LMB as live bait

[TnRiver46]

I’ll take “things you won’t see in Minnesota” for 400, Alex 

[MN Fisher]

28 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

I’ll take “things you won’t see in Minnesota” for 400, Alex 

Got that straight - we can't even use sunnies, perch or crappie as bait.

[gim]

For some reason this reminds me of Jaws when they throw that basketball sized float out with a slab of meat under it.  Can we go home now?

[J Francho]

Probably legal where they are fishing, but not everywhere.

[TnRiver46]

5 minutes ago, J Francho said:

Probably legal where they are fishing, but not everywhere.

Indeed 

[HaydenS]

 

Do they catch anything on the LMB or not?

[TnRiver46]

8 minutes ago, HaydenS said:

 

Do they catch anything on the LMB or not?

Spoiler alert................. 

 

nope. Sounds like it came off the hook 

[HaydenS]

Yeah, it looked like it was barely hooked in the back.  I'd like to give that guy a swift kick in the butt ?

[TnRiver46]

9 minutes ago, HaydenS said:

Yeah, it looked like it was barely hooked in the back.  I'd like to give that guy a swift kick in the butt ?

Nah Those are good fellers, bass aren’t everyone’s favorite. They are both tournament bass fishermen believe it or not, but Justin fishes mostly for catfish 

[HaydenS]

3 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

Nah Those are good fellers, bass aren’t everyone’s favorite. They are both tournament bass fishermen believe it or not, but Justin fishes mostly for catfish 

Totally understand.   I'm just glad it got away, but would've been cool to see something caught on it!  Where are they from?

[TnRiver46]

21 minutes ago, HaydenS said:

Totally understand.   I'm just glad it got away, but would've been cool to see something caught on it!  Where are they from?

Not exactly sure but I would guess somewhere in east TN. I think Erik runs and fishes in lots of kayak tournaments. 

[HaydenS]

Cool!

[Further North]

I have had walleyes, smallies, and decent sized pike attached by bigger pike and muskies.

...that said, using them intentionally as bait seems a little less than ethical...but that's me.

[J Francho]

What are the ethical issues with live bait if it's legal?

[MN Fisher]

5 minutes ago, J Francho said:

What are the ethical issues with live bait if it's legal?

If it's legal to use, and it works...go for it.

[TnRiver46]

17 minutes ago, Further North said:

I have had walleyes, smallies, and decent sized pike attached by bigger pike and muskies.

...that said, using them intentionally as bait seems a little less than ethical...but that's me.

I like pike, though I’ve only caught one. They seem to be hungry often, my favorite trait in fish 

[gim]

30 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

I like pike, though I’ve only caught one. They seem to be hungry often, my favorite trait in fish 

Yes, hungry and aggressive. And over populated. You should come up here sometime. Spring or fall if you time it right you could catch 40 of those things non stop and go home with a live well full of 10 of em. They’re slimy and full of y bones but in colder water they aren’t bad.

[TnRiver46]

14 minutes ago, gimruis said:

Yes, hungry and aggressive. And over populated. You should come up here sometime. Spring or fall if you time it right you could catch 40 of those things non stop and go home with a live well full of 10 of em. They’re slimy and full of y bones but in colder water they aren’t bad.

Don’t tempt me with a good time! 

[MN Fisher]

Just now, TnRiver46 said:

Don’t tempt me with a good time! 

Like this?

 

Or this?

 

[Further North]

59 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

I like pike, though I’ve only caught one. They seem to be hungry often, my favorite trait in fish 

Pike are my favorite fish, even more than musky.  Give me pike in the 24" - 45" range and I'm a happy camper.

 

31 minutes ago, gimruis said:

Yes, hungry and aggressive. And over populated. You should come up here sometime. Spring or fall if you time it right you could catch 40 of those things non stop and go home with a live well full of 10 of em. They’re slimy and full of y bones but in colder water they aren’t bad.

They're not overpopulated everywhere.

...we had a weird year here last year...pike, in water that's normally got plenty of them, were really hard to catch.

I actually caught more musky than pike last year.  It was kinda weird.

Here's a decent pike from a couple years ago:

 

[Deephaven]

7 hours ago, MN Fisher said:

Got that straight - we can't even use sunnies, perch or crappie as bait.

And we don't have blues in the state.

[bulldog1935]

A buddy hooked a good size sunfish on his fly rod, and brought it in wedged in the mouth of a 4-lb largemouth.  

 

An acquaintance on TKF forum posted a photo from Lake Fork of a respectable bass he brought in wedged in the mouth of a larger largemouth.  

 

We accused them both of baitfishing

[Bluebasser86]

On 4/16/2021 at 2:51 PM, HaydenS said:

Yeah, it looked like it was barely hooked in the back.  I'd like to give that guy a swift kick in the butt ?

It's completely legal in Kansas too. I've used bass for flathead bait many times. They're not the best but bass are right up there with bluegill on the dumb and easy to catch scale so I'll use them when I have to. They just have to be legal keeper size and count towards your daily bag limit. 

Justin is a good dude, he has several videos catching fish on bass, bluegill, crappie, drum, even other catfish. 

 

[HaydenS]

3 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

It's completely legal in Kansas too. I've used bass for flathead bait many times. They're not the best but bass are right up there with bluegill on the dumb and easy to catch scale so I'll use them when I have to. They just have to be legal keeper size and count towards your daily bag limit. 

Cool, didn't know that!  Might have to try that sometime, if I ever get out to do some flathead fishing.

You catch anything on them?  Bass typically have bigger size limits than gills so do they get munched as easily, or do they work better for bigger flatheads?

[Bluebasser86]

7 hours ago, HaydenS said:

Cool, didn't know that!  Might have to try that sometime, if I ever get out to do some flathead fishing.

You catch anything on them?  Bass typically have bigger size limits than gills so do they get munched as easily, or do they work better for bigger flatheads?

I've caught lots of fish on them, but no big ones, biggest is around 30lbs. Best case is to get them at a slot limit lake so you can keep the "unders". Those bass in the 8-12 inch range are the best bait sized ones for whole, live bait. 

 

From the KSoutdoors website;

LEGAL BAIT

Legal fish bait includes artificial lures, bait fish (as defined on Page 12), prepared bait, vegetable materials, artificial bait, worms, crayfish, leeches, amphibians and mussels. Species listed as prohibited, threatened, endangered, or in need of conservation may NOT be used as bait. Any other LEGALLY
TAKEN wildlife may be used, including sport fish of legal length taken by hook and line