Live Bait vs. Gulp Shoot-Out 2012

[Johnny wilkins]

Two Baits Enter, One Bait Leaves!

I have seen and read, I know a lot of people look for an edge, but I have to take this on once and for all. Are there any Gulp champions or distributors who would like to participate in a fish-off comparison?

I will take live grubs and will go up against Gulp artificial canned baits.

I do however wish to make this fair in terms of data collection but I will need your help. I will try to use all the good suggestions, while still keeping this test where I can complete it without this test becoming too fat, or too expensive, too complex.

Post your thoughts here and I will assemble this test. Along with some local testers I will do my best to keep this as scientific as possible. This topic has been partially discussed but I want some data this Spring to show which works on bluegills best.

If you live near Chicago I would need some help filming, counting and recording this test.

• Where can I get enough Gulp for a 5 hour fish-off?
  Berkley Reps anyone I know on the can it says Outfishes Live Bait - Care to donate?
• I might need a volunteer as well who is free one Saturday or Sunday
• All tackle will be supplied

I actually have a 1-man test that will work, but this will require two assistants to record fish by the quarter hour and to guide me to transition times. If we can get 4 people, I have an idea for a 2-person simultaneous  test.

Does this sound interesting? If so, add some thoughts, let me know that you can volunteer this Spring etc. Any help on getting Gulp would be appreciated ...

[Joe Angelucci]

Johnny

 

Just one quick question, Dude what's up with the Gulp...

 

I'm happy to donate $25.00 just to see the youtube and maybe a film credit

[Johnny wilkins]

Joe-

If we do another test, I will accept your donation as I spent $25 + $25 on the live bait. Thanks for the offer this time - if I still have skeptics after the data is presented - 

You inspired me to create the YouTube Trailer for the Showdown:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGpiTKTmQ3Q

[Joe Angelucci]

Loved the trailer

[Leo Nguyen]

Here's my info for the past 2 years of data on fishing, homestyle-vs-1-vs-1-vs-1-vs-etc.. To be far, all data were captured side by side with homemade materials/grown/collected in the same school or vicinity of the fishes. Fairness is always crucial.

* CORN  (standard test of 15 nibbles from each sample) *

- Berkley corn micro bait corn: 2 successes of 10 tries

- Berkley floating corn: 1 success of 10 tries

- Mike'sGlow marshmallow corn: 0 success of 10 tries

- Homemade corn soaked in salt and molasses: 10 successes of 10 tries

* WORMS (10 whole for basses, 1.5in segments for smaller fishes) *

- Berkley plastic wacky crawler: 2 successes of 10 tries

- Berkley power worm original 12": 2 successes of 10 tries

- Gary Yamamoto watermellow crawlers: 0 success of 10 tries

- Bass Pro brand water mellow crawlers: 1 success of 10 tries

- Walmart bought euro nightcrawlers: 6 successes of 10 tries

- Bait store bought Canadian nightcrawlers: 7 successes of 10 tries

- Home grown african nightcrawlers: 8 successes of 10 tries

- Home grown euro nightcrawlers: 5 successes of 10 tries

- Home grown big red wigglers: 6 successes of 10 tries

- Home grown compost small red wigglers: 7 successes of 10 tries

- Berkley waxy micro baits: 1 successes of 10 tries

- Store bought wax worms: 10 successes of 10 tries

- Store bough meal worms: 10 successes of 10 tries

- Compost bins' small assort grubs: 10 success of 10 tries

- Berkley alive micro maggots: 2 of 10 tries

- Home collected maggots around the outside big trash bin: 10 successes of 10 tries

- Home collected maggots around inside small transh can: 10 successes of 10 tries

