# Hardheads as cut bait



## craftedraven (Nov 7, 2013)

Do hardheads make effective cut bait?


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## DCAVA (Aug 5, 2013)

Hardheads, or hardhat??? lol!!!


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## Fishingmatt (Aug 16, 2012)

I've tried it multiple times for shark with zero luck


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## Jumpjack (May 21, 2004)

Yes very effective of course I would like anything else but hardhead will work in a pinch


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## SurfRunner (May 22, 2004)

I have caught bullreds on cut hardhead.


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## craftedraven (Nov 7, 2013)

I will try them---they are so easy to catch it is worth a try.


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## stdreb27 (Aug 15, 2011)

I've never caught anything fun on a hard head, but if I was using a hard head that's probably I was catching anyway.


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## Big Guns 1971 (Nov 7, 2013)

Good ling bait. I have had a shark tear one up once.


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## GulfCoast1102 (Dec 30, 2013)

Big Guns 1971 said:


> Good ling bait. I have had a shark tear one up once.


They are a popular cobia bait in Florida, but i haven't seen them used in Texas. People will get a small hardhead, about 6-8" long, and clip the spines off. Send it out live, and cobia will hammer them.


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## Mustad7731 (May 23, 2004)

*Hardheads for Bull Reds*

I have used cut hardhead for bait maybe 15 times in 40+ years on the Gulf Coast.

Only once have I caught anything ... while fishing near the South Pass of the Miss 
River....I caught 3 Bull Reds off the Mud Lumps back about 12 - 15 yrs ago...

I reserve the right to use almost anything before I resort to hardheads again...LOL...

Mustad7731
Jack


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## hog_down (Jan 11, 2010)

Only thing I have ever caught on cut hardheads was bigger hardheads.


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## matagordamudskipper (Feb 18, 2006)

Ive caught fish up to 7ft on hardheads, on more than one occasion.


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## Category6 (Nov 21, 2007)

matagordamudskipper said:


> Ive caught fish up to 7ft on hardheads, on more than one occasion.


were they silver and looked kinda like a giant mullet?


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## matagordamudskipper (Feb 18, 2006)

Category5 said:


> were they silver and looked kinda like a giant mullet?


Unfortunately not


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## cogswell (Mar 23, 2012)

craftedraven said:


> Do hardheads make effective cut bait?


I've had my wife in the water multiple times but never considered using her as bait.


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## Solodaddio (Mar 22, 2014)

Reminds me of one late night fishing off a dock in Livingston. Striper on the hook almost every cast with artificial. Also had chicken liver reeling small blue cats one after another, once we were out of liver we chopped into a blue cat for cut bait and then the night went silent!


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## fishingcacher (Mar 29, 2008)

Someone told me that whole hardheads with fins removes are good for catching Lings. I don't know if they were pulling my leg and I have never tried it.


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## matagordamudskipper (Feb 18, 2006)

Personally I like gafftop more than hard head for a cut bait, meatier and bloodier. But good ole HH will wiggle for hours on a hook.


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## Spectaker (Oct 24, 2011)

We thought we would try cut hardhead as bait yesterday at TCD. Lo and behold we caught more hardheads with it. Lol. 

We also caught big whiting with cut whiting. It's a dog eat dog world out there. 

Sent from my VS840 4G using Tapatalk 2


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## fishhawkxxx (Jul 7, 2012)

never had to use one but a de-finned hh swimmin around with a big circle hook oughta work for a hungry fish.I'm keep one rod baited with one next time i go


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## Jolly Roger (May 21, 2004)

sharks will hit a live hard head, need to trim the fins and place the hook further back in the bait. Sharks do not eat the heads of gafftops or hard heads. I have run live gafftops out for bait often with good success. Best this time of the year to use live hardheads or gafftops. Both are full of roe and sharks will hit them better. Gafftop roe is about the size of marbles, very different then most fish. Just pay attention, I think there is a length limit on gafftop so your bait needs to be of legal size.


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## peckerwood (Jun 9, 2012)

When my son lived in Mississippi,Ocean Springs,some cats were on a dock near his house fishing and catching hardheads to use for lemonfish bait.I think lemonfish would be ling here ?


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## BullyARed (Jun 19, 2010)

peckerwood said:


> When my son lived in Mississippi,Ocean Springs,some cats were on a dock near his house fishing and catching hardheads to use for lemonfish bait.I think lemonfish would be ling here ?


Yes. Lemonfish is ling. They love live hardhead.


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## fuelish1 (Aug 3, 2004)

hog_down said:


> only thing i have ever caught on cut hardheads was bigger hardheads.


me too!


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## Sharkhunter (May 22, 2004)

I caught a 47 in bull red on a hard head fillet. One and only I ever used. If your out of bait you have to get creative.


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## dreamcaster (May 24, 2004)

While hardheads aren't my first choice for bait, they can be productive, I've caught multiple species of shark, bull reds, and gafftop on hardheads...


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## Sea-Slug (May 28, 2004)

For what it is worth, I have trimmed the fins and ran them out a few times without any luck. I did catch a ray accidentally once while red fishing on a hardhead that was so small he was hooked on my piece of cut bait but did not dislodge the surf weight, and the ray came along and hit him or the still on the hook piece of mullet or both, both were still in the tube. He was not a huge ray, about 40 pounds I guess, but the hardhead was tiny, about 6 to 8 inches, I don't know how he got hooked on the 6/0 hook to start with. I have a friend who swears he caught a few sharks on them before. I would use them if that's all I could get. I saw a friend catch a flounder on a chunk of fried chicken once when we ran out of bait off of a pier in CC Bay when I was about 13, so you never know I guess. Depends on how aggressive and hungry the predator is I guess.


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## troutless (Feb 17, 2006)

I have used them with good results, but they are usually my last option. I mostly caught Sharks with them.


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## ComeFrom? (May 21, 2004)

Headheads fished live, offshore, are great for Ling (Cobia). Clip the fins first.


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## shadslinger (Aug 21, 2005)

A surf fishing legend who helped me learn to catch big surf fish told me he had some luck on hard heads, so I tried them once in a while when I could find find nothing else for bait, and they suck canal water.
I started feeling like he had a web cam in the sand dunes and was at home laughing at me.


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## Turneffeisland (Jan 25, 2012)

*Hardheads*

Interesting


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