TOPIC:

So I have a question for everyone. If you could only have one net on your boat for the season, what net would that be? I feel like the nets I have tried are absolutely a pain. What size, what material of netting, and where can I get one? Just curious what everyone else is using.

See the below link. I got one of these last year and love it. I cant tell you the hoop size for sure since its on my boat, but I am pretty sure its the biggest. I love it. Light, strong, big.

www.fishusa.com/product/Beckman-Coated-Net

Thank you Dirty. I’ll definitely check it out.

Two many times I have been out and had to use a second net, I never leave dock without two. That said during the spring I hadn't put a big net on board but did have 2 Cummings rubber walleye nets that I use for spring Coho due to the deeper basket and had to net this 21lb king. Love the rubber nets for the no tangle and ease of fish removal, most of the time. I have converted all my nets on both boats to rubber except the big salmon hoops.

If I only had one, it would be my rubber net. One of them is a no-longer-available Bass Pro, fiberglass handle model and the other is an aluminum handle. Both, however, have been retro-fitted with Frabill replacement bags (SKU 3070) they say are 23X26. I don't know how they measure them since they are rubber and will stretch or shrink to fit nearly any reasonable sized salmon net. Most important, is they are deep enough so even when scooping a 2 or 3 pound coho, it's not like trying to net the fish with a tennis racquet. I do carry a mega-net for scooping up big kings and lakers, but I've netted plenty of 20+ kings and lakers in the rubber nets.

Here's a tip I got from a couple of GLA readers about how they "rubberized" their nets. One had an old, rubber-worn-out net and he sprayed it with Rocker Guard stuff (the bed-liner like spray guys apply to fenders and rocker panels to ward off gravel chips). Another guy converted a net made out of either nylon or poly-cord by spraying it with Flex seal - the stuff you've seen TV commercials about. You might want to give this a try before you spring for something more costly. Let us all know how it works if you try it.