- Store bought maggots: 10 successes of 10 tries

* CRICKETS (sample at 10 samples) *

- Fisher's choice: 1 success of 10 tries

- Berkley Alive: 1 success of 10 tries

- Rebel's (dark brown) hard lure: 3 successes of 10 tries

- Rebel's (light green) hard lure: 1 successes of 10 tries

- Store bought large size: 6 successes of 10 tries

- Store bought medium, home raise into ultra large: 10 successes of 10 tries

- Wild caught around the house (medium): 5 successes of 10 tries

* POWERBAITS (20 samples) *

- Berkley chartreuse garlic: 4 successes of 20 tries

- Berkley rainbow trout dough: 2 successes of 20 tries

- Berkley Magnum power egs: 1 success of 20 tries

- Berkley glitter trout nuggets: 0 success of 20 tries

- Alli's floating marshmallow garlic infused: 1 success of 20 tries

- Thompson's power garlic marshmallow: 0 success of 20 tries

- Homemade Velvetta cheese modified YAP style: 15 successes of 20 tries

- Homestyle Velvetta cheese ball soak in Berkley trout gravy: 11 successes of 20 tries

- Homestyle Velvetta cheese ball soak with Pro-cure Calico: 12 successes of 20 tries

- Homestyle Velvetta cheese ball soak with Pro-cure crawdad: 15 successes of 20 tries

- Homestyle Velvetta cheese ball soak with homestyle concoction: 20 successes of 20 tries

The data continue. Too long even to post, but got plenty more if you want it..Sorry, I'm a data hog.

[Joe Angelucci]

Leo

You  truely are one of a kind. Was the homemade corn sample out of the can or an ear. Regarding  the cheese balls, were they for bluegill and would you share your secret sauce . I would also appreciate any data on lunch meat or hot dogs. I tend to fish with supermarket items . I would also appreciate any data on bread. I do find that your highest success rates appear to  mimic English coarse fishing methods.

 

I'm also curious to know if you ever fished beans

[Leo Nguyen]

Ah..the homemade recipes scientist came forth LOL

In regards to corn, it's from a can. I found that can based corn increase the sugar content due to the curing process after cooking. Fresh corn from ears will require a soaking time in maple syrup or corn syrup for at least a week. Best to do is to bring water to a boil with the corn, drain, combine 1oz of syrup to 2oz of fresh cook corn, 2tbpsn of salt, and leave it to cool. Once cool, refrigerate for a week. Combine more molasses and salt if you wish to increase effectiveness.

Bluegill will chase after products with high proteins. Little do people know, most fishes are protein chaser. Read my blog earlier. Proteins in combination with chitin is critical during maturity stages.

As for the cheese balls, nothing really special. I used cheese ball mixture back in the 90's after finding out that trouts, cats, carps, and smaller fast developing fishes love high proteins. In late 1990's, I found a guy created a recipe mixture out of Velvetta cheese, and called it "Yap Cheese". Simple combination really. 1oz Velvetta cheese, 2 tbspn of either garlic salt or 1 tbpsn of fine/granule garlic powder to 1tbspn of salt, 2tbspn of olive oil, 1/2oz of dry salty shrimps (or 1oz of dried krill, or 1oz of dried small anchovies). Combined all dried ingredients in one area, grind it up to a fine mixture. Combine cheese and olive oil in a small blender at low power, OR use your hands. Kneed in the dry ingredients into the cheese until it's nice and integrated. Wrap up the cheese, put it in the fridge. Only make enough to fish for that day. It will spoil quickly. Before you fish, leave the cheese sit outside for at least 1/2 day to increase the scent dispersal. It's also great to mask your scents if you happen to be a smoker. Bring some flour with you just in case. I found that olive oil will cause cheese to fall part on the hook during warm and hot days. Mix a bit of flour to make the cheese ball a bit thicker will allow you to harden the cheese in the open air, but will slowly release the cheese in the water at the rate of 5mg per minute. Perfect rate for dispersal to entice creatures down below. Make the cheese ball not larger than 3/4 the dime size, which is around 25mg. Bait needs recheck every 5 minutes. By the way, this is the best non-chumming method I know of to gather the fishes into one spot. Muahahahahahahaaahaha.

