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Location: Essexville, MI./Saginaw Bay. | I'm thinking it's been close to 18 years ago now that I penned an article about this subject. And got it published in both the Michigan Steelheader and in Frank Amato's Salmon Trout and Steelheader magazines of Oregon Fame.
The fishing circumstances that lead up to the original idea of it's writing, both educated and started me on the road to using fish scents almost religiously when fishing for all species of fish.
The first lesson came on the Big Manistee River. When a guy fishing behind me out of a drift boat (as I was) using the same exact Crankbait, the exact same way, jerked Steelhead after Steelhead from the same holes I caught nothing in, when I moved out and he moved in. The difference was a couple drops of the (new then) DR. Juice Steelhead formula fish scent.
Then almost like fate two months later, Dr. Gregory Bambineck (Dr. Juice himself) gets scheduled to talk at the blast off of the first new Shiver on the River contest the Saginaw City Council puts on.
I got to talk with him at length and get both his whole life's story, and his product and research history concerning his product. His research work with fishes Olfactory senses and his formulas testing regiment was nothing but fascinating, especially being as new to the fishing game as manufactured fish scents were back then.
But the most fascinating was the L-Serin theory. That certain chemical make-up everybody has, yet is chemically different in everybody own particular body as well. And like cholesterol, can be both good and bad. And to a certain point, can and might effect your fishing success. This fact alone should make all of us either keep our hands clean or use fish scents that cover our own when trying to outsmart a specie that can detect 1 part per trillion (in certain cases) on different bodies of water.
Do you use scents?
Edited by walleye express 1/24/2004 1:22 PM
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Location: Wind lake, Wi | Dan- I've read several articles on the use of attractants and the studiy of a fishes senses. An interesting thing I found out was that fish have a greater sense of smell than most land animals including the whitetail deer. Now that is pretty amazing. The smelling sense of a fish is his number one sense next to the sense of noise or feel if you will. I always use attractants when either jig fishing or using any type of live bait situations. One time about five years ago my friends and I were jig fishing on the Wiconsin river and we were using Baitmate Gamefish (my absolute favorite) catching walleyes hand over fist, the guys around use were catching a few here and there but nothing like we were. I usally notice we seem to be doing better than most anglers where ever we fish with live bait. I really believe that it does have something to do with the scent that we use, others might disagree with me but thats fine. I try to keep my hands as scent free as possible kind of like when I'm bow hunting for that trophy buck. Whatever the case, it does not hurt to add some type of attractant to your bait of choice. I usally don't put any on cranks too much, thinking that most of the time it will be a reaction bite, but it can never hurt. So put on your secret scent and catch some fish!! |
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Excellent topic!
Do bring scents along, but most often do not use them. Hopefully I'll remember your "scent post" this upcoming fishing season! |
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Location: Essexville, MI./Saginaw Bay. | Eyefever.
I always spray scent on all my cranks when trolling. Something happened soon after the time I described in my post, as well as my higher average hook-ups on the rivers, that keeps me using scent when trolling. DR. Juice and I became kind of good corresponding buds after our innital meeting. And he got some kickback business wise, from the articles as well. In response, I got a load of his products and any new samples they came out with.
Soon afterwards, our walleye club was running a Trout pond at the local Mall out of a Big Swimming pool, to raise money for a charity cause. It was the third and last day of the event and the only trout left were the really smart ones, who knew to touch anything meant death. All the kids and most of the parents were getting bummed out. Even live bait versus the corn and cheese offerings that were popular for two days were getting no takers.
On a fluke between customers, I tied on a little meps and casted it in. Nothing. They'd swim up and look and then sink back to the bottom. Put on 2 drops of Rainbow Trout Juice and things got hot real fast. Honest. Needless to say the pool was darn near cleaned out before the end of the deal. The guy who rented us both the pool and the fish, said he never seen so many fish caught at any other event.
Edited by walleye express 1/24/2004 4:00 PM
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Location: Wind lake, Wi | Great story Dan, I will try it out on my cranks........... in about 3 months. Thanks. |
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | Hey DAn,
Doers Roger still work for Dr Juice?
