Embarrassing and Costly Lesson

I have officially learned why I have read so many times people claiming they do not keep fish under 12 1/8" or 12 1/4".

My buddy and I fished Sardis Saturday morning and had a great day. We caught about 40-50 fish and kept 17 fish.

We pulled the boat out after lunch, when we couldn't stand it any longer, and headed for the house. The game wardens were at the ramp and asked if we did any good, I was honest and told them that we had done fairly well. He asked if he could see our fish so we stopped and jumped out to show him. He looked in the cooler and said he wanted to measure them.

By the end of it all, I had bought a ticket for two short fish. One probably being a 1/16" of an inch short and the other being about 1/8" short. He asked if we were using a drop in style measurer and I confirmed we were. He said those style measurers had made MS a lot of money over the years. For the ease of use, I will continue to use the drop in style but I will also have a metal ruler on board to confirm any fish close before it gets an ice bath.

This is not meant to be a GW bashing thread, he didn't kill a short fish, I did. This is simply a reminder to really check the lengths because we were not out there trying to be outlaws and keep short fish. We had probably thrown back 10-12 fish, or more, measuring between 11-11.75".

We were informed that the mouth of the fish must be shut when measuring a fish. You can pinch the tail but can not open the mouth of the fish to manipulate the length of the fish.

Regardless, I have probably a $200 (or more) bag of crappie fillets at the house. Can anyone please suggest a beautiful bottle of white wine to go with those high dollar fish?

I have heard if you put them on ice they shrink some. What did they use to measure the fish?

Game wardens use golden rule You have to make sure lip is centered on the bnm measurer Also on Corp lakes make sure it goes to bottom


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ouch. Sorry to hear the bad news. I use a golden rule and always make sure they are 12.25 with tails fanned out. I had heard you could pinch the tails, but never seen anything in writing showing the correct way to measure fish.

Ouch, let us know if you don't mind as to what it cost, I have heard many different amounts but I won't share them with you as to not give you a heart attack!!!!
Glad you had a good day, I keep mine alive even this time of the year, they measure better.

If you cut a slot in the drop in measurers they'll work pretty good, but when in doubt throw it back.

Fish have to be OVER 12". That one gets a lot of people. They do draw up in ice and they are longer on one side after being in ice than the other. If you're getting checked and one is a 1/16" short have them flip it over, sometimes that works. If it ain't 12-1/4 I won't keep it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The drop in measures 1/8th inch short. The company that made them measured from the front of the plastic. The plastic is 1/8th inch thick. I have always used a ruler of some sort. But in this heat they get hot and those fish will flop like crazy when u put them on there. So a friend of mine made me a fish checker but he cut the end out and slid a gold rule under it. So now I'm able to drop my fish in and also have the reliability of the ruler. As far as measuring yes u can pinch the tail until it's parallel. As far as fish shrinking, we have tested and they do loose 1/8th inch of length once you kill them. All I can figure is that something in there jaw collapses when they die, because the skeletal structure can't shrink. I have never gotten a short fish ticket and been checked a lot. Make sure the fish is OVER 12 1/8th if your going to kill it.

Court cost will vary by county . Sardis used to be a better deal than Enid . was the ticket for "a" short fish ? or two ?Must you appear in court?

Sorry for your loss. I wish they could use some discretion when clearly there was no intent to cheat. Maybe put in a rule like Washington allowing one or two grace fish.

Golden Rule will solve the problem. Use what they use to measure.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Rees Guide

Ouch, let us know if you don't mind as to what it cost, I have heard many different amounts but I won't share them with you as to not give you a heart attack!!!!
Glad you had a good day, I keep mine alive even this time of the year, they measure better.

---

I'm not sure yet, I called this morning and my ticket is not even in the system. They asked me to call back in about a week.

We were trying to look it up on the way home and we found something that said $178 for the ticket and then $29 for each additional short fish. That was not off the game and fish website or anything, it was just a string of someone talking about getting a fine. I will know in a week or so but I anticipate it being $200-225.

