Your digital scale should go to zero when you turn it on...if you hook a basket to it prior to turn on, then turn on after the weight of the basket is on it, it should initiate at zero...then put the fish in the basket and should give fairly accurate weight...experiment with a known weight...by doing this method you can avoid poking a hole in the fish...however, if too involved, poking a hole in the membrane underneath the lower jaw should not be to damaging...during my tenure with the Shimano barge we had a lot of fish that had been weighed by the fishermen that way...didn't notice any significant problems...please understand, my views are not a scientific study or anything, just alot of experience with catch and release...
Cheers,
Torchy
