# Fish Scalers?



## travis91 (Jul 26, 2005)

What do yall use and recommend for scaling fish?


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## Oldcountryboy (Feb 23, 2008)

A good sharp pocket knife and a pair of fish skinners.

Don't scale the fish! Take a pocket knife and make a slit from head to tail on the top side of the fish, going around both sides of the dorsal fin. Make another slit from head to tail on the bottom side. Then right behind the head on both sides slit from top of fish to bottom of fish, from top slit to bottom slit. Now take the fish skinners and grab a peice of skin right behind the head and pull toward the tail. Both skin and scales come off at the same time. Do both sides and then remove the fins, head, and guts. Whalla! You have nice peice of skinless fish ready for the frying pan.


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## EDDIE BUCK (Jul 17, 2005)

Oldcountryboy said:


> A good sharp pocket knife and a pair of fish skinners.


 Thats what I do on catfish and bass,but crappie and bluegill,I scale them.That skin is good eating unless its from a large one then its strong tasting.I have a small cheap galvanized fish scaler with teeth that I've been using for many years that works good.Also have an electric one that I use if I have a bunch to scale. EB


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## travis91 (Jul 26, 2005)

tell me about the electric one and no one skins panfish


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## tyusclan (Jan 1, 2005)

I use one that I built from expanded metal. You make a drum from the expanded metal and put ends in it. Run a pipe either through the center or above the drum with small holes drilled all along the pipe to spray water on the fish as they turn. Use a very slow rpm motor to turn the drum.

I see you're in Hartford. J.D. Swearingen Equipment Co. in Marianna has some very similar to the one I built.

BTW, we use the fish scaler to scrape the potatoes when we dig them too. It works great for that as well.


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## EDDIE BUCK (Jul 17, 2005)

The electric scaler I have is this one,but it won't that pricey twenty years ago.It works great,but throws scales everywhere. http://autofishscalers.com/BPHD.html


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## travis91 (Jul 26, 2005)

well i can get the standard bear paw scaler for 115 and the heavy duty for 140


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## fishhead (Jul 19, 2006)

A metal tablespoon.


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## EX-BRAVE (Aug 5, 2008)

Fishheads got it right boy's, nothing better than a spoon. Not the handle, the part that goes in your mouth. I can have a large mess cleaned before you flip a switch on your electric gizzmos.


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## Homesteader at Heart (Aug 11, 2003)

I agree, a spoon works great.


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## quietstar (Dec 11, 2002)

A cheap, yard sale electric drill with an old bit will do the job quick on a cooler full of Bream which means scales are flying around. With a small stringer I always scale by hand with an old sandwich knife outside under cold running water...Glen


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## tyusclan (Jan 1, 2005)

EX-BRAVE said:


> Fishheads got it right boy's, nothing better than a spoon. Not the handle, the part that goes in your mouth. I can have a large mess cleaned before you flip a switch on your electric gizzmos.


Well, since I can scale a five-gallon bucket full of fish in about 5 minutes with my "electric gizzmo" you'd have to prove that to me.


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## poorboy (Apr 15, 2006)

4animals said:


> tell me about the electric one and no one skins panfish


My x brudder'n'law skinned 'im faster than a person could scale 'em. he wouldn't eat them otherwise. me an x wife split 12 yrs. ago, but i'll bet ole Larry still skins his fish!


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## EX-BRAVE (Aug 5, 2008)

tyusclan, you keep mixing electric "gizzmos" and water and you'll be the one fried, not the fish.(5) minutes for a 5 gal. bucket, thats the one that needs proving !!


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## tyusclan (Jan 1, 2005)

EX-BRAVE said:


> tyusclan, you keep mixing electric "gizzmos" and water and you'll be the one fried, not the fish.(5) minutes for a 5 gal. bucket, thats the one that needs proving !!


I've been an electrician for about 30 years. They make all kinds of ways to prevent water from getting to the power. Washing machines and dishwashers are two things that come immediately to mind that use water and electricity. I've never heard of anyone getting "fried" from those.

The drum on my scaler easily holds a 5-gallon bucket. Dump the fish in, turn on the water, flip the switch, and about 5 minutes later, you take'em out and gut'em.


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## ||Downhome|| (Jan 12, 2009)

a good fillet knive and a pair of hemostats. I fillet all my fish havnt scaled one 
in years. I dont even gut them just zip off the meat on both sides the the skin and scales off the fillets.

give the rest to the ***** or save it to bait traps.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

I use a townsen skinner just cut a sliceby the tail and skin to the head. 

 Al


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## Oldcountryboy (Feb 23, 2008)

poorboy said:


> My x brudder'n'law skinned 'im faster than a person could scale 'em.



Yep, I watched an old man skin a big old basket full of sun perches one time and he was skinning them so fast I couldn't believe the speed he was getting them done. I still can't skin em as fast as he was doing it but since I took up the skinning I can skin em faster then I can scale em. And I like to eat em a lot better with the skins off.


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