04-15-2004, 04:25 PM
[cool][#0000ff][size 1]Hey Scudman, it is a common concern...them catfish spines. The good news is that the sharpest spines are on the younguns, as a means of protecting them from being invited to family dinners...as the main course. The spines tend to get duller and less dangerous as the fish grow bigger.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]You can still get a hole in you, your waders or your air chambers up until the cats get to be about four or five pounds. By then, spawning activities and rooting around in the rocks will have worn off the points in most cases, and you don't have as much to worry about. The hard first spines are still there on the pectoral and dorsal fins. They just don't have the sharp points any more.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]The cat tethered to the tube was only about 10 pounds...but too big for my basket. Like most large kitties it was good for a few minutes of being towed around by a one "catpower" motor. [/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]For the benefit of those who haven't seen a previous post of one of my Arizona flatheads, here is one of a 27 pounder that I took on 6# line and a small jig while fishing for crappies. Took a long time to talk him into crawling into my net...which only could handle about the front half. Just about tipped the tube over when I hoisted it up onto the apron to string the rope through its mouth.[/size][/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff][size 1]You can still get a hole in you, your waders or your air chambers up until the cats get to be about four or five pounds. By then, spawning activities and rooting around in the rocks will have worn off the points in most cases, and you don't have as much to worry about. The hard first spines are still there on the pectoral and dorsal fins. They just don't have the sharp points any more.[/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]The cat tethered to the tube was only about 10 pounds...but too big for my basket. Like most large kitties it was good for a few minutes of being towed around by a one "catpower" motor. [/size][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][size 1]For the benefit of those who haven't seen a previous post of one of my Arizona flatheads, here is one of a 27 pounder that I took on 6# line and a small jig while fishing for crappies. Took a long time to talk him into crawling into my net...which only could handle about the front half. Just about tipped the tube over when I hoisted it up onto the apron to string the rope through its mouth.[/size][/#0000ff]
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