I just received a phone call from Optimal. They have just finished the first run of their bass food on the new mill. It's a 7mm pellet, which is a hair larger than 1/4" but a hair smaller than 5/16". They have not run the Hand Throw Bass Food yet, but soon.

I wonder if that was designed still for Texas Hunter style feeders that won`t throw the the larger pellets.

I'd love to use it in my TH feeders. Haven't in the past because they kept jamming.

esshup has the key to throwing Bass pellets with the TH feeder, he got me straightened out and mine throws Jr, BG and Bass consistently together.

Esshup and or Snipe,
I’ve never had a problem with my TH feeder throwing a mix of Optimal Jr and Bass. I’m curious what the fix is if I encounter a problem in the future with the larger pellets. Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

There is a hex screw on spinner plate that you can loosen enough to move it down just a tad...like .030.. a 1/16" will provide about 7 times the feed you'd expect. I "think" it's either 1/8 0r 3/32nds allen wrench. you can also adjust or fine tune for smaller feeds if say, 3 seconds puts out too much but 2 sec is not enough, just remember very small movement of the spinner plate/cup makes a big difference.

Snipe is correct. It's a PITA to measure because the spin plate has a curved up lip, but the distance between the flat part of the spin plate and the bottom of the hopper is supposed to be 3/8". Can't measure with a ruler because of the lip. I took a small piece of 3/8" thick flat stock, drilled and tapped a 1/4'-20 hole in it. Put some Red Loctite on a 1/2"-20 threaded rod, screwed it into the 3/8" flat piece but not so far that it stuck out the other side of it.

Let it sit a day and that is what I use to get the basic setting on the spin plate. The hopper has to be empty of feed to adjust it. Put the flat part through the bottom of the hopper, let it sit flat on the spin plate and move it to the side just enough to get it to go under the hopper but not too far so it sits on the up-curved side of the spin plate. Loosen spin plate, move up until it contacts the bottom of the hopper, tighten the set screw on the motor shaft.

Smaller feed, make it a wee bit smaller than the 3/8" gap. I made a piece on a 3D printer to replace one of the clear plastic pieces of their hopper, hopefully I can get it tested as soon as it warms up. I want to see if I can get them to throw the 3/8" Cargill feed. If it works, then I'll approach TH about selling that piece as an option. That same piece should work just fine with all the smaller feeds.

I've been feeding 3/8" Cargill for years, and never really had an issue with the spinner causing the jams. The majority of the time it was at the bottom of the clear funnel just prior to the slinger. Having said that, I'm going back to 1/4" pellets because Cargill lost a major customer for the 3/8" pellets, and now they require a 2 ton minimum order to make a run. Skretting does have available 3/8" pellets, but it's a little rich for me at the volume I feed.

The obvious solution is for you to build several more ponds!

I am sure that the forum members would be more than happy to help you devise stocking plans that would get you up to feeding 2 tons every 60 days!

I bet they would. I'm using up my stock right now, and trying to keep one pallet stocked, not two anymore. Eliminating 3/8" pellets will almost free up one pallet by itself.

I can't figure out if this is on-topic, or more the rantings of a slighty off-kilter fellow. I mean, the thread is about Optimal Feed, and here Dreamboat Annie starts espousing about Cargill Feed.

Scott brought up Cargill, not me. I just muddied the water a little.

I see that....now.

You know who else muddies up the water ... darn bottom feeders.

The only thing lower than that is someone that makes bad "dad" jokes in the Pond Boss threads - like that idiot FishinRod!

FireIsHot does kind of look like a bullhead...

Sunil does kind of look like a bonehead...

Touche'....Freak.

All I have to say is we are missing the

Al, that very issue that you found is what I am hoping to address.

Well then, should I buy one bag of "bass" pellets (about three months' supply) or buy and hoard an extra bag? All I have now is "bluegill" and the big "bass throw" pellets. Ran out of a large bag of MVP about a month ago and now faced with re-stocking. I really like the Optimal "bass" pellets because they all float and they wedge into a small hook for bait...when the bluegill gets the pellet loose, he's hooked. Using (and conserving) the "bass throw" pellets for bait...cut a groove in the pellet, round it with a tiny rubber band, slip the hook under the band...catch the big bluegills of eleven or more inches, the occasional bass or hybrid striper, or one of two large channel cats (16 pounds)...the problem being, these fish get thrown back...well, you almost never land the cats on light tackle because they'll drag you into a fish attractor.

The "bass" pellets are not yet available online.

I love the 1 inch handthrown chunks, as do my LMB, HSB, and RBT (when I have them). So much fun to watch the blowups!

The new "bass" pellets are "7 mm" (quote above). The old pellets were 9 mm. I'll have to get a smaller hook.

What you really need to do is purchase some Stubby Steve's Pellets. Get the original brown, and get them in the regular size and the "Chubby Stubby". They work phenomenal for catching fish. I use a #10 Owner Mosquito hook and hook a single regular pellet about 1/4 the way through the "corner" of a pellet so that the barb and the majority of the bend of the hook is open. If you need a wee bit more weight, run the hook through the center of one pellet, slide that up the hook so it has the eye of the hook in the center of the pellet then put another pellet on like I described earlier. I will fish them on either 2# or 4# test line, no bobber and no weight. Watch the line where it enters the water. When it twitches, set the hook - the pellets don't swim by themselves.

