Chumming for panfish?

[Dwayne Denison]

Does anyone chumm for gills? If so what do you use? I am intrested in trying this.

 

Thanks

Dwayne

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

And when we lived in Florida years ago I remember tossing oatmeal from the dock. We also used chicken laying feed, mixed with sand and water to form "tossin' balls." Once the ball hit the water, the sand would fall away and allow the chicken feed to disperse and float around. The sand was only there to give it some heft and allow for an accurate toss.

I learned to do this mullet fishing, actually. The mullet would run 20-30 yards from the bank, in the St. Johns River. There, we made BIG tossin' balls and used a bit of mud so the balls would stay together. Once the chum balls got to  the bottom and began to fall to pieces, we tossed a small hook tipped with worm into the chum zone.

I think some people used corn or dough bits, too.

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

I spotted this tidbit over on the U.S. Catfish Associaitons website. It is so timely to this discussion, that I had to share it here:

"Last summer I was fishing a lake close to home. I noticed 2 kids, prob. around 12 or 13, walking around the bank. They stopped about 100 yards from me and set their gear down. 1 of them had a frisbee, and I watched as he poked holes in the frisbee with a screwdriver.

Needless to say, I was intrigued wondering what the heck he was doing.

He then tied a string to the frisbee and turned it upside down. He had a tub of chicken livers and he dumped the whole tub into a pair of pantie hose and tied a knot in the hose. He then put the "pantie bag" full of livers on the upside down frisbee and floated it out in the water using the string to keep if from floating too far. They then baited up some livers and tossed out near where the frisbee was floating and started catching cats in a few minutes. They caught way more than I did.

Don't know if I will ever try this method or not, but kids can sure come up with ideas that an adult would never think of. By the way, eventually a cat or turtle did hit the frisbee turning it over and dumping out the livers...." - howard 

 

Talk about a unique delivery system

 

[Johnny wilkins]

I am a big fan of innovation. Keep inventing and don't forget to work on setups on your workbench, with a little electrical tape, some glue some wire etc. Never give up making things better.

 

- That said there are reasons they caught more fish than you regarding the concentrations of scent. The delivery method might have been o.k. for shallow water - but top-water feeding cats might be a losing battle.

 

Props for their delivering or wanting to deliver some scent out there and the turtle probably did them a favor dumping their "bait boat". You can do this delivery using some chum and using some finely chopped or liquified liver (in small batches)... small batches is the key and often. 

Since these cats are geared/engineered for finding pockets of grubs, decaying food even buried inches in silt from many yards away - you don't need much in terms of quantity to get them prowling. Kind of like a couple of drops of blood to sharks can bring them in hungry from a mile away.

When feeding/chumming any species of fish - you want to offer the best portion of your scent and the best particle of bait to the fish. BUT - you want that best offering to be attached to your hook. Keep this in mind as many people use too much and they only feed it in one time - er one frisbee load.

Like I said - keep inventing, keep improving but the basics to good chumming, attracting and stimulating feeding are:

1. feed little

2. feed often

3. your hookbait should be the #1 target / strongest scent

4. don't fill up the fish with the chum/attractant (see #1)

5. be accurate - if you fish one place and feed another, the fish will be over on the pile of stuff, your hook will be ignored.

6. mind currents, tides, wind currents - you DON't want to be fishing up current from your goodies or all the fish will be coming from down- current.

7. once the fish arrive, don't forget to feed - you worked to get the fish there now you need to keep their interest, hold them there while you fish, hook, play and remove fish - feed in so you keep them there. (and by all means return the fish to catch again)!!

 

A great delivery system is to put tiny pieces of your offering in small ground bait balls. Properly mixed these small balls will rest on the bottom where you intend to fish. While fish DO eat the groundbait sometimes- your goal is to get them interested in what is on your hook. So - inside that groundbait ball should be something that matches your hook bait. Make sure what you are offering doesn't float. If your food/hook bait floats, you can't use this method or you need to soak the bait in water until it does not float. Example - I never fish with wax worms because they float. Also when using worms, you want to chop the worms so they don't crawl away.  Small bits of worms, juice flow through the water, while your hookbait will be the best (uncut) target to the fishes eye. When possible, fish love to sight feed - even bottom-feeding fish they enjoy sight-feeding when they are able (shallow waters, bright light).

 

They will also use their lateral line to sense that movement of the bait as well as -most importantly the frenzied movement of feeding fish. Their lateral line will pick up on the fact that there are feeding sounds- chomping mouths, working fins, gills and they tune into this sound to find "where it's at".

 

Once you pack a few fish into the area,  you create what I like to call a "sock sale". With people shopping - they might not want socks or they might not be in the mood. But when a crowd gathers around those socks and their is frenzied activity -maybe a flashing blue light - suddenly you have the urge to move closer. Before you know it  you are digging in to get socks you didn't want in the first place.

 

Creating this panicked competition bite is the secret in the recipe. When you feed properly you are able to pack fish in a small area where they become greedy, they eat with more force and the act stupid. Their alarm systems are down, they aren't line shy, they might not scatter if you move on the bank as much - they become easier targets for us as the top predator. We have thumbs you know.

