Northwest Fishing Reports

I wanted to ask everyone what type of net they like, why, and what impact they felt it had on the fish?

In the old days, most of our nets were knotted cotton. They absorbed water, were soft, but they did not last a long time.

Then came Nylon nets, again knotted. Catch and release was catching on in the fly fishing world, and the thought in the 70's and 80's was that the cotton nets were better because they were softer and would not remove as much slime from the fish (assumed the net was wet first). If you were using barbed hooks, often the cotton would catch the fish and hook and it took so long to remove the fish from the net that I wondered if the easier to un-hook Nylon was not better.

In the 80's I saw my first rubber, stretch material, no knots, net. I thought it was going to be perfect, but it is heavy, the water does not flow through it well, and the early ones were not UV resistant. There was the advantage that hooks seldom got snagged bad in them, so the fish was released quicker. Still, because the water did not flow through it well, you often had to tire a big fish to complete exhaustion before landing it; not the best thing to do. I had an experience just a few weeks ago when a friend foul hooked a carp of 11 pounds and it took forever before the fish was tired enough so it did not swim faster then I could move the net through the water.

Then came the soft poly nets, knitted, no knots. I figured that finally they had come up with the best of all worlds, until I had to keep a 7 pound brown this spring because the hook that penetrated through the mouth became so snagged in the mesh that the old gal looked like she was on her last leg before I got her free (with wire cutters).

Washington seems to side with a knot-less net for the selective gear rules waters, but is it really the best?

When I watch the fishing shows I notice that most Salmon and Bass guys use knotted nylon, most fly fishermen look like they are using knotted cotton, and no one but me seems to be messing with the rubber stretch no-knot nets.

So, what do you use and why?

Rubber nets, no reason to use anything else. No sticking of hooks, barbs or anything in the rubber. I have no trouble moving the net thru the water and have never heard of that problem among any Bass fishermen. The current net I'm using I've had since the early '90s and still looks close to new.

I use the knot-less net. I've thought about the rubber and may go to it someday.

I use the rubber stretch-type nets. From what I understand the knotted nets have a tendency to scrape off the slime that fish have on its skin making them susceptible to infections. Whether this is in fact the case or not, I do not know.

I've been trying to catch one I released a while back so I can find out, but I'll be damned if I don't keep getting the wrong one.

I use the knot-less nets that Danielson makes for most all the fishing I do, they are knitted poly in the large square/diamond mesh pattern. The rubber nets do not have a deep enough bag to be able to "close" the net and secure the fish. Fish can flip their way out of a rubber net, I've seen it happen a few times, so beware. I started using the knot-less poly a few years ago and have had the occasional hook get caught and a ling or two wrap itself up in them, but I really like the way they do the job. Once the fish is in, close the net and the fish is yours. Scale loss is next to zero on salmonoids, so I feel they do less harm to fish you are going to release. For saltwater salmon, where barbless is the rule, I don't think I'd use anything else. Washington State has a few fisheries where knot-less in a requirement and I'm sure that will be expanded in the not so distant future. The selective gear areas are also barbless so again, the knitted poly should be great in that application. There is another option, rubber dipped netting. I've seen a few that looked good. Deep bag with no knots, I'm just a bit cheap and don't feel like dropping $80+ on a net. The knot-less replacement nets that Danielson makes run under $10 at Outdoor Emporium and Sportco.

i dont use a net on anything that isnt go'n in the box.....DOG

I use both nylon and cotton nets.Those rubber nets are too shallow and dont close well when lifting up on them . Plus when I plunk I have a 8' dowel on it to reach at low tide. Bottom line is I'm too cheap to buy those rubber ones.

Knotless Nylon with 1 inch square holes. I wanted a deap net so that I can net the fish but still keep it in the water. (Musky)

I'll free the fish first then worry about the net if the hook catches.


Older, green nylon KNOTTED nets I've used... stripped half the scales off of some of the fish Ive caught.

G-Man wrote:I use the knot-less nets that Danielson makes for most all the fishing I do, they are knitted poly in the large square/diamond mesh pattern. The rubber nets do not have a deep enough bag to be able to "close" the net and secure the fish. Fish can flip their way out of a rubber net, I've seen it happen a few times, so beware. I started using the knot-less poly a few years ago and have had the occasional hook get caught and a ling or two wrap itself up in them, but I really like the way they do the job. Once the fish is in, close the net and the fish is yours. Scale loss is next to zero on salmonoids, so I feel they do less harm to fish you are going to release. For saltwater salmon, where barbless is the rule, I don't think I'd use anything else. Washington State has a few fisheries where knot-less in a requirement and I'm sure that will be expanded in the not so distant future. The selective gear areas are also barbless so again, the knitted poly should be great in that application. There is another option, rubber dipped netting. I've seen a few that looked good. Deep bag with no knots, I'm just a bit cheap and don't feel like dropping $80+ on a net. The knot-less replacement nets that Danielson makes run under $10 at Outdoor Emporium and Sportco.

