Author Topic: Chuming lines (Read 1711 times)

JEB/Ms · « **on:** February 16, 2003, 09:26:09 AM »

Any of you guys use old grain to "chum" your trotlines? I used to years ago and always felt that it did good but never did verify it. I read the other day where someone recommended it but said to cook the grain first so it did not hurt the fish that ate it.
Any thoughts on this?

John · « **Reply #1 on:** February 16, 2003, 12:45:18 PM »

I never used chum, but I've heard that some fellas do. To me it always seemed to be more trouble than it was worth, just more crap to mess with.

I don't understand how uncooked grain could harm fish. The crap a channel cat will eat anyway, and somebody thinks they need to cook chum......kinda makes my BS detector go off.

Graybeard · « **Reply #2 on:** February 16, 2003, 07:22:45 PM »

Not sure I understand the use of chum in conjunction with a trotline. Now realize I've only used trotlines in running water and the chum would quickly be washed far away from the line so I can't see it's value. Are you trot lining in still water? Or just weighting it down so the chum can't float away and only the scent?

Tell us more about how you use it.

GB

JEB/Ms · « **Reply #3 on:** February 17, 2003, 12:43:58 AM »

I have only done it in still water. I know people that just pour grain along their line and let nature take its course but I have not tried this. I did it 40 years ago by bagging up the stuff we swept up off the floor of a man's feed bins for his commercial chicken business. Weight the bags down, cut a few slits in them and throw them over the side where we planned to set our lines in the near future. We always caught at least as many as anybody on the lake and usually more. Haven't tried it since those days though.
The thing about cooking the grain, so this article said, was so that when the cats would eat a belly full, the grain would not swell any more and bust their gut. If I had to go through the trouble of cooking the corn, I'd just have to skip chumming all together. I haven't thought about this in years until I was at one of my customer's plant the other day and one of his men was sweeping up corn that had been spilled when loading rail cars and throwing it in the dumpster. Not being the sort to waste stuff, I went to thinking of a use for some of this, and you know the rest.

JEB/Ms

John · « **Reply #4 on:** February 17, 2003, 04:22:48 AM »

Now I see, swell and bust a gut. Reminds me of back when I was a tough guy and ate dried prunes for breakfast, drank a glass of water for lunch, and let em swell for supper.

I really don't think there's a problem without cookin grain. Most folks soak it so it will sour before they use it for chum anyway, and that will swell it. If ya sink it dry, it's not gonna be dry for long, and I'd think if a fish got a belly full of dry grain and it did swell, the fish would puke it up.

Just my thoughts, but if you're concerned, just soak it for a few days....oh, by the way, got a little still? Ya might make a little fuel outta that stuff before ya dump it in the lake hehehe.

Catfish Man · « **Reply #5 on:** February 17, 2003, 08:25:12 AM »

I'd think the fish would have to eat a lot of dry grain before it would do them any harm but I guess that is a possibility. I've heard of putting grits on fireant beds to kill them. Supposedly after they eat it the grits swell up in their bodies and kill them. Not sure if I believe that or not but so far I've never tried it. Seems foolish to be feeding fire ants anything I'm not sure is posion and besides grits is groceries and better used for humany consumption.

CM

Graybeard · « **Reply #6 on:** February 21, 2003, 10:13:35 AM »

Hey Paul, Iz zat cuz ya save all the road kill ta feed ta BW at the annual shoots? :-D

GB

Ronaldthe1 · « **Reply #7 on:** February 19, 2004, 07:34:22 PM »

we have used coons, yotes, & opossums for chum bait. Anything we couldnt or wouldnt eat that we had shot. Take a few milk crates put some chicken wire or small dia wire mesh on the top tie a brick to a corner, and a longer rope around the grab handle to pull it up with, if in the midde of a lake we use bottels on the end of rope. works well for us.

Chiefgriz · « **Reply #8 on:** May 23, 2005, 06:05:35 PM »

I am curing some grain as we speak for chum. I use wheat simply because its about the cheapest I can get here. Maise works well too. If you have never smelled grain that has soured for a few days, and enjoy some true stinch aroma, youre missing out. This stuff smeels like ass gone reaaly bad. I have used it on the lakeand on the still water on the river. You dont have to even throw out the grain. Just sccop the liquid off the top pitch it in the vicinity you are going to fish. I dont like the thought of feeding them grain when I want them to take my bait. After skimming the liquid off, add more water and do it agin. Grain is good to produce you at least 2 skimmings.

Nightcrawler · « **Reply #9 on:** July 10, 2005, 02:51:22 PM »

I chum Limblines and trotlines and it really doesn't matter with the system that I use if the water is still or flowing, as a matter of fact it probably does best in current.......Oil travels