Why can't i catch the fish ??? a quick pointer on bait

[scottish_and_mental]

Originally Posted by iain

i think u may have answered a few of my questions on this post
it is hard to get god bait up here tho


thx

You'll be surprised what you can gather or collect from the shore yourself fella ! remember the fish you are trying to catch don't go to the shops but eat whats around them..

[iain]

lol excellent point. im jus gettin round to havin enough spare time to fish and am testin new metods (new to me). any pointers always welcome, it would be boring if we wernt continually learning.

[scottish_and_mental]

Aye,fair point ... take a look at things like slipper limpets,mussels,razor clams etc and don't forget fish merchants and fish mongers can normally supply fresher bait than the tackle shop and at better prices !
Diggin for lug and rag gives me great satisfaction when i pull in a nice fish but it also gives me loads more confidence that im actually in with a chance of a good session..

http://www.worldseafishing.com/baits/index.1.html

I stumbled upon this the other day and found it very interesting ,
Steve

[iain]

ur now my fav forum person. iv saved that link to loo at i the mornin when i a bit .... erm.... soberer(is that a word)

[paul p]

Originally Posted by scottish_and_mental

There are no such things as bad baits bud, only bad quality ones..
The only exception to this rule i know of is stale sticky black lug being good bait for dabs.
Week old supermarket mackerel is 95% crud as a main bait and sandeel that has been allowed to thaw is far inferior to properly looked after eels.
Invest in a small shaving bag or mini coolbag and a couple of blue freezer blocks that go in coolboxes and take this with you when you buy bait intended for later use or for your trip to the shore.
allowing the eels to be only very slightly thawed means the juices are kept from flowing out in one go and are released as the eel ( or squid/mackerel ) thaws naturally in the water.


If you are fishing for a specific species then it pays to do the homework on what the natural food source is for that time of year, i.e are the Bass gouging on sprats/ are the codling feeding over the shrimp beds..

If you are pleasure fishing remember this....Small hooks will catch big fish but big hooks wont catch small fish...This doesn't neccessarily apply to baits so that three or four good rag or lug on a size 2 hook will act as a great attractant for a 10 oz whiting but there is still the chance of a 10lb Cod scoffing it....as long as you dont mask the hook point a good big bait on a small hook will catch more biggies than a single squid on a size 6/0 o'shaughnessy for example.

Try using a 3 hook rig with snoods of varying lenghts and put say rag and squid on the top and bottom hooks and rag mackerel on the middle..
If you find you are catching on one particular cocktail then change accordingly .

Always try and get the best bait you can get your hands on..look at the state of the bait freezer in your local shop.....is it all iced up ? is the door open and closed all day long? / do the sandeels look steely grey and rock solid like they should or has the squid got a pink tinge to the skin which means its not at its best ?
Don,t always trust the shop is giving you top notch bait or the bait that you need instead of what they want to sell you !!



Dig rag / collect shellfish baits i.e razors or mussels and hunt for peelers and give yourself the best chance of baggin some crackin fish..

Dont spend a tenner on crisps and chocolate, 20 quid on petrol to get you there and another 20 on a present for the missus for letting you out and then spend a fiver on stale worms and a mackerel from tescos fish counter !

I hope this is of some help to atleast one person struggling to catch ! .

See you all at a beach near you very soon ( though the weather is pants for this week lol ) .. good for a nice cod though

Sound advice, i couldnt of put it better myself. Very good post, tight lines

[Sublime]

best bet, make sure its fresh, mate!

[scottish_and_mental]

bumped back up to help the newbies who may want a little extra guidance !

[77cm snapper]

dunno were you are but the good old prawns are great to try

[pompeylee1980]

helped me out thanks lads

[Skyehook]

Only just found this thread and maybe its too late but back in the day we used to get lug at the beach at Burghead then fish off the pier there, and at Hopeman as well.
Tight lines.