Sorry to hear about your misfourtune. Lesson leaned I guess. Everyone told me they shrink, so I always make sure they're at least 1/4 inch over when I do keep any. PM me your mailing address and I'll send you a little (crappie.com) consolation prize so to speak. Might soften the sting of the ticket price. Might provide you a subtle reminder for next time too!

Simple fix. Go 1 inch over. I probably released 20 the other day that were just over 12 inches. But not worth it and besides I don't need the fish. I have plenty.

I don't believe with a "grace" program. Problem with grace fish thing is that people lie. I know that's hard to believe! :) Just follow the rules and use good judgement. Not bashing. Mistakes happen. Price to be paid, literally and figuratively.

At least you owned up to it and moving forward. Lesson learned for sure.

Sorry about your honest mistake. Alot of folks wouldn't admit it. I used to use those drop-in EZ Checkers as they call them back years ago when the MLL at Enid was 10". If a fish is fat and healthy shoulders with the MLL's we have these days, he won't go all the way to the bottom. If you ain't checking close, he'll be short. As previously mentioned by a previous post, they are 1/8" thick plastic, and that'll getcha! I use the Golden Rule w/ 1/4" buffer!

Thanks for your post and info!

Good information,Except for the ticket and that's a bummer when your trying to do the right thing,I use the drop in method but will get the golden rule just to be safe.But it don't seem fair but its the law.Try throwing your self at the mercy of the court.After all anyone can make a honest mistake.Hope the judge is a crappie.com member !!!!!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by armyman

Sorry about your honest mistake. Alot of folks wouldn't admit it. I used to use those drop-in EZ Checkers as they call them back years ago when the MLL at Enid was 10". If a fish is fat and healthy shoulders with the MLL's we have these days, he won't go all the way to the bottom. If you ain't checking close, he'll be short. As previously mentioned by a previous post, they are 1/8" thick plastic, and that'll getcha! I use the Golden Rule w/ 1/4" buffer!

Thanks for your post and info!

---

I noticed your spearhead pass I was in the 503rd MP company in Frankfort Germany from 1965 to 1966. We are having a get together in Door county Wis. this Aug.

I moved my mark to 12 3/8" last year. On two different days the first fish I caught was 12 3/8. Caught at daylight
and measured about 3:00 PM. Both fish remeasured at 12 1/8. Too close for comfort. I won't keep anything this
year that is not longer than 12 3/8. Also, while being checked by different wardens, I asked about the fish on ice shrinking.
3 told me they would not shrink. 1 told me they will shrink about 1/4" if they have been on ice a good while. The 1
that told me they would shrink gave me sound advise.

Thanks for sharing this with us. Thank you for a reminder that good intentions will not cause a fish to grow in the cooler. Sorry for you though. May the sting go away quick.

Man hate to hear that Cap, I do 12 1/2" and don't pinch the tails myself. My buddy was sick at first we were turning back 12 1/8 or 12 3/8" fish.. I convinced him our freezers are full so why chance it? He's really gonna freak out on my next rule, only 13" - 15" anything less or anything more goes back. I don't need the fish and would like someone else to catch some table fair or possibly a trophy fish one day cause we turned em lose. [emoji3]

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk

1/16th wow! Dang game wardens sound like trim carpenters> Ridiculous

I had a fish Sunday that measured 12-1/16. I put him on ice and remeasured him and the rest of my shorter fish when we got ready to leave. He only measured 11-7/8. I had to throw him overboard. That's the first fish I've ever thrown over. I'll never keep another fish under 12-1/4 again in the summer if I can't keep him alive. I hated to waste one. I felt like a thief doing it. It stinks to waste a fish, and I should have put him back in the lake when I caught him. [emoji35][emoji35][emoji35] at myself.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Stickers

1/16th wow! Dang game wardens sound like trim carpenters> Ridiculous

---

Short is short. Would have been illegal if it would have been 12" even.

