Pond Boss Forums FISH & FISHING Sunfish-Including Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass How to catch My Florida lmb on live bait

Well, as I was warned my pure Florida lmb are being extremely hard to catch. I have never fished for bass with live bait but have only watched Roland Martin do it on tv with "balloons" for corks.Can anyone give me advise and technique on how to properly do this? I was a pro bass fisherman for 15 years but of course could not use live bait. Only 6 miles down the road we have a wholesale live bait distributer so I can buy minnows, golden shiners (trotline shiners) and a lot of times goldfish. Also I can catch varies size cnbg from the pond if needed. I have caught near 6 pound lmb so I suspect I have at least some 8 pounders in my 2 acre pond and probably larger because I seem to still have a huge supply of different size cnbg in there. I really need technique advise!!

Flame, what worked best for me in Oklahoma where I grew up was to use a clear plastic bobber and drop the bait about a foot or so below the bobber with no weight let the bait swim free. I used golden shiners and the larger ones in the 4" size worked good. If you can find the bobbers that let u add water inside them for additional weight worked best. If needed u can cut the tail fin back on the shiners to where it can move it's tail but little movement gives it some added attraction.

Checked with my bait distributor and he does not sell GOLDEN shiners. Just larger regular shiners which are only 3-4 inch long. Those will have to do and maybe a small cnbg. Tracy how big of cork? Baloons used in Florida looked pretty large. Also I have researched to use circle live bait hooks. Must wait a good while to set the hook.?

Flame I ve never seen a florida bass, but I ve fished often northern bass with live bait.
I can t gurantee my method will work for you too, but here is a blast.
I don t use cork or balloon, I tie a 3/0 circle hook directly to the line, then put a minnow/shiner/goldfish by mouth, passing the hook from below to above. Sometimes I cut the tail fin a little. I cast it where I think the bass is and, if there is, the attack comes almost immediately. You see the line go rocket, but you don't have to pull the rod fast as if you had a normal hook, but slowly raise it and the hook will set itself.

James, you could use small CNBG or LMB as bait. LMB might be preferred due to fusiform shape being easier to swallow.

Flame, in Okla we called them Arkansas shiners. We call them trotline shiners here in Shreveport. The largest you can get works best for larger sized lmb but smaller works alright. As far as the bobber its called a spinner bobber. I use braded line attached to the top of it and then tie fluorocarbon to the bottom of the bobber and a circle hook. No need for a hard hook set, just apply a little pressure and reel. Two fish pics I posted today under grandsons fish were caught this way. Great way to help a non fisherman or pressured fish to catch some nice fish.

I have personally found that a 4 inch free swimming bluegill works best

I will be attempting to catch my Florida lmb this weekend. It is getting warmer and just yesterday fishing for cnbg with a VERY TINY little spinner and grub a huge lmb ate it and hooked up. I didn't have a chance. She made her first run and popped the line. All I saw was her back and it looked to be 3 inches wide!! I called my live bait store down the road again and he still only has maybe 3 inch minnows or I can get 3-4 inch gold fish or "bronze carp". What would ya'll recommend!!

I would not get any carp or goldfish just due to the risk of survival and introducing a new species.

3" minnows will catch LMB from my experience.

I have NO IDEA what I was thinking. That is a GREAT point about introducing a new species Sunil. Thank you!!! Minnows or bluegill it shall be!! I love this forum!

+1 on this.

Flame, was it you or Pat W. that gave me a hard time recently about adjusting my drag? So, if you can throw a cast net, it might be the best way to catch the size bg you might want for live bait. For me, I might have to make several cast before I get the desired circle I'm looking for when throwing mine.

Tracy, I don't own a cast net and...it was Pat picken on you about the drag set but...now it looks like YOU picken on me!! Hah! It was a featherweight light tackle rod with 6-8 lb. test line set up just for cnbg.I doubt that big bass even had the hook stuck in her. Just closed her mouth over the whole thing and swam off. Teeth and brute strength just popped the line!! That's my story and I'm sticken to it!!

A cast net is a must at my place. Good way to catch a sample of fish, If you can throw a circle lol. I am betting Walmart would have one. I know u are an expert on catching your cnbg. I caught a few 2" res in my minnow trap recently so that is most always a good way to catch the smaller ones. And we used to hand line them off the pier using small pinch of worm when we needed small ones for striper fishing Texhoma and Toledo bend. By hand lining we could catch the smaller ones we desired instead of the bigger bg we caught using a pole.

Have u seen lmb reproduction at your place? Different sized, year class lmb or just bigun's?

I have seen small pods of lmb fry in 2 separate years. I caught about a 2 pounder last year and I assumed it was a second generation fish. I have caught nothing smaller than that.I actually sent pics of my first bass fry I caught in a dip net to Pat and he said Congratulations you are a lmb Papa!! That was actually 2 seasons ago now.

Just a hook and line - no weight or cork.

Hook the bait one of three ways: just below the dorsal fin, through both lips, or just under the anal fin. Try each way and report back here which way works best for your bass.

Circle hooks might be smart if you don't want to gut or gill hook a big fish.

Flame -

Consider using an octopus offset circle hook if you're free-lining live bait for bass. This hook was designed to minimize gut hooking the fish as it rolls in the mouth and typically catches in the mouth. You don't have to set the hook per say, you can simply tighten the drag and walk away from the pond or move the rod away from direction of the line if on a boat.

https://www.gamakatsu.com/product/octopus-hooks-circle-offset-point/


For a natural presentation hook the bait fish through the upper mouth or in one nostril and out the other nostril. For a distressed presentation hook just in front of the dorsal fin.