I got accuanted with them as a sponsor back in 92-93. Great bunch of guys up there. |
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Location: Essexville, MI./Saginaw Bay. | Wasn't Roger one of Gregs factory/research/sales manager guys? It's been a long time since 1986 (I think).  |
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Location: YouTube.com/LyubakaVideo Instagram @LyubakaVideo | I got a better one, our company has stores Up North - Minocqua, Eagle River and Hayward, come deer season because of the Deer Hunter Widows Chippendale parties we don't get as many ladies shopping but every now and again you get a party of three overwhelmingly stinking of doe urine, with their guns broken over their shoulders-beard covered- just browsing customers usually having blood smeared all over the legs of their tactic overalls  that's a good one to get in an apparel store that tries to sell bathing suits LOL! Great Topic , W.E. what is your opinion on gasing your truck/boat before the fishing trip (smell of gasoline) and on smoking while fishing (tobbacco/tar smell).
Good Luck Fishing To All
Lyubo |
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Location: Essexville, MI./Saginaw Bay. | Great Topic , W.E. what is your opinion on gasing your truck/boat before the fishing trip (smell of gasoline) and on smoking while fishing (tobbacco/tar smell).
Backa.
Just kinda answered that question on a different board. Lets face it, some guys can catch fish, after just coming from their jobs at "Penzoils 10 minute Oil change". And I believe there will be days when few things will keep any fish from biting your offerings. But it personally drives me nuts when I have to fill up or mess with gas or oil for any reason, while on my way out to fish.
I have 2 bottles left of a product that is/was great. I'm not sure if they still make it or not. It's called Berkley Erase. A non phospherous, biodegradable soap that gets ride of all gas and oil scents on the skin. If I think I have any funk on my hands at all, they get washed with the Erase. Even after I catch a cat fish while walleye fishing, they get washed. Once a cat has slimed your line and hands, only other cats seemed attracted to it after that.
Edited by walleye express 1/25/2004 12:54 PM
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Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | Originally written by walleye express on 2004-01-24 9:57 PM
Wasn't Roger one of Gregs factory/research/sales manager guys? It's been a long time since 1986 (I think). :-)
Yes he is/was. I havent talked to him for some time now as I have not been sponsored by them for over as decade.
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Location: Northern Illinois | Walleye Express, interesting comment on the cat stink killing the line/bait except for other cats. I wash my hands, but taking out maybe 1-2 feet of line and re-baiting, had not occured to me other that for taking out any kinks or frays in the line by the bait. Good idea...WM |
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| Dan,
The catfish comment really got me thinking. We catch lots of cats on the Bago system and now you have me wondering if they may have killed my walleye bite at times. I will have to pay attention to the pole that catches a cat and see if it has any effect. Regarding L-serine and other scents, that might help explain why, on a given day, one boater can be using the same setup and technique as his partner and get totally outfished.
Take care,
Jim O |
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Location: Essexville, MI./Saginaw Bay. | Lets face it. Catfish are one of the few fresh/cold water species that has no scales. Thier mucus is about the most thick/sticky/stainy/stinky stuff I've ever encountered. Even a Pike pales in comparison.
And along with their knife like bacteria infested barbels, they are probably left quit alone when they are around any hungry preditors like Pike or Walleyes. And like a skunk smell is to us, I'm sure their tell-tail smell, tells everything else to stay far away.
Edited by walleye express 1/26/2004 9:41 AM
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Location: Waukesha Wisconsin | Dan,
The simple answer is yes! We all stink. But different animals have different abilities in smelling our stink.
I religiously use no scent soap before every tournament and then apply a commercial scent to every lure that will be used at our first stop. I believe that it makes a difference, especially in colder water. I think that the advantages are accelerated if you allow the scent to stay on the lures for awhile before use.
That being said, I also think that scents work better on negative mood fish that need more time to look over a bait before hitting. In most situations, I think that trolling with crankbaits causes a reactionary strike. Fish do not have time to decide "should I or shouldn't I" eat that food. In these situations, scent has very little added value except for the masking quality that they have. Don't get me wrong, masking your negative scent is a good thing, but thinking that a fish will hit “because of” the scent may be a wrong conclusion. The correct conclusion may be that they hit that crankbait because of the removal or masking of your negative scent. |
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Do You Stink?