# Frozen shrimp for bait...



## tbone2374 (Feb 27, 2010)

I realize live bait is always the best, but as dead bait goes, do you think there is much difference in fresh dead, and frozen dead? Fishing for Reds, Specs, Croaker, Whiting, and Sand Trout.


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## chapman53559 (Jun 19, 2009)

No. I peel mine most of the time too.


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## Titus Bass (Dec 26, 2008)

chapman53559 said:


> No. I peel mine most of the time too.


X2... but I also pour salt on them. Salt them very very heavy. It dries them out some, but they stay on the hook much better. The fish will eat them just the same.....


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## V-Bottom (Jun 16, 2007)

*yep........*



Titus Bass said:


> X2... but I also pour salt on them. Salt them very very heavy. It dries them out some, but they stay on the hook much better. The fish will eat them just the same.....


X3...cut mullet, shad, clams, and ole' cut bait..it will NOT freeze if U do this....try getting some food coloring and dye a few pieces....red...yellow etc..:work:


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## bigfost (Oct 11, 2004)

Fresh dead is 100 times better than frozen. That applies to any type of bait.


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## Bustin Chops (Feb 3, 2008)

Frozen becomes soft and mushy when thawed out. Hard to keep on the hook


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## cva34 (Dec 22, 2008)

Bustin Chops said:


> Frozen becomes soft and mushy when thawed out. Hard to keep on the hook


A couple handfull sawdust help a lot/salt as said above is good too..cva34


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## redspeck (Jul 3, 2012)

bigfost said:


> Fresh dead is 100 times better than frozen. That applies to any type of bait.


X2!


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## Fish&Chips (Jan 27, 2012)

Titus Bass said:


> X2... but I also pour salt on them. Salt them very very heavy. It dries them out some, but they stay on the hook much better. The fish will eat them just the same.....


After you pour the salt, how long do you have to wait before using them?


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## Johnboat (Jun 7, 2004)

*Frozen shrimp is fine for kids.*

IMO the best non live bait for serious fishing is frozen finger mullet. Not sure if available many places, but the bait stand in south Winnie has them all the time.

And they stay separated, so you can take a few out of the zip lock and keep the rest in the freezer.


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## mas360 (Nov 21, 2006)

Best dead bait, IMO, is squid. It stays on hook much longer than shrimp. I caught plenty of croakers, sand trout, reds and sheepheads with squid. Spec does not like it though.


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## surffan (Oct 5, 2004)

mas360 said:


> Best dead bait, IMO, is squid. It stays on hook much longer than shrimp. I caught plenty of croakers, sand trout, reds and sheepheads with squid. Spec does not like it though.


X2 on squid some days you can just kill whiting and sand trout with it. Always take some its not expensive.


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## Fish&Chips (Jan 27, 2012)

Do most bait shops sell squid?


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## greenhornet (Apr 21, 2010)

bigfost said:


> Fresh dead is 100 times better than frozen. That applies to any type of bait.


I don't use bait but when I was a kid my uncle would drive all over the place until he found fresh dead and he is one of the best fishermen I know.


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## fultonswimmer (Jul 3, 2008)

*Dead vs. Alive*



tbone2374 said:


> I realize live bait is always the best, but as dead bait goes, do you think there is much difference in fresh dead, and frozen dead? Fishing for Reds, Specs, Croaker, Whiting, and Sand Trout.


*Clint Eastwood might not agree but I have yet to talk to a fish that could tell me whether it had bitten on live shrimp, fresh dead or shrimp that I had salted, frozen and maybe reused a couple of times(freezing again, etc.).*
*Salted shrimp tends to stick on the hook better for my uses than fresh. I am too cheap to buy live and it does not do that much better for me anyway!*


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## V-Bottom (Jun 16, 2007)

*little SHAD.....*



Johnboat said:


> IMO the best non live bait for serious fishing is frozen finger mullet. Not sure if available many places, but the bait stand in south Winnie has them all the time.
> 
> And they stay separated, so you can take a few out of the zip lock and keep the rest in the freezer.


 gettem' way before flounder season is here. they are maybe 1 " or so. Freeze200/300 or them.....thern when you want to use some, thaw some out, salt down good...place in fridge ...7 days should be ok. Mullet too


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## Dick Hanks (Aug 16, 2007)

Live is certainly best, and I do think that fresh dead is better than frozen. Two bad things seem happen when shrimp is frozen. One is texture and the other is scent. 

The texture part can be partially overcome by salting the frozen shrimp as they thaw to toughen them up. The texture still won't be as good as fresh dead if you compare them to the texture of a live shrimp. I don't know the reasons that freezing breaks down some of the smell/scent, but it does seem to. Not that it still won't attract some fish, just not from as far away or aggressively in my opinion. 

That said, there are still times that I use frozen shrimp. Mostly as a convience thing.
If I'm going on a serious, 1/2 day or more fishing outing, gasing up the boat, etc. I'm not going to handicap myself with frozen shrimp. If I'm going fishing for just and hour or 2, fishing fairly near home, and having a few beers while relaxing, frozen shrimp works just fine for me.


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## JOHNNYREB (Apr 20, 2006)

Personally i prefer fresh any day....except when it comes to shrimp. Normally i keep 8-10 pounds of white shrimp with heads on from HEB. When i hit the surf i just grab a box or two outta the freezer and head out! Never gets mushy, stays on a hook, no prob. When tipped with a fishbite, i dont think fish really care!


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## Paul Marx (Nov 13, 2009)

For the best quality squid buy it from the Chinesse supermarkets. They are sold to be eaten and have been handled for freshness.


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## BullyARed (Jun 19, 2010)

Frozen local shrimps should be ok for red, croaker, drum, sheephead, whiting, sand trout, and hardhead. During winter time the fish are hungry and they just eat what offer.


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