Sandeel Advice

**paultinker1** · 01-04-2007, 20:29

Hi guy's please could you give some advice on how to fish live sandeel for Bass
also how to collect them as iv'e only fished for bass with plug's.
Any advice welcomed

**Bass-ic Instinct** · 01-04-2007, 21:13

Fish them off a bubble float on a 10-15lb fluorocarbon trace. Use size 2 circle hooks, set lighly through the sandees snout. The Varivas semi-circle hooks are good for this job. One tip i would say would be to use a baitrunner reel, and let the fish take a few yards of line before for tighten up and strike.

**paultinker1** · 01-04-2007, 21:18

many thanks for the reply will sure give it a go

**Bass-ic Instinct** · 01-04-2007, 21:34

You can also try free lining them. Although it is harder to stay in contact with the bait using this method. Another bait worth trying is live shrip as well. You will get both by pushing a net a few inches into the sand where the snadeel are, you can sometimes find them by digging near the low water mark at the bottom of the tide.

**Bass-ic Instinct** · 01-04-2007, 22:04

Apparently though DINO BOY has invented this method of bass fishing and no-one else is allowed to pass information on it, or even use it. Sorry folks i must abide by the law!

**DINOBOY** · 01-04-2007, 22:48

Originally Posted by Bass-ic Instinct

Apparently though DINO BOY has invented this method of bass fishing and no-one else is allowed to pass information on it, or even use it. Sorry folks i must abide by the law!

sorry but i dont remember posting this

**spike666** · 02-04-2007, 15:22

i fish with them alot through the summer on float and off the boat, on float i have a trace of about 3ft of 10-12lb line with one or 2 size 4 specimen eyed hooks (kamasan) or similar, hook the eel lightly in the scruff of its neck just behind the head and if using 2 hooks again lightly about halfway down its back, I have given up hooking them in the nose as they can fly off the hook on longer casts but are fine hooked behind the head, set float at whatever depth you want although 6-15ft seems ideal, off the boat i just drop them down over the side to the bottom hooked the same way. have found this way when the bass grabs the eel the pressure of the bite pulls the hook straight into the top lip of the bass and its an instant on! now also use 2 hooks as sometimes the fish will bite eels in half and you can miss them with one hook in the neck...

never tried collecting them before but theyr'e not expensive really from the shop at about £7 a lb (here in wales anyway) also dont bother with buckets and livebait pumps just get yourself a small cool bag like the mustad one, put a couple of frozen blocks in the bottom and your eels on top in wet newspaper, they keep all day like this in the cool and are fine, have even given them fresh newspaper and kept them overnight in the fridge and used them the next day with about 50% still alive!

apart from maybe live macky theres probably no better bait for bass in the summer!

hope this helps
Spike

**craftycatch** · 02-04-2007, 17:01

can't wait to give this a go this summer/autmn.

as for collecting (the shops arn't selling them here yet) i dig them on a sand bank in an estuary, which although not the most efficent way of getting them does the job ok till i can buy them. luckly i work less than a mile from sea view tackle in plymouth which sells great eel.

good luck with it this year.