Does salt attrack bass???

[Guest bigtex]

Do yall think that salt is used to attrack bass as well as used to keep the bass on your lure a little longer?

[Chris]

Attract bass no keep on on the hook maybe, cause the bait to sink yes, make the bait softer the longer you use it yes.

[bobo]

Make hooks rust a million times faster, yes.... welp, on last day of 3 days of fishing.... need some hawgs today....

[BassChaser57]

According to Pure Fishing researchers and their book "Pure Fishing" (the Berkley folks), salt, garlic, anise(licorice), and anything with an oil base will not have much affect on strikes and very little on length of lure retention times. It can be a scent masking agent though. The only scent that shows a marked increase in lure retention times was a water based natural scent formula. No scent showed much of an increase for a strike getter.

It was interesting to note that soap, DEET,  and sunscreen scent stopped the bite for as much as 90min. Gas, oil, and human scent did not show any affect.  Sure surprised me.

[Minuteman]

Gas, oil, and human scent did not show any affect.  Sure surprised me.

That is surprising, but I know that I like the smell of gas and oil, but I know it poisonous and fish don't. It might get their attention, but they'd probably spit it out quicker than if a lure didn't have it on. Evens things out.

[Cephkiller]

According to Pure Fishing researchers and their book "Pure Fishing" (the Berkley folks), salt, garlic, anise(licorice), and anything with an oil base will not have much affect on strikes and very little on length of lure retention times. It can be a scent masking agent though. The only scent that shows a marked increase in lure retention times was a water based natural scent formula. No scent showed much of an increase for a strike getter.

It was interesting to note that soap, DEET,  and sunscreen scent stopped the bite for as much as 90min. Gas, oil, and human scent did not show any affect.  Sure surprised me.

I'm not saying this is all BS, but consider the source (Powerbait and Gulp! anyone?).  I know from experience that fish will hold on to Powerbait for a long time, but fish hold on to Senkos for a long time too.  If a bass has ever spit a Senko on me I wasn't aware of it.

[Guest ouachitabassangler]

Salt has no scent, but bass do like the taste. It's mostly used to make the bait sink fast enough on its own to wriggle in the fall. GULP! is in the business of selling THEIR scent. I believe all the scents work equally, catalpa worm scent maybe better. I've had bass track a scent trail, coming up line to the boat a minute after reeling a scented bait in. I know tobacco users fishing with me usually have a terrible bite problem, and there is an amino acid in our skin that repels fish. Some folks have more of it. I've convinced most smokers with me to wash their hands with hunter's soap before handling a lure or line, because that increases their catch rate.

Jim

[redboat]

I know tobacco users fishing with me usually have a terrible bite problem, and there is an amino acid in our skin that repels fish.

Wife and I were fishing Toledo Bend summer before last. We saw a large white gar in one cove, could see him clearly in the water. He came right up to Wife's wacky worm, bumped it with his nose - I swear he was sniffin' the dang thing! I suppose it didn't smell right, after a few seconds he backed off.

We've been using hunter's soap on our hands and scent on our baits ever since. I found some stuff called "Lunker Sauce" which seems to work; it's thick and is in a dauber bottle so it doesn't get all over the boat.

[Raul]

Bass are attracted to your bait by it 's motion not because the bait has salt or not. Salt serves two main purposes, it adds weight to the bait but only if it 's incorporated into the bait like in soft plastic baits, salt on the outside is good for nothing; and to add a little bit of salty taste when the fish mouths the bait, which can give you a few tenths of a second more of the fish holding the bait in it 's mouth, those tenths of a second may mean the difference between a hooking a fish and hooking nothing, but I 'm not going to put my hands into the fire assuring so.

Is it absolutely necessary ?

I don 't think so.

[Deuceu72]

Just my 2 cents............I have never had a problem catching fish and lots of em smoking all the while. Now, I will admit I do use megastrike but I have never had any issues with smoking and catching fish.............

[BassChaser57]

The same publication also said nicotine scented baits did show less strikes than unscented lures.

[bixbybasspro]

I believe they hold onto it longer when they suck it in..