what do you consider a big smallmouth?

[river rat316]

 Originally Posted By: primetime49

We had restrictions on smallies for almost 10 years in an attempt by DNR to make this lake a trophy Smallmouth lake and it worked

I find it very hard to believe that a smallie over 6 pounds let alone 8 has come out of that lake, whats the biggest smallie to ever hit the scales in a tourney on that lake?

[Mark Christianson]

Primetime,

The season is not closed on smallmouth bass. You just cant keep them, but you can still target them.

Or maybe I am not catching your drift. I am trying to understand what your getting at, but its not real clear.

[primetime49]

biglake,

we dont classify a fish caught when not fishing for that species as a legitamate record

You have to be fishing for bass to be entering one as a record

[primetime49]

river rat

their are quite a few bigger smallies caught in fall when you cant keep one

trouble is they are caught ussually by walleye fishermen on live bait,or diehard smallie fishermen willing to release them on live bait

no large smallie has been entered in any tournament,4.88 and a 5.01 on artificial are as big as can remember

I have not seen many over 6 pounds and none over seven,but none in tourneys

the guys who tell of the 3 large ones are very reputable walleye fishermen

[frogtosser]

I have cought 2 that were a hair over 20 inches in a row, both on artifical lures, but I am still looking for one over 21 inches

[Hodgie]

21" is the trophy mark for me I caught 3 last year at 20.5 I will get a replica on a 21. Any smallmouth is worth catching, to me they are all fun. Thats all I fish for.

[primetime49]

hodgie.are you in Yar Craft>>

how do you like it?

nice fish

[TonkaBass]

Have you guys seen the smallie joe bucher caught on film, now thats a beast. 23 1/4"!

[CrappieFshr651]

Have caught an 18incher out of the st. croix, thought that was pretty big, and a few 17 inchers out the boundary waters a couple years ago. my buddy got a 21 incher up there, that was a monster

[Hodgie]

No, It's my buddies Warrior. Been in a couple differnt Yar-crafts. They are nice boats.

[LEECH21]

Hodgie, nice fish man. Love the background on the second pic with the water and clouds. Very cool.

I agree 21 inches is the goal to meet.

[Wayne Ek]

I have a replica on the wall of a 22.5 inch smallie that weighted in at 6lb.2oz Caught in the fall on a Alexandria area lake.

But for me a true trophy smallie is the one that is 1-ounce bigger than what Deitz has on his line.

[(218)bassmaster]

this is a 6 pounder i caught on a top water

[TonkaBass]

This is a nice smallie

[LEECH21]

Wow! Thats a beast! I'd love to catch one like that.

[mille lacs muskie bum]

you guys need to fish mille lacs more. last summer i caught several 21" fish. Just today i found a school of 18 plus inchers. i caught a 19" and a 21". i wouldnt consider a replica until 23" or 24".

[Travis Peterson]

I did a little research on this. Looking at thirteen years worth of results for the Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship on Rainy Lake, I learned the following:

Over 19,200 smallmouth have been weighed in.

There has never been a 6 pounder weighed in. Never!

Only twice has the "Big Bass" topped 5.50 pounds.

For the first two events (95, 96), no fish topped 5.0 pounds.

Just thought I'd throw those numbers out there for perspective.

Travis Peterson

[bassNspear]

i would say IMO, i would say that a 21 incher is a nice fish here in MN. although, there is alot of bigger fish in the satate i do believe.

[Lunker]

Most of the smallie fishing I do is shallow river habitats. In these spots I consider an 18" fish "big". If I'm fishing big rivers and lake smallies, I wouldn't consider these really big fish, but definitley in the smaller and shallower rivers. In bigger water a 20" fish is big. A 22" smallie(or the replica) would probably go on the wall wherever I caught it if it was a good looking fish. My personal best so far is around 20".

[Fordo]

I caught alot of Smallies around 20" last year. Most of them from shore walking the Mississippi. My opinion on trophy smallies has alot to do with where im fishing. I think my best fish all year was a 19 1/2" I caught on a crappy little lake near central MN. I caught probably 12 smallies bigger then that last year but to catch that on a lake where big smallies are so rare to come by feels like a bigger trophy to me anyways.

[Slyster]

Nice FISH! Where are you from Fordo?

[Fordo]

I'm from St.Cloud