Today we’re going to talk about digital fishing scales as they have come a long way since my early days of fishing. Yes, I can remember the days before digital scales, I am that old and remember when all we really had for the amateur was one of those old clock face style scales that weighed a four pound fish as two pounds and a ten pound weight as four pounds. Scales, like wine seem to have gotten much better with age.
This year there are several good options for digital scales. If you are considering getting one you might want to check some of these out. While no digital scales are what you would consider cheap, there are some that are less expensive than others. But for me, the ones that I am looking at are all in the mid-range price level.
Rapala, Evolution, and Berkley Digital Fishing Scales
Rapala has a new touch-screen scale that comes in either a 15 lb. or a 50 lb. version. The things that are appealing to me about this product are that the 15 lb. version comes with an 8-pc culling system, runs on two AA batteries, comes with a storage bag with sewn in instructions, has multiple applications for managing your catch and comes with a heavy duty clamp for holding your fish.
I vastly prefer clamps to hooks for weighing fish. I believe that it is less strenuous on the fish and for catch and release, I want to treat the fish as easy as I can. I have had Rapala branded gear and the vast majority of it has performed solidly and wound up being a good value.
Another scale that you might look at is the Evolution EconoDigi44 Fish Scale. This product looks similar to a boga-grip with a digital scale on it. It has swiveling stainless steel landing jaws, a rubber non-slip grip handle and will weigh your catch in pounds, ounces and kilograms. It doesn’t have all the features of the Rapala but will do what it is designed to do for the weekend angler and that is show you what your catch weighs up to 44 pounds.
Berkley has the Digital Lip Grip Scale that is very similar to the Evolution. It has all the same features but gives the angler one more choice. To decide between the two, you should really see them in person and find out which is more comfortable for you to use.
Take Note
One note of caution, with every digital scale that I have ever used there are two things that you have to be aware of. One is that you have to give the scale enough time to re-set before you weigh a new fish or it can throw the weight off.
The other is that as the batteries begin to be drained, you will notice that it takes longer and longer for the scale to re-set. When this happens, there is at least a decent chance that you will get a reading that is not accurate so you should replace the batteries immediately.
All of these scales share two key features. One, they all use digital scales that are easily read and two, they all use clamps to hold your catch as opposed to hooks. I know that when my son and I landed our double of spotted bass from Lake Lanier, we didn’t have a scale on board. I really wish that we did because I would love to know the exact weight of those fish.
See ya on the water…