Rigging for Cats

[HTHM]

Does anyone have a favourite way to rig for catfish that you wish to share? I am looking for new ideas and was hoping that we could get a discussion going on this.

[Bigworm]

Does anyone have a favourite way to rig for catfish that you wish to share? I am looking for new ideas and was hoping that we could get a discussion going on this.

 

 

Egg sinker, bead, swivel, 2 feet 20lb fluorocarbon, 2/0 circle hook, middle of a big old dirty creek chub.

[Joeytier]

Egg sinker, bead, swivel, 2 feet 20lb fluorocarbon, 2/0 circle hook, middle of a big old dirty creek chub.

Yep! heavy lines, big hooks, and stinky meat. They're not shy

[aplumma]

I use a flat sinker attached to a slider then a bead swivel a 20 inch 30lb braid snelled to a circle hook. Big hunk of shad and ring the dinner bell.

 

 

Art

[monsterfish]

I do the same but use mackeral from the local grocery store!

[Ralph Field]

I use chicken liver usually when I'm out for cats. I use the same basic set up but I run 10 lb. test.

[Brettiop]

Sounds like everyone uses the same basic rig for cats...

 

Go big or go home when dealing with heavy cats, heavy braid, big sinker, big swivel, big(20) lbs floro, big circle hook, big stinky bait...

 

One thing i have never done is used live bait like a chub, or even cut bait suckers for cats, Any one wanna share how they prepare a sucker to use as cut bait for cats? you can PM if you like to not detour the original topic.

 

Ive been using worms/shrimp with good results but would like tot try this out

[troutologist]

Ya same basic rig. I use a shorter lead, around 8" on 20lb fluoro and a 5/0-7/0 circle hook. I like to use some glass beads above the swivel to generate some noise in the dirty water.

 

I use shrimp or cut bait most of the time. Just "steak" the bait into 2" chunks. Goldeye are a popular bait out here for cutbait and readily caught in the early summer.

[oates]

I have ran into them with minnows on a drop shot rig. I was targeting bass but have hooked into them from time to time. A minnow can get you into many species I guess.

[Dozer]

Big and stinky

[kickingfrog]

A lot of articles in fishin' mags mention the use of circle hooks. What, if any, experience do you guys have with them?

[John]

A lot of articles in fishin' mags mention the use of circle hooks. What, if any, experience do you guys have with them?

 

I really like them Rob. They take a little getting used to as far as setting the hook..........especially if you are used to hitting them hard. I find that taking up any slack and just leaning into them works and the rest takes care of itself. Main advantage, at least for me is that the incidence of gut hooked and throat hooked fish declines dramatically.

[Locnar]

This thread has caught my interest... as I have been trying for some brown bullheads in a local bay... with no luck however. Is there a certain time of year that's best to fish for catfish?

[aplumma]

Rob I don't use anything except circle hooks for Catting the hook up rate is very high if you do not set the hook. I use a 7/0 or 8/0 hook single hooked thru the skin of a 6-12 oz steak of shad presented on the bottom. The smaller cats that may worry the bait call attention to the bigger fish who chase them away and then it is one big gulp on the bait and a steady swim away. Once the rod loads then a sweep in the opposite direction will allow the hook to bite in the side corner of the mouth. Most fish brought to the boat are hooked next to the whiskers on the corner and a twitch of the pliers will allow a water release in most cases. This rig has caught Cats up to 64 lbs by myself with no downside that I have found.

 

A second question asked is which Cat are you fishing for is whether or not they like live bait over dead bait. Channel cats below 10 lbs prefer dead baits but over 10 lbs a 5 inch wounded chub is a meal fit for a king. If I am fishing for flatties then it is live bait all the way and the softer soft finned fish are first choice. The Blue Cats are dead bait from small to record size as long as it is fresh fresh fresh.

 

 

Art

[HTHM]

Thanks for this discussion. I am finding it very helpful! :thumbsup_anim:

[John]

Rob I don't use anything except circle hooks for Catting the hook up rate is very high if you do not set the hook. I use a 7/0 or 8/0 hook single hooked thru the skin of a 6-12 oz steak of shad presented on the bottom. The smaller cats that may worry the bait call attention to the bigger fish who chase them away and then it is one big gulp on the bait and a steady swim away. Once the rod loads then a sweep in the opposite direction will allow the hook to bite in the side corner of the mouth. Most fish brought to the boat are hooked next to the whiskers on the corner and a twitch of the pliers will allow a water release in most cases. This rig has caught Cats up to 64 lbs by myself with no downside that I have found.

 

A second question asked is which Cat are you fishing for is whether or not they like live bait over dead bait. Channel cats below 10 lbs prefer dead baits but over 10 lbs a 5 inch wounded chub is a meal fit for a king. If I am fishing for flatties then it is live bait all the way and the softer soft finned fish are first choice. The Blue Cats are dead bait from small to record size as long as it is fresh fresh fresh.

 

 

Art

 

Great response Art, that's why we pay you the big bucks!

[ch312]

i guess i'm the only one around here that likes to float fish for cats?

 

during this time of year they're in shallow water, very active, and very hungry which means they'll find your bait much quicker than later on in the year when they aren't congregated in predictable areas like they are in the spring. i find that i catch at least 2x more fish when using a float as it keeps your bait off bottom, usually zero snags, and i can easily cover more water.

 

for bullheads i'll use 20lb power pro, float, swivel, 10lb flouro, split shot, bait holder hook, and worms or live 2-3" minnows. for channel cats it's 50lb power pro, much bigger float, swivel, 20lb flouro, split shot, and the hook depends on the bait they want that day. sometimes the big girls want a big chunk of meat which permits the use of a big circle hook while other times they want the same small minnows i'm using for bullheads.

 

cats are just like every other fish out there. sometimes they're predictable and the normal rigs and baits will work while other times you need to downsize and fine tune your presentation to get them to commit.

[aplumma]

One of my favorite ways to get a mess of LEGALLY caught catfish here in the USA is jug fishing. We use jugs with 4 ft of line and circle hooks baited with chicken livers to get the eating size Channel cats here. We usually fish 5 jugs on the river spread out and let them drift down river in front of the boat. Once a jug goes down then you use the trolling motor to fish it out and drop dinner into the cooler. The fun begins when you have more than one jug with a fish hooked then it is a mad dash to chase them down before the next one bobs. I am not sure what the legality of fishing this way in Canada is but if it is legal it is a fun way to get a catfish fry together.

 

 

Art

[ohhenrygsr]

My favourite way to rig for cats:

 

I use a 3-way swivel. a bell sinker tied on with ligher line 8lb mono is fine with about a 12inch lead. This will allow me to break off just the sinker if it's snagged. The hook side I use a Fluorocarbon leader or mono in the 12lb range. As for main line just your favourite line. I like Power Pro 20lb or spider wire braid.

 

[HTHM]

Henry,

You just raised the bar on responses to this type of thread! I am going to try that on Saturday.

[Pikeslayer]

Henry,

You just raised the bar on responses to this type of thread! I am going to try that on Saturday.

 

Haha. Already rigged Albert.

[ohhenrygsr]

LOL. Hope you have lots of fun out there. My cat fish are high class when i catch them cause i use shrimp with the skin peeled off