Mussels

Hi all,
Any ideas on how best to mount fresh mussels on the hook?? Cheers

I bind them into a sausage shape with bait elastic then slide it up the hook, ensuring the point isnt masked , whip on a little more elastic and bobs your uncle

fill the inside of an empty tea bag with mussels bind with elastic and stick it onto hook

hi great tip putting mussels in empty tea bag ."u learn something new every day"

surgical tubing for finger cuts, useful in a first aid kit too.
Not as cheap as tea bags but allows you drink coffee!

surgical tubing for finger cuts, useful in a first aid kit too.
Not as cheap as tea bags but allows you drink coffee!

ooh, good tip for the coffee there kieran, cant stand that instant stuff, and always have a gas stove handy for long trips and always running short on filters..

i have used a small piece of net curtain before (for holding mussels) and threaded it into a sausage shape, but with no success..

found this, hope it helps:

Fox Arma Mesh bait meshing system

Don't be fooled by first impressions, as this IS NOT PVA! It's a new baiting system that utilises a mesh that doesn't breakdown in water. It was originally developed to prevent crayfish or other small fish attacking your hookbait, but in fact offers a huge list of additional benefits that will appeal to all types of anglers: carp, match, predator and even sea anglers! The mesh creates an almost invisible cage around your bait which stops small fish eating it, while still allowing the flavours to leak out into the water. It also means you can use baits on the hook that have previously been impossible.

http://cgi.ebay.ie/Fox-Arma-Mesh-bait-m ... 2a035d0d4d

if you get a baiting needle push through mussel meat then bind into a sausage with fine elastic then thred onto hook

Pack a few inside small squid bodies, whip with bait elastic, good all-round cocktail bait.

used tea bags work aswell

surgical tubing for finger cuts, useful in a first aid kit too.

Read a thread on a UK site that suggested fish (cod in their case) wont take bait presented like that, just mouth it then reject it. Something to do with the feel of the mesh.

Take the meat from a few mussels and place it on a sieve. Pour table salt onto the meat and allow the salt to draw the moisture from the mussels. The flesh is now much easier to bind to the hook with elastic thread as it will have become slightly tough. They can also be stored this way for several weeks if you keep drawing off all the excess water that comes out of them.

They can also be stored this way for several weeks if you keep drawing off all the excess water that comes out of them.

If you salt your mussels in layers in an empty coffee jar and don't draw off the excess water you can keep your mussels for over a year. The older the mussels are the better they seem to work .

The old way to put on a hook used extensively in years gone by for fishing for cod in small boats off greystones was to put the hook through the mussel ( the white part) twist it around the hook and then through the tongue ( the brown part) this can be done very quickly with practice and was useful when fishing competitions when the cod were thick on the ground.
However i would not recommend casting it like this it would be better bound on with elastic thread like the lads have said.

fill the inside of an empty tea bag with mussels bind with elastic and stick it onto hook

Had a go with that this morning but the bags kept tearing. What tea do you use, Barry's? Might need to switch brand....

when I use mussells I dry them out on news paper for a day.. this leaves them sticky.. depending on hook size and target fish..Say flounder = I thread 2 onto a baiting needle then bind them with bait elastic, stick them into the fridge I usually do this the night before .. I also do this with my razor as well

surgical tubing for finger cuts, useful in a first aid kit too.

Read a thread on a UK site that suggested fish (cod in their case) wont take bait presented like that, just mouth it then reject it. Something to do with the feel of the mesh.

works fine for the codling off the north mayo beaches!
Have not done it in ages...

Clearly not a discerning lot up here

works fine for the codling off the north mayo beaches!
Have not done it in ages... Clearly not a discerning lot up here

Is there codling up here? Was assured several times there wasnt, so havent bothered to try...

The bait under discussion on UK site was mashed crab, maybe it was something to do with that.

If fishing for large fish use a pennel rig and lots of elastic, combining with lug helps (put the lug on first and bind the mussel around the worm with the thread, the finer the thread the better). For smaller fish slide the tough white part up over the eye of the hook and bind with thread keeping most of the thread up around the eye of the hook - this leaves the juicy part with the minimum of thread near the business end.
Mussel is an easy bait to collect but to honest it only works from the shore in certain areas, for certain species, and will rarely outperform any other bait.

As for codling on North Mayo beaches, there can be plenty in some areas at night if you count the ones under 30cm. I've never had one any bigger off the beaches in 5 years up here. If you mean anything bigger, they are very isolated in just a few locations either deep water marks in the very NW of mayo or else in Sligo harbour.

(1) Get a long plain grip wire.
(2) Bend into shape in diagram.
(3) Slide Mussel onto it & bind with thread.
(4) Slide back off.
Result = Perfectly straight mussel every time...ready to slip onto hook.


Dave.

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