When you use the "Chubby Stubby" pellets, upsize the hook to a wide bend #2 or an Octopus style size #2.

https://www.stubbysteve.com/

If you call them, tell Stacy that Scott from Hoosier Pond Pros said HI!

Danny, what kind of fish attractors do you use? Many artificial ones are advertised as being much easier on hangups than natural wood, is that what you find?

My brain isn't working this morning, but pending the results of some PB member who is running tests on Perch food, the new smaller bass pellets may be ideal there. As I recall, they are 44/8 vs the 42/10 (or is it 40/12?) of the Bluegill.

The bass food is 44/8

So the new Bass has half of the fat?

Sounds like some fish, similar to humans, suffer more from excess carbs than excess fat.

No, I didn't read the label correctly. It is 44 protein, 8 fat. I changed my post.

Hi Pond Boss Family,

March 1st is the day we consider the start of each season! The last few years have been a wild ride we have all shared. But, despite the insanity in the world, we have grown quite a lot. We are proud to announce the opening of our feed mill in Omaha, NE. The mill will allow us to further improve our feed lines, quality control, shipping times, and customer experience. It will also allow us to fast-track our innovation and evaluation process to ensure the highest quality in the ingredients, formulations, and results in the fish as well as the water. We have an Aqualab with over 24,000 gallons of water under one roof, which has allowed us to perform ongoing trials on such things as palatability, digestibility, growth, and performance over the last two years, which has further strengthened our formulations. We are also excited to have two Optimal test ponds in our backyard this year, one 60-year-old pond and one new pond.

We have appreciated everyone's support and patience as we try to build out a feed company focused on performance and quality instead of changing formulations based on the lowest cost ingredients available at the time of manufacturing. It has been a rollercoaster for all of us, and without all of you supporting Optimal, it would not have been possible.

Now to the topic of this thread. We plan to have both Optimal Bass and Optimal Handthrow back in stock this month! Optimal Bass will continue to be a 9mm pellet. Based on many requests, we have been working on a new formulation we are calling Optimal Bass Junior. We have heard from many of you on sizes of bass feed they would love for us to offer, and curious to hear what the Pond Boss family thinks would be an ideal size for Bass Junior. Let us know your thoughts on a juvenile bass feed, if there is a feed you would like to see, or if you have any additional input that can help us make sure we are getting you what you wish you had!

Thanks again for all the support throughout the years, and looking forward to this season and all the phone calls, pictures, and stories we get from our incredible customers. Talk to you all soon!
Optimal Fish Food

Would the Optimal Bass Junior feed bridge the gap between the Bluegill and Bass food size wise? What species of fish would do well eating that food besides bass? HSB? larger BG? YP?

The mixed lengths helps fill that gap currently, but if enough people prefer a single round pellet in an intermediate size we can certainly make that happen. Our standard bluegill feed will work for pretty much all common pond species.

Over the years I've recieved pretty evenly split feedback on how well the 9mm works in feeders. We sent all of our diets out to texas hunter in the early days, and the 9mm was determined to be the biggest size it could throw without issues. I think that maybe the humidity in some places might cause them to swell a bit and cause jams.

Species large enough to eat the bass feed diets would likely benefit from the higher protein and lower fat levels, so I anticipate they would all do well on it.

Kudos to Optimal! I'm getting my one bag "Bass" pellets delivered today, only three days from ordering. That's one "supply chain" I'll no longer worry about. In our pond, the "bass" pellets are preferred over the "bluegill" by any fish that's over six inches. My bluegills in excess of ten inches seem to prefer the big "bass throw" pellets. Thank you!

If a fighting fish gets snagged on any "attractor" it usually stays snagged until it breaks loose...one wrap around and the resistance is too much. Christmas trees to start, replaced with those balls into which you glue pieces of 1/2 " pvc, and added two Mossbacks also. I have pulled out almost all of them for now...they do make interesting sculptures laying around the landscape. I love the water lilies...at the peak of summer they cover about 20% of the pond...and I've never lost a fish even when caught in the middle of the lilies, to be hauled ten feet to clear.

Thanks, Danny. Maybe I should be careful where I place the fish attractors, don't want constant hangups!

Well, with seven acres (vs my 1/10th), you can make those big "colonies" of attractors (like Mossback's)...say one colony for bass to hang out and another tighter colony for the little fish...then fish between the attractor colonies.

And inside the box is also a small bag of "Hearts" (no other labeling), small heart shaped extrusions. Well, they smell super rich, so yeah, fish food! The cat crawled over me for sampling and the dog sat, wagging her tail. These little pellets could be training treats for both animals (start with swatting the cat off...ha ha). I'll be trying them on the fish soon.

I use the Bass Food for trapping 'coons in addition to feeding the fish. Works great in the DP traps, and also in the live type traps.

+ 1 on using fish food in the DP traps, have had better luck with it then anything Ive tried, It occurred to me because of the great lengths they will go to to get to it, their dirty little footprints all over the feeders and chewed off a pvc guard I put in place to direct the feed I got to thinking, I got something for you to dig for food out of, plus it is slightly resistant to moisture seems like.

I'm only 1..but my operation would benefit greatly with a smaller version of Bass.

[/quote]I'm only 1..but my operation would benefit greatly with a smaller version of Bass.[/quote]

Me, too. Just a bit too large now when it gets hot & humid.