to mount or not 2024
KYbass1276 reply :
I'm sure there some here that have some mounted fish. I have been debating in my mind if I would actually get one mounted or not. I would like to mount a bass but hate the fact that it would kill it I know it sounds bleeding heart but everyfish I catch no matter the size is trophy to me I do take alot of pictures of the one's I do catch. I heard somewhere that you can get the measurement's of the fish and weight and provide a picture of it and you can have a replica made up is this true. Of course I wouldn't even consider mounting one unless it was 10 plus and even at that I know I'll probally still catch and relaese it I do think it would be neat to have one on the wall but I guess I just ain't got the heart to do it.
Michael H reply :
You can get a graphite replica made at bass pro
Lightninrod reply :
Your heart is in the right place IMO. I'll say it again, I will not kill a double-digit Bass and have her mounted >
Yes, replicas are the way to go IMO. More than one pic(each side, belly, mouth, and top) would be best.
Dan
roadwarrior reply :
Stop it!
Unless it is a World Record there is NO REASON to mount a fish in 2006. Today, replicas are better than the real thing. There is NO REASON to mount your PB, you might catch a better one someday. NEVER kill a big bass.
phisher_d reply :
I think the replica mounts last longer than the skin mounts anyways.
KU_Bassmaster. reply :
QuoteStop it!Unless it is a World Record there is NO REASON to mount a fish in 2006. Today, replicas are better than the real thing. There is NO REASON to mount your PB, you might catch a better one someday. NEVER kill a big bass.
Ditto. If it's a world record though, that baby is mine. She probably wouldn't live after all the stress it would have to go through to get certified and all the stuff anyways.
Raul reply :
Skin mounts without proper care look like crap in a few years, fiberglass and graphite don 't.
basser89 reply :
The bass in my pic was caught and released 3 years ago. IMO, it's the best looking bass I've ever caught! It's not the biggest I've caught (probably is now). But I've kept the weight and measurements and I'm getting a replica made so I can enjoy seeing that bass all the time! I have to agree with the rest, don't kill a bass unless its a world record!!! Even if its a state record, I'd try my best to keep it alive so I could release her afterwards!
KYbass1276 reply :
thats great I wasn't sure about the replica's if that was true or not now that i know you can get one I can still have a big fish on the wall and not the heartache of killing a fish. Thanks guys just to set it straight I haven't killed a bass on pupose I am strictly catch and release I don't want anyone to think I do that's why I asked about replica's thanks agin guys
Ben reply :
Been bass fishing heavy since the early 60's. Living in Georgia, I've had the oppertunity to fish what were some the best lakes in the country in their time and enough private ponds to make giant lake. I could not even begin to count the big bass I've caught. 14-3 is the biggest I've ever boated, but have hung a few that looked a right smart larger than that one, one 10 minutes after catching that one.
Don't have a clue how many I've caught, but I can tell you how many I've hung on the wall, NONE. It takes a whole bunch of small bass to lay the eggs one eight pound bass will lay. Plus, the reason it's so hard to catch really big bass now is the gene poll has just about been depleted. Small bass make small bass, big bass have to potential to make big bass.
Talk about mounting the next world record, for me that would never happen. I would make absolutely every effort possible to keep that fish alive, even to the point of trying to give it CPR. I would also be trying to get ahold of the DNR fish biologist to meet me at the lake with it as soon as possible. That fishes worth would be unmeasurable in many more ways than just the money for the royalties you would get out of being the one that caught it. It's eggs alone each year would be tremedous boost to the big fish poplulation, SOOooo, put it on the wall, NO WAY IN HELL!!!
guest reply :
I had a bass mounted in 1981. It looked good for a few years, but after a couple of moves, and once being dropped it was just another piece of junk gathering dust in the basement. I threw it out years ago. Never again.
afroengineer reply :
I like to just take pics and let them go, although I do have one on the wall, from now on I will most likely get a replica.
Rattlinrogue reply :
In the past I've just weighed 'em,measured 'em,and taken a picture.If I just had to have a mount,I'd probably get a replica made.
Rattletrap reply :
I have two skin mounts on the wall from the mid 80's that still look great. 8 and 9 pounders when I was in Va. I released several 8 and 9 pounders after that. This is all at the same lake. I have yet to see a plastic replica that looks natural. It's easy to say that you would not mount if you are consistently catching 10lb plus bass. I really don't know what I would do if I caught a 12lb plus. I'll cross that bridge when it happens.
Matt Fly reply :
It must be the taxidermist, I had mounted a 35 lb salmon in chicago up in the Fox lakes area for my wife, That sucker has some wear and tear from all the military moves on the fin edges, but looks like the real deal after 21 years. This mount means alot, I got it mounted in OCT 85. My wife passed away in Nov 85.
Yes to replicas, it just wasn't available from that guy or to early before replicas became the way to go.
Cephkiller reply :
It seems like every time I catch a new PB (which has happened with some frequency since I joined BR!), I get unbelievable amounts of grief when I CPR her. I don't know what I'd do with a fish on the wall anyway. I have a small 3x5 picture frame that my wife baought me that says "A Fisherman and the Catch of his Life". Every time I catch a new PB, I put the photo in there on top of the old ones. It's nice to be able to look through those photos and see the progression. I would consider a replica if I caught a new state record or something, but it would have to be a lot better than the replicas I have seen so far. Most of them just look like a plastic fish to me :
cart7t reply :
I only have a single mount. It's a skin mount from the mid 80's back when replica's were very expensive. If I ever come across the elusive 9-10lber and get it into the boat(had a few come off) I'll do a replica. The skin mounts just don't hold up well.
RoLo reply :
Sadly, there are skin mounts on every wall of my den. I hasten to point out though,
without exception all the trophies were taken during the 26 period between 1960 and 1986.
