headscan

You can get a pin vise at most hobby stores and model train places.

I did end up getting a bigger net - a Fisknat San Juan net I found down at West Winds on the weekend. I've also since figured out how to dip the fish's head into the net and keep it in the water the whole time I'm landing it. With smaller fish, I just use a pair of Dr. Slick release clamps to get the fly out without netting the fish and barely even touching it. Thanks to all that replied.

Wow, I didn't realize when I originally posted that this was such a contentious issue... I think I'll ride out the rest of the season with the net I have and go from there. I'll try tailing any fish that look too big for it and if I have any more trouble, I'll consider getting a bigger net. Thank you all for the input.

Ok, so up until now I've managed to find answers to all of my questions by searching through previous posts. I just ran into something that I haven't found an answer to yet, though. Normally I fish the lower section of the Highwood and most of the fish I catch down there aren't huge, so I've been fine landing them. I have a net that's about 15" for some of the bigger ones and it's worked fine so far. On Saturday I managed to hook a pretty big brown, though. When I finally got him in close enough, he was a good 5" longer than my net opening and managed to flip himself out of it. I tried to net him again, but he seemed to have figured it out and jerked his head which snapped my tippet. So is there a technique to netting bigger fish with a small net? Marc