bull huss

what are the best bait and rigs etc. for bull huss.I am thinking of having a go for them in the summer.
any help would be great, thanks.
Goldfish.

Ive never really targeted them myself but i hear fish bates work well sandeel,mackerel etc and pullys rigs id say would do the job.Im sure lads that target them will be able to give you alot more insight best of luck with them

i'd use a pulley pennel with big baits of mackerel sand eel and squid, autumn is usually a better time for them! hope this helps

i never target them but end up catching them .big mackerel baits works.very strong fish

Ill be targeting the smoothies this year, cannot wait!!

we catch bull huss pretty much 12 months of the year here. Deep water helps and mixed ground is favourite so as previously suggested pulley rigs are the order of the day and if need be combined with a rotten bottom for some of the snaggier marks.
Huss are not particular feeders and the bigger the better is a simple rule. Whole squid are good here as they are a very visible bait especially if a bit of macky is added for scent.
One thing I have noticed is that huss can be very finicky and go right off the feed during periods of low pressure, especially if this lasts for a week plus.

Thanks lads. Will bull huss take an old smelly bait and does it help to spray the bait with WD40.
And what size hooks would you use and what are the best brand.
Thanks again,
Goldfish

wd40 Id leave that for your car. . say 1/0 up depending on how big a bait you want to put out match your hook size to your bait.

Always prefer fresh bait myself. I believe the smell lasts longer in the water.
Hooksizes to match the bait but I would generally use 3/0 pennel rigged.

Will bull huss take an old smelly bait and does it help to spray the bait with WD40.

most of the huss we caught over the last 2 years were caught on whole calamari squid with the heads pulled off and the body cavity filled with old refrozen manky mackeral. we use the wee red squirty tube that comes with the can of wd-40 to inject the remaining void in the body cavity with a very liberal dose of wd-40 and it works a treat also had loads of conger and hundreds of doggies on the same set up
2 years back we did a compare test where we fished one rod each on straight squid and mack and the other identicle but with a good lacing of wd-40. no huss that day, but the wd set up outfished the straight baits 2 to 1 for doggies.
just some food for thought

Thanks Al very helpful and informative

Had two last year best 8lb and both on squid and mackerel cocktail and using a 3/0 pulley rig. Hope this helps

Those big baits need big hooks and I would start at about 5/0, before anyone starts slagging me a three pound huss has a gob that would swallow a mans fist. Good strong hooks are essential but I like to use Varivas Big mouth extras from veals but any of the good makes will do. Keep them razor sharp as I have lost a few good huss last year due to the hook not setting, partly due to inferior hooks. Don't be afraid to strike into the fish and make sure you use a good hook length. I use sakuma 80lb although I know a lot of people don't like it.
Although the pulley rig is good and I use it for most fishing I have been using a running paternoster with a weaker link tail of two or three feet. This isn't a self hooking rig so you have to concentrate for bites. Have a look at my blog for how to set the leads uphttp://baitdigger.wordpress.com/2010/04/04/353/

I do agree with what you say but Huss ain't the only thing to pick up the bait and that's why I use 3/0 and same size I use for ray.
But baitdigger you are right with what you say mate.

I should have also said that some of the fish I lost I am sure was due to using mackerel heads as bait. I think the bony skulls can prevent you setting the hooks at distance. I hear what you are saying about the smaller size hooks but it is important to match the bait to the hook and a 3/0 is well able for huss and most other shore fish but it tends to get a bit lost in half a mackerel. The places I hunt huss only attract equally toothy critters and I have used up to 8/0-10/0 when trying for tope and only managed to land huss and lsd with them. The dogs are so ambitious that most of them are not even hooked the bait is just wedged in their mouths and they cannot release it.

thanks lads very helpful