Originally Posted by
clfarms1
But then its not your fish, I wouldnt trade mine for a replica, it cant match the real thing
That's the way almost all of the guys I know think too. Even if a replica is the same size as the one caught and the paint job is good, it is not really a fish at all. It's a fiberglass model of a crappie that someone else caught. The size selection of really big crappie replicas is limited and many guys opting for a replica are going to get the same exact one that others have bought. When anyone looking at a crappie displayed on a fisherman's wall asks..."Is that a real fish?.....Did you catch that one?"...you can answer "YES" with honest pride. A skin mount always has an intrinsic value to the one who caught it that is unmatched by a "faux" fish.
Some of life's most precious memories take place in the presence of a fish.