As Matt said, fiberglass replicas were not available back then, furthermore,
"catch-and-release" was a phrase that only came into vogue later on.
During most of that era, the closest thing to "catch-and-release" was a few "No-Kill" stretches
imposed on a couple of New Jersey trout streams. As Matt also said, good skin mounts
do seem to last a lifetime, well, most of them. I have moved several times (thrice in Florida alone),
and all the wear-and-tear that they show was sustained during those moves.
In all honesty, two of them did become so shabby that I decided to discard them.
Okay, that was then...this is now.
For the past 20 years I've been releasing my gamefish. I know fully well that a certain percentage
of those fish ultimately died as a result of toxic buildup and stress. Be that as it may,
we can only do the best that we can. My wife and I both enjoy eating fish, to put it mildy.
As a result, I will designate certain days for table fare when we target big bluegills and crappies,
which are highly prolific.
guest reply :
As y'all know, I am on a crusade to up my PB in 2006. I will accomplish this feat, but have no intention of mounting the fish. However, I do take exception with state record fish. I think that a state record fish is worthy of the taxidermist. If the world record should be mounted than why not a state record?
Cephkiller reply :
QuoteAs y'all know, I am on a crusade to up my PB in 2006. I will accomplish this feat, but have no intention of mounting the fish. However, I do take exception with state record fish. I think that a state record fish is worthy of the taxidermist. If the world record should be mounted than why not a state record?
If one can locate a good replica artist, then why mount the real thing? Spend the extra $$$$ and save a life!
Grey Wolf reply :
NEVER,NEVER , NEVER kill a big bass.
Captain Cali reply :
I vote no mount...even if it is a WR. But chances are the WR will not be released.
Sure if the fish is caught legally the angler has every right to do what he or she wishes. But pictures of bass in kitchens and people mounting them will not help anyones chances at catching the next WR.
George Welcome reply :
Replicas cost less - there are people out there that make a replica that absolutely looks like the real deal.
Record fish - With the amount of money involved in record bass they more than likely are going to be autopsied. Might as well make a mount of that one.
Raul reply :
I only have two mounts, my first 10+ pounder ( skin mount ) and my PB, 13.86 lbs ( replica ), I had the skin mount made in 1985, back then you could only have skin mounts here in Mexico, I don 't regret having the fish mounted if you 're going to ask, but right now there 's no need to have a skin mount, replicas cost pretty much the same as a skin mount, look better and are easier to maintain, nothing bad happens to them because they are impervious to the elements, the colors remain for long, the varnish doesn 't crack and flake away, they don 't turn yellow with age.
So, if you catch that once in a life time fish take good pictures, good measurments and have a replica made, release the fish, who knows ? maybe you 'll catch it again 3 or 4 years later with 3 or 4 more pounds on it.
Gatorbassman reply :
I always keep a tripod and camera in my boat. I have five frames on my wall that I keep a running record of the five largest bass that I have boated. I enjoy keeping my record this way. The fish lives and I still get it on my wall.
guest reply :
QuoteQuoteAs y'all know, I am on a crusade to up my PB in 2006. I will accomplish this feat, but have no intention of mounting the fish. However, I do take exception with state record fish. I think that a state record fish is worthy of the taxidermist. If the world record should be mounted than why not a state record?If one can locate a good replica artist, then why mount the real thing? Spend the extra $$$$ and save a life!
fair question. But just like the world record would be questioned if not authenticated and viewable, so would a state record. At least from a state like Florida, Texas, and California, where the state records are monster fish.
I am a firm catch and release person. As a matter of fact it is one of the main reasons I don't hunt anymore. Can't throw back a dead deer. But to use deer as an example. There are what? a couple million or more killed every year, yet there numbers are so high they are considered a nuisance. Any water system that can't tolerate the loss of one major female is a lake thats already in big trouble. As far as having bass grow to trophy size. Most fisheries biologists will tell you that a major reason for small bass in a lake is too many bass. They need to be culled so the remainder can grow to full size.
Conservation is vitally important. But like anything else, being a zealot about it is rarely the correct option.
Yankee_Bassman reply :
I've got some nice pictures on my office wall. In addition to the show off factor, which is not insignificant, by the way, they get me through annoying days at work... when I look at them, I picture myself out on the lake.....usually, I picture myself fishing with the particular employee causing me stress at the moment....we always have the lake completely to ourselves, with only the Osprey and Hawks, and the occasional deer drinking at the shore....we have a great day on the water, catching huge bass after huge bass. As the day ends, and he or she leans over to pull the trolling motor, I wrap the anchor chain around their neck, a quick hip into their butt, hit the throttle, and go.....I always feel better.....
Oh yeah, to mount or not...nah, I'd rather release the real thing, and I'm way too cheap to spend the $$$$$ for a replica......
KYbass1276 reply :
QuoteI always keep a tripod and camera in my boat. I have five frames on my wall that I keep a running record of the five largest bass that I have boated. I enjoy keeping my record this way. The fish lives and I still get it on my wall.
That's a good idea I think I will do this as well
Doghouse. reply :
I love to catch big bass but the only way you catch big bass is to turn the nice ones back to get BIGGER! So go with the replica and let them grow into bigger monsters 
tjs97 reply :
i have a 6.5 lber that i caught catfishing, it swallowed a big circle with a live perch on it and it died while try to release it :'( so it is getting mounted but caught some 4's & 5's and a 6lber that i release so i vote replica
goldenmonkey reply :
I see nothing wrong with mounting a nice bass. I release most bass that I catch. But taxidermy is a hobby of mine and if I catch something that I think will look good on my wall, Im going to keep it and mount it.
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