weighing GTs

[Wong Kai Zhee]

hi, anyone here knows how to weight a big Gt w/o causing it harm?

i thought holding the fish and standing on a bathroom scale will do, but its too cumbersome to bring on trips.

a big spring balance is v portable. but any idea if hanging the fish upside down will cause any damage?

[Brandon Khoo]

Wong - you raise a really good question which raises the wider question of lifting the fish safelyand it is one which I personally wish people would take a lot more care in. There is no point in releasing a fish if you've belted the %$!@ out of it just to try to take a few photos and/or weigh it. I saw one Japanese DVD where a famous GT fisherman stretched the mouth of the fish as wide as he could so he could put his fist all the way into its mouth when he was hamming it up for the camera. Now that was really responsible.

I think what you're suggesting is probably the best way of doing it in terms of doing minimal damage to the fish but it is cumbersome to do that. We actually did weigh one of my biggest GTs this way and while the ultimate weight was only an approximation (I couldn't lift it without help), it would have been conservative as I wasn't carrying the fish myself. I was also concerned about damaging the fish trying to heft it on my own.

It gives me the creeps when I see fish being lifted simply by the gaff in the jaw. That has got to be placing enormous pressure onto the fish somewhere. It's the same with using boga grips and lifting big fish vertically without supporting the weight underneath. I udnerstand quite a bit of research has been done on this to date but I haven't read any conclusive findings yet.

I have been told previously (don't know if it is right but I try to be careful now) tht lifting a big fish by the tail is supposed to be really bad for its internal organs.

I'd be interested to know if anyone has a really good method to weigh the fish without causing them undue stress. We release fish for sustainability purposes so we need to take as much are as we can with the fish. It' also important to get the fish abck into the water as quickly as possible.

[Luke Wyrsta]

I share your sentiments exactly Brandon, it is disgraceful how some anglers handle their fish.

For the time being, i am happy not to weigh fish, instead opting to estimate. Sure we will never know the exact weight but that's life for me. Taking quick photos is all i am willing to do, then revival of the fish is the most important priority while this is done.

I have come a long way in regards to being able to tell the weight of a fish. I have made mistakes in the past, only through experience in the field will you get better.

There are those out there that wish to use the 'formula'. I appreciate the fact that there are people out there trying to work this out but it simply isn't for me. No need to take various measurements of the fish and increase the length of time out of the water - perhaps in the future when GT data is being collected for research purposes and not for angling, then it may be more appropriate from my point of view. From the results i have seen, arguabley, the formula is still questionable at best. Some of the people pushing this formula (not to name names) also feel a need to question credible skippers ability to estimate fish - not something that i agree with since the people being questioned are possibly the BEST in the field . Period. Tells you something about some characters in the GT scene  

[Laurie Banks]

 The best method i have seen is a large landing net ,then hang it off your scales.
You would need to be careful with what the net was made out of to cause least damage to the fish's skin.
LAURIE.

[Brandon Khoo]

I've weighed fish before in less responsible times and I also remember fishing for tailor when the objective was to catch as many as possible. I look back to those days and wonder why the hell we did that but that was what everyone did then. Thankfully, people tend to have more awareness these days.

From that period though, I did develop a reasonably good eye for weight based on length and girth and what I found was that the estimates which the Nomad guides and I were coming up with were within one to two kilos and often, in full agreement. These guys do know their stuff and Damon if anything, does tend to be on the conservative side.

Luke - you might be interested to know that at Shoalwater, Damon kicked off the GT tagging program. It was really funny becasue noone had a pen so Damon came with this system of tearing the card so you had to remember how your cards were torn! I think we ran out of them.

I share your sentiments exactly Brandon, it is disgraceful how some anglers handle their fish.

For the time being, i am happy not to weigh fish, instead opting to estimate. Sure we will never know the exact weight but that's life for me. Taking quick photos is all i am willing to do, then revival of the fish is the most important priority while this is done.

I have come a long way in regards to being able to tell the weight of a fish. I have made mistakes in the past, only through experience in the field will you get better.

