Ive tried this stuff, never got any results, does it work? i just used one of those rubber hooks covered the thing and tossed it on the bottom. Checked it about every 30 minutes and had no luck. am i doing something wrong or does this stuff just not work
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Ive tried this stuff, never got any results, does it work?
I think you already answered your question. 
Seriously though, I can’t think of one reason I would use commercial stink bait over a good natural bait. I’m sure certain brands may work in certain bodies of water at certain times of year, but I don’t have the time and money to figure it out. I stick with fresh cut bait 90% of the time for channel cats. The other 10% are baits like nightcrawlers, chicken liver, and shrimp. 
Hook,
A very nice fella from IA sent me a bucket (can’t recall his name or the name of the stink bait right now). I tried it on several occasions on the sippi.
Most folks will say that stink bait is better for smaller channel cats and cut bait is better for the larger ones. Then there’s the fellas from IA that stay at Evert’s every year to fish channels. That’s all they use is stink and have very good luck with it….for all size of channels.
The first time I used it last year I had my daughter and favorite wife along….they told me never to bring them along agian if I planned on using stink bait. ( there is an advantage to this! 
)
In a nutshell, I didn’t have very good luck with it…but to be fair, I haven’t used it THAT much either. I’m hoping to hook up with some folks this year that use it regularly to see what they do differantly.
At this point, I’m still a firm believer in fresh cut bait for the larger channel cat’s. Cut bait isn’t as messy..er stinky either!
PS Would the fella that sent me the stink bait shoot me a pm…my computer went south this summer and I lost all my contact info! 
I might add that Mile 832 and very good “luck” with the baits that he uses!
Brian.. I’ve seen you use that jar of “peanut butter” a few times and havent seen you get a bite on it yet.
I tried some stink bait about 15 years ago.. once was enough for me. If I still owned it I would give it to Brian and he would try it.. he’ll try anything a few times
Fresh cut bait for me only. Once in a long while I have found a slightly more rancid bait to work decent too.. like that shiner that has been dead in your minnow bucket for a day.
Anybody have any luck with the chunks of bait that come in a bag? [look like dog food sorta] Somewhere downstairs I know I have some that want to try this year. I know Mike [HOF] at Hooked On Fishing in Rochester mentioned to Briank at the ice fishing GTG that he had gotten 4 new kinds of stinkbait in.
Thanks, Bill
I love my dip. I get Premo from Wally world add minced garlic and lard. Rarely get the stuff anywhere but in the catfishie’s mouth. Won the local big fish of year contest with it. Windy as heck here today might mix a big bunch up.
2 fork full of garlic 1/8 cup lard per tub. If your making a mess you thinned it too much are using the wrong diptube or are wading in it… If I run up for the fool’s day thing I’ll bring some.
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If I run up for the fool’s day thing I’ll bring some.
We’ll put you next to Fishhead! 
6 tubs all set to go. few days of aging it gets better.
mmmmm mmmmm good. great with crackers…
I love sonny’s super sticky catfish bait…!!! FROM IOWA!!
Great stuff- for any size cats- cats are attracted by smell correct? Aren’t they almost blind?
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Cut bait isn’t as messy..er stinky either!
In my home lake, I will put up sonny’s against any cut bait…maybe it could have to do with the spots I fish… …but I will use that nine times out of ten when I am cat fishing…wherever it may be.
Support your local stink bait dealer! 
Catfish and bullheads are opportunistic feeders with highly varied diets. Common food items include aquatic plants and seeds, fish, molluscs, insects and their larvae, and crustaceans. Although catfish and bullheads have poor eyesight, their barbels (whiskers) are well equipped with taste buds that help them find food at night and in muddy waters.
It’s been said that cat’s are a swimming nose.
From my limited experiance, it seems that I catch less smaller fish with cutbait than with stink…and maybe that’s because of the size of the hook and not the actual bait I’m using???
The other upside to cut bait is that there’s a better chance to hook into a flathead…IMO.
Luke, what is your personal best with stink bait?
I think catfish can see way better than people are giving the credit for. I think their eye sight is mainly reduced by water clarity. I have caught way too many cats while reeling in, and on lures to think they have poor eye sight.
