I have been on bigger fish this year,thanks to a few members here,namely LBH<ZEL<SPEEDBEAD and CATT, and last week a friend caught a samllie off a weed bed that I put him on, that was a very large fish. We had no scale and I wondered when I saw this post if a stringer could have been used to hold the fish until I made a few calls to get an accurate idea of the weight. I do not care about such things as I catch em and put em right back,

So when I saw this and the info, I asked a local guide and I saw the article by the biologist on this site and I searched and all the info was that a stringer was not a good alternative and leads to a higher chance of mortality. I choose to go with this

You can make a good stringer that will keep bass healty by using D type stainless steel safety clips, size 1/0 370 lb swivels, 300 lb test marlin leader and a 1 lb topedo sinker.

Make the stringer about 8' to 10' long and use dog lease snap swivel on each end to clip onto the boat and add the weight on the opposite end. Use the large barrel swivels on the 300 lb mono line to attached the D clips onto. To keep the bass down on the bottom 24" of the stringer, add a large plastic bead with a rubber band for a stopper to keep the barrel swivels from sliding up the main line.

You attach the bass to the stringer D ring by piercing the thin membrane close behind the lower lip and this doesn't harm the bass any more than a catch & release tournament culling clip/float.

There is a lot of negative feelings associated with stringers, but what you have described appears to be the best way to keep the fish happy and healthy.  The angler doesn't have to worry about livewell temp or DO.  When doing runs down the lake the angler can pull the stringer in and put the fish in the livewell for the run, then put them back in the lake after the run is over.

Big fish would especially benefit from this.  I can't imagine what the mortality rate was for the 40lb bags that BASS anglers like Elias were catching on Falcon (is that right?).  Bass boat livewells simply aren't made to hold that many pounds of fish.

If your desire is to fish competitively, find a club that needs non boaters.  I can't help but to notice it is an "off shore" tournament.  What does this mean?  What species?  I think there are missing details in the original question that need to be cleared up before continuing the livewell/basket/stringer/shiskabob debate.

Carefully pass the stringer through the vent and out the gullet. That way you won't damage their gills.  :

GOOD GRIEF ANOTHER PISSIN CONTEST.