There are those out there that wish to use the 'formula'. I appreciate the fact that there are people out there trying to work this out but it simply isn't for me. No need to take various measurements of the fish and increase the length of time out of the water - perhaps in the future when GT data is being collected for research purposes and not for angling, then it may be more appropriate from my point of view. From the results i have seen, arguabley, the formula is still questionable at best. Some of the people pushing this formula (not to name names) also feel a need to question credible skippers ability to estimate fish - not something that i agree with since the people being questioned are possibly the BEST in the field . Period. Tells you something about some characters in the GT scene  

[Wong Kai Zhee]

in order to be good at guessing the weight of a fish, one must 1st build up a good mental reference of exactly how much a fish of certain size actually weights. this brings the question back to using some sort of scales again.

but i believe its quite universal f guides/anglers to grossly over-estimate, even in respectable magazines.

in maldives, most boats carry tail ropes to land GT. really don't know if this is harmful to the fish. same f a gaff through the lower jaw.

my only exerience w weighing a GT was of a fish that died swallowing the popper. after i hung it upside down on the sacle, it slipped off and the hook of the scale slashed my forearm. it was only 19kg. so, weighing of a bigger and alive specimen can be assumed to be more difficult/dangerous.

[Brandon Khoo]

I've seen the tail rope they use in the Maldives. No idea what this does to the fish.

I can certainly agree with the comment on the tendency to over-estimate. I saw in one of our fishing mags recently a picture of an AJ that was supposed to be 61kg. the fish looked like 61lb, not kg! A 61 kg AJ looks like a dugong - check out the one caught by the HOTS tester.

Boy Wong - if a dead fish is so dangerous to you, you better be careful with one that is alive and kicking!! 

[Luke Wyrsta]

Luke - you might be interested to know that at Shoalwater, Damon kicked off the GT tagging program. It was really funny becasue noone had a pen so Damon came with this system of tearing the card so you had to remember how your cards were torn! I think we ran out of them.

Very interested Brandon.

Perhaps yourself or Damon could post some more info?

Cheers,
Luke

[MikeOsborn]

I have come a long way in regards to being able to tell the weight of a fish. I have made mistakes in the past, only through experience in the field will you get better.

My thoughts exactley Luke. I am now pretty experienced with the kings and find it easy to guestimate the weight of the fish while it is still boatside(on the surface)and also makes it easier to release unless there are trebles involved.

I have friends that over call fish but they soon come back down to earth when they actually hook a 50lb fish and it smashes them straight into the rocks

[Jon Li]

When the GT or any fish is well below the record , be it personal or otherwise , why bother to weigh it ?

Weighing scale like those in your bathroom is the best , some of them are made of plastic so won't corrode much .

Jon .

[Stephen Polzin]

I think a more reliable method of sizing GT's would be to simply measure their length, like we do for Barra.  Eg, a "metery" (1 metre fish) is a common goal, and most often catches are referred to by length as they are released. 

Bit hard to change the culture of over-estimation in weights for trevs though.  Most photos of 30kg GT's I've seen look much closer to 30 pounds.  Anyone would think they're born weighing 25kg.  I think this stems from the amount of money spent chasing these fish, talking about them and then finally when one takes a lure it's just got to be a big one! 

I've caught a lot of GT's on bait, and unfortunately have seen quite a few solid ones kept and weighed.

I can say that they look much bigger when they're alive with all their fins sticking up when you've got sore arms than when their dull and lifeless hanging off a scale.  The real weight is most often an anti-climax.

steve

[Brandon Khoo]

I reckon this cod is at least 12 - 15.....


centimetres 

[Che Carson]

The best method we have ever come up with is one that we use regularly during Sambo season.  We have a fish sling made up that cradles the fish, it is held rigid by two lengths of poly pipe and we use shade sale or something similair for the actual sling. It has two loops that are central that can be hooked on to spring balance scales. This way the fish is supported along the entire length of its body.

As GTs are quite placid out of the water they suit this sort of handling. We learnt quickly that posing with fish by holding their tails is wrong. I have never seen one die but I have felt their spine crack.

Before personal glory fish care should be paramount.