The off-season is filled with all kinds of off-the-water duties like tackle inventory, reel cleaning, and boat maintenance. The devil is definitely in the detail. One item that is often missed but one that is essential is the bump board. A misplaced step, normal wear and tear or an angry moment can made that old bump board inaccurate. The slightest bend and a 15 inch fish is really 14 and 3/4. Weighmasters do not like short fish so it is definitely an item that needs to be checked.

 

Gator Grip owner Brook Johnson, builder of professional grade bump boards, is critical about his boards being exact. "We make every effort to make sure our boards leave here precise but a couple of things can happen. During shipment they can get bent, anglers can bend them in the boat and its important that they get checked. Its easy to make sure they are square. Get a T-square or combination square from a local hardware store and place it against the bend in the board to assure it is a true 90 degree right angle. Do it on the back of the board."

"We have 7 different styles of board and each are different. We have 1/4 inch and 1/8 inch and of course the 1/8 inch board is more susceptable to bending. You can use a vice and a rubber mallet to straighten it. You may find that a new board is in your future" said Johnson.