I am gonna post this again. We have tested it, all fish shrink 1/8th inch when killed on ice. It doesn't matter if he's 16 inches or 11 inches u can bet it's gonna lose 1/8th inch. If u are using the fish checker/dropper/easy checker u need to subtract 1/8th inch because your fish isn't actually as big as u think because of the thickness of the plastic stopper. So get a ruler and lay the fish on it. Press him firmly against the stopper with mouth closed, pinch the tail until it's parallel, and chunk all of them back that are not over 12 1/8. U won't ever have to worry about it. Hopefully this will save y'all some tickets but this topic comes up several times a year.

Ding Ding Ding, we have a winner. That's all I use. I do not keep one unless it's 12 1/4 either Sucks but it is what it is

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by yikess

Golden Rule will solve the problem. Use what they use to measure.

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by BigRiverMarine

Short is short. Would have been illegal if it would have been 12" even.

---

True. Glad I dont get a ticket every time I go down the interstate going 71mph. A "talking too" would have gone just as far as a ticket in this case.

In MS you arent going to get a "talking to" over a short fish, just the way it is.
I don't see anything embarrassing about this thread, you made a mistake, you owned it and are willing to pay your fines with no fuss. Your willingness to share the experience says more about the person you are, hopefully your encounter with Mr Green Jeans will help someone else.
Thanks for posting this.

What he said^^^^^^

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Cap

Regardless, I have probably a $200 (or more) bag of crappie fillets at the house.

---

You got lucky, same thing happened to my brother in law a few years ago on Sardis with one of those Frabill checkers and the warden took ALL their fish, legal and short. I think they had 3 short fish out of 20 or so between him and his fishing buddy. They probably had a pretty good fish fry at the warden station that night.

Caps and Coleman came out with their own version of the drop in checkers that were designed for bigger crappie, the Frabill ones are not big enough for the bigger fish to slide all the way down into so they measure longer than they actually are.

Bird Down..would love to see a picture of your checker

http://i1175.photobucket.com/albums/...sfxgprd0b.jpeg

I LIKE that Bird down. Mind if i copy it?

Lol go for it

That was a hard lesson learned, I've always been in favor of being able to keep 2 or 3 short fish just because of crap like this. Plus the inevitable short fish which swallows the hook. It was obvious you guys were trying to do the right thing. Their is a fine line officers walk but it is not too hard to distinguish between obvious offenders and those who are trying to do the right thing. Finally, may I suggest a Cavit Riesling. It's a rich, dry, white wine, goes well with fish and the 13% alcohol content will help diminish your troubles. Enjoy

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by feeshrman

That was a hard lesson learned, I've always been in favor of being able to keep 2 or 3 short fish just because of crap like this. Plus the inevitable short fish which swallows the hook. It was obvious you guys were trying to do the right thing. Their is a fine line officers walk but it is not too hard to distinguish between obvious offenders and those who are trying to do the right thing. Finally, may I suggest a Cavit Riesling. It's a rich, dry, white wine, goes well with fish and the 13% alcohol content will help diminish your troubles. Enjoy

---

I recommend Boone's Farm Strawberry Hill. It helped me catch a few fish back in the day. Some short, some tall, some thick, and some thin. I never ate a crappie while drinking it tho. [emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Speck

I LIKE that Bird down. Mind if i copy it?

---

I think the OL boy with the black tailgate is the 1 to ask to copy that , lakeraper from Arkansas. [emoji16]

Sent from my VS985 4G using Tapatalk

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by bird down

http://i1175.photobucket.com/albums/...sfxgprd0b.jpeg

---

Thanks for posting a picture! I had one of the Capps and Coleman measuring devices just like yours. I modified mine last night very similar to yours. Trying to measure fish on hot ruler this time of year is a real challenge!!!

Attachment 243661hehehe

Sent from my VS985 4G using Tapatalk