big digital scales

Jason, Here is some info I posted on the old BOC early this year:

I have been looking for a while for a digital scale that would weigh bigger catfish. For most of last year I carried 2 scales, a 50lb digital and a 100lb spring scale for “just in case”. Recently I purchased an OCS-20B 120lb digital scale off of Ebay, and I’m pretty happy with it. Here is a picture of it, along with several other scales for size comparison.

(Picture attached)

The scales are, from left to right..
Shimano 100lb spring scale
OCS-20B
Rapala 50lb Digital
Stren 50lb spring scale


As you can see, it’s pretty compact, especially compared to the 100lb spring scale. I end up carrying my gear in a pack a lot, and that spring scale just never fit in very well.

Good points
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Digital Scale for big fish!
Compact, it is smaller than most 50lb scales
Good, clear display.
Sturdy, it's built like a rock, with a solid aluminum case.
Very accurate, it compares very closely to my Rapala 50lb digital scale, with a 2-3 oz difference at around 30lbs. And it's very close to my postal scale when weighing things under 5lbs.
It has measuring tape built in

Weaker points
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Metric based, you always have to push the button an extra time to switch to lbs.
Weighs in percent of pounds, rather than ounces. For example, a displayed weight of 11.5 on this scale is the same as 11lbs 8oz on the Rapala scale.
It shuts off after 30 seconds of inactivity. A couple of minutes would be better, but this is not a huge deal.
Batteries are 2032 button cells.. I’m not sure what battery life will be, but I have some concerns. On the other hand, the batteries are small, so it's easy to pack spares. And it won't be on that much. The batteries could last for years?

To purchase
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Sep 2005 edit.. I got mine from an ebay seller who no longer lists it, but I notice others carry the same item. An ebay search for "120lb digital fishing scales" found at least a couple.

Other digital scale options
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Salter and Pelouze make 100lb digital scales, and both list for about $90, plus shipping and maybe sales tax of course. I can't remember where I saw the Pelouze, but it was a scale store, not a fishing store. Cabelas sells the Salter, but they hide it pretty well. If you just go to Cabelas web site and search for Salter it will pop right up.

It's also worth noting that there have been reports of people testing the Rapala 50lb scales with weights of 80-90lbs and getting accurate results.

An update to this. I added a Salter Electro Samson 100lb to my collection awhile back.

Things I like about the Salter:
It’s easy to hang onto, handy for weighing a big fish. The top bar is removable, and helps a lot with heavy items.
Scale stays on for 90 seconds before the auto shutoff. Nice when trying to get a scale photo.
Hook is sufficient for a very large fish jaw.

Things I don’t like:
Size – It’s big in the pack
Cost – It was almost $100


I did some comparisons, weighing a 5 gallon button with a bunch of sinkers in it, actual weight around 65lbs. Here is how each scale came out. These are listed in the same order as the photo, from left to right.

65lb 3oz -Salter ElectroSamson 100lb
64lb13ox -Rapala 50lb Digital
65lb 3oz -OCS-20B 120lb Digital (Display was 65.2lbs)
66lb 0oz -Shimano 100lb Spring Scale
64lb 0oz -Stren 50lb Spring Scale (Dial goes around past 50, actually showed 14lbs)

I was amazed to see the Salter and OCS-20B agree exactly on something that heavy. Earlier tests on a 35lb wheelbarrow came up about half a pound different, but it was difficult to get a stable reading on such a bulky item.

Recommendation.. The Salter is a nice scale, but the OCS-20B would be a better deal for most people.