mussels as bait

It's been suggested on the hdygo thread that one titled mussels as bait should be a sperate thread, ok, anyone use mussels as bait ???.

Yes, they were an open secret on the Lea last year, chub and barbel loved them last summer. Not so hot (so to speak) in the winter. Heaven knows what the guys who were first on to them caught.

Hook whole ones through the little clear/white muscle that runs from one side through to the other, and hook halves/bits through any stringy bit you can find.

Some of the shops sell frozen ones as "Mussel meat", but it's still entire, shelled mussels. Just a bit cheaper.

Haven't tried mincing any up to add to the feed, but I will. Soon, I hope.

Not mussels (not often, at least) but I've had a lot of success with various species on tinned baby clams in brine. They can be fiddly to hook or hair-rig in the usual way: a little bait band seems best.

Tescos used to sell them - not sure whether they still do as I couldn't see them last time we shopped there. Looking online, I see they can still be had from Waitrose and Asda. Great!

Online Food Shopping - ASDA Groceries

Never tied mussels, but have used cockles as bait with mixed results. There used to be a guy wrote regularly in 80s mags his name I can't think of at the moment, who used them for tench with very good results on London AA waters I seem to remember.

Cockles are a terrific bait.....I've only used them when targeting tench and boy do they work. On my waters anyway. Not tried mussels but there's no reason why they shouldn't be as good. Got to be worth a punt on a hard fished water where they've seen it all before.

Yes as far back as the early sixties. Mussels, cockles, prawns were all used to great effect, mainly for Tench and Carp. I think it was Frank Guttfield who mentions them in his fine book ''In search of big fish''. Once again a classic example, there's nothing new in angling.

Alan Tyler said:

...Haven't tried mincing any up to add to the feed, but I will. Soon, I hope.

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At Alan's recommendation, I tried them last year on some of the local commercials around here - with some success!

Got a big bag from Tesco - split it into 'fishing portions' in ziploc bags for the freezer. The bags could be thrown in with the gear when packing and be nicely defrosted by fishing time.

Had best results in warmer weather - using whole mussel hair-rigged to a 12 using a 'bait-stop' - stabbed through any more solid bit of the mussel - then fished on a short hook-length to a method feeder.

Bites were positive - keep holding the rod! - sometimes after a period of playing/chewing - resulting in some good sessions of Carp (doubles), Barbel to 6lb, Chub to 5lb, and Bream to 6lb. Having had a number of 'misses' after prolonged 'chewing' touches - tried half a mussel - and caught Tench to 4lb and Crucians 2-3lb, as well as 'brownfish' hybrids of a similar size.

Chopping-up the mussels with scissors and adding it to the method feed seemed to produce a bit more action when bites were tailing-off - but I can't say that it was essential - I suspect that the mussel bits in the feeder bait attracted a few lumps into the swim which sat there and dissuaded other fish from joining-in the party. Adding them to the groundbait seemed to 'spread the happiness around' and increase the general fish activity in the area - this was difficult to test extensively since many commercials forbid the use of groundbaiting techniques.

As the weather cooled - I found the bite rates went down - and it wasn't uncommon to find an hour had passed with the bait untouched - there might be one in the next hour - or the next... Just enough of a lull for you to doze off and lose a rod ....! Sounds a bit too like Carp fishin for me!mg:

Have used them occasionally when sea fishing, mostly abroad. Thin bait elastic can be useful to bind them into a more solid 'tube' which can be threaded on the hook. There is even a mussel 'lure', made in france I think, that is baited inside and twitched along the bottom. Very good for Dorada in particular.

Always have a tub in my bag, get mine from Morrison's they are normally in the fridges fresh.
When fish are on them they are really on but other days the fish stay away like they are poison.
I have cut them up but think every mussel I cut up is a fish I can't catch.
I normally feed hemp and meat, if mussels don't work meat generally does.

On one water I fish about 8 years ago cat meat was the "in" bait , then suddenly it was prawn and everyone was fishing with prawns, then just overnight the bait to be on was mussels

not seen anyone using any of these baits for a good 5 years now

Lord Paul of Sheffield said:

....not seen anyone using any of these baits for a good 5 years now

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Mussels are so last year!

Given the rate at which 'old-fashioned' baits are 're-discovered' - if I keep using them - one day soon - I'll be on the cutting-edge again!

Note to self - rob the moggies next time out...

You may not be seeing some baits because some venues have had a sort of purge on meat baits and have banned cat meat.
I know all meat baits are banned at Lindholme because his pellet sales had dropped. He of course had other reasons like the depth of the water had halved with all the fat that was stagnant on the lake beds.

I've never given shop bought mussels a fair go in the past but my mate has done well with them for all sorts of species on both river and stillwater.