The barbels have the taste buds so they do pick up scent better than other fish I do agree.. that and their lateral line can pick up vibration as well as any other fish.. they are efficient preditor fish.. and can be fish of opportunity.
I have never heard of a large cat coming on stink bait, but I have met 100’s of people over time that like to use stink baits and chicken livers.. yes, they do catch small channel cats (up to 3 pounds) with some regularity and have a good day once in a while on nubers of fish.. but I have never once witnessed success with stink bait worthy of me dealing with the stink.
A good example is a friend of mine I met last year (Octavious). He was a regular at one of my fishing spots. He used chicken livers and stink bait religeosly(old school).. he fished side by side with us for weeks in the prime season last April-June. In May, he caught 1 or 2 channel cats/outing with the largest being about 5 pounds. Our fresh cut bait, and live sucker minnows were producing several fish every night averaging from 8-40 pounds(channels were 8-17). This proved to me the channels liked the fresh bait better. In fact, the largest channels (over 15#) all took live sucker minnows. As the water warmed, if it wasnt a fat, healthy bully.. a flathead wasnt touching it through June.. channels still loved the suckers. I cant recall more than a couple small fish being caught by livers or stink bait by other people fishing throughout last year.. and believe me they tried when they seen us catching all these fish.. they would be back every night trying.
I know we’ve talked about this before Dave. That’s why I was wondering what size Luke was talking about…
Evert’s as pleanty of catch photos using stink baits with some pretty impressive channels. Which is why I’m hoping to get out with one of them cornfield guys this year (I will have one cut bait out )
Last year I found a report (I’ve looked for it briefly, but haven’t found it yet) that was done by a researcher. His conclusion was that at a certain size, channels would switch from mostly dead forage to minnows then larger bait fish. Three pounds is the number that sticks in my mind…but I have to read it again to make sure.
There was studies on channel eye sight too. Bullheads and channels had the poorest and it was one of the trouts that had the best. But I do recall scratching my head saying “what kind of water are they using for these test’s”?
Now I spose I’ll have to do some digging!
Brian- I think my biggest channel catfish is around 20-30 lbs. Didn’t have a scale…
There is a reservoir fifteen minutes from my house, and is loaded with BIG channels…In my home lake about 15-20 lbs channels…all using stinkbait- I always catch the smaller ones as well, but that is part of the fun, not knowing how big it is. Plus it keeps the little cousins entertained…
WOW! Guess that thought didn’t work out!
When I catch a channel up here and it ends with “teen”, I consider it a trophy!
I’m thinking I should start bringing some lutefisk along!
They are very impressive…but I would rather catch a 18 inch crappie, or a 33 inch walleye or a 10 lbs bass, rather than a channel 
I guess different fisherman have different tastes…Catfishing is almost too relaxed for me I think.. The spot that we usually go, you can anchor up, and be in casting distance of huge channels ALL night…I think it is just a SPECIAL spot- I don’t know how to explain it. It’s like a spot that continually produces big bucks, no matter what. A little piece of heaven I guess… This spot always has and will continue to produce huge channels. But..I by no means claim to know what I am doing with catfishing, I think my 12 year old cousin knows more about it than me…
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but I would rather catch a 18 inch crappie, or a 33 inch walleye or a 10 lbs bass, rather than a channel
You betcha…this is how much I know about catfishing..what time of the year do they put the feed bags on?
It generally about the time the stink bait thaws out!
Pre spawn…I’m guessing down there about April?
What flavors are best for stinkbait? Listing them in order of whats best so I know what to try if a certain one isn’t available have you found to work best for you guys?
Thanks, Bill
I used a whole thing of strike kings garlic last year and had one missed fish. THe blood worked for me got 3-4 smaller cats nothing worth even weighing
BK- I will get some of the Sonny’s in the microwave, and get it on defrost….
Bill- Sonny’s super sticky only makes to “flavors” original and blood-
I only use the original!!
Sonny’s works spectacularly. Iowans are known for their stink bait. I have caught several very large channels using it. I usually do better after the water warms a bit and they get pretty aggressive with it. Fish it near snags and on seams. don’t click your bail until the bait hits the bottom.
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