Sea Angling Ireland

Lads sorry for the million and 1 questions.This is a sanity check more than anything else...

Got myself a little crabbing pot (in Rory's, fairly cheap at a tenner, so Im thinking, nothing ventured nothing gained etc.), thinking when i go to dig lug, I can deposit it with some rashers or fisheads as bait and when I return to do a little fishing I can collect hopefully with a couple of crabs, for some tasty bait for fishing.

Now I understand that peeler crabs are any crab during molting stage, so nice soft and juicy... but my question is this really... is it still ok to use what I anticipate to be shore crabs, as bait? I am presuming meat is meat and I can take the bulk of the shell off and off we go? Or have I got that wrong?!

Cheers lads,

P

nothing wrong with using shore crabs, use small ones for wrasse when I can get the time to collect them.

The difference with peelers is that their soft leathery skin is useful in wrapping up the juicy innards, whereas when you peel the hard shell of a shore crab, there is nothing similar to use. You could try wrapping it with squid? People just hook small crabs right through the back and put a tiny bit of elastic band through the hook point afterwards, to stop them wriggling off and keep the hook point clear.

Don't fancy the idea of trying to smash and peel all the shell off non-peelers... bear in mind most fish will tackle a crab, peeler or not. Let us know how you get on!

Brilliant! Thanks Kieran
If I get a few I will try both ways so, through the back aqnd also stripped with a bit of squid.
Will post here after I get a chance to try it out!
Cheers.

padraig wrote:Lads sorry for the million and 1 questions.This is a sanity check more than anything else...

Got myself a little crabbing pot (in Rory's, fairly cheap at a tenner, so Im thinking, nothing ventured nothing gained etc.), thinking when i go to dig lug, I can deposit it with some rashers or fisheads as bait and when I return to do a little fishing I can collect hopefully with a couple of crabs, for some tasty bait for fishing.

Now I understand that peeler crabs are any crab during molting stage, so nice soft and juicy... but my question is this really... is it still ok to use what I anticipate to be shore crabs, as bait? I am presuming meat is meat and I can take the bulk of the shell off and off we go? Or have I got that wrong?!

Cheers lads,

P

Hi padraig, smoothound absolutely love hard back crabs and are well equipped to deal with them, also, anglers are finding small hardback crabs in the stomachs of codling, so I wouldn't be surprised you will have success. Best of luck
Rod Tips

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I have also had pollack take them when using small hardbacks to target wrasse.

One of the main reasons that peelers are preferred is scent...... Peeler crabs give off a scent as they peel. Hardbacks don't have much if any smell. A fish can hone in on a peeler bait easier. It will only eat a hardback if it's right in front of it. I've caught loads of fish on peelers, including Cod and Smoothounds plus Bass and Flounder when shore fishing. I've only caught wrasse and a few pollock on hardbacks. When fishing a beach or estuary, you are often fishing water that is coloured so the scent helps, also for Cod at night. When Wrasse fishing we are fishing clear water over a very specific spot where we know they are.