Corn vs everything else

[Carp-fisher]

Over the years I've tried all sorts of different carp baits: a wide variety of different homemade doughballs, commercially made doughballs, Berkely carp bait, jellowbaits, bread, and corn. I've had carp action on all of them. But none of them seem to be significantly better than corn, and when you add the price and convenience factor, canned corn beats them all hands down. The only major carp bait I haven't tried is boilies. Anyone here have any different experiences?

[goblueM]

pretty much if you can put it in front of them, they'll eat it. The only factors for me are A) ability to stay on the hook and little fish don't steal it

Corn is pretty much the go to, unless I'm sight fishing, then I'll use crawlers or flies

[Tyler Holm]

I have also experimented with other solutions, but now just stick with whole kernal sweet corn.

[erickol]

It is hard to beat corn, and with the relative low fishing pressure carp get around here (compared to English pay lakes or some other similar scenario) corn is king. It's inexpensive, ubiquitous, and easy to use and lug around. I like to add some vanilla extract or strawberry jello into the can sometimes. I have not tried field corn yet, but I know you can get a fifty pound sack for almost nothing. All you have to do is soak or boil it, add some flavor if you like, and your in bait for a heck of a long time.

That said. I have had days when corn was so so and an oatmeal ball slayed 'em. I like to experiment, and I'm a DIY (read cheap) sorta person, so I have messed around with some boilies and other stuff. Nice thing is that a hair rig really does work well, even with corn. I use a smaller hook and I just have a feeling that I'm catching more carp that otherwise would be spitting out or mouthing the bait. I have even hair rigged Dots candy. I have heard before that it is overkill and perhaps a waste of time here in MN to even use a hair rig, but they are fast to tie, easy to use, and why not.

Another reason I like to play around with baits is that I have fished lakes with plenty of monster carp..... but I am routinely catching 12 pounders. I know the big ones are there, but they are not on the corn. My gut tells me, and from reading other carp forums and articles, that let's say you whip out 1/2 can of corn into the water (to feed the ducks of course) and some carp come to eat. You'll throw your hook with corn out and catch plenty of those fish. The big guys though might hang back and if you were to cast to the margins with something else, maybe that will be the ticket. I really don't know, but it keeps things interesting to switch it up anyway. Corn is inexpensive, true, but when I make baits I hit the bulk section of my grocery store. Corn meal, flour and a few other odds-n-ends is only a few bucks (and I don't have to haul out the used cans) I can make a ton of bait for really cheap that way and I'll bet it is less expensive that corn overall (not factoring in the labor).

What I would really like to figure out is big carp! I have not gone over the mid twenties for weight but I know they are in the waters I fish. And yeah, when I do finally get a monster I suppose it will be on corn anyway.

[beatuplund]

Awesome post erickol! What type of rig do you like best with corn? I've had good luck with plain old fixed lead, but I'm now trying the rig shown recently on Lindner's show. Its kind of a hybrid running rig / bolt rig. My biggest concern right now is getting the corn out of the muck and decaying leaves in some of my spots.

[goblueM]

a lot of times i'll use a steelhead tactic and make spawn sacs but with corn - you know, with the floaties in there. That way it can sit up off the bottom a bit

[dufek]

I have caught 3 carp over 15 lbs in the last 4 years all on minnows. One on a fathead/floating jig head, one on a crappie minnow, and the one last week while jiggin pool 4 with a fathead.

http://www.fishingminnesota.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/1344359

[JustLOVEit]

Pretty much sweet whole corn kernal is the only way to go... i've also try oatmeals... works good but a little messy...

"Doing it!! Cause Just LOVE It!!"

[Carp-fisher]

One thing the In Fisherman recommends and I would like to try would be to chum with softened field corn. This stuff is alot cheaper than canned sweet corn and is supposed to be just as effective as chum.

One time I went out with a softball sized chunk of doughbait that I made. I tried fishing with it and the dough turned out to be such a pain in the rear that I chucked the whole doughball into the lake. Then I pulled out my canned corn and fished around the sunken doughball. All I can say is that it was an all out feeding frenzy! The carp and tiny sunnies went nuts and I coulnd't keep the corn on the hook...

[2dalake]

I've been fishing carp for about five years now. My kids wanted to catch something bigger than bluegills and the occasional bass from the dock, so I researched UK websites for rigs and baits. I tried most of them and I keep going back to softened field corn on a bolt rig. We average 17 pounds, and on a good day we hook a fish every 15 minutes or so. I have landed a 32 pounder and I have been spooled a few times. My youngest has a 22 pounder to his credit, caught when he was 8 years old. It makes a great picture over my desk at work.

