Spider Crabs!!!

[PhilC]

Fished Swanage the other day, not much happening a few pollack, whiting but nothing to shout about except the spiders are bach ( the bait an hook thieves)

 

Any one any tips on keeping the robing little ****s off the bait but still maintaing good presentation.

 

Phil

[Shonzy.]

i tend to use bigger baits and abit more elastic. Doesn't always work but sometimes the bait can last abit longer

[Huge_Vitae]

species control...........

 

Eat them

[Norfolkdan]

A lot of people use floating beads, to pop there bait up off the bottom

[Ken Davison South Wales]

I go with floating beads and flowing trace, but you have to take into account the long legs

[Guest STAN]

gabric are a real pain sometimes! heavy mono traces at least keep your hooks'but normaly a change of venue is the only way!!

[Kcrusty]

use the biggest possible bait you can. you would need to float a bait about 3ft off the bottom to keep it away from them, the big male spiders can have claws well over 20inc long pair that with some 20inc leggs and you have a very large crab.

must admit if i know there around i will fish for them quiet happy around september time when they make fantastic eating.

this time of year they are a bit watery to eat,but they are the first signs of the smoothounds turning up soon after the first run of spiders them so,i woudnt cuss them too much saying as the smoothounds come swim along way to come for a good feed.

i would probably put my money on you bait robbers being "fearless freddys" (my name for velvet swimmers, or there frendly cousins the plain old swimming cab) if its swimming crabs you would have to keep the bait in the fridje to stop them getting at it first!

[Jim Roper]

Has anybody broken one up and tried the meat for bait!

[PhilC]

Jim Roper:

Has anybody broken one up and tried the meat for bait!

apperently acording to an angler in Swanage you use only the legs as bait.

 

now if this is true or feasible, does one break the meat out and attach that to the hook or does one attach the whole or part of the leg including the shell?

 

i can see the bit about the meat but how do you keep it on the hook.

 

If with the shell will a bass (or other fish) crunch it up.. :confused:

 

Regards

 

PhilC

[Norm B]

PhilC:

PhilC:

Has anybody broken one up and tried the meat for bait!

apperently acording to an angler in Swanage you use only the legs as bait.

 

now if this is true or feasible, does one break the meat out and attach that to the hook or does one attach the whole or part of the leg including the shell?

 

i can see the bit about the meat but how do you keep it on the hook.

 

If with the shell will a bass (or other fish) crunch it up.. :confused:

 

Regards

 

PhilC

:cool: USE HALF A CRAB, OR WHOLE ONE IF SMALL, GREAT SMUT AND BASS BAIT.