I had a mini-disaster today..

[Richk]

i had too many bunker in my net. i threw on a pod and they were so thick my net started swimming. my brother and i could barely get the net in the boat. when the net was on the deck i knew we were in for trouble as the fish had twisted and tangled everything. I never had so many bunker before.

it took us 1/2 hour just to get 90% of the bunker out and i had to cut out the remainder. the net was so twisted and snarled in every direction, i could not even get the horn to slide 1/2 way up the weight bearing lines. I just bought this net from percy and was really aggravated. we put two baits in water and tried to work on it. wound up stuffing it in a hatch and fished. when i got home i spent 2 hours getting it untangled and repairing where i had cut the bunker out. It still opened great in my yard so i am relieved. Any tips or ideas to deal with this for the future?

[Aquajoe]

Next time, throw the cast net at the edge of the pod of bunkers. You will catch fewer bunker, but you will be able to pull the net in.

[rocky]

Percy does make a sweet net.

[Fisherguy53]

Rich:
I have had this happen a few times and found that not trying to bring the net into the boat is the first thing........

Instead, only pull the net close to the surface, then secure the it to a cleat or rail on your boat, then grab some of the netting & pull up only a section until you get to the opening, then get it open enough to release any extra bunker that you don't want to bring on board........This should keep the bunker that you want in good shape and your boat will not be slimed........Good Luck next time, Geo.

[njbasspro88]

I have yet to cast-net at schools, just snag, but it sounds like a real adrenaline rush. Think about it, you probably had a hundred pounds of fish in your net. Hope you catch less next time! lol

Fisherguy, sounds like a real good idea. When i do try it out i'm gonna use that technique, thanks for the info!

[med]

learned this lession the hard way throwing a large net in florida for bunker....the natural reaction is to throw directly into the school...two problems with that....one you may spook the school....and second you get too many bunker and cant get the net back into the boat.....always throw at the edge of the school....how many bunker can you keep anyway....a couple dozen are more than enough....pull in front of the school of bunker and let the school work its way to you...then throw at the front edge of the school.....one well placed throw should do it...if you do fill the net...then tie it off and pulll it back in by a section at a time...you have to be careful not to pull in too much at a time or you can tear the net...a 10' net full of adult bunker can weigh 200+ lbs....good luck..