Preparing Crab bait

Hey all, hoping to learn a little from y'all on how you prep your crab baits.

my routine.  I pull all my frozen baits from the freezer the morning I head out, then cram them into my bait cans.

what I use:
1. fish carcasses and heads I've saved
2. fish baits that have taken too many trips with me (chovies, squids, etc)
3. can of 'bad' cat food if I have one
4. chicken leg zip tied to the bottom of the hoop.

I was wondering if maybe I should let the baits thaw and 'stew' for a while before sending them under, to let the aroma build up more.  Maybe pre-pack the cans a day early, and let them sit without ice or refrigeration?

Spoiled bait is bad. The fresher the better. Frozen bait will be thawed in a few minutes in the water. If anything it helps keeps the smell on the bottom ,where the crabs are at.

Spoiled bait is bad. The fresher the better. Frozen bait will be thawed in a few minutes in the water. If anything it helps keeps the smell on the bottom ,where the crabs are at.

+ 1 to fresh bait

I use bait bags instead of cans. They let the crabs get a little of the bait which may keep them in the hoops longer. These ones https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011AT46FY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1  are really easy to clip to the bottom of the hoops or trap. I clip one side and then wind the closing bungee around the other side and attach to the clip so they are held perfectly flat in the middle.  I freeze my bait (fish carcasses or chicken legs) in the bags or in gallon ziploc bags with just enough for one trap. Then I can put all the bait in the bags when it is frozen to minimize mess.

I have a bait clip and a bait jar in each of my Type B hoops.  If I'm using rockfish carcasses, a whole rockfish goes on the clip.  If I'm using lingcod carcasses, then head on one clip and frame goes on a clip in another hoop.  I put squid and chunked baitfish (jacksmelt, anchovy, macks, whatever the sabiki brought up) into the jar.  I usually take the bait out of the freezer and toss it in the cooler the night before, but that's mostly because that's when I prep things.

Holiday turkeys on sale now  $8 for 20 to 24 lb turkeys at Safeway in my area is cheaper than squid works great cut in  1/4s with sawzall.

great advice guys thanks

laughing as i think of the sight of Pacific going after a frozen turkey with a sawzall, i may need to pull out my sawzall on Thanksgiving to carve the bird!

Before I started freezing bait in single use portions I used my sawzall to cut up a big block of frozen fish guts into usable portions. Only did that once 

I brought a whole frozen carp for bait about 10 years ago. I took it out the night before, thinking it would defrost enough but noticed it was still rock hard when I got to the parking lot. I had to chisel away at it with my pocketknife in order to get it to break into 4 pieces. The stench was unbearable as all the little pieces of carp guts that I was covered in defrosted. Sometimes I swear I can still smell the carp stench on my PFD

I use the Promar wire bait cages.  A quart zip lock of bait can fit perfectly inside. I keep them frozen in an insulated lunch bag until time to launch.
  Large sex-herring from the spawn is usually the bulk of the mix.

And the question was asked.. why do crab love chicken.. or any terrestrial beast for that matter. They don't naturally occur in the pacific ocean...

And the question was asked.. why do crab love chicken.. or any terrestrial beast for that matter. They don't naturally occur in the pacific ocean...

Personally never tried to eat a seagull but bet it's relatively close-ish.

And the question was asked.. why do crab love chicken.. or any terrestrial beast for that matter. They don't naturally occur in the pacific ocean...

I find chicken and fish work equally well. An advantage of chicken is that seals don't like it so if I'm in in an area where bait stealing seals are a problem I use chicken. One time I attached a GoPro to a crab ring and I could see the seals come check out the bait and leave without touching it. Another time when I had fish for bait in a Danielson trap a seal picked the whole trap up trying to get at the fish.

Ever eat a seagull? This guy has:
"I was in the US Army during world war ll and the island we were on sometime did not receive food on a regular basis.

We ate sea gull when nothing else was available and it tastes like a old tough( chicken ) rooster and has the smell of dirty feet."

Ever eat a seagull? This guy has:
"I was in the US Army during world war ll and the island we were on sometime did not receive food on a regular basis.

We ate sea gull when nothing else was available and it tastes like a old tough( chicken ) rooster and has the smell of dirty feet."

Yum !

When i was in the service in the early eighties. We had a few loose screws that would try and get a pot going for them to eat live bugs out in the field. Usually about 70 bucks winning. 

Sorry for getting off topic, Brian. 

I use chicken but I inject it with crab scent (like pork butt or turkey, minus the crab scent) then freeze it.  Works well with minimal mess.  As for sea lions not liking it I experienced them seeming to like it a lot, maybe the crab scent is a bad idea?