First Time Catfishing...rig Question...

[X-JaVeN-X]

So, I just joined here recently, after deciding to try fishing.  I've been learning on a relatives pond.  So far I've only gone after bream/bluegill and large mouth bass.  I've had great success with both of those (senkos must be made of magic...it doesn't seem to matter when/where in this pond I fish them...the lmb grab them everytime).

 

Anyway, I've been told that there are also some catfish in the pond and have been told stories of "arm-length" catfish being caught in the pond, but nobody knows what specific type of catfish was caught.  So, I'm trying to piece together what I need to try and catch a catfish. 

 

So far, I built a couple santee-cooper rigs and I have some secret-7 dip bait with team catfish double action circle hooks (8/0 I believe). I figure I can also use that rig for fresh cut bait. However, I'd like to have the option of using live bait fish as well (I would be using bream caught there).  This brings me to my question.  What's the best type of rig to use for live bream as bait?  In my mind, the santee cooper rig would have a nice chance of becoming a tangled mess with live bait on the other end, but what do I know...I've been fishing for all of a month lol.

 

Give me some advice on rigs guys!  Any other first time catfishing tips would be greatly appreciated as well!

[Kevin Beachy]

All you need to do is get a big hook, chop of a bluegill head, put eather the back or front on the hook and cast it out. Wait awhile. Get a bite, set the hook, reel it in.

[EmersonFish]

First of all, dip bait is a good "numbers" bait, but if there is an "arm's length" catfish in a pond, it didn't get that way by picking up little scraps. You are right to lean toward live bait or cut bait. Not knowing what kind of cat it is complicates things a little. You can probably rule out blue cat, so that leaves flathead or channel. If the pond is fed by a creek, or someone put them there, it could be a flathead. Either would probably be feeding on the live bait available in the pond.

The Santee rig is perfectly fine for your cutbait. Just don't get carried away with the leader length. It would also work with a smaller live bluegill, greenie, or whatever you are using, but it's better suited for cut bait. If you think it might be a flathead, you'll want to fish close to whatever heavy cover is available for it. In that case, I'd just use a Carolina Rig with a relatively short leader, and I'd "belly hook" the bait which means behind the anus/above the anal fin. If you are unsure about that, you can still hook them in the back, but can swim more naturally on a bottom rig hooked in the belly.

If you are going to use a circle hook, make sure you know what you are doing. I could write a book about that, so I won't get into it, I'll just say that if you do think you are dealing with a flathead, and using a circle hook, that can be a tricky proposition. You have to recognize how a flathead often takes a bait, and be incredibly patient. If you are fishing in the thick of heavy cover, a circle hook can be more problematic because, by design, you have to let the fish take it, and turn before you reel up on them. A flathead will have you in a tree real quick, which is why, if I have the rod in my hand, I will opt for a J-Hook in those situations.

If it's a channel, the most likely scenario, cut bait would probably give you the best odds anyway. But live bait will give you the opportunity to catch a big channel or flat.

[Bluebasser86]

IMO a Santee Cooper rig is more effective for drift fishing, otherwise your bait hangs back down towards the bottom and kind of defeats the purpose, unless there's good current. 

 

I'm guessing if you're in a pond you're probably dealing with some nice sized channel cats. You can catch them on punch bait, but the bigger ones will often ignore it in favor of the real thing. A simple slip sinker rig is probably going to be your best option with live bait. I prefer a Kahle or beak hook with live or cut bait if I'm with the rod. Circle hooks work best when your rods are in a rod holder in a boat and you can leave them alone to work their magic until they're folded over IMO. Plus, setting the hook on a big catfish is part of the fun of fishing for them

 

In ponds I've done very well fishing cut bait under a bobber with no weight, just let it drift around. If it's big channel cats, you'll find one eventually. If you're dealing with flatheads in a pond, you're in for some tough fishing. I've fished some ponds with quite a few flatheads that the owners put in without realizing how much they eat and then want them back out. Flatheads seem to move very little once they're in a pond with lots of food and become almost impossible to catch. 

 

If the weeds and snags aren't bad, I suggest covering water with some cut bait. Put a chunk of baitfish on a hook (hook it through once and leave the point exposed and make sure it's clear of scales). I like about a 2/0 Kahle hook for this technique. Add no weight or bobber but you can use a barrel swivel to add a short leader if you like. Cast the bait to likely areas and let it settle to the bottom and sit for a minute or so. If nothing picks up the bait, lift it slowly and move it about a foot and repeat step 1. Do that all the way back to you. It's effectively leaving a scent trail for any catfish that swims across your baits path to follow and can be extremely effective at times. Be ready though, I've had big channels almost jerk the rod out of my hands on the strike doing that

[X-JaVeN-X]

Just to give a little more info on the pond...It doesn't have a natural source for fish.  Fish were put there years ago (as in probably 30 years ago).  It was done before my family bought the land.  So, the catfish could be anything really.   The pond is mostly open with a pretty thick grassy bottom.  There may be some sunken fallen limbs near the bank, but very little of that really.  Most of the pond is about 6' - 8' deep with one small corner of the pond having an area about 13' - 14' deep (deepest part of the pond and is actually just off of the bank and not in the middle of the pond).  The only other piece of cover that I know of is a small boat that sank decades ago.  Near that is where we've caught most of our bass.  The rest have been near the couple decks that are around the pond.

 

I still haven't been out there yet to try and catch a catfish yet.  However, I did catch a few more bass.  My aunt, happened to be visiting and saw us with LMB that we had just pulled in.  She asked us if we had seen the bass that Riley caught a few weeks before (Riley is a younger cousin of mine...I believe he is 13 or 14).  She proceeded to bring this picture up on her phone....I quickly proceeded back to my rod and reel for another cast lol....

 

 

Sorry for the quality, it was a cell phone picture...but you get the idea.  They didn't weigh it or measure it, but for some reference, the guy on the left (my uncle) is about 6'.

[everythingthatswims]

Use at least 10lb test, no weight, a 2/0-4/0 hook of your choosing, and a chunk of fresh cut bait. Cast it out and open the bail (spinning rod is the way to go, a baitcaster will backlash if left in freespool when the fish makes a hard run, then you'll lose your rod). Simplest way to catch catfish ever!