# Cut bait?



## Gameface (Jun 7, 2008)

I was fishing UL the other day and managed to catch a few white bass and I want to use them as bait next time I go back to UL to fish for catfish.

My question or questions are:

How should I cut them, does it even matter?

Should I leave the skin on or take it off? My inclination is to leave it on...because it's easier that way.

Do any of you "season" the meat with things that attract catfish? What I had in mind was garlic, salt, anise and maybe a few other things.

Also, I plan to either fish under a slip bobber or fish on the bottom with a slip sinker set-up. Is either method better suited for fishing cut bait? Is cut bait the correct term here?

Thanks for any advice!


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## Hounddog (Apr 9, 2008)

White bass or carp chunks have been the ticket for me lately. I typically leave the skin on as it helps the meat chunk stay on the hook. I normally cut the pieces into 1 inch chunks and fish them under a bobber. I have only been fishing for cats for about a year now and am still learning their wiley ways. My advise to you is to get out now because it only gets more addictive.

hounddog


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## Riverrat77 (Sep 7, 2007)

Hounddog said:


> White bass or carp chunks have been the ticket for me lately. I typically leave the skin on as it helps the meat chunk stay on the hook. I normally cut the pieces into 1 inch chunks and fish them under a bobber. I have only been fishing for cats for about a year now and am still learning their wiley ways. My advise to you is to get out now because it only gets more addictive.
> 
> hounddog


He speaketh the truth.... I find carp to work better than white bass... maybe because they're more "oily" and don't have the lean white meat of the sunfish family. They'll both work though. His method is money in the weedlines when it gets hot like this too....


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## GaryFish (Sep 7, 2007)

When we went out last week, we didn't bother with a slip sinker or bobber at all. We just let the bait sink to the bottom, and put slack in the line and watched what it did. My buddy I was with who was teaching me, said that once he got rid of the slip sinkers, his catch rate went up about ten-fold. His thought was that even a slip sinker provides too much resistence as the cats pick up and take the bait. We sure caught the heck out of them going with no sinker and no bobber so I'm sold on that technique.


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## lunkerhunter2 (Nov 3, 2007)

GaryFish said:


> When we went out last week, we didn't bother with a slip sinker or bobber at all. We just let the bait sink to the bottom, and put slack in the line and watched what it did. My buddy I was with who was teaching me, said that once he got rid of the slip sinkers, his catch rate went up about ten-fold. His thought was that even a slip sinker provides too much resistence as the cats pick up and take the bait. We sure caught the heck out of them going with no sinker and no bobber so I'm sold on that technique.


This is the only way to fish for big cats if you can get away with it. The resistance they feel with a weight can make the difference in catching fish or not some times. The problem with rivers is most of the time you have to have a pretty heavy lead to fish where you need to. Willard is the same way. Tubedude uses only a swivel and minnows and he catches more cats than anyone i know.


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## Riverrat77 (Sep 7, 2007)

The reason I use the bobber is because of what Tubedude showed me the one time I fished the west side with him.... seems he uses the weightless method when he's kicking around too and I'm usually pretty stationary, other than kicking down the weedline another ten feet or so. I don't know, seemed I got into way more bullheads when I left a bait on the bottom than when i hoist it up a foot or so. Now, I very rarely catch "mudcats" and my catch is always almost all channel cats. 

When the lake was down and you could wade out, I used to go at night and catch a lot of big cats on the bottom though, with a chunk of meat and a slip sinker rig. I just hung a little weighted chunk of wood off my line before the first eye of the rod to put a bow in th line.... fish would pick up the bait and move off, piece of wood would rise when the line drew tight and I'd slip it off the line and set the hook.... Ok, I'm not sure what that really has to do with anything, but thought i would share something else that worked for me.


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## Gameface (Jun 7, 2008)

Riverrat77 said:


> The reason I use the bobber is because of what Tubedude showed me the one time I fished the west side with him.... seems he uses the weightless method when he's kicking around too and I'm usually pretty stationary, other than kicking down the weedline another ten feet or so. I don't know, seemed I got into way more bullheads when I left a bait on the bottom than when i hoist it up a foot or so. Now, I very rarely catch "mudcats" and my catch is always almost all channel cats.
> 
> When the lake was down and you could wade out, I used to go at night and catch a lot of big cats on the bottom though, with a chunk of meat and a slip sinker rig. I just hung a little weighted chunk of wood off my line before the first eye of the rod to put a bow in th line.... fish would pick up the bait and move off, piece of wood would rise when the line drew tight and I'd slip it off the line and set the hook.... Ok, I'm not sure what that really has to do with anything, but thought i would share something else that worked for me.


Hey, I'll take all the tips I can get.

I'll be fishing from a 'toon, so the weightless method might work for me.

I've fished UL several times and only caught one carp. I actually wouldn't mind catching a carp now and then, not only for bait, but because the one I did catch really put up a good fight.


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## Gameface (Jun 7, 2008)

How about using circle hooks for cut bait? 

I was using baitholder hooks last time and every white bass I caught had swallowed the hook and was caught in the gut. Not a big deal since I wanted to use them as bait, but I don't want to kill every catfish I catch.


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## Riverrat77 (Sep 7, 2007)

Gameface said:


> How about using circle hooks for cut bait?
> 
> I was using baitholder hooks last time and every white bass I caught had swallowed the hook and was caught in the gut. Not a big deal since I wanted to use them as bait, but I don't want to kill every catfish I catch.


They're good... but its hard to get out of the "hookset" mode when using them. I'd use either the baitholders (there won't be much doubt when a channel cat hits) or you could use one of the bigger size "Octopus" style hooks as well. The way I rig under a bobber is with a jighead on a Matzuo hook that Tubedude makes for "bobberhead jig fishing" but I used to use both circle hooks and the Eagle claw snelled hooks in size 4 or larger for cats when I used to let bait lay on the bottom for them.

About the carp... very true. Some of the most fun I've had on the lake was fishing for carp with a nightcrawler and a slip sinker rig on 6lb test and a tiny (4 1/2 ft) Quantum ultralight rod. Good times....


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