cut bait?

[BigJakeL]

What kind of fish do you normally use for cut bait? any better than another? Ever use drum?

[goblueM]

I have had poor luck on drum. I've also noticed it is best to use bait from the same system - using drum or shad in a system without them hasn't done that well for me.

I would say that sucker and mooneye/goldeye are my favorites

[aanderud]

I like suckers and chubs. Whichever is easiest to get your hands on. Since you're from Wisconsin, you should probably also give cut sunfish a try. When I've used them, they have been lights out. Can't use them on inland waters, unfortunately. Steve D gets to use them on the WI side of the croix though.

Late in the year frogs seem to do well, at least for channel cats.

[motownmasher]

do you mean sheephead??? we've had good luck on these at certain times of year.

[JIvers]

Fresh goldeneye or mooneye. Awesome for channel cat as cutbait. Frozen/thawed mooneye doesn't work near as well.

If I don't have the good luck to catch a mooneye, chubs and suckers work well as cutbait.

[TruthWalleyes]

I've caught sheephead on the MN river, used if for cut bait, and put channels in the boat. Definately not my preferred bait though. Cut sucker or chub for me.

[aanderud]

do you mean sheephead???

In these parts, sheepshead is just another name for the "freshwater drum".

Wikipedia, however, says that the sheepshead is "Archosargus probatocephalus", while the freshwater drump is "Aplodinotus grunniens". So, they are apparently different species (and the pictures they show look different too). I think to get real sheepshead you have to go south. But like I said, around these parts people use the words interchangeably.

[bobbymalone]

I wish drum were any good as cutbait. I've had very little luck. And it sucks because if you throw a bit of crawler on the bottom anywhere on the river you'll probably hook up with one in 5 minutes.

[50inchpig]

biggest flathead i've seen in the boat this year ate a big chunk of cut sheepshead but that's the only fish i've ever seen caught on it. i call cut chub "candy" now because they sure seem to like it, so that's usually my first choice for cutbait.

[motownmasher]

I wish drum were any good as cutbait. I've had very little luck. And it sucks because if you throw a bit of crawler on the bottom anywhere on the river you'll probably hook up with one in 5 minutes.

not nearly that easy to catch up here. i've spent hours fishing with worms targeting sheephead strictly for cutbait. usually one or two can be caught within an hour, but not always. perhaps there are not nearly as many up this far. maybe that's why the work well here..

[nsnutter]

Biggest flat I've seen on the boat this year was caught on a massive hunk of cut drum - in march!!! I've caught bigger channels on cut drum as well - so it does work

[TruthWalleyes]

not nearly that easy to catch up here. i've spent hours fishing with worms targeting sheephead strictly for cutbait. usually one or two can be caught within an hour, but not always. perhaps there are not nearly as many up this far. maybe that's why the work well here..

I won't even use live bait on our local lakes around mankato because you can't keep the drum off!

[clayton08]

I usually just take my bullheads that die in the bucket and use them for cutbait has been working pretty good for channels, snapping turtles, gar and even a few flats. Have tried drum but if I can avoid it I do.

[SteveD]

You guys really overcomplicate the cut bait thing. Stop and think about it. Cats, especially flatheads, are opportunistic feeders. They will eat anything they can find, catch or beat another fish too. They eat every kind of fish they can find, alive or dead. So it stands to reason, whatever is the most prevalent fish in the water is a likely target. I've caught lots of cats on sheepshead. It is easy to find and catch. Go ahead, spend $1.50 each ($18 a dozen) for large suckers but I'm telling you sheepshead will put cats in the boat too. Tell me this doesn't look like supper to a flathead.

[Gordie]

Steve that would look like supper to any game fish iffin you ask me.

[aanderud]

It is easy to find and catch. Go ahead, spend $1.50 each ($18 a dozen) for large suckers but I'm telling you sheepshead will put cats in the boat too. Tell me this doesn't look like supper to a flathead.

Not going to disagree with you -- flatheads will catch fish. But I have a hard time believing that catfish don't have baits they'd RATHER eat. Just like any other gamefish. I've seen leeches outfish nightcrawlers on the same spinner rigs next to each other in the same boat, and vice versa. If a walleye has a bait they'd rather eat, I can't see how flatheads wouldn't as well.

[Gordie]

Yea if that walleye ate a leech you can darn bet your last dollar that the flathead is gonna pick that one over the one that ate the crawler or it would eat that one second

Sorry couldn't leave that one alone.

[SteveD]

I like to cut my sheepshead into long strips. I'm willing to bet a catfish couldn't tell this strip of bait from a sucker strip or a walleye strip. It just looks like food to them. If they are hungry they will take it - if they are not hungry they won't. You just have to be there when their pea size brain says "Eat!".

Take that sheepshead, cut it into a long fillet and then take a scissors and cut that fillet into strips. You will get 4 to 6 long strips from a sheepshead. You can catch sheepies one after the other on the St Croix in a few minutes of baitfishing with a nightcrawler on the bottom. No more bait stores for me -

[Gordie]

You just have to be there when their pea size brain says "Eat!".

That is the best line I have heard yet. That is truly some great Tackle Box Logic..

That is some really good info Steve Thanks for sharing.

[BigJakeL]

Thanks everyone for the information very very helpful!

[bobbymalone]

You guys really overcomplicate the cut bait thing.

You leave out all the mysticism and superstition from it, so where's the fun in that?

[Gordie]

Last night I used cut sheephead, cut creek chub and cut bullies and the only thing they wanted was cut creekchubs.

[DTro]

There is no doubt that at certain times, certain baits will out shine everything else. Not sure why that is, but I've seen it a few times.

A great example was last year up in Canada, either you had frogs and caught a fish every 15 min, or you had something else (we tried, sucker, tulibee, and chubs) and caught a fish every 2 hours.

[Gordie]

I have also seen that with frogs and for some reason it like a magical time and frogs are the only thig they want. I wish I would of had some kermits last night.

[aanderud]

I heard from one guy that last night was a frog night, over 15 channel cats caught on frogs and ZERO on other cutbait.