ATTRACTANTS 2024

MALTESE FALCON reply :

I'VE NEVER USED ATTRACTANTS BEFORE AND I THOUGHT MAYBE I'D TRY SOMETHING IN '07. WHAT DO YOU GUYS USE?

THANKS,

FALCON

Catt reply :

Old School

Fish formula II with a ½ oz of anise oil added

Bud reply :

Hawg Sauce

Raul reply :

Older school: nothing.

dodgeguy reply :

smelly jelly bassfeast paste or megastrike.

WhiteMike1018 reply :

I have had great luck with the BAITMATE GAMEFISH SCENT...but i am also going to experiment with MegaStrike and a few others im not quite sure of yet

Shakes reply :

Baitmate. Don't freak out with it, just enough to cover your scent.

Craw reply :

I've used "BANG" garlic for several years and I really believe in it. They make shad and crawfish formulas also.

jdw174 reply :

Kick 'n Bass all the way.

earthworm77 reply :

K N B and Bang liquid spray garlic

Papa_Tom reply :

None. I buy 'em now and then, last purchase was Megastrike about two years ago. Used it on a c-rig lizard on a February day when they seemed to not be taking it good. Have to admit it was dramatic how the hits changed. Tried it a couple more times with no discernable effect. It's on the shelf with the others gathering dust. For those that use an aerosal spray, be careful not to let the overspray settle onto your boat carpet. It will break down the adhesives.

GAMEOVER reply :

MegaStrike: On crankbaits, jerkbaits, topwater, flukes, worms, spinnerbaits.

BANG Craw: On jigs, plastics, craw cranks, fat ikas, anything replicating a craw.

5bass reply :

I use BANG spray......and if the YUM attractants didnt turn my baits different colors (especially skirts) I'd use them more often.

Alpster reply :

Quote
MegaStrike: On crankbaits, jerkbaits, topwater, flukes, worms, spinnerbaits.
BANG Craw: On jigs, plastics, craw cranks, fat ikas, anything replicating a craw.

That's interesting, I use Megastrike on all my soft platic stuff and Bang Craw on my hard lures. I guess it's a good thing everyone doesn't think alike.

Ronnie

RoLo reply :

The two best attractants I've ever used are the right depth and the right speed,

but sometimes they're just so hard to find

Roger

roadwarrior reply :

Quote
Older school: nothing.

Now, that's funny. I don't care who you are, that's funny!

Daniel My Brother reply :

Another vote for Bang Garlic in the spray can. I don't know if the fish like it, but it smells just like an old spaghetti restaurant that I used to go to.

mmmmm....spaghetti.

Mike B Fishin reply :

I have been testing Uncle Elmers Sticky Scent for a few months. I used two rigs, same rod, reel, line, hook, weight, and worm. One with the "goop" and one without. It definitely works; a lot more hook-ups. It stays on the worm for ever, it is cheap, it's in an easy to use bottle and best of all, IT WORKS.

I found it at Wally World.

CrazedL.IFisherman reply :

mega strike and bang crawfish scent have worked really well for me, heard jacks juice is good, has anyone had luck with yum scents? because i use many yum lures and the bass love them so i fiqured at the very least the bass do not mind the yum attractants

The_Natural reply :

I use garlic oil spray in whatever brand is the cheapest. I was using bang garlic, but I ran out and found jack's juice garlic at the tackle show for $2 a can, and bought 4 cans. The bang garlic in the 16oz spray is a good deal at $9.99.

CyBasser reply :

Hi everybody,

My opinion is that the best use of the attractants is not so much to "attract" bass, but to cover the scents left on the lures by the manufacturing process and, of course, by the anglers hands.

Although the sense of smell is not as well developed in bass as in othr fish (such as carp or catfish), their smell is still much better than ours. They can be readily turned off by certain smells that seem unnatural - even offensive - to them. Our skin is covered by aminoacids that go on the lures and although we can not tell the difference, bass surely can. This is not really a problem with fast moving hard lures such as crankbaits, but it can become most important on slow moving soft plastic lures which the bass usually have the time to examine before attacking them.