Can I get a replacement net for my knotted Frabill...it's fairly new and I like the handle and frame!

knotless or rubber is the only way to go. Rubber is far better but if you don't like them knottless is good too.

Does anyone use the nylon MESH type nets? Whay do you think of it?

Rich McVey wrote:Does anyone use the nylon MESH type nets? Whay do you think of it?

I'm not quite sure I know what kind you are talking about. Could you attach a photo?

I have one that is kind of knotless, a rubber coated nylon, but even with the rubber on it, it is stiff as a board and still seems scratchy to me.

If you plan on releasing a fish, in most cases it is best not to use a net. However, I can think of some situations where netting the fish first would be best for fish and fisherman. If you are using barbed hooks and it is entrenched, I think it is better for the fish if you net it, hold it steady and remove/cut the hook. Trying to release a well hooked fish that is thrashing around will most likely cause some additional trauma and may put you at risk for getting hooked yourself. Also, if the water is rough, don't be hanging yourself over the gunwale trying to get a hook out of a fish, bring that puppy on board first. With the softer poly nets, once the bag is closed the fish is easily controlled and the hooks can be removed while the fish is still in the net.

Mav, they sell 3 different sizes and I'm sure one of them will fit your current net. The large size, 60" is big enough to net children, large dogs and 60lb kings. I'd look at the medium and small sizes which I think are 48" and 36". The 48" size is what we were using last time we fished Sammamish.

'OL GREY DOG wrote:i dont use a net on anything that isnt go'n in the box.....DOG

Dog, interesting thought, but not practical. If you fish out of a deeper boat, and you catch larger fish, especially fish with teeth, then this just doesn't work.

Consider Bass tournaments; from their inception until just a few short years ago, no nets were allowed. Now, after too many fish were injured and killed from rough handling, nets are allowed and even encouraged.

Consider Walleye, I'd love to see you "lip" one of those devils. I'll bet the Musky and Pike guys could tell you a little about that as well.

As for me, I catch a lot of Trout in the 3 to 10 pound range, and I prefer to C&R most of them. You do not lift a 7 pound trout from the water, into a boat, without a net, unless you have worn it out to almost death.

Wait, maybe you are telling me that all of your catch goes into the BOX. Just kidding, but if you want to fill me in on the hows and whys, chime in again.

Im not answering for Greydog but I see his point . When I'm fishing and reeling a fish in I take about 2 seconds to look at him and decide if its native or not. I dont need a sliderule and a palm pilot to tell me it has a clipped fin.So when I see a fish before I net it I try to play the fish out just a lil.What fun is fishing without alot of fight in the fish? If I just want meat I'll get it at the store. In defense of OGD I'd say that I wouldnt net a native either. I also disagree with bringing a fish on board before you remove hooks.Both salmon and steelhead have a natural enzyme that will disolve the hooks within a short ammount of time. Better clip the fish in the water.

G-Man wrote:If you plan on releasing a fish, in most cases it is best not to use a net. However, I can think of some situations where netting the fish first would be best for fish and fisherman. If you are using barbed hooks and it is entrenched, I think it is better for the fish if you net it, hold it steady and remove/cut the hook. Trying to release a well hooked fish that is thrashing around will most likely cause some additional trauma and may put you at risk for getting hooked yourself. Also, if the water is rough, don't be hanging yourself over the gunwale trying to get a hook out of a fish, bring that puppy on board first. With the softer poly nets, once the bag is closed the fish is easily controlled and the hooks can be removed while the fish is still in the net.

Mav, they sell 3 different sizes and I'm sure one of them will fit your current net. The large size, 60" is big enough to net children, large dogs and 60lb kings. I'd look at the medium and small sizes which I think are 48" and 36". The 48" size is what we were using last time we fished Sammamish.

Thanks G- I'll take a look at them both when I'm down there next, I do like how they perform.

I really only fish rivers from the bank. I dont like to net fish if I dont need to. I dont take a net down with me even. I will usually tire them a lil, tail them, see if its a keeper or not, BONK or release it. If I release it I keep it tailed until it pulls away, if no pull then its gonna come home I guess. I only had 1 fish that would not take off after I tried to release it. A big king that had 3 hooks in it already. I know that fish went through some battles that day before I even got it in to shore.

i cut a lot of leaders....i have a line attached to my needle nose(only had to drop a couple pairs before i figured that out)....and i have a couple hook remover thingymabobs looks like a cork screw on the end of 'em that work grrreat.... 1s a lil short 1 and the other is heavy'r duty 1 on abouta 6ft pole (home modified) for the big boat(bout 4ft between the bottom paint and the rail)......guess it just gets bk to how i was raised....if i kill something i want to take the very best care of it that i can....if im C&R'n then i have a obligation to the critter to let 'em go uninjured <shrugs> cept maybe the lovely squaws that i catch....they usualy have a bad day.....DOG

Can I get a replacement net for my knotted Frabill...it's fairly new and I like the handle and frame![/quote]


I got a replacement Danielson knotless from Dan up at Ed's Surplus in Lynnwood. They carry two sizes of them. Now I just have to replace the corroded screws on my Scotty net so I can swap out the bags...