Rubber-coated mesh
Also called rubber net, knotless rubber mesh
Netting dipped in or molded from soft rubber. Gentle on a fish's slime coat and it sheds treble hooks instead of grabbing them.
Knotted nylon mesh does two bad things. The knots abrade a fish's slime coat, which is its protection against infection, and the small holes catch every point of a treble hook so thoroughly that landing a crankbait fish can take ten minutes of untangling.
Rubber mesh fixes both. The smooth surface slides against a fish without stripping mucus, and hooks sit on top of it rather than threading through.
It is heavier and it holds more water, which is the only real argument against it, and it is not much of one.
Molded rubber and rubber-coated nylon are slightly different things. Molded rubber mesh is a single piece with larger, smoother holes and sheds hooks best. Coated nylon keeps the underlying net structure and is lighter, and the coating can eventually crack and peel.
If you fish crankbaits or jerkbaits at all, a rubber net pays for itself in recovered fishing time within a season.
Related terms
Where this comes up
The guides that use rubber-coated mesh and show it on real gear.
Rubber-coated mesh is one of 206 terms in the glossary.
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