Non-Fly Bait scents: bullshit or not?
- Thread starter Wiznet
- Start date
It’s always seemed like putting a hat on a hat to me, especially in saltwater. I am far from an expert, but my sense is that saltwater strikes are more triggered by profile, movement, and color than scent.
That said, bait fishing does offer scent as a trigger, and PowerBait smells like a fish's asshole for a reason. So maybe there's something to it? I know a lot of folks swear by WD-40 on their stuff because they say the smell draws strikes.
That said, bait fishing does offer scent as a trigger, and PowerBait smells like a fish's asshole for a reason. So maybe there's something to it? I know a lot of folks swear by WD-40 on their stuff because they say the smell draws strikes.
They absolutely make a difference... sometimes. I agree with earlier thoughts regarding saltwater; most things move way too fast in the ocean for fish to think much about how they smell before deciding whether to try and eat them. Besides that, a lot of the bait we use in the salt is live, so it looks, moves, and smells just like the real thing... cuz it is!
When the bite is on, I don't think scents make much difference. It's that day when everyone's slow that the 10%ers make their hay, and it can be any combination of things (scent being a big one) they use to find success. They don't always seem to know right away which trick will work, but they have a full arsenal of things to try (and keep trying) until they find the magic ingredient. I describe these people in the third person, which tells you I'm not one of them, but if you meet one, they'll talk your ear off about different cures, scents, and other delightful bait accoutrements... fishy folks!
When the bite is on, I don't think scents make much difference. It's that day when everyone's slow that the 10%ers make their hay, and it can be any combination of things (scent being a big one) they use to find success. They don't always seem to know right away which trick will work, but they have a full arsenal of things to try (and keep trying) until they find the magic ingredient. I describe these people in the third person, which tells you I'm not one of them, but if you meet one, they'll talk your ear off about different cures, scents, and other delightful bait accoutrements... fishy folks!
Research has shown some egg cures, particularly those with sodium sulfite, can cause mortality in juvenile salmon and steelhead.
60% of the time it works every time.
Paige
Wishing I was fishing the Sauk
Ask any PS Coho fisherman thats out there trolling flashers and hoochies if they would fish without some cured herring strips. My guess would be zero!
I find it funny as all the fly guys ripping them up on flies, maybe they was their hands in herring oil befor tying
My old man was obsessed with his cure and it was very elaborate, even counting every drop of cent(2 different kinds) he added on each strip.
Chinook, 100% makes a difference, mainly to eliminate our sent!
I find it funny as all the fly guys ripping them up on flies, maybe they was their hands in herring oil befor tying
My old man was obsessed with his cure and it was very elaborate, even counting every drop of cent(2 different kinds) he added on each strip.
Chinook, 100% makes a difference, mainly to eliminate our sent!
I find it funny as all the fly guys ripping them up on flies, maybe they was their hands in herring oil befor tying
Well, now that you've outed me, I must admit I liberally sprinkle Pro Cure Slam-Ola powder in with my Sally Hansen's Hard as Nails when tying clouser minnows.
SF
I was not a scent guy, but had used herring strips during this time of year for nookies and coho. I used herring oil this year and I feel like it made difference. So I am a convert
Think it matters for some species more than others. As Evan pointed out, chinook in freshwater can be tough without the right scent. A saltwater fish that comes to mind is striped seaperch. Have yet to figure out those picky, hook spitting little bastards without at least tipping a fly hook.
Edit: As far as egg cures go, I've always done OK with plain borax or with shrimp oil. I think it's better to start with quality skeins and take time to cure the clusters carefully.
Edit: As far as egg cures go, I've always done OK with plain borax or with shrimp oil. I think it's better to start with quality skeins and take time to cure the clusters carefully.
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I think there’s definitely something to adding scent to a lure, if only to mask the human scent. Considering that a migratory fish’s olfactory sense is so highly developed, it sure seems plausible that the scent from human fingers could be off-putting. Especially if the angler just put in a big lipper of Copenhagen or had some other contaminant on their skin.
I’ve seen fisherman’s hand soap that had an anise scent that was supposed to help if you washed your hand before handling your lures.
When I was 16 or 17 and just starting out steelheading the hot fishing attractant was “Dr. Juice” and was available in all different flavors for different species of fish. Merlin Creason at Tolt River Outfitters in Carnation sold me on it and invested $10 (a lot of money for a teenager in the late 80’s) for a bottle of the Steelhead & Trout flavor.
That stuff stunk to high heaven and I had to keep it in a double ziplock bag in my vest to keep it from polluting my clothes and car. Plus the juice leaked out of the cap and made the bottle all sticky. It was a mess.
Someone told me years later that the stuff was just linseed oil with some clever marketing. And maybe it was. But I swore it helped me catch more Steelies.
I’ve seen fisherman’s hand soap that had an anise scent that was supposed to help if you washed your hand before handling your lures.
When I was 16 or 17 and just starting out steelheading the hot fishing attractant was “Dr. Juice” and was available in all different flavors for different species of fish. Merlin Creason at Tolt River Outfitters in Carnation sold me on it and invested $10 (a lot of money for a teenager in the late 80’s) for a bottle of the Steelhead & Trout flavor.
That stuff stunk to high heaven and I had to keep it in a double ziplock bag in my vest to keep it from polluting my clothes and car. Plus the juice leaked out of the cap and made the bottle all sticky. It was a mess.
Someone told me years later that the stuff was just linseed oil with some clever marketing. And maybe it was. But I swore it helped me catch more Steelies.
All joking aside, there are folks out there that take egg and shrimp curing very seriously.
It is worth watching some YouTube videos from Scott Amerman, Duane Inglin and the like if you want to get serious about it.
SF
It is worth watching some YouTube videos from Scott Amerman, Duane Inglin and the like if you want to get serious about it.
SF
singlehandjay
Life of the Party
When I fished bait I went through a phase of curing my own eggs, I would do micro batches and see how far I could take them. My buddy didn't believe that the eggs I was fishing was the reason for my success, only luck. He and I were at a river going for silvers and the fish down on the end of the run would part and come back together when my buddies egss went by. I told him I would toss mine in but not in the holding lane they were in but far off. My eggs hit the water and clouded out a big pile of scent that eventually met the fish and one of them peeled out of the holding lane and went upstream to attack the eggs. My buddy was sitting there with his mouth hanging open at the sight of what he had witnessed with his very own eyes. I don't think it applies to all situations, mostly freshwater.
Interestingly, when I was in Alaska to fish with my friend a few weeks ago, we fished his cured eggs at one river to avoid the pinks and chums. There was a pool loaded with a few hundred pinks, a few dozen chums, and maybe a dozen or so coho. We'd catch probably 5:1 coho to others on the eggs, then opposite ratio if we switched to flies or jigs.