If you made it this far- you are intrigued and you know some secrets to attracting fish. You can definitely beat the next two inventors with a frisbee. But, with this power you must release your bull bluegills- protect your fishery. Be careful around spawning time not to disturb your fishery. Take care of it because it is yours. Take ONLY a little or what you need - don't get greedy or you will wreck it.

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

I agrre, I gotta hand it to the kids for trying the frisbee thing. I would have done it differently, but that is the point behind innovation - trying it your way.

In fact, I have an idea for a floating chum delivery system, a "CDS," that I may have a go at. :)

I think the notion of mall batches of chum delivered often is a key. I can see floating a chum rig to get things stirred up, maybe, and then tossing a few accurately placed "chum buttons" thereafter to keep 'em livley... as you put it:

nd wating for what you present on hth ehook. Getting them biting on your hook IS the other point, isn't it? (pun intended) 

Your summary is worth repeating, too, for any would be "chummers"

1. Feed little

2. Feed often

3. Your hookbait should be the #1 target / strongest scent

4. Don't fill up the fish with the chum/attractant (see #1)

5. Be accurate - fish and feed in the same spot.

6. Mind currents, tides, wind currents - Stay within the chum zone.

7. Once the fish arrive, don't forget to feed (#1 and #2) - you worked to get the fish there now keep their interest, hold them there while you fish, hook, play and remove fish!

 A great bit of advice, too, about ensuring the hook bait is included in the chum presentation/delivery.  In the sales business we say, "Sell the sizzle, not the steak" - a "sock sale" in other words. I reckon in fishing circles they call it a feed frenzy - all the same thing, where you put out the blue light and get the "buyer" worked up to want the thing presented to them. They may not have started out that way but greed and desire kicks in - and well they act stupid.  

 

Which applies to fishermen, too. Thanks for the inspiration!

[Johnny wilkins]

Let me know when you have a sketch of your system - I will swear an oath not to compete or let anyone else in on it.

 

When you have it sketched up - I will send you a little information.

Chumming should give everyone inspiration this Spring - if you haven't fished using a chum, groundbait or attractant 2011 is your year to "test the waters"...

[Dwayne Denison]

The frisbee is a great idea, it pays to watch kids sometimes, They don't have their minds set in stone.

[Dwayne Denison]

Johnny, do spikes float or not?

[Johnny wilkins]

Fantastic Question - NO spikes sink at an enticingly slow rate especially for bluegills!! They sink very very slowly and are a very natural attractant bait. This is why our clubs purchase them in quantity and when we fish tournaments you want to use 1,000 - 2,000 spikes. This can attract and entice enough bluegills for a 10 lb. bag all the way up to a whopping 35 lb. bag (being the most I have seen in competition). 

This truly is the essential element to the "sock sale" and is good for a sure-fire feeding frenzy many times.

I am going cabin-fever crazy now and the edges of ponds are open by me so I can't go ice fishing. 

[Dwayne Denison]

Johnny, I have lots of questions about spikes.I have never fished with them, but seem to be the bait to use. I will message you with questions. I am telling you, you need to come south. All water is open down here. I lve near Carbondale.  Dwayne

[Johnny wilkins]

Well my brother is going to Champaign right now so I could trek down there, pick him up and meet up with you some weekend - he is a fishing maniac too.

 

I would bring a couple thousand spikes and we can meet somewhere to bank fish!

If you have a local Boyscout troupe I do seminars etc. on the bank. I have done seminars for YMCA & 4H groups - they all do outdoor class activities.

If we get in touch with the local groups fishing clubs I can make a weekend out of it for sure!

 

I had heard of Crab Orchard Lake down there that is supposed to be the bluegill "bomb"...

 

In a couple of weeks I do want to try and organize this and I can as I said, put in a bulk spike order and deliver those as well.

[Jon McLean]

I fish with maggots, and they work great.  IMO they do require some special tackle.  I use spade-end hooks because they are very very thin.  I hook the maggot just under the skin at the blunt end and put three or four on the hook.   Fish very light.  I use a 2# leader and a cane pole mostly with a waggler or very light float. 

You can buy maggots on line.  Here's a good place: http://www.vadosbait.com/index.php/bait-store/maggots.html

I grow my own, and I don't have a large scale operation (growing maggots is kinda stinky, and I live real close to my neighbors) so I can't really chum with the maggots, though I know they do in the UK, and I am sure it is a great idea. 

[Rob Hilton]

First things first ... before thinking of chumming... or as we call it in England Ground Baiting... please  take the time to find out from local Fish & Game officials whether it's legal or not. The penalties in California are quite severe for illegal practices when it comes to fishing.

 

I tried it in Michigan several years ago...  mashed up some shrimp and meal together with a pint or two of maggotts...... worked very well ... the meal clouds the water a little and when the fish investigate they find small pieces of shrimp and larvae . It really can help keep the Bluegills in the same area for quite a while. But please check first...Tight Lines