Which bait should I get for bluegill?

[Roxanne]

[#004080]I've read around the forum and people suggested nightcrawlers / mealworms... but those things are pretty nasty to look at / to touch, so is there an artificial bait that are pretty good to use? Thanks![/#004080]
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[lunkerhunter2]

Berkley Gulp Worms are "fake" but sometimes work just as good.[]
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[rw02kr43]

I got a bag of little rubber crickets from gander mountain. They are tiny, but the fish seem to love them. I also had a rubber dragonfly that did real well for me until it finally broke. Meal worms do seem to work real well for me though. My wife won't touch them so has me put them on. then while I'm getting back to my own fishing she pulls out another fish. then I have to take it off the hook cause she won't touch the fish either. She catches a lot more fish that me.

Jason
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[lskiles]

Hey Roxanne,

I use a setup called the Trout Magnet. It is a 1/64th oz jig with a small split-tail plastic grub on it under a float. They sell them on the web (google Trout Magnet) or you can pick them up at Wal-Mart.

I use them alot for bluegill and crappie in a local lake and they work great!
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[bendopolo]

A one to two inch piece of Nightcrawler fished on a light dropshot rig. Here is a pic but use the Nightcrawler for bluegill and catfish, the powerworm or gulp worm for trout.
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[Brook]

I hate to disagree with people right off, but nightcrawlers are probably the least effective bait for 'gills. Even when cut in small pieces, bluegill only reluctantly eat them, and won't if other choices are available.

Nobody really understands why.

Among the live bait preferences are wax worms (with mealworms second to them); red worms; and crickets. Likely the best live bait, albiet regional and seasonal, is to take a catalpa worm, turn it inside out on the hook, and drop it anywhere there are 'gills.

Bluegill are insect eaters as well, and the most fun (and with no icky factor) is to use a fly rod and small flies and poppers.

Not into fly fishing? No big deal. You can get casting bubbles, which, when filled with water or oil, let you flyfish with conventional tackle.

But there are other ways. A very effective bait is the Flutter Fry, which is a spoon you make yourself by wrapping a square of scrap aluminum (from a beverage can) around the hook shank, and trimming it to minnow shape.

There's a little more to it than that, and I'll be devoting a whole article to it at my web page. Contact me privately for details.

Brook
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[Pondscum]

I am very prejudiced to using crickets. with a "Bubble"bobber and very light wire hook.
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[bassngal]

[fishin] I've caught bream and crappie and small bass on beetle spins fishing with ultra lite spinning gear.
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[davetclown]

nothing is ever going to beat live bait [#000000][size 7].[/size][/#000000]

yep thats a mighty big period.

mind you I have done my best with


[ul][li]crickets. [/li][li]fresh earthworms [/li][li]red worms [/li][li]leaf worms dug from the garden, [/li][li]wax worms year round [/li][li]as a youth I caught tested every bug in the feild and put it on my hook to catch gills, [/li]

[ul][li]one that dose not work is grubs.[/li][/ul][/ul]
that being said, for artificial I cant realy give you any better info you have already received but these are the ones I use:


[ul][li]a small peice of yarn[/li][li]home made fles[/li][li]crapie candy, [/li][li]vairious small biodigradable wax worms of many colors.[/li][li]small soft plastics of many kinds will work on gills[/li]

[ul][li]1 in curly tails[/li][li]3 inch worms[/li][li]1/4 in hoppers[/li][li]1/4 in crickets[/li][li]1/4 in frogs[/li][/ul][/ul]Crank Baits

[ul][li]smaller the better inch to about an inch and a half.[/li][li]rooster tails[/li][li]repalla type minnow[/li][li]mepps single hook spinner baits with small hooks[/li][li]small spoons
[/li][/ul]

[bytebull]

I don't know what waters your fishing but during late spring through early fall here in NE arkansas I regularly catch slab bluegill on little orange/yellow topwater poppers with black feather tails.
Just toss them out about 4 to 6 feet off the bank and move them a little every 10 seconds or so. I can get a stringer of super slab bluegill this way at several of the local ponds here during those months.

Only problem is that those little poppers are poorly made and you will need quite a few because the foam part seems to break off after about 10 or 15 slabbers.

good luck!
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[CaptSlipstream]

Have you tired a crappie jig with some Berkley Power Wigglers. Caught a lot of pan fish using this set-up.
Good luck
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[lukeduke28]

If you dont like to handle worms or crickets, and those artificial baits arent working, then you can try some grocery store baits. The bluegill in my area are usually so hungry that theyll eat anything, which may be different where you live. I have caught them on little chunks of hot dogs and chunks of bread packed on a hook. The more successful is the hot dog, and also much cheaper. you can have a days worth of bait with one or two hot dogs. Actually, the hot dogs work so well for me, i usually dont even use anything else lol
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[bassngal]

[fishin] beatle spins on ultra lite spinning gear will catch nice bluegill, also crickets if you fish with live bait.
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[bendopolo]

Don't forget Corn, Lima Beans and Pizza dough. All were great in my youth.
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[brittlab]

waxies work great and I've had great luck with leeches the last few years. those bull gills can't resist a writhing leech. I do use gulp red maggots as well in the summer months
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[WoodyWood]

Nothing will beat Wax Worms, they can't resist!
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[lurtch]

red worms..or as some people call the trout worms..a close second is wax worms..depends on the time of year..
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[bytebull]

[quote Roxanne][#004080]I've read around the forum and people suggested nightcrawlers / mealworms... but those things are pretty nasty to look at / to touch, so is there an artificial bait that are pretty good to use? Thanks![/#004080][/quote]

crickets....

if you dont want to handle "live" bait use bolognia or hotdogs just pinch off a little bit and put on the panfish hook around size 8 ...

but you will have more luck with the worms and other suggestions (girls hate to handle worms and live bait) here but if you are gonna be a serious fisher girl you have to overcome that.
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[lurtch]

you forgot to ad the clear bobber for casting..i dont think shes using a flyrod..i do this with the spyders alot..clear bobber with a 6 foot leader behind it..
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[bassngal]

went fishing today and caught 5 nice bluegill and 10 catfish using coldworms tightlining
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