As soon as the evenings warm up a bit I want to do an overnighter for eels and I reckon chopped mussel would be the perfect thing to bulk out some chopped worm feed and offer a good change bait.

binka said:

I've never given shop bought mussels a fair go in the past but my mate has done well with them for all sorts of species on both river and stillwater.

As soon as the evenings warm up a bit I want to do an overnighter for eels and I reckon chopped mussel would be the perfect thing to bulk out some chopped worm feed and offer a good change bait.

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I was so sure that winkles would make a brilliant crucian bait that I boiled and shelled a bucket's worth - one advantage of living on the coast - and couldn't wait to get started the following day. I caught plenty, all right, but every one was a flippin' EEL. Nothing bigger than a pound or so, but it's something that an Anguillaphile might like to experiment with....

The wife will be picking up some mussels on Monday ( 2 punnets so no expense spared ! ) and I'm formulating something of a plan to use them....

I am mindful of the ' flightliner ' method of laying down a confined bed of hemp and I may go for this with a bit of chopped thrown in for good measure. I also have some decent light brown breadcrumb which might be used with the chop, but this will depend on ambient / water temps.
I have a swim in mind that almost always produces roach in some form or another so perhaps as good a place to start as any. It also has the advantage of being two swims in one in that one is at least 90 degrees from the other and I can use the mussel in one without ' contaminating ( if that's the right word ) the whole area, so if I so choose I can go back to the other with conventional baits to avoid a blank. I am however, aware that I have to commit to using this bait if its going to get a fair trial so if I can get my head around it I will stay with it for a session and then see what happens after that...

For some reason I have a feeling for fishing over depth, laying-on in the old fashioned style, or even using some form of ' lift ' method, close in in about 6' of water so I can see every movement of the float. Hooks ; Well I'm not too sure on this score but I will have everything from size 10 down to 16 in the bag and I will make a final choice once I've handled the said bait and what size of bait to use as an opener.
As I've done many times before, I will try to ascertain if roach are in the swim to begin with using a minimal amount of maggots and then go straight onto the mussel with a separate rod made up for the purpose.
Obviously weather might have a bearing, with next week not looking too dusty, but I think the water temperature, while not being as high as I would like is probably okay for this experiment...................At least it's 'unsettled ' every day !

l love trying ' new ' baits so looking forward to giving this one a whirl, although I will be taking plenty of tea to sup whilst the roach are making decisions...I'm aware I may be in for a long wait so I'm prepared mentally, but that's the beauty of all this - you just don't know what will happen !!

Either way, I will come back with what does, or does not transpire.............

On a similar note, I find small chunks of prawn, fished under a float can catch some good roach, usually fished on the drop.

Likewise when carp are on the top just cruising and not taking, a headless skinned prawn fished shallow under a float, if you can cast were they are patrolling can be very effective too.nice visual way of fishing as well.

There was once a time when we could all catch really big cod, haddock and skate on the east coast c.1970's using nothing more than whole raw mussles supplied by the skipper. And we did alright, enough to fill two very large chest freezers and supply a couple of local shops with fresh off the boat fish. Nice.

Guess what? its still a good bait though you'd be lucky to catch anything today no matter what you put on your pennel.

laguna said:

There was once a time when we could all catch really big cod, haddock and skate on the east coast c.1970's using nothing more than whole raw mussles supplied by the skipper. And we did alright, enough to fill two very large chest freezers and supply a couple of local shops with fresh off the boat fish. Nice.

Guess what? its still a good bait though you'd be lucky to catch anything today no matter what you put on your pennel.

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I remember mussels as being a superb bait for the large plaice that used to be around the East coast back in the seventies. Had several over 3lb on mussels supplied by the skipper.

Most skippers on the cobbles out of Bridlington took a whole sack of them as bait for their weekend daytripping anglere, lots of em from south yorkshire.
They were pretty easy to spot as most of em wore clothes n wellies that indicated who their employers were, Wimpey, NCB , YEB, etx, they often rocked up in the company vans as well.
I used to go back in 4he sixties with a local chip shop owner all for free so long as he kept the catch.
On one memorable ocasion we went out to the north landing in a really heavy swell when it was two sometimes three cod a drop but some strong smelling , going off bait from how long back coupled with the heavy swell had all but me n the skipper spewing over the side or in the bilges.
My mate was one of em but kept saying to me to keep catching despite the protests from all the other sufferers.
They were eventually relieved of their torment when we were forcibly escorted back to harbour by the lifeboat, just when I was enjoying myself!!!
My mate however was pretty chuffed with my catch of over 70 cod plus the ones he had before being waylaid by seasickness.
The following evening I called in on him at work after my evening class had ended and he gave me two large cod he had just taken out of the fryer ---- best I ever tasted!.