Why salt

[PACMEN]

I have read on here that folks salt their minnows. What is the purpose for this?
I have fished with frozen minnows for years but am always looking to improve.
I cut up chub but fish with whole red shiners.
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[TubeDude]

[#0000FF]Salt removes moisture and firms up the minnows. That helps keep them on the hook after freezing. More of a problem with shiners than chubs.

I quit using shiners and now use only chubs or carp minnows. I freeze them in a little water...with all the air squeezed out...to prevent freezer burn. That seems to keep them as close to fresh and as firm as possible. This year I used some that were over 2 years in the freezer and they looked like new and fished like new when thawed.
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[SkunkedAgain]

Pat that must be what I'm doing wrong with my current batch of minnows. I got lazy last fall and just put the carp in a zip lock without salt and water. So Saturday I ran out for a couple hours and I caught 4 carp minnows fresh and had a pack of frozen ones. The fresh minnows were hit before my line tightened, but as soon as I started with frozen they shutoff biting immediately. Year before last, I followed your directions and they caught fish until I ran out. Glad you reminded us about this. How much salt do you use per Baggie? Thanks J
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[TubeDude]

[#0000FF]I don't freeze them is salt water. Lowers the freezing point. Instead, I loosely cover them with non iodized salt for a couple of hours...or longer for more drying. Then I do a quick rinse and package with a bit of water to keep all the air out.

I suspect that you are freezing your minnows with some air bubbles in the package. If you do that, there will be freezer burn...and the oils turn rancid. Not a favorable odor for most fish.

That is why you should also freeze your fillets in water...without air. Otherwise they cook up tasting super "fishy". Fish should not taste like fish.
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[gonfishn]

That is a great question. What tubedude said makes good sense. But your thread title got me to thinking and I wonder why some plastic baits are "salted"?
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[SkunkedAgain]

That was a problem I had when I salted them the water didn't freeze well and leaked out resulting in doghouse threats. Thanks for clarifying that. J
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[TubeDude]

[#0000FF]It has been proven that fish like the taste of salt. It is the taste of blood. So it is a kind of attractant by itself.

Another reason for adding salt in some plastics is to increase the density (sink rate). Pure soft plastic is almost buoyant...especially if there are any bubbles in it. But adding salt adds weight helps your "Sinkos" sink.

The downside of putting too much salt in plastics is that it makes them more subject to fish destruction. It weakens the elasticity and strength. So fish can tear up your lures easier. But I would rather have the problem of torn up plastic than to be smelling like skunk.
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[Northman]

Have you had bad results with just vacuum sealing?
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[TubeDude]

[#0000FF]Vacuum sealing works fine. Might even be the best way. But it takes setting up and messing with special bags...and more expensive.

I usually do batches of 50 or more bags at a time so I just make a quick production line out of it. The little plastic bags I use are inexpensive and they work fine. As I said, I use frozen minnows two years old and they catch fish.

The secret is to only use the left handed and blue eyed ones. Ask Skunked about that.
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[Northman]

Thanks, I am relatively new to catching my own bait fish. And for the qauntaties I have caught I have just vacuumed sealed. Its nice to bounce things off other anglers to see what they think.
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[PACMEN]

I have been vacuum sealing for years. Not salting however. I reuse bags. Save bags from ? clean then make a bit smaller. This cuts down on the cost.
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[PACMEN]

Where do I find quantities of smaller chubs? Most of the chub I use are better for cut bait than for fishing whole. Are you fishing wholes or cut or?
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[PACMEN]

Do you use carp for trout as well as other fish?
I caught a pile of carp minnows once and did not seem to do as well with them as I do now with chub and shiner.
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[TubeDude]

[quote PACMEN]Where do I find quantities of smaller chubs? Most of the chub I use are better for cut bait than for fishing whole. Are you fishing wholes or cut or?[/quote]

[#0000ff]I wish I could provide an easy answer to that one. I have not had a good chublet harvest for a couple of years. The drought has whacked out a couple of my previous better spots.

There are chubs, fathead minnows and small pond carp in the Deer Valley lakes...sometimes. They go in cycles. But I have had some good harvests there...with cast nets and with minnow traps.

I mostly fish whole chub minnows. When I throw my 1/4 inch mesh cast net I get them from about 1 1/2 inches to over 6 inches. I sort them out into several sizes before freezing. The smallest I use for tipping jigs...for ice fishing or for fishing larger tube jigs. For fishing whole I prefer 3" to 4" size. The larger 5-7 inchers I use whole for cats or cut in half for cats, wipers and walleyes. I almost never use larger ones but I keep the ones I catch for a few fishing buddies to use at the Gorge.

I am attaching my writeup on Minnows. It has a lot of the info you seem to be looking for. Hope it helps. NOTE: I will be taking down that attachment in a few days to keep it off the public domain internet thing. This is just for BFTers. So copy it if you want.

As far as using carp for trout is concerned...yes, some trout will eat carp meat...or minnows. Tigers, cutts and browns are more piscivorous (fish eating than rainbows. But rainbows will eat carp minnows if they are currently plentiful and if the trout are patterning on them. I have seen carp minnows produce well at Grantsville. But wherever the trout are dining on small invertebrates the carplets usually won't get much attention.

That being said, using small bits of carp meat on ice jigs can work well. It works even better if you dose it with scent...crawdad, shrimp or Gulp.
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[SkunkedAgain]

Yup TD's right on those left handed, blue eyed ones, they drive the fish nuts.... Hard to find enough of them.... For me, it seems like the time of year makes a big difference on which kind of minnows work best for me.. Summer time the carp minnows really work well, but later on the fatheads seems to be a little better. It seems like the minnows are really good this time of years, they are almost like grasshoppers on the trout water this time of year, on fire baits and fast action with explosive hits... I quite enjoy it.... Later J
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[TT600]

How do gulp minnows compare to real minnows? Almost as good?
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[SkunkedAgain]

I'm not a good one to ask that question because I still haven't caught a fish on a Gulp minnow, where real ones rock and I catch a ton of fish on them!!! I have only used Gulps when I wasn't catching fish on anything else, so I'm not a good comparison, but at this point the Gulps haven't sold me on trying them early in my presentations... One day that may change, but if I have real ones I'll always fish them first... Later J
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[TubeDude]

[#0000FF]Gulp minnows can be dynamite. But you fish them as lures more than as bait. Super for fishing dropshot style, on a jig head or to tip another jig with. It is the scent, not the action.

There is not a species in Utah that will not hit Gulp minnows...fished the right way.

I have had trips on several lakes in which I would have had a poor day except for Gulp goodies.
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[TT600]

I have hundreds of $$$ of rapalas that are getting neglected due to Gulp minnows. Haven't used the real ones. I might need to get a trap.
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[TubeDude]

[quote TT600]I have hundreds of $$$ of rapalas that are getting neglected due to Gulp minnows. Haven't used the real ones. I might need to get a trap.[/quote]

[#0000FF]There are times and places for all of it. With all of the waters and species in Utah...and the different seasons and changing conditions...it is good to have a well stocked arsenal. Of course, the better you know the water and the species...under prevailing conditions...the better shot you have for finding the right pattern on any given day.

Poor Rapalas. Do they whimper when you leave them unused in your tackle box?
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