Author Topic: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?  (Read 15987 times)

Offline 1TIGGER

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Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« on: Oct 09, 2006, 04:05 PM »
Just thought I would see what the general consensus was on Pike bait .
I see a lot of folks using live bait but less with smelt where I fish .
My bait of choice is smelt ! I haven't had much luck with live but hear people say they wouldn't use anything but live .
Even with different presentations , depth ranges , and setups my luck has been far better with smelt .
I've even put them side by side within a few feet of eachother and they seem to prefer the smelt .
What do you think ?

Offline Left Handed Model

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #1 on: Oct 09, 2006, 04:34 PM »
dead SMELT....on at least 3 of my 5...   dead suckers on the other 2.....  ;)  if their frozen it takes 10-15 mins before they start putting out the stink.... ;D
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Offline icy mike

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #2 on: Oct 09, 2006, 05:55 PM »
No live bait in freshwater Alaska.  Period.  We mostly use herring and hooligan (kind of like smelt).  They are also referred to as candlefish because the natives would dry them out an burn them like candles because they are very oily.

Offline pike4some

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #3 on: Oct 09, 2006, 06:45 PM »
How do you get your dead baits to sink I have tried to use smelt but just don't seem to get the hang of it

Offline Left Handed Model

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #4 on: Oct 09, 2006, 06:47 PM »
I use Split-Shot sinkers, usually the bigger in the pack,  bring extras they tend to pop off on the edge of the ice.... ;)
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Offline SKUNK-MASTER

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #5 on: Oct 09, 2006, 07:23 PM »
Just thought I would see what the general consensus was on Pike bait .
I see a lot of folks using live bait but less with smelt where I fish .
My bait of choice is smelt ! I haven't had much luck with live but hear people say they wouldn't use anything but live .
Even with different presentations , depth ranges , and setups my luck has been far better with smelt .
I've even put them side by side within a few feet of eachother and they seem to prefer the smelt .
What do you think ?
me and my buddies use live shiners and suckers...but i have tried some smelt, but they are hard to come by and i had to slice the belly to get them to sink and hang right...it seemed to let out the scent well. had no luck but it was a pretty tough day, and not the best place for northerns. any info would be appreciated, dead baits are easier to travel with and i would like to use them with quick strike rigs ???

Offline jacksmelt71

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #6 on: Oct 09, 2006, 08:23 PM »
i know the muskies up here will take a smelt everytime. the first time i fished sabbattus 2yrs. ago i had some sea smelts and suckers. i put out 8 traps with half and half. i more than doubled my catch on the smelts. if you guys want to have your dead bait hang strait carry some solder and pliers.  cut a 2in. piece and insert in the mouth of the bait. push it in with your pliers till it hangs level. not recommended if you are doing catch and release but works well to keep the bait down. good luck!

Offline buddah

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #7 on: Oct 10, 2006, 08:15 AM »
Dead sea smelts hands down.Rip the air bladder out and they will sink no problem.

Offline Home Wood

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #8 on: Oct 10, 2006, 10:21 AM »
I rarely buy smelt, because they die within 24 hours. Maybe I'll buy a dozen this year and use them alive until they die. I don't remember ever having good luck with any dead bait on lake Winnipesaukee in NH.
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Offline buddah

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #9 on: Oct 10, 2006, 12:45 PM »
I rarely buy smelt, because they die within 24 hours. Maybe I'll buy a dozen this year and use them alive until they die. I don't remember ever having good luck with any dead bait on lake Winnipesaukee in NH.


There's no pike in there is there?

Offline fshnfool

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #10 on: Oct 10, 2006, 01:13 PM »

There's no pike in there is there?

if dead bait's not working, then there can't be... ;D   Pike will hit a dead hot dog if it's in front of em... ;)

Offline BUCKSKI

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #11 on: Oct 10, 2006, 01:16 PM »
To each there own, I like live large sucker/chubs abd shinners when available.

Have seen dead sardines out fish them all!
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Offline coldbum

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #12 on: Oct 10, 2006, 06:41 PM »
I am a big fan of shiners and suckers the big fat kind!
I hear the hogs likem   ;)

Offline 1TIGGER

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #13 on: Oct 10, 2006, 08:48 PM »
How do you get your dead baits to sink I have tried to use smelt but just don't seem to get the hang of it
Just pop the swim bladder and they will sink !
I used to use finish nails but caught h<ll last year on here and it was suggested to pop the bladder so I tried it and it does work .

Offline brujharr

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #14 on: Oct 10, 2006, 09:51 PM »
I, used small nails in smelt too, awhile back.  ::)  New rules, and they make sense to me! If you put in the WATER, you better be able to get it out!  :)  Now days, I step on the smelt just enough. They sink, and no extra metal in the water, to bother with, buy, or worry about!  ;)

Offline Home Wood

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Re: Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #15 on: Oct 11, 2006, 08:18 AM »

There's no pike in there is there?

