Go to Flathead Baits

[Smoothkip]

I'd like to hear everyones favorite flathead bait and why they chose them. I picked suckers due to so much success on them, they can be a little tough to keep in the bait tank during the summer though.

[catace]

I use Gills on every trip. Reason why they are my favorite. They are easy to get fresh year round before each trip. The kids love catching gills doesnt take long with 8-12 rods in the water!

[Seanstone]

Gills for me as well. They are easily caught and maintained. Green sunfish are my personal favorite, but a big hybrid bluegill is an easy second. They seem to live longer on the hook and pull hard the whole time.

[dreadnaught]

I have yet to catch a flathead on any kind of live bait, all of mine have came on cut bait or fresh whole shad. Must be a skinny water thang, LOL!!!

[gryan1966]

Same here Dread Ive caught all of mine on cut shad or gills. That being said these dudes are studs LOL

[chuckd67]

I catch alot of small Flats on live gills but I always catch large flats on cut gills and cut gizzards but I always catch them while fishing for blues.

[rcbbracing]

Defidently big northern hognosed suckers and redhorse suckers for me!

[katfish]

I have caught flathead on a variety of baits throughout the years.
I remember many nights looking at my baits and saying they looked perfect. Lots of those nights were skunks.

One night at Salt Fork I caught a 10 inch golden shiner while baitfishing. I was so convinced that this bait was special that I put it in it's own pail.



10-15 minutes after dropping the shiner a flathead grabbed it.
I landed him and released him before dark.

[Ramrod]

I chose Bluegills for the same reason most do, they're readily available and already one of their main resources of food.

[bobbylee]

I chose bluegills, because I was close to one of the canals on the Muskingum River and it's loaded with them and warmouths and rockbass. I love the warmouths and the rock bass though because they stay alive a long time if hooked right.

I usually run my hook through their mouth then right out the very bottom corner of their eye. I've had a few that stayed alive all night during skunk outtings and taken them off the hook tossed em' back in the bucket and used em' again the next night.

[skinfish]

Warmouths are better than gills I thinl because they are much stronger on a hook. Gill seem to loose their fight.

[catterman]

Eels and bull heads

[Varmint_Sniper]

Bullheads by far but i have to have Dave rcbbracing get them for me he has a honey hole for the big bullys and big sucker's ....

[rcbbracing]

Mar 12, 2012 16:38:30 GMT -5 Varmint_Sniper said:

Bullheads by far but i have to have Dave rcbbracing get them for me he has a honey hole for the big bullys and big sucker's ....

They aren't that hard to find sniper Lol bullheads seem to be about the easiest of the larger baits for me to find...as long as you have time to go catch em there almost always there...never had one honeyhole...I've got a half a dozen...all ya need is two rods a tub of liver and some crawlers and the rest is easy lol

[ducky]

Robby and I have been discussing baits over the winter, I Realy like suckers in the early part of flathead season, and goldfish in the late hot season, but if I had too only use one bait all year I would choose green sunfish or rockbass they are hardier than gills and will last longer than gills in the hot summer months, they also seem to stay active more on the hook.