[Dave Irving]

I was wondering how many of the members have tried scents on their lures. I see from Keiths comments on another thread that the Gulp additive made all the difference with soft plastics. I was wondering about hard baits. Especially when used with slow retrieves or at night I could see advantages. Covers human smells, and adds a another sense with which the bass could detect our lures.
My only experience with scents was the old Ultrabite (remember those da*n bottles that always leaked), to say it was a strong scent was am understatement -the pong could stun a seagull 100 yards down wind. Oh and the stuff used to eat the finish off lures.
So what is best of what is around now??

 

[Retired]

Most of the SPs I buy are impregnated (see my post on the Slurpee Shad). Otherwise I am now adding attractants to try and spice up the winter fishing. I haven't felt the need to add extra in summer.

 

[Dave Irving]

Thats my point Paul,
Most people these days would exspect their softies to be impregnanted with scent/salt. And it seems that the scent does help. So what about the scented gels etc that you could apply to hard baits?? Would a bass coming up behind a plug be more inclined to take, if it got a whiff of scent designed to stimulate it rather than a whiff of human?

 

[Retired]

I have never used a scented gel on a hardbait. How does that work? There are lots out there for SPs, which I can understand as they might absorb the stuff.

 

[Dave Irving]

Paul, I know you can get gels that are designed to be added to hardbaits, that solwly dissolve in water, releasing scent as they do. I have seen several adverts for them in the US and Australia. I am hoping someone on here will have some information as to successes or otherwise. Even if it only masks human scents it would have to be worth a look.

 

[Rob F]

What about a couple of drops of Halibut oil in the lure box?

 

[Keith White]

I have never used a scented gel on a hardbait. How does that work?

You've seen my green shad jelly Paul. Works on hard lures too.

I read a comment years back on a Aussie forum, don't quite remember where but...

I gathered some guy was getting outstanding results smearing petroleum jelly on his trolling lures.

Before you laugh...

I thought about this, and followed suit.

Aren't most fish in the sea slimy ?

If you look at reflected light on a hard, shiny object, the light is hard. Soft plastics have for me been most effective for Bass during daylight.
We have sometimes ultra clear water and bright light. SP's reflect soft light but lack the action of a plug.

A smeared plug reflects softer light, leaves and dissipates a scent trial and, is slimy to the initial mouthing.

It has been extremely good for me over the last few years at night too.

I use the smelly jelly available from stripersonline. I buy 4oz tubs. Shad has been the best to date though I haven't tried them all.

Think about it, makes sense to me.

Then again, maybe its all in my head. Either way, I'll continue to use it.

 

[Ben Field]

You've seen my green shad jelly Paul. Works on hard lures too.

I read a comment years back on a Aussie forum, don't quite remember where but...

I gathered some guy was getting outstanding results smearing petroleum jelly on his trolling lures.

Before you laugh...

I thought about this, and followed suit.

Aren't most fish in the sea slimy ?

If you look at reflected light on a hard, shiny object, the light is hard. Soft plastics have for me been most effective for Bass during daylight.
We have sometimes ultra clear water and bright light. SP's reflect soft light but lack the action of a plug.

A smeared plug reflects softer light, leaves and dissipates a scent trial and, is slimy to the initial mouthing.

It has been extremely good for me over the last few years at night too.

I use the smelly jelly available from stripersonline. I buy 4oz tubs. Shad has been the best to date though I haven't tried them all.

Think about it, makes sense to me.

Then again, maybe its all in my head. Either way, I'll continue to use it.

What do you reckon about matt finished lures then Keith? Understand everything you've said above, but could this also suggest that matt finished (hard) lures could be best on bright clear days? I'm going off at a tangent but...

 

[Keith White]

I think that...

In clear water, matt neutral colours are indeed better.

If you were being hunted, would you wear a shiny suit or, cam up.

 

[Ben Field]

I think I do agree. Been pretty OK I think with sensible colour choices to date, but haven't considered reflection so much. To be honest, if anything I've been looking at it the other way around - wanting lures that,although neutral in colour, will flash to attract attention.