I've never heard of any and I've never caught one. A 2 foot Pickerel can give a good fight, so I'd love to land a nice big Pike.
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Offline dogfishin9

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #16 on: Nov 13, 2006, 02:47 PM »
I have always used live shiners but I am going to try dead bait this year. Do you guys fish your dead bait on the bottom or suspended?
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Offline Left Handed Model

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #17 on: Nov 13, 2006, 05:59 PM »
I fish anything dead,  slightly off bottom...  let it drop till the line gets slack,  then give it a couple wraps till you start to feel the weight...  set your flag..... ;)
Mike aka: Lefty,  The Yellow Pole Guy.....

Offline deadsmelthead

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #18 on: Nov 13, 2006, 06:38 PM »
I go with dead bait when the pike are in pre spawn mode they seem to be in more of eat anything mood that time of year, other times I find dead bait works well are at night, dead bait stinks and doesn't move, pike can't see a thing at they rely on their nose if they don't smell it they arent gonna find it and smelt friggen stink. I usually put slits in my dead bait just to let some of the sent linger out mashing one up and droping it down the hole helps. Big suckers work good dead and realy stink that and if you have a bait trap its fairly easy to get a dozen or more in day or 2.
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Offline dogfishin9

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #19 on: Nov 13, 2006, 07:04 PM »
Thanks!
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Offline gator_hunter71

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #20 on: Dec 19, 2006, 01:39 AM »
HEAVY sinker on the line up to 18" or so from the bait. I have a couple of tip-ups set up with heavy walking sinkers behind barrell swivels. let the sinker rest on the bottom and the frozen smelt floats off the bottom. let the thawing and stinking begin, these babys chum the water! I have had days where I did really well on this when live bait hung untouched.
If you jig it...... They will come.


Offline Left Handed Model

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #21 on: Dec 19, 2006, 03:47 PM »
HEAVY sinker on the line up to 18" or so from the bait. I have a couple of tip-ups set up with heavy walking sinkers behind barrell swivels. let the sinker rest on the bottom and the frozen smelt floats off the bottom. let the thawing and stinking begin, these babys chum the water! I have had days where I did really well on this when live bait hung untouched.

But don't forget your live bait everytime too..  the one time you don't bring it, thinking the smelts are gonna work as good as last time....WHAM... Skunkola... ;)
Mike aka: Lefty,  The Yellow Pole Guy.....

Offline 1TIGGER

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #22 on: Dec 19, 2006, 04:18 PM »
I have always used live shiners but I am going to try dead bait this year. Do you guys fish your dead bait on the bottom or suspended?

I fish mine roughly 4 inches off the bottom with pretty good luck .
Just figure out how many turns on your tip up reel will take your line up the desired height
and let the bait sink to the bottom and reel up however many times you have to - to reach that depth off the bottom you want .

Offline gator_hunter71

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #23 on: Dec 19, 2006, 10:40 PM »
But don't forget your live bait everytime too..  the one time you don't bring it, thinking the smelts are gonna work as good as last time....WHAM... Skunkola... ;)

yep, it's always good to have the "buffet of bait"
If you jig it...... They will come.


Offline Left Handed Model

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #24 on: Dec 20, 2006, 03:07 PM »
yep, it's always good to have the "buffet of bait"

Exactly... ;)  You can see what their gorging on, and then change it up...  hard to figure somedays when their hitting all three... live shiners, dead suckers, and smelt... ???
Mike aka: Lefty,  The Yellow Pole Guy.....

Offline IceTroll

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #25 on: Jan 02, 2007, 01:07 AM »
We use live bait and dead bait and have had excellant success with both. Problem I have with dead bait is the fact that I am fishing in a body of water with very large trophy walleyes in it and we target both Northerns and Walleyes with our presentation. Walleye will almost never hit a dead bait although I am sure someone will throw out an exception. Lets just say as a rule, Walleye prefer a live bait. As far as stuffing minnow with lead or even worse nails, my opinion is that its irresponsible. What do you think a minnow full of nails is gonna do to a Northern who steals your bait and swallows it. You think they will survive that? You really want to kill a trophy fish that may be 20 years old or older because your too lazy to puncture a swim bladder? Puncture the swim bladder. Its that simple. You dont need to do anything else. Also, a dead minnow does not need to hang perfectly level to be a natural presentation. Do you really believe that all the dead winter kill minnows that a Northern encounters and eats are all floating suspended and perfectly level? Think about it and you will realize how silly that sounds. Not curling or bending your minnow into a half circle is far more important that if its level or not.
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Offline brujharr

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #26 on: Jan 02, 2007, 07:58 PM »
Well said, IceTroll!!

Offline shaun_300

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #27 on: Jan 08, 2007, 09:19 PM »
We use 7" live suckers here, I find they work best. I usually suspend them 1-2 feet off the bottom, fish in 6-15' of water.


Offline GAMBELL

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #28 on: Jan 12, 2007, 08:08 PM »
I have found it all depends on the mood of the pike.  I usually put out a mix of both.  Some days they don't want to chase and some days they will take anything.  Lots of times after a cold front, when pike are slugish, smelt is key.  Warm fronts (just before a cold front) pike will take anything that looks and smells like fish. 

Offline Contender

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Re: Pike? Live bait or Smelt ?
« Reply #29 on: Jan 21, 2007, 05:45 PM »
Have never tried anything other than live bait. Where do you get the smelt and how do you puncture the swim bladder?   Would like to try it next weekend if there is ice.

Thanks

 



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