How much is a bushel?

[flagg6805]

This has probably been asked before, but I've been crabbing in NJ quite a bit recently and was wondering... the possession limit in NJ is a bushel but that doesn't tell you how many crabs because crabs vary in size. Also, what if I'm using a cooler or a 5 gallon bucket to keep my crab? So the question is... generally speaking, how many crabs are in a bushel?

[tom on the rocks]

the answer is easy! get a bushel basket like the law says. which weighs more a pound of feathers or a pound of crabs?

[Mguy1]

About 60 large crabs.

If you're using a cooler, a bushel is 2150 cubic inches.  I round down to 2,000 cubic inches.  LxWxH in inches gives you the volume of your cooler.  

if you're using a 5 gallon bucket, 2 gallons in a peck.  4 pecks in a bushel.  So, 8 gallons per bushel.  Bushels use dry measures which are a little different than liquid measures but it's pretty close.  5 gallon bucket = 5/8 bushel.

[Steve]

To quote Judge Chamberlain Haller (My Cousin Vinny): That is a lucid, well-thought-out, intelligent objection.

But, seriously, thanks for that... I learned something new today!

[Capt. Debbie]

That's about right.  A bushel is technically how much space they take up. 

Obviously larger crabs (6"+) take less than 60 to make a bushel.  Smaller crabs (4.5 - 5") will take more crabs. 

Obviously its not a precise number.

About 60 large crabs.

If you're using a cooler, a bushel is 2150 cubic inches.  I round down to 2,000 cubic inches.  LxWxH in inches gives you the volume of your cooler.   THIS IS CYLIDRICAL like a 5 gallon bucket.  A BUSHEL IS CONICAL... SO USE THE MIDDLE OF THE BASKET TO MEASURE DIAMETER.

if you're using a 5 gallon bucket, 2 gallons in a peck.  4 pecks in a bushel.  So, 8 gallons per bushel.  Bushels use dry measures which are a little different than liquid measures but it's pretty close.  5 gallon bucket = 5/8 bushel.

[WadeG]

Here is a link to seafood weights and measures https://www.fresh-seafood.net/fish-shellfish/seafood-sizes-weights-measures/

"Typically, a bushel of #1 crabs will contain about 60 – 70 crabs (enough to feed about 10 – 12 people). Seafood dealers often estimate the weight of 1 bushel of crabs at approximately 40 pounds; each wooden bushel basket of crabs with lid weighs approximately 45 pounds each."

Wade

[Ron]

A bushel is a unit of volume.   It's what fits in the basket.   There's no exact number because the size of the crabs going into the basket dictate the number that will fit in it.