I don't use anything other than field corn now. $5 for a 20 lb bag at Fleet Farm, soak it overnight in a stockpot that I only use for this and boil it the next day on the side burner on my grill. My wife won't let me do this in the house because it smells. I make about five gallons of bait at a time and store it in ice cream pails by freezing it. I thaw one gallon per weekend of fishing.

When my brother and his girls are with us we rig two rods and we have had doubles that combined for more than forty pounds before. The kids absolutely love it.

[AceintheHole]

GOT CORN!!!!!!!

[Slowhand]

This might sound stupid; but have any of you ever tried raisins/prunes/apricots? I always wondered if something sweet like that would be a change-of-pace.

[erickol]

That's a great idea. I experimented a bit with sweet stuff end of last season, dots candy and stuff like that. I know mullberries are a hot food item for carp in waters where they fall in. I sure would like to be able to fish two lines in MN on my favorite carp waters just so I can do head to head bait comparisons in the same outing. Raisins sure would stay on the hook well.

[mplspug]

Isn't chumming illegal...even for carp? That being said I once accidentally lost a handful of corn in the water and the next thing you know it was carp after carp. I used to think corn was for people who couldn't get to a bait store or kids. I know better now. That feed corn idea sounds like a winner, especially if I could even have half the success you have.

Has anyone tried jigging for carp? I once stumbled upon the technique seeking other prey. I was fishing a sandy shore of the Rum river. All I would do is cast out and reel in very, very slow. That was a pretty fun thing to stumble upon.

[Tyler Holm]

Technically chumming with corn in MN is illegal. I have my chummin experience from SoDak....where it's perfectly legal.

[beatuplund]

I tried raisins last year for a while. They stay on the hook great. But I can't say I had any great action with them. Lots of soft bites that I couldn't convert. I think anything sweet/salty/meaty is worth trying.

[mainbutter]

"Has anyone tried jigging for carp?"

On the Cannon in Northfield, it seems everyone is using chartreuse grubs with bright orange, yellow, or red jig heads and doing very well on carp. Most aren't too big, but I did see a guy pull in a 20+ pounder yesterday. I went out and picked up myself some chartreuse grubs and hopefully will have some luck in the coming days.

[DEADhead]

I've caught a few on plastics before, though I typicaly catch most of my carp "jigging" a fly through current seams on the river.

[2dalake]

I snagged one in the gill plate while jigging walleyes once. I was on a shoreline drop off in about ten feet of water and had caught a few small walleyes when I set the hook into something solid that didn't move. At first I thought, "all right!" but then it turned and ran into the basin of the lake, drag screaming the whole way. I had 6lb test so I chased it with the my autopilot, fought it for a half hour (it rained on me twice)and landed it (15 lbs). I had to respool after that, the line was wound on so tight I couldn't cast.

[hanso612]

I have had luck getting around the Mn chumming law by using dough balls made out of oatmeal. Fish oatmeal fist and the stuff dilutes, falls apart, and chums and area. You could catch a few too. Then switch to corn once the area is seeded.

This works on multiple days as well. Carp will wise up to dough balls. When they do throw them corn.

For corn I like to use long shanked thin wire hooks. They hold the most corn and do the least amount of ripping the skin of the corn, so it stays on better. Long shanked hooks also help when the hook is taken deeply-gives you something to grab with the pliers.

The downside is a giant carp can bend a wire hook.

On type of corn-I have had better luck with cheap brands of corn-the closer to field corn the better. The skin/husk is thicker and stays on the hook better. The curnals are bigger too.

While moored in the slip at Sunnyside Marina, my go to bait off the back of the Class of Forty Two was day old pizza crust. We used to laugh ourselfs silly catching 20 pound carp in the slip when the mayflies hatched. The old blue hairs used to make quite a fuss when we were up too late making a mess. Hans

[mplspug]

I like the long shanks too when I have to cast far. But most of my fishing I don't have to worry about long casts. I just try and be nice and quiet on the shore, find an obstruction that will channel them when they cruise up and down the shore and make short casts. I rarely cast further than 10-15ft. So I like using circles because I can let them peck a little more. Sometimes it's smaller fish and the nibbling will attract something that can actually inhale the hook.