Also, the addition of an attractant helps in the respect that once the bass has grubbed the lure, if it has an attractive smell (or taste), the bass may hold it one extra second or two, giving the angler an extra chance to hook it upon striking. For sure, I have noticed a huge difference in the catching rate with soft plastic lures with attractant vs soft plastics without...

As for favorite brands... Try them and let the bass decide which one they prefer - their smell/taste preferences may be different. It might sound weird, but here in Cyprus, in a particular reservoir, Yum LPT (either garlic or crawfish) work exceedingly well, much better than any other scent. In all the other reservoirs Yum still works, but Kickin'Bass and Carolina Lunker Sauce work much better. One of the many reasons I consider bass fish with a real character....

MALTESE FALCON reply :

THANKS FOR ALL YOUR VALUED OPINIONS GUYS.

Bean Counter reply :

I use Jack's Juice Garlic on plastics. Nothing on hard baits. Works for me.

ScroGG ToGG reply :

I like the stuff that comes with those Sweet Cheeks swimbaits. although the swimbaits are close to worthless, the scent is worth buying. Wish they sold just the scent. It might actually be a enzyme or pheremone now that i think about it

lubina reply :

Quote

Quote

I use Megastrike on all my soft platic stuff

Me too.

Raul reply :

Quote

The two best attractants I've ever used are the right depth and the right speed,

but sometimes they're just so hard to find

Roger

Roger and myself were poured in the same mold.

CyBasser reply :

Quote

Quote

The two best attractants I've ever used are the right depth and the right speed,

but sometimes they're just so hard to find

Roger

No doubt about that - if you don't hit those two correctly, then all the scents in the world are useless. But once you find the right depth and speed (or presentation), the use of attractants can make a difference - especially on reluctant or highly pressured bass.

In general I don't think it's a black / white situation. There is no doubt that you can catch bass without attractants - I seriously started fishing for bass in 2000, and did not use any attractants until late 2002 - and of course still managed to catch plenty of bass. But, especially with soft plastics, I did notice an improvement in my results after using them. I have to admit that until mid-2003 it was the "secret weapon" for me and another two guys here, then other anglers took some notice...and now it's a matter of "beating" the other guys with using a more attractive scent!

CyBasser reply :

On a similar note, in 2003 I had an amazing experience with attractants in regards of a different species of fish - rainbow trout. With two friends we discovered a very small pool behind a small dam on a mountain stream. We initially used small spinners with no avail, then we decided to try some live worms just to see if there were any fish in the pool. The water was crystal clear, and we saw smallish trout, around 8-10" long coming up to the (very lively) worms, going around them in circles, and disappearing again in the grass of the bottom. One of the guys had a small bottle of Berkley powerbait trout attractant, so we decided to see if it worked. Well, the trout re-appeared around the three worms, but this time around they just snatched it. We did try again with attractants, another 3 trout caught. Out of curiosity we casted again worms without attractants, again trout circled them without getting them. A drop of attractant, the trout again bit the worms...

Now, I think that trout may have a better sense of smell than bass. But still, that incident remains well written in the hard disk of my brain - it was such a strong indication of the power of the attractant (it was like watching a before-and-after commercial live!).

So, I am sure that at least in some instances, with soft plastic lures, attractants could make the difference between success and failure.

RoLo reply :

Quote
In general I don't think it's a black / white situation. There is no doubt that you can catch bass without attractants - I seriously started fishing for bass in 2000, and did not use any attractants until late 2002 - and of course still managed to catch plenty of bass. But, especially with soft plastics, I did notice an improvement in my results after using them. I have to admit that until mid-2003 it was the "secret weapon" for me and another two guys here, then other anglers took some notice...and now it's a matter of "beating" the other guys with using a more attractive scent!

I definitely agree, it is not a black or white issue.

