Catfish chum

[donovanmaxwell]

Anyone ever try using their spent grains for catfish chum? Seems a waste to go out and buy milo and a 6er of Natty Light when I could possibly just use spent grains and yeast slurry. Maybe I need to experiment and see what happens...

 

[nutty_gnome]

How would that work? Wouldn't they float away?


Sent from my iPad using Home Brew

 

[donovanmaxwell]

Normally I use whole kernels, so I'm not sure if they will sink since they saturated or not. If nothing else I could tie a small bucket to the kayak and drill some small holes in the side and let it hang.

 

[Dutch218]

This sounds like a Jeff Foxworthy "you might be a redneck" joke.


Sent from my iPad using Home Brew

 

[Terek]

This is a great idea! I am an avid catfisher and never thought of this. As far as them floating away, just put em in a hop bag and weight it down. I do something similar with dry cat food.

 

[Terek]

This sounds like a Jeff Foxworthy "you might be a redneck" joke.


Sent from my iPad using Home Brew

Have you ever seen a cat fisher? Or one from idaho? "Them there sumpin else folks"

 

[Zuljin]

Can't hurt none. Catfish do like to hang out by the grain elevators on the Mississippi.

 

[donovanmaxwell]

Can't hurt none. Catfish do like to hang out by the grain elevators on the Mississippi.

That is kind of what I was thinking. And little bits and pieces making it through aren't necessarily a bad thing. Just need them to come in close, then the punch bait should do the trick.

So the next question is, what is your favorite style brew with fresh caught, fried catfish?

 

[donovanmaxwell]

This is a great idea! I am an avid catfisher and never thought of this. As far as them floating away, just put em in a hop bag and weight it down. I do something similar with dry cat food.

I'd never thought of dried cat food. You ever try dried dog food? I've got a lot of that around.

I'm not huge on dropping the bag down. While I have lost my share of line/tackle in the lakes around here in DFW, TX, I personally try to leave as little stuff in the lakes as possible.
A floating hop bag tied to the kayak might help keep them following me once they're following the scent trail, though. Next time I bottle/brew, I'll post up my results.

BTW, whole kernel corn is useless for chum. Hardly any scent at all. Even after almost two years...

 

[Zuljin]

We used to catch loads of hardheads in the salt water. Some people say they ain't worth it. Ha! They're delicious. They love shrimp. Fresh shrimp worked better than we liked when it was reds and trout we wanted. But after a while, when the bait ice was melted and the last of the shrimp were spoiling, hell, even if they had turned pink, they'd still catch hardheads. Granted, shrimp gets to be a pricey catfish bait if you're not on the coast.

 

[Zuljin]

I'd never thought of dried cat food. You ever try dried dog food? I've got a lot of that around.

I'm not huge on dropping the bag down. While I have lost my share of line/tackle in the lakes around here in DFW, TX, I personally try to leave as little stuff in the lakes as possible.
A floating hop bag tied to the kayak might help keep them following me once they're following the scent trail, though. Next time I bottle/brew, I'll post up my results.

BTW, whole kernel corn is useless for chum. Hardly any scent at all. Even after almost two years...

What kayak ya got? I think my Coleman canoe has about had it, and im looking for something new and smaller to paddle.

 

[donovanmaxwell]

It's an Ocean Kayak. Trident 13 Angler. It does me pretty good. It's a bit different than fishing from my canoe. Balance is a bit more key than in the canoe and fish generally feel a bit bigger to me. I once caught a 5 pound chan that felt like a whale on my 6' spinning rod with 8lb line. It hammered my little mirror finished rat-l-trap. Was a lot of fun in the kayak

 

[gratus fermentatio]

You could try either using some sort of binding agent to form those spent grains into a ball, or just put them in the food processor & grind that grain into a coarse flour; add some water & you've got doughballs. Maybe mix that grain in with a commercial dough-type bait.
A little spent grain in the food processor & a little leftover bacon grease to help bind it. Form that into a ball on your treble hook, should be quite appetizing to a catfish.
Regards, GF.

 

[donovanmaxwell]

That's a good idea GF. I bet some sour cream & melted cheese would help bind it too.

 

[agrazela]

Hmm, I shall have to try using spent grain to chum up baitfish out in the kelp.

 

[wildactbrewer]

This is a new one for me! I love to catfish and have used everything from chicken liver to chewing tobacco...but never spent grains! This I must try!

 

[gratus fermentatio]

That's a good idea GF. I bet some sour cream & melted cheese would help bind it too.

You make it sound less like bait & more like lunch.
Regards, GF.

 

[unionrdr]

I was thinking the same thing about cookin' up some dough ball bait with the spent grains. We used to use cut night crawlers for channel cats when they'd come up the black or vermilion rivers to stage before spawning. They averaged 12-17 inches. Just put a bobber about 8 foot or so above a long-shanked hook.