 

[Dave Irving]

Thanks Keith,
I think I will give it a try, after all it can't do any harm. Even one extra bass-is one extra bass.

 

[Keith White]

wanting lures that,although neutral in colour, will flash to attract attention.

what happens if someone shines a torch in your face ?, someone approaches you on high beam ?

conversely :

1000 people all wearing green t-shirts stand in the market square...

one of them waves.

Which one grabs your attention ?

 

[Ben Field]

Are we talking about the bass being blinded by the sun (in certain directions? - could happen - especially IF they can see UV wavelengths), or about the flash from a lure being so bright that its off-putting?

Maybe big flashes from big lures can be over the top scary, but small fish - you can see them flashing away in the shallows ('damp' light I guess).

...there's a lot to this...

...so it's more about the action than the flash/colour. Can agree there. I'm usually just thinking about attracting attention from a distance I guess. Although that itself should probably not be a priority if I can rely on my own watercraft and putting a bait to where the fish is already lying.

Hmmm.... (sorry this is on your scent thread Dave).

 

[Keith White]

Ben:

I dont have all the answers m8, quite the opposite.

I do know that a bright flash at distance might indeed attract a Bass but, close up...

I'm not so sure.

I do know that the greasy feel subtle colours and reflective qualities of xlayers and many SP's seem favourite in very clear sea's.

yes, little fish reflect light but..they are still slimy so the light has to be softer.

smear some vaseline on a plug and see what happens to the light and colours.

 

[Ben Field]

LOL, no worries mate. I never expect answers really. We all know that there are no hard and fast rules. Just writing it down makes it easier to think about sometimes. I'll be out there giving it a try as soon as I get chance. I quite often start writing about one thing, and then argue myself out of my own thoughts by the end of it. Your inputs always apreciated.

 

[Keith White]

No worries.

Lost together isn't lost at all really.

Where were we ?

 

[greg powell]

Paul, I know you can get gels that are designed to be added to hardbaits, that solwly dissolve in water, releasing scent as they do. I have seen several adverts for them in the US and Australia. I am hoping someone on here will have some information as to successes or otherwise. Even if it only masks human scents it would have to be worth a look.

I know a number of trout fishermen who keep a garlic clove in the fly box for that reason - not sure it is there to attract fish more to mask the human smell.

Might make a difference to the odd fish.

 

[Andy Hems]

i asked a similar thing a while back on t'other forum... reply was vasaline fish oil mix and glitter...
i have tried it in dirty water with some success, however not been fishin a un lubricated :O)) lure as comparison...
i mix together till lucid and paintbrush it on... it washes of after a few casts and doesnt stink ya bag out.
i caught in dirty water when i wouldnt have fished...
was aiming for cod on lure, caught bass, pout n doggy... on muppets and zonk...

 

[Tim Wilcox]

bump.

I thought of starting a new thread - but there's some good info' here - so reviving this old thread seemed a better bet. It's almost 2 years since the last post, so what - if anything - has changed in the interim? Can anyone categorically say that they catch more fish using (or, perhaps not using) scents and attractants?

Also, some of the most popular smells are things like garlic and aniseed. Rather than buying this stuff ready made, it must be possible to make a batch of home brew just by adding garlic cloves to some baby oil (as opposed to vegetable oil because the former is crystal clear). Wouldn't that work just as well? Or, is the whole scent thing a bit of a con - devised by the the angling industry - a bit like anti-wrinkle cream in the cosmetics industry?

Discuss . . .

 

[Retired]

Yes I will stand up and say categorically that I catch more fish when I am using pastes. But look into the subject and choose the scent you need for the species you are after.

On one occasion I chose the right one (crustacean) and the person I was fishing with chose the wrong one (garlic) and I caught 6 fish to his 1). He wasn't happy LOL but we both learnt from it.

I am a big fan of adding scent to SPs and more recently hardbaits. Look to the American and French retailers for ideas and check out Illex, Trigger X etc.