The reason it's not black or white is because it's something that's extremely difficult to prove or disprove.

Let's suppose that you're using an attractant and you're whacking the bass. That's fine, but now it's time to stop using attractant,

otherwise nothing was learned. Let's further suppose that after you tied on a new lure, the same lure but without adding attractant,

the action seemed to slow down. This is the break you needed, because now the addition of attractant should restore the action

to its former level.

I typically fish with my wife, so instead of comparing me to myself, I have a distinct advantage.

Since I have a cooperative boat mate, I'm able to conduct a bilateral test simultaneously in half the time.

Tested in that manner, I've yet to witness a time when attractant seemed to make a clear difference in action.

I realize that this doesn't prove or disprove anything, nor does it fuel my enchantment for fish attractants.

When we turn to Mother Nature, we see that bass do not possess barbels as do catfish, bullheads and carp,

and I think that speaks volumes about their dependence on the sense of smell.

In the meantime, the manufacturers of attractants are sitting pretty, because in effect they're selling "confidence" in a bottle,

and proving or disproving its effect is extremely difficult. The placebo effect is very powerful, that is to say,

we all tend to see what we want to see.

Roger

CyBasser reply :

Quote

Quote

Turning to Mother Nature, we see that bass do not possess barbels as do catfish, bullheads and carp,

and I think that speaks volumes about their dependence on the sense of smell.

In the meantime, the manufacturers of attractants are sitting pretty, because in effect they're selling "confidence" in a bottle,

and proving or disproving its effect is extremely difficult. The placebo effect is very powerful, that is to say,

we all tend to see what we want to see.

Roger

I surely agree with Roger in these two points! That bass are not really dependend on smell is scientifically proven, no doubt, and as I mentioned in an earlier reply, their only usefulness would be to provide a "cover" for smells/taste that would be offensive to them (that they do recognize offensive smells is also proven).

As for the huge variety of attractants now available, yes, the manufacturers are taking advantage of the craze of us bass fishermen to always want to have that extra confidence in whatever we try for bass. The confidence factor is a huge selling point in bass fishing lures, and practically everyone has confidence lures (and some of us scents!) that just by believing in them help us be more attentive to our techniques - and the manufacturers in selling more of their products!!! But then, this is part of the magic in bass fishing!

CyBasser reply :

Also, how many of the natural prey items for bass have a smell / taste of anise or garlic? In a sense you can tell that crawfish or shad attractant could be expected to work yet perhaps the most popular attractant smell is probably garlic! At least, the number of bass we catch on garlic-scented soft plastic lures proves that they do have a liking for garlic....

senile1 reply :

I'll use Megastrike now and then to mask the smell of my hands. Does it work? As stated by others, it would be difficult to prove. When fishing for bass, I'd say I really don't see a difference. However, when my wife and I go crappie fishing, there seems to be a noticeable difference in how the crappie bite my Southern Pro grubs.

scott000 reply :

i dont use taste or scent attractants, but i use worm rattles for lizards, creatures, worms, etc. a tube rattle just doesnt fit in a skinny worm.

flippin4it. reply :

I use Jack's Juice in craw,shad and lizard. It seems to get the fish to hold on a second more, or maybe hold the bait more agressivly allowing for a better hook set. I don't feel that it brings the fish to the bait. One thing I will say, if your fishing a soft plastic in a weed bed,lilly pads or grass. It allows tha bait to slide right in.

Catt reply :

I use attractants for two purposes first as a lubricant because I fish in grass a lot and the attractant helps my plastic baits slide through easier. Second I add anise oil to mask any scent my bait may have picked up from me or anything else.

WhiteMike1018 reply :

Just picked up some BANG 100% PURE Crayfish!

Thanks for the advice!

Should work wonders

JT Bagwell reply :

I use the Original MegaStrike and the Yamamoto Crawfish

scented MegaStrike. Both worked equally well.

JT Bagwell

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ATTRACTANTS 2024

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