I use a size 2 baitholder hook and I just basically texas rig a 1" chunk of the hot dog. If I'm fishing a lake or pond I'll only use 1 small split-shot or sometimes no weight at all. In a river I use a no-roll sinker and a 1ft leader. Soon as they start running I let them load up the rod a bit then set the hook hard. Gets them every time.
Whole shad, cut shad, extra shad left in a 5 gallon bucket in the sun-use the liquid on a sponge bait or make your own dip bait with it-use anchovies, sardines, herring in cans-blend it up, recipes all over the net, fresh clams, african nightcrawlers-you can buy them online-they are bigger than Canadien crawlers and the african nightcrawlers you do not have to keep cool, they love the heat which they last forever in summer, SHAD GUTS with gut hooks to keep the bait on the hook, ground up shad guts made into dough bait, what I do with chicken livers is make my own snells, put them on a hook, get ice cube trays, spray with pam, put the snells with the chicken liver in the trays, then into the freezer-you can cast it out pretty far that way-the same thing with chicken, beef or pigs blood in the tray with snells and frozens, the blood is a killer on cats, flatheads like live bait, bluegills are great but I like using small bullheads and crappie-live of course---the shad I get from 3 rivers marina by the bridge with a cast net, I load up on them when they are there, also I have caught asian carp and regular carp, filet then, cut then into bait size pieces, dont throw anything away, what is left over and no good put in a 5 gallon bucket in the sun, save the liquid, rotten shrimp too, shrimp with anise extract, you can go get thread that is elastic to tie the shrimp around the hook-you can cast it out far--all my fishing is done from shore, love fishing at night, I use glow sticks taped to the end of the rods-they help me big time, I use torch lights with cintranella oil, dryer sheets rubbed on your face and arms and a few sheets in your pocket keeps the pests away----I usually bring all different bait with me using 3 pole where legal and trying all bait, never know what will work--but at the three rivers marina and nearby areas, from now to April, FRESH CLAMS AND shrimp work well----this is what I use, I have had success with these baits, if nothing works, then there are no fish in the area---but I do know from now to the next several weeks, in the day when the water warms up near shore, even though the water is shallow, the cats come in, that's when I use the fresh clams as bait along with shrimp......also cheesecloth and mesh from onion bags works with baits that fall off the hook, wrap the bait in the mesh, tie with thread, put on hook and cast it out a mile......................I hope this helps, I have learned this from other fisherman and by watching others and I'm always learning.................................
