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Comments from readers who have used these instructions:

"I just wanted to take a moment to thank you for your article on cleaning bass.  I found your article very helpful in cleaning my first bass.  (I have only cleaned catfish before today.)  The description and pictures were both great. (W.M.)

"Thanks for your fish cleaning tips!" (S.G.)

"Good exhibits on filleting." (T & L)

Other Fishing Articles:

Cleaning Fish
Mr. Pike
Keeper of the Keys
Loons on the Lake
An Open Letter
In a Hurry?
Algae
Knots
Lake Turnover
Mayflies
Ticks
Finest of Times
Ice Fishing
Knives

Sample page of complete Y-Bones Article

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Whether you call them "smallies" or "bronze backs", a fresh-water smallmouth bass is some of the most fun to catch: they are fighters! But even better is the variety of ways that this fish can be prepared. The flesh is meatier and less flaky then, say, a walleye. It is also a bit stronger flavored and therefore will stand up to different seasonings and cooking methods. I recently heard someone on the radio say that small mouth bass are not a good-eating fish. Nothing could be further from the truth, so don’t let anyone tell you otherwise!

Many years ago, I worked as a pantry boy and sauté cook at a very fine restaurant near Los Angeles, California. One of the greatest tasting entrees on the menu was a dish called Pacific Red Snapper Sauté Veronique. It was a fish very similar to smallmouth and I decided to try the recipe. Well, I am getting way ahead of myself, but needless to say, Bass Veronique is a dish that I am sure anyone would love to eat; the recipe can be found at the end of this article. It is truly one of my favorites and I raise a toast every time I prepare a bass in that fashion.

I don’t remember when I caught my first smallmouth bass and I certainly don’t remember the first one that I ate. I do remember the first one that I cleaned: it was a disaster. I tried to clean it the same way that I had learned to clean a walleye. Boy, was that a mistake! The rib cage bones are very thick – even on the smaller fish – and as tough as nails, literally. I quickly learned that trying to clean bass this way only leads to a dull knife and rib cage bones that are almost impossible to remove without wasting a whole lot of fish. Here’s hoping that the following method - and especially the pictures – will help you to become a master at cleaning one of the tougher game fish to both catch…and clean!

As the largest member of the sunfish family (Centrarchidae), when trying to fillet them, the anatomy of bass causes a very similar problem to that encountered when cleaning a Bluegill, although bass have their own peculiarities associated with them.  Below is a portion of the step-by-step process that I follow. As always, the key ingredient to a successful job is the right tool - the right tool here definitely being a very sharp knife!  How important is a sharp knife?  I finally went out and bought myself one of the best:  

As always, a sharp knife is extremely important; a Zwilling J.A. Henckels 7-in. Twin Pro S Fillet Knife is at the top of my list when it comes to filleting fish.  Read my article about knives
Fish Cleaning Bundle Special (Save 33% off the regular price) Now available from R. Karl, step-by-step instructions (pdf) on filleting all four of the most popular freshwater gamefish (northern pike, walleye, smallmouth bass and bluegill) bundled as one downloadable .zip file for only $5.99 3.99!  Buy Now
Start as you would normally start: place the fish belly side towards you and fish head on your left.  Note that this description is for a right-handed person – flip the fish 180° and start with the head on your right if you are left-handed.  Make the first cut down and into the fish just behind the pectoral fin.
Then, rotate the fish and, starting at the top or backbone side of the fish - and using the tip of the blade - cut through the skin and along the dorsal fin/backbone... to a point approximately at the end/back of the dorsal fin. As with a blue gill, the cut here will not be very deep:  you need to cut only to the point at which the ribs attach to the backbone.  The rib cage stops at a point just about where the dorsal fin ends.
Now insert the knife blade all the way through the fish so that it emerges on the belly side.  Keeping pressure on the flat side of the knife, continue the cut toward the back of the fish, eventually exiting at the tail. At this point, the fillet is attached only at the bottom of the rib cage and belly.
Lift the slab of the fillet and use the tip of the knife to begin to cut away the meat from the ribs.  Work from the back of the fish and, following the curve of the rib cage, cut down and around as you work your way toward the front of the rib cage. The curve of the ribs is very steep and can be difficult to follow.  As a have said many times, practice makes perfect, so be patient.
The very last cut to make will be the one through the belly that separates the fillet from the carcass.
Flip the fish over on the other side and repeat the process.  You will probably find that one side always seems to be easier than the other. This will be normal until you have filleted many fish... on a fairly regular basis.  I find that my first dew every year are a little rough - but it all comes back pretty quickly.

The only thing left to do know is remove the skin from the fillet. Oddly enough, this is the one task that is sometimes made simpler by the use of a “less-than-sharp” knife. The reason is that a really sharp knife too often cuts right through the skin halfway through the process and makes removal difficult. I’m not suggesting that you change knives at this point…simply be careful and insure that the blade of the knife doesn’t get angled down too steeply.

At this point, you are mostly finished. Due to the anatomy of the fish, there will still be about 6-8 pieces of rib bones remaining in the fillet that will be a half-inch or so in length. They will extend vertically into the fillet and are located along the lateral line.

I have observed some anglers actually cut out a large v-shaped portion of the fillet to achieve a “totally” boneless fillet. It is effective, to be sure…but it does waster a lot of meat. Another, alternative method is to remove these several pieces by hand, or grab small pliers to do the job. Left in the fillet, they obviously must be removed at the dinner table. In any case, it is surely a small price to pay for on the better tasting freshwater fish available.

If you are a little adventurous and want to try a dish that is to die for, my recipe for Bass Veronique will do the trick.   Although I've tried other types of fish, small mouth bass seems to have the character to stand up to this dish.