin a mount quick, that and oil from your hands, don't touch it.

mine still look like the day i caught them.

before getting a skin mount done, just ask the taxidermist if he does any museum work. if there getting mounts from him then his work is top notch.

[Deleted account]

Is it wrong to mount a bass?......

What happens on the lake, stays on the lake......

[slonezp]

If you do it in the privacy of your own home and the bass is consensual...

If it was legaly caught you are entitled to do whatever you want with it. Go ahead and eat it or bury it in the garden. Don't let anybody make you feel guilty. Hunters don't get replicas of animals they have killed. There's that goofy show on tv, the name escapes me, where people have their dead pets mounted.

I have a 7lber skin mount on my wall as well as some other species of fish. If, in the future I get an 8 or a 9 I may just take pics and do a replica. If I get a double digit, who knows.

[John G]

I wonder if the guys that say you shouldn't mount a bass would have a problem mounting a ten point buck! Do what you want and don't worry about what others say or think!

[5 Dollar Fishing Game]

I have wondered this exact same thing myself. I personally do not have a problem with mounting the actual bass caught.

[Raul]

There´s no commandment saying : "You shall not mount any bass "

I mounted my first 10 lber cuz it was the first and nobody assured me that I would catch another, I had a replica made of my PB .... long after I caught it, who knows, maybe I could catch one bigger, but after a few years on not braking my PB record I had the replica made, in between my first 10 lber and my PB I´ve caugh a good bunch of 10 lbers and many after my PB, I´m no longer interested in having a mount made, not even if I catch my new PB I would have it mounted, there´s a bunch of replicas and they aren´t as touchy as real skin mounts.

[Fishing Rhino]

If you do it in the privacy of your own home and the bass is consensual...

If it was legaly caught you are entitled to do whatever you want with it. Go ahead and eat it or bury it in the garden. Don't let anybody make you feel guilty. Hunters don't get replicas of animals they have killed. There's that goofy show on tv, the name escapes me, where people have their dead pets mounted.

I have a 7lber skin mount on my wall as well as some other species of fish. If, in the future I get an 8 or a 9 I may just take pics and do a replica. If I get a double digit, who knows.

I'm glad I read all the way down. When I first saw the title of this thread it made me laugh. I was going to post something similar to yours.

[Scorcher214]

I don't think i could do it to a double digit, because that would have been the only on in MI lol. I would do a replica though. But thats just me. Go ahead and mount every big girl you catch!

[tomustang]

Nothing wrong with it, would be a harder part in time to do so since the spawn season is restricted on keepers in most parts

[5 Dollar Fishing Game]

Man I'm slow. I just now got all the jokes about "mounting a bass". Lol. Sorry I couldn't resist

[WookieeJedi]

Come to think of it, my brother did hang his mounts on either side of his fireplace. I suppose that would do it.

[1234567]

There´s no commandment saying : "You shall not mount any bass "

I mounted my first 10 lber cuz it was the first and nobody assured me that I would catch another, I had a replica made of my PB .... long after I caught it, who knows, maybe I could catch one bigger, but after a few years on not braking my PB record I had the replica made, in between my first 10 lber and my PB I´ve caugh a good bunch of 10 lbers and many after my PB, I´m no longer interested in having a mount made, not even if I catch my new PB I would have it mounted, there´s a bunch of replicas and they aren´t as touchy as real skin mounts.

Agree!

[Bluebasser86]

I have one skin mount of a 6 pounder I caught in the middle of the summer that got hooked in the gills and wasn't going to make it. If it wouldn't have been for that I would have just turned her loose. You can get replicas made for about the same money that look great and last a long time. Plus if you turn the fish loose who knows? Maybe you'll catch her again when she's even bigger. Not saying there is anything wrong with keeping a big bass for a skin mount, just my personal beliefs on the subject.

[JustinRichter]

I recommend getting a replica , get the exact length , girth , weight, and specific details of your soon to be caught hog , and have them get as close as possible, you will still have a reminder on the wall and the satisfaction of knowing that that big mamas still swimming to see another day

[Mountain Angler]

Nothing is wrong with it and also look into the replicas too.

[WRB]

So I have only been actively bass fishing (by active I mean every chance I can 4-6 times a week, a lot from shore and sometimes my inflatable on the weekends) for about a year now. And this will be the first year I fish all seasons in order. My PB lmb is only 4lbs 4ozs. I am always catch and relase and try to handle every bass as gently as possible. However I always wanted to have at least 1 bass mounted for my wall as I have a few trout mounted. I told myself if I catch a solid 5lber this year I will mount it. Is this a bad idea or do you think I should not feel guilty and do it?

Of course I still gotta catch the 5lber too

Also 5lbs may not sound big to you Eastern fisherman but out here in the dessert 5lbs is pretty big.

AZ has some good big bass waters across the state, so you are not too far from lakes that have 10 lb+ largemouths and 6 lb + smallmouths. You might want to set your goals a little higher and take photo's of the bass you catch.

When you decide to have a mount made, go with a good replica mount.

Tom

[flippin and pitchin]

Watch your slot limit if you have one in effect.

[B@ssCrzy]

I don't see anything wrong with getting a skin mount vs replica. I personally don't like the look of the replica as much and would go with the skin mount. I don't think they look as realistic. If you practice catch and release and then catch a big fish then you have earned the right to do whatever you want to do with it. Just enjoy it because it is an accomplishment that you can be proud of. It does not bug me one bit if somebody wants to hang a trophy on a wall. What bugs me is when people want to fill up buckets and buckets of fish for the freezer without regard for the damage they do to the fishery they enjoy.

[Deadeye-1]

I have no problem with myself, or someone else keeping a few to eat now and then. I also have no problem with someone that catches what is to them a Bass of a Lifetime mounting it if they wish to. One reason I enjoy fishing is that I get to choose if I take or put it back. Once you pull the trigger the game is yours forever.

I fish with a guy that likes to keep quite a few. He often tells me when we start the day that "we're fishing for food today". Trouble is that he gives away as many as he takes home. Seems like he likes to feed half the county with fish sometimes. I'm working on him to tone it down, as are others we know.

Back to mounting a big bass, I watched this same guy catch a 7 lb 14 oz and keep it. Then he fillet it at the dock.