baits to expensive!!

Posted: Sun Jun 14, 2009 3:31 pm

hi all im finding shop bought bait very expensive and want to collect my own any tips on collecting all types of baits wiouth spending a fortune
would be greatfull for some advice
cheers

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 9:19 am

£3.50 a score of lug isn't that bad but i know what you mean if your going for a weekend out then its £20 or more just for bait!
yes if you CAN dig for your own then much better!!
cant help you on how though sorry!
hope you find your help and info!

Sue

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2009 9:33 am

thanks for the reply and its more than 3.50 here in ireland its a fiver for twenty and you would use that in a few hours

Posted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 12:12 pm

Try collecting shrimps, all you need is a small push net, and a bucket with an aerator to keep them alive. Keep the water cold with an ice pack.
Gret bass bait. big grin

Posted: Fri Aug 28, 2009 12:55 am

OK im am very new to fishing but i found a maybe possibly a secret
i bought macreal fillets from a bait shop cost me about 3 quid for 4 fillets

i went into tesco and for the same price you can get 9!!!!!!!!!!!!

lol

to me thats better value

Posted: Fri Aug 28, 2009 6:38 am

Sorry I took so long in replying.
Your lucky as bait at Arnside is £5 for 10 and on the northeast coast £4 for ten.

There is somehing you can do about it, first of all piers, harbour walls and rocky outcrops are all good areas for collecting mussels which is a killer bait for flaties, then theres shrimps that can be had if you get a shrimp push net, and of course as pointed out some of the fish shops for mackerel and herring.
Cheers keith big grin

Posted: Fri Aug 28, 2009 8:50 am

Hi Mate, I have been getting my own stuff for a few years now: You need to find a harbour or estuary and get there at low tide (which is what the pro bait collectors do). Wander around for a bit and look for the following:
1. Ordinary lug worm casts which are on the surface look a bit like worms but are sand/mud. Dig down with a decent garden fork (I use a heavy stainless steel job) and the worms are usually around a foot down.
2. Ragworm holes are clusters of small holes on the surface, again dig down to try your luck. Sometimes the rag are only small but every so often you will strike gold and get the bigger ones.
3. Look for clumps of weed and stones/rocks. This is crab hunting territory, turn the stones/weed over and you will soon start finding small crabs. At certain times of the year some of these crabs will be peelers/softbacks and again you have struck gold. How do you know if they fit in this category? - Just feel their backs with the tip of a finger if they are hard and firm, no dice but if they are soft or cracking you are in business. Having said that, some guys even fish the small hard backs with success - need to be about 2cms or so in diameter.
4. Depending on your area slipper limpet can get washed up on beaches during a storm and these are a magic bait for bass.

Posted: Fri Aug 28, 2009 10:17 am

Everything about angling is getting to expensive.......don't you need some sort of shellfish license to gather some types of bait ??

Posted: Fri Aug 28, 2009 12:08 pm

Not round here mate except certain spots allocated to commercials for crab pots.

Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2009 8:10 pm

gunsnroses wrote:

thanks for the reply and its more than 3.50 here in ireland its a fiver for twenty and you would use that in a few hours

same in cork, its €5 for 20 lug and their not big. on the rare occasions that i have to buy them id have 2/3 on a hook, using 2 hook flappers they dont last long.
rag is about €6.50 for 20 and altho not huge either, 1 is enough for a hook.
razor is €5-€5.50 for 4/5 in the tackle shops but i have an asian cash and carry near me where i get about 20 for around €8/9 which isnt bad.

i had a look at an online bait service in the uk and i couldnt believe how low the prices were compared to here. they wont post across the pond tho as they cant garauntee itll be ok on arrival.

Member Joined: Jul 13, 2009 Posts: 46

Not directly related to price but one way I use to make ragworm last longer is each time i bait up a worm I pull the tail off- maybe 2-4 inches worth depending on size of worm- it usually seems to break naturally in a particular weak spot- then set the tail aside- use the head and body- it also makes baiting up a lot easier.

Towards the end of the session start using the tail sections you've kept to one side- you'll find they've toughened up a bit and stay on the hook better than if you'd used an entire worm.

Member Joined: May 11, 2008 Posts: 78 Location: Cornwall

Why not go down to the Beaches where Bait Diggers are and talk to them, i did last week when I was digging. Nice people? the two that I was speaking to were both " on the sick" moaning that they had to dig worms to make extra money cos they couldn't get DLO or some other benefit.
While I am in favour of such benefits to help the needy I get rather annoyed at people who milk the system and then earn money from working when they get the benefit cos they can't work... if I were twenty Years younger i would have taken their worms cos i had payed for them by contributing towards their benefit by paying my contributions through working for my living.

Sorry off topic but it narks me as to how two people who are much younger and fitter tham i am can claim not to be able to work where as i am working and most mornings have a struggle to get out of bed through aches pains and injuries but pride makes me carry on.......rant over but those two after seeing me struggle getting 50 worms offered me another 50 for a fiver.....

Member Joined: Jul 25, 2009 Posts: 80 Location: n/a

why no go to your local tackle shop and buy a bait pump to collect your own worms at low water only costs around 40 to 50 pound would save you money in long run

Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2009 6:04 pm

Oggy-chomper............did you take the other 50 worms for a fiver??????

Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2009 6:14 pm

I have some good friends who are professional bait diggers and are not on any benifits whatsoever and actually declare their earnings for tax puposes and it really anoys them when they see someone on benifit digging them for sale. angry

Its ok to dig for yourself or friends but for resale no. angry

Rant over.. big grin

Please be careful in your replys as I dont want to have to lock or delete the post.
Cheers keith big grin