If you're using a different type of hook and actively fishing (holding the rod versus setting the line out and free-lining and setting the rod down) consider pausing before setting the hook especially if you've hooked the bait fish through the mouth or nostrils. In our pond that is gin clear I have watched bass hit bait fish sideways and continue to swim forward so if you set the hook immediately you essentially rip the hook from the mouth or nostril of the bait fish and miss the bass because it held the bait fish sideways in its mouth. Like the letter 'T'. If you pause and wait two seconds that usually is when the bass stops forward motion, spits the bait fish out and immediately inhales it back into its mouth head first.

Using the Owner circle 1 ought hook when fishing my grandson, we still had one 15" lmb swallow the hook into it's throat. If I had not pinched in the barb to release the fish, I would have had to cut the line to release the fish. My point here is the fish can swallow the hook when using a circle hook. Pinching in the barb will cause you to lose a few fighting fish as we did that day but I would still suggest pinching in the barb if you plan on catch and release. A forcept type hook remover will help to remove those deeper hooked fish.

That is the exact hook I bought! This Saturday and Sunday is supposed to be in the 70's here. Sat. morning I am driving the 6 miles to get some trotline shiners. Will probably pick up one of those battery operated aeriators for my 5 gallon bucket or should I just buy a live bait bucket you hang on the side of the boat? Might even buy me one of those little dip nets to catch the raskels. From bass fishing professionally to feeling like a little kid starting all over again!! Hah! Thanks for the advise everyone.I will certainly measure and weigh anything I catch and report back in!

Thanks Tracy, I'll pinch the barb. I did purchase the Gamagatsu Octopus hooks. Maybe a little big. I bought 3/0 size.

I've recently discovered that for live bait, using the larger hooks results in fewer swallowed hooks. Now makes common sense to me. You might get fewer bites with larger hooks, but I hate it when a fish swallows the hook and starts bleeding. A bleeding released fish is almost always a soon to be dead fish weather you see it dead or not.

Flame, for transporting bait fish, I use a plug-in portable aerator. You just have to have an adaptor for your car cigarette lighter that takes a 110V two-prong plug.

It works better than the battery powered ones, IMO.

Bill, I've heard that bleeding fish will usually stop bleeding when released back in the water. Their blood does not clot effectively in air.

That said, obviously we sometimes release fish that don't make it & end up floating. Not sure what the criteria should be for releasable.

Not to derail this thread, but here is one take of fish with respect to bleeding, unhooking, handling, etc.;

https://midcurrent.com/experts/how-well-do-fish-recover-from-being-foul-hooked/

When I was removing the circle hook and looking back, I should have cut the line or kept the fish, even though I saw very little if any blood.

Quote "In the top Florida bass lakes, I'd bet over 80% of the bass over 10 lbs are caught on live shiners" (captain Jamie Jackson. West Lk Tohopekaliga FL) - by Steve Quinn, In-Fisherman Magazine pg 20-24, Jan-Feb 2020, 'Shiner Men Talk Big Bass'. It is a very good timely, how to article of talking to Florida bass fishing guides for using shiners for catching bass. Article also has an insert showing Hook Removal for swallowed hooks. Article sections: Collection & Care of Bait, Rigging Up, Location, and Conservation Concerns.

Thanks Bill for the article and thanks everyone for your advise.I'll see how good I am after this weekend! Hah!

Shiners or trout are pretty much a guaranteed LMB in my experience. Shiners are a lot less expensive than trout of course. I've dropped shiners and trout in together and watched LMB ignore the closer shiner and bee-line for the further away trout.

Most of the guides I know down in FL this time of year take customers out and use live bait. They give them the option to use artificial lures, but they tell me most opt for live bait because they want to catch fish.

Well,wife and I fished pond yesterday for about 3 hours with live minnows for LMB. Did not catch a one!! On the bright side my cnbg are plenty large enough to eat a 3 inch minnow. We caught several that were in the 10 inch range and weighed one pound!! Every time one would hit and run with it I swore it was a bass!! Lot's of fun but not what we were looking for. I know there are huge monster Florida bass in there and that adds to the excitement every time I put a bait in there. I just need to live long enough to CATCH one of them!!

That's strange, I've always thought LMB were some of the easiest fish to catch. you might want to try to catch something else and pretend to ignore the bass, then you wont be able to keep them off of your hook.

I would give another shot at it. Here we just went through a week of cold nights and cool days and yesterday was a high pressure bluebird day but did see some cloud cover late evening. As you already know, lmb will/can go into a lock jaw mode after the types of weather changes we have seen this past week.

I've seldom found that if a live minnow or shiner was near a bass, that it WASN'T going to be eaten!!!!

That's crazy, Flame!!

Hmm... I think you're gonna need bigger bait!

Can you use 3-4" BG?

I will be trying again. I'm not guiving up that easy. And I need to catch some small bluegill to try!

Yes cold fronts can put fish off feeding. They can go into deeper water and sulk especially in winter probably even in Texas. Wait for several warm days and higher or increasing barometric pressure. What is your water temperature?? Fish again a couple times later in the month when water get closer to 65F.

Bill is right and here's a bit more info from my days fishing saltwater with live bait. We'd just use a hook, no weight. Only time we used a weight was to get the bait deeper than you'd ever need to in a pond.

Hooked under dorsal fin - baitfish swim closer to the surface.

Hooked under the anal fin - baitfish swim deeper

Hooked thru the lips - fish swim wherever they want to, you can set the hook quicker because predators eat the fish face first, and there is less chance of pulling the hook out of the baitfish when reeling it in to cast again.

Have you thought of just trying a large nightcrawler on a bare hook with nothing else ? If you have the right tackle and a big enough crawler you should be able to cast it with nothing else. Just let it slowly sink and hang on!