In regards for lunch meat and hot dogs, yes, I have data on those. Hot dogs will give you a great chance over lunch meat, such as spam cutouts, or turkey. Hot dog has high nitrate and salt content that rings the bell for ALL fishes, especially cats. Add an ounce of olive oil, 2tbspns of sea salt, add hot dog chunks into it, a few pieces of ground spam, put it in the zip lock bag, leave it in the sun for 3 to 9 hours before fishing or during fishing, and you'll see the progressive improvements on your bite. So, if you want greater bites 2-to-1, hot dogs is the key..the less kosher and more toxic the hot dogs, the better. That means, go to the local 99 cents stores, and grab a bag. They are notorious in carrying the high salt and nitrate content hot dog versions.

Bread in comparing to corn or meat, bread will be out do by the meat. However, bread to bread comparison, or rather, dough blends, I found that masa dough will out do any sour dough or regular bread dough due to the high complex proteins in the flour. Once again, see the trend to the protein diets? If you want to, use high gluten flour. 1oz of high gluten flour, add into 1/4 cup of regular milk, 3tbspns of sea salt, 1tbspn of olive oil, mix, and add just enough flour to make the consistency a bit thicker when needed.

* Why olive oil? It sinks. Dispersal rate for olive oil is high as it sinks. Cooking oils floats.

* Why sea salt? regular salt may contain iodine. Not a good idea when you want to attract fish. Most regular salt go through filtration treatments to remove impurities. That by itself destroyed the micro nutrients that truly exists in salt. Sea salt is purified through boiling. Fortunately, only 44% of the micro nutrients left behind. If you head to a salt flat in your life time, collect as much salt rocks as you can. That will be your meal ticket. I could not find anyone that will sell or ship salt rocks from salt flats. Loaded and locked nutrients will give a great aroma to the fishes.

Tried various beans in the past. What I've found is the beans is species specifics. Unfortunately, the only plant chasers around here are the carps. They like beans that mimic the plants and the bulbs generated by the plants around here. Slightly cook red beans with husk on. Fresh peanuts. Large fresh beans from the string bean stock. Japanese edamane. Don't know why.

[JBplusThuy]

This is amazing stuff, Leo! I'm going to have to try that cheese recipe. Can it be frozen? If so, I may make a large batch to last a while. Are the dried shrimp you use the little ones used in VNese cooking? My wife usually has some around somewhere that I can steal :-)

Jonathan

[Leo Nguyen]

Yes, it's the small asian cooking shrimps. Use the cheap version. Don't use her good cooking dried shrimp or she will chew your butt up. Make sure to use it fresh. Frozen will not as effective.

[JBplusThuy]

That recipe also reminds me of some stuff that I tried back in the seventies. It was a mix that you blended with velveeta cheese and cooked up on the stove. Some kind of floatant crystals and scents. It was made by a guy based in La Jolla (IIRC) and sold by mail order under the name Danco Scientific. Being in grade school at the time I couldn't really afford to buy it, but I did get the free sample they offered by mail and had great success on bluegill with it while it lasted. I just molded a bit on a small treble hook and the bluegill were all over it. It outfished anything on my usual waters, even worms.

Do you fish your cheese mix on trebles, or a single hook?

Jonathan

[Leo Nguyen]

The recipes are indeed from various testers back 80 when the cheese was well recognized. People actually sell the product as baits.

I used both on trebles and single hooks. Simply use the flour and corn starch to increase the bonding consistency.

[Johnny wilkins]

you are one of a kind Leo -

Love the journaling & data. I know many are calling for controlled scientific results so we want the same fish during the same feeding period using the same exact gear.

I do love the early results from your data but I will make sure not to taint my results with my own opinion. I suppose I have to run this test with a couple of the Gulp varieties but I think we will run one test and go with these results to begin. I don't want stock in artificial bait too early!

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

Go, Johnny, Go! I will be watching your results with eagerness.

And Leo I note the baits that are at the top, are the natural grubs and worms. I do like your connection to proteins and the fishes attraction to a bait. That has long been recognized, particularly with catfish. If you dont object, Id like to copy your information.