Here's how I clean gar...
First.... start with a good attitude.
You need to get a hole started in that armor-like hide. Use a machete. (or use the arrow hole as your starting point). Then, tin-snips make short, crunchy work of the skin and scales. BTW.... It's actually easier to snip from the tail forward.
Cut and peel the hard shell-like skin back to expose the meat.
Once exposed, it's a simple matter to remove the two 'loins' or filets. The strips of meat are boneless.
How does it taste? Well, it tastes a lot like gar.
To me the taste and texture is like the tail meat of a crayfish (somewhat like lobster).
Gar balls are a great way to get around the texture.. (grind the meat up) Boiling it in crab boil and dipping it in butter is a great way to take advantage of the texture.
Cleaning a Gar
Shouldn't be a problem, been practicing on some real small "pan fish". lol ......... shhhhhhhhhhhh
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Besides, it now works better than ever - I reshaped it and sharpened it. I use it to 'unzip' the carp so I don't dull my good knife cutting through the scales. You know I love you and just giving you a hard time. 
