frozen peeler

I bought some frozen peeler crab, but I have never prepared these for hooking before.

When defrosted the shell is already very soft.

do I just cut them in half and put on a hook? I will be fishing from kayak, so no need for long casts. Should I use half/full crab?

I normally remove the soft shell on top then cut in half then hook. It brings out more smell I think. Others may do it differently.

I think the ones your you got need to be peeled. I have got those before. You need to remove prior to it thawing out or they are useless. remove the outer shell, lungs and flap. not an expert in peeler crab but there is a video on the gofishing.co.uk website illustrating exactly how to peel them. let me know how you get on with them. cheers stevie

Bit of detailed info here: http://www.gofishing.co.uk/Sea-Angler/S ... b-as-bait/

from what ive read and tried frozen peeler is already peeled thaw it out and away you go but i was also told that a lot of shop bought peeler comes from the continent and isnt worth buying ive tried shop bought peeler and ive had no sucess with it but all you can do is try and see

from what ive read and tried frozen peeler is already peeled thaw it out and away you go but i was also told that a lot of shop bought peeler comes from the continent and isnt worth buying ive tried shop bought peeler and ive had no sucess with it but all you can do is try and see

Avoid pre-peeled crab is a very sub standard bait as the scent fades when the crabs are peeled.... if you can't get hold of peelers that were frozen just as they are ready to split / peel and forzen complete with shell and limbs your wasting your time IMHO...

From what I can see now.

These seem to be velvet crabs with flat paddle feet. They are very soft. The skin and feet come away like paper. But if I remove the hard bits(Where legs meet body). There is very little meat left. This is why I was hoping you could just cut them in half and use them.

From what I can see now.

These seem to be velvet crabs with flat paddle feet. They are very soft. The skin and feet come away like paper. But if I remove the hard bits(Where legs meet body). There is very little meat left. This is why I was hoping you could just cut them in half and use them.

know the kind your on about, have used them in the past and will use them again, have got whiting and coalies on them so far, what i do is keep them in a cool bag so they stay frozen, depending on hok size i either use a whole one or a half one wrap in bait elastic and cast, i also keep the legs and use them as a tipping bait

never used crab in over 30 yrs fishing!
but if it keeps the crabs from hyjacking the bait
and can result in catches! i'm gonna try it soon!
keep us posted anthony.

Frozen Peeler, is a great bait...always caught on it...if you cn get fresh evenbetter but dont knock the frozen stuff...Velvets are useless, i tried them for smut fishing and the peeler out fished them 100 fold, the dogs didnt even want the velvet crabs!! i take of the top of the crab , cut in half, keep the legs in tact and weave onto the hook, use elastic cotton to hold on, and give it a nice look....just like in sea angler