I throw the Fitec 11970 but good luck finding one. These Betts are my second choice. Don’t even waste your money unless it’s taped and heavy.

https://www.amazon.com/Betts-19-7-DH-Super-Deep-Hole/dp/B00AN0S1P8

Yeah, I got a net for warm water. I just need a deep water net. Takes me about an hour to get some decent bait now. Definitely getting as heavy a 7 foot taped net as I can find. I found a 1.6 lb per foot 7 non taped, and I might have even considered that if it were a 1/2 mesh, but it was a 3/8. Guess I'll just wait until somebody has a taped one.

The Betts I showed you from Amazon is taped and heavy. 5/8” mesh is the standard for throwing a deep net.

Is it still ok, if the shad aren't huge? I was thinking of getting the 12970 from Fitec, which I finally found some in stock, in a couple places. But it's a 1/2 inch mesh. If the 5/8 mesh still gets the 4 to 6 inch shad, I'll get the Betts, and give it a shot. Just don't have a huge volume of monster shad on the lake I usually fish. But lots in the 4 to 6 inch range, and quite a few up to 8 or 9.

5/8 will catch 5” and up. Let’s all those small threads pass through. It will catch large threads and med gizzards and everything bigger. The 1/2 inch will catch more threads but you’ll also get a ton of em stuck in the net which is a pain in the tail.

I use this net when I need to throw deep. The majority of the time I'm catching shad and bait in 6' of water in creeks. I realize lots of the guys on here know more about cast nets than I do. I've only been doing this about 29 years.

I used to get my bait in the creeks too but it would take me forever to make the 6 mile run up the lake to get to the creeks. Then hopefully find the bait and get it without ripping my net. The time it used to take me would burn up half the morning acquiring bait. Most of us weekend fisherman catch our bait when we get on the water that morning and my ramp doesn’t open until 7am. Getting my big baits as quickly as possible and as close to my ramp as possible has helped me to get my lines in the water a lot quicker which equals more time fishing the early morning bite. Now I get bait off the ledges 100 yrds from my ramp or about 1 mile to the depressions I throw on and it only takes 1 or 2 throws and I’m fishing. Instead of 2 hr bait run it now takes me 15 minutes. To each his own and there are a 1000 way to skin a cat and more than 1 way to get bait too.

I fully agree with all of the above and I'm fortunate to have a creek right near when I launch, and I catch bait the day I fish. To me fresh bait is the second most important thing is blue cat fishing.

I am seeing the same thing. A 7 foot taped net with 1.5 lbs per radius foot doesn't seem to exist right now. My Menhaden net with gorilla tape is working just fine but it takes a bit to loosen it up when its cold. The tape gets stiff. Once I get it in the water a couple times it's fine. I've looked everywhere I know to and they are all out of stock, including castnets.com. That is as of Jan 3rd.
If anybody finds them in stock, sing out!

https://www.amazon.com/Betts-19-7-DH-Super-Deep-Hole/dp/B00AN0S1P8

Come on Tim! I’m trying to help you guys out here. There are 2 left in stock on Amazon but you better hurry up cuz those will be gone soon too.

I looked at this one. I hesitated because it was only one pound per foot.

I was looking for the 11970. That's the one I can't find in stock anywhere.

Your not going to find a 11970 Tim. This is the the closest thing too it available. It’s 1.4 lbs per ft and your about to miss out on it since now there is only 1 left. After it’s gone there won’t be any taped nets left in the whole country.

Calm down El Gato I purchased the net you speak of a few minutes ago.

You got the wrong idea about me Marc. I’m as calm as Vladimir Putin on Election Day. Just trying to help some of you guys out.