Just remember…it’s better to throw a small net good than a large net bad. 4-6 foot is all you need. Consider a 1/4" mesh for small finger mullet, however it’s not a good idea to have it in your boat during shrimp baiting season. The 1/4" mesh keeps the mullet from getting “gilled”.
John
Pathfinder 23 HPS
I have a cheap Old salt castnet that’s designed for 4 feet of water max, or thereabouts. The weights are so light, it sinks so slow that, supposedly, the fish will just swim under it and be freed before it closes. I find this to be true.
I catch most 7" fishes, brim, & bass, from shore. This is in the Waccamaw river. The water is so black that I cannot tell if a new driftwood has drifted to where I’m throwing the net. Sometimes I get caught up at a place that was clear just the night before.
I may get more fish from the shore, but it’s risky, unless casting onto a ramp when not in use. That’s the best bet.
I’ve also learned that I can catch small catfish if I throw it off the docs into deep water, around 30’ deep or more. I even caught a 6" catfish & 3 4" catfish this night off the docks into the deep. I let the rope run all the way out and then pull it quickly to close it and then just haul it in steady. Little catfish get their whiskers all tangled up easy, but it’s nothing a pair of pliars can’t fix.
So far, they seem to like the slower moving parts of the river. The water more towards the middle of the river catches less fish.
The good thing about casting into the deep waters is that I don’t really have to worry about snagging onto a new piece of driftwood that has ended up on the bottom where I’m casting. I like that, but the bad thing is, so far, all I’ve caught are small little cat-fish.
Maybe I’d catch more fish if I tied a large dead bass to a brick and threw it at the bottom of this deep water where I’m casting, or mixed a flour/cornmeal/mud ball/brick & threw it down there. I haven’t done this cause I doubt it’s legal, but I wonder if it would make a difference. I also wonder about bright lights, but how bright would it have to be to attract fish at night? Like, a good 4 AAA battery LED flashlight bright? or a 60 watt incandescent bulb bright? or more? I think using a light would be legal & I’d like to try it. Another thing I’ve noticed is that I don’t catch fish if I’m
Pi is not square, it is round!
War Eagle 115 yamaha 4 stroke
I throw a 4’ Walmart special el cheapo net. Living on the Ashley with all of the snags - an expensive net is like throwing money away.
I typically keep 2 on board - $35-40 each - the river eats nets…
But they work fine in the harbor or offshore as well - my bait freezer stays full all year with fresh pogies and mullet.
har?bor
/#712;h?rb#601;r/
noun
noun: harbour; plural noun: harbours; noun: harbor; plural noun: harbors
a place on the coast where vessels may find shelter, especially one protected from rough water by piers, jetties, and other artificial structures.
I had to look that one up. I haven’t castnetted in many large harbors but the one time I did, I let that net go all the way down. It didn’t touch bottom. I pulled up a huge 15" menhaden with a big worm parasite in it’s throat. It’s good to kno that offshore works well also.
I often wonder if I’d catch much more fish if I had a heavier castnet. I bought a Tyzac Betts old salt cast net. It’s $31 at Walmart. I think I paid more towards $55 at West Marine. Cheap is good, but it needs weight.
<Christ returned in 1844>
Go 6’ no question. It will take a couple a times to learn to throw it but when you learn to open it up you will be glad. I do a good bit of surf fishing and can throw my 6’ with ease. It also doubles for a great inshore cast net of the boat.
State Farm Agent
N Myrtle Beach
I’ve found this to be the absolute easiest way to throw the cast net. It probably wouldn’t work for larger cast nets, but it works great for my 6’ net.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckm6BIVryEY
My first net was an 8’ Cracker from Haddrell’s. I forget his name but he took me outside and showed me how to throw a perfect 16’ diameter circle (aka pancake) my first time prior to buying one. That was the clincher. Since then I’ve tried two other methods via a VHS video and a YouTube technique. The one Haddrell’s taught me works best even for 5’ net. So now I have 5 nets, two with holes, a 12’ is my largest and after about 5 years of playing around with them, they are all fun to throw except when you hook up with those angry oysters.
Also, I have a friend with kids that could out throw me and at the time when they were only 4.x ft tall themselves!
I agree with most of the folks here… 6’ 3/8 mesh size is best for menhaden and shrimp as your only single net.
quote:
Originally posted by Cracker LarryAnybody ever watched a Vietnamese, about 5’ tall and 90 pounds throw a 20’ cast net? Over and over again. I can’t do it, but I’ve seen it done. Dang. It’s all in the technique, not the strength.
For the pie are square challenged, if we round pi to 4 decimal places, that’s 1256.64 square feet of net. As big as some houses. Catch a lot of shrimp with that.
Capt. Larry Teuton
Cracker Built Custom Boats“Ships are the nearest things to dreams that hands have ever made.” -Robert N. Rose
To put things more into perspective. pi =3.1415…
I just use the pi button on my calculator, or use 3 if I’m doing it in my foggy head.
6ft net=(3)(6)^2= 113 sqft
8ft net=(3)(8)^2= 201 sqft
10ft net=(3)(10)^2= 314 sqft
12ft net=(3)(12)^2=452 sq ft
So as you can see, a 12ft net covers 4 times the area of a 6footer. In fact, I can net my boat if I wanted to with my 12 footer. Plus my technique is only good for 10-12 foot nets when I throw. I’ve never gone over 12, but I can’t throw an 8footer.
the only downside to throwing a large net is getting 200lbs of menhaden in the boat when you hit the school.
when you’re out shrimping on a slow day, you think of these things.
Mako 1901 Inshore-Honda 130
10% of the people catch 90% of the fish.
quote:
Originally posted by DillyDallyMy first net was an 8’ Cracker from Haddrell’s. I forget his name but he took me outside and showed me how to throw a perfect 16’ diameter circle (aka pancake) my first time prior to buying one. That was the clincher. Since then I’ve tried two other methods via a VHS video and a YouTube technique. The one Haddrell’s taught me works best even for 5’ net. So now I have 5 nets, two with holes, a 12’ is my largest and after about 5 years of playing around with them, they are all fun to throw except when you hook up with those angry oysters.
Also, I have a friend with kids that could out throw me and at the time when they were only 4.x ft tall themselves!
I agree with most of the folks here… 6’ 3/8 mesh size is best for menhaden and shrimp as your only single net.
I heard those guys are pretty good. 
Reload time is also a factor with big nets. I can throw a 6 ft over and over again quickly, but a big net takes awhile to reload and I need a break after every few throws.