live bait or dead bait for pike fishing

[johnl]

I went to my local canal in kent today and just wondered what you've had better results with in terms of bait would you favour dead or live bait for catching pike if dead bait what would you use thanks john

[Mick]

johnl:

I went to my local canal in kent today and just wondered what you've had better results with in terms of bait would you favour dead or live bait for catching pike if dead bait what would you use thanks john

Livebaits are generally extremely good but do have a habit of attracting smaller fish. Deads however do tend to pull the larger specimens. They are also easier to fish with ... that is they stay where you put them unlike lives that want to bury themselves in the nearest snag/weedbed. You also have to catch lives wheras deads like to live in chest freezers.

Ppersonally I use nothing but deads ... that is not to say that I disapprove of lives but I find them a right pain to catch and use.

Go and buy a back of frozen sardines for a few quid ... more than enough for a days fishing. keep them frozen by keeping them in a cool box and they will cast fine.

[Leon Roskilly]

Somewhere, deep in the brain of a predator (such as pike), a calculation is performed.

 

Is it worth me chasing that prey? Will I get sufficient return for the energy expended, bearing in mind that not every chase will be successful?

 

Mostly, that works out that a prey needs to be about 10% of the bodyweight of the predator to make the effort of chasing worthwhile.

 

So, if you want a 5 lber, use a livebait around 8oz - a 20lber will need a 2lb bait for it to be an appealing meal.

 

However, the calculation changes a bit if the prey is injured or sick. So a tethered bait is likely to send out signals inviting larger pike to have a go, more so than than a free-swimming fish will.

 

Also you need to factor in the fact that pike are reluctant to expend energy when the water is cold, they are more ready to chase in the summer months.

 

But with an understandable reluctance to use live-baits more than around 5oz, you can see why lives (and 'small' lures) have a reputation for catching mainly smaller fish, especially in winter.

 

Now the smell of a dead fish is something that the pike recognises is not going to involve a chase. On the other hand, the smell of a dead fish gives no indication of the size of the meal.

 

What the pike 'knows' is that there is an easy meal waiting, something that won't need chasing. So a slow, easy swim will bring the pike along the scent trail. If a 3" sprat is all that a 30lber finds at the end of its swim....... well its here now, so it might as well eat it!

 

So, lives and lures the bigger the better (and by bigger I mean a lure that makes the same fuss and noise of a big fish, not necessarily the same size as a 3lb tench!). Summer time is best.

 

Deads - doesn't matter much about size (unless you are using sink and draw, or twitching). Deads score best in winter.

 

But remember that pike don't read these posts!!

 

Tight Lines - leon

[Peter Waller]

It isn't so much whether to use live or dead-bait, more a case of active versus inactive. I would put a well used lure up against a livebait any day of the week! But that aside, use a dead on one rod and a live on the other, you will probably find its a case of active today & inactive tommorow, irrespective of the time of the year! There is more to it than that, weather being a crucial factor for one thing, but I certainly wouldn't stick to one or the other, especially during the winter.