I’m still new to the shrimping…I have always made the bait balls in the boat on the way out. Using Bait Binder.
How many of you make them the night before? or on the way out?
Any advantage one way or the other?
Just thinking if I made them the night before, I could drink hot coffee and eat my sausage biscut on the way out…
If you do make them the night/day before, put them in a Ziplock bag. Besides funkifying the air, they will dry out and crack if you don’t seal them up. I like a little Bait Binder with my biscuit…
I make them the night before. If you make patties, about the size of a large burger, you can stack them in gallon ziplock lying flat. Put four in, then a sheet of wax paper, then four on top of the wax paper, repeat until you fill the bag. If you just stack them on top of eachother without the wax paper, they stick together and fall apart when you take them out.
I then just put them in the beer/bait fridge overnight.
2014 Key West 203DFS
1987 Landau
Thanks for the info… I believe I will make them up this evening. The zip lock bag sounds good to me.
Thanks
SkyKing1
You can also use one of those buckets that swimming pool salt comes in…has a screw on top…separate layers of patties with plastic garbage bags. Works well and lets you enjoy the boat ride out…
Fishing is a prefectible art…in which nevertheless, no man is perfect – Gifford Pinchot
Key West Sportsman 1720
Ice Blue Pathfinder 2200
“Kemosabe”
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I frequently make them up ahead of time and put them in one of those large cat litter containers with bags or wax paper in between, then freeze them in the chest freezer. They seem to last a little longer and dont break apart as much on the ride out. Your mileage may vary.
JT
If man is not fit to govern himself, how can he be fit to govern asomeone else? Crisis is the rallying cry of the tyrant.
They actually freeze quite well. Makes the veggies taste kinda funny though…[:0]
I set poles when the sun is still up. Then I anchor and make 30 baitballs (meal and clay) while solving various world problems. I drop 3 bail balls (really patties) per pole about 30 minutes before the sun gets on the horizon. That way the bait is fresh when the shrimp come in just after sunset.
spec
1980 Skandia 21 w/ '93 JohnRude 150 gas drinker
quote:
They actually freeze quite well. Makes the veggies taste kinda funny though......
I reckon so[:0] If I put those in my wife’s freezer she would kill me 
I’ve never baited shrimp in my life, nor ever made a bait ball, but I used to have a neighbor who did it commercially many years ago. He had an old contractor type of concrete mixer, gas engine powered. He would mix fish meal with black river mud and clay by the shovel full. He had a formula like mixing concrete, I don’t know what it was, but he’d make about 500 pounds at a time. Then he would form them into patties about like a big hamburger and put them out in the sun to dry. He dried them about as hard as a brick, then stored them in burlap feed sacks.He usually only made 2 or 3 batches a season. I never went with him, but he caught a lot of shrimp!
Capt. Larry Teuton
Swamp Worshiper
I use two parts white clay to one part meal. I used an old cement mixer for a few years till the motor froze up. I always thought the bait balls would dry out and float if frozen, although I never tried it.
I used a big, battery powered drill with a long paint stirrer to mix bait on the water till that also froze up.
I don’t like to make bait balls at home. I prefer to use river water to “wet” the bait. It seems like everyone has their own way of baiting shrimp. The shrimp don’t care. They love menhaden meal!
spec
1980 Skandia 21 w/ '93 JohnRude 150 gas drinker
Likely doesn’t matter. I make mine out of convenience for me. If i’m going tomorrow during the day light hours I’ll make them the nught before. If I am going tonight I make them when I got free time during that day. It’s one less rhing to worry about doing when I get out there. Plus I could be fishing instead of making bait on the water. I make my patties and lay 1 them in my 48qt cooler in layers separated by wax paper. I sprinkle some water (sparse amount) on each layer then shut cooler. This keeps the patties moist for a long time. After 24hrs they start growing some righteous smelling mold - takes a good bleaching to get that funk out. Keep out of the sun/heat. I bring a 5gal bucket for boat. I throw 2 patties per pole then pht remained in 5gal in case I need to rebait and then load up cooler woth shrimp. I find this takes up less space, is cleaner and really handy on days when you get on water at slack or a little too soon to set up- might as well fish instead of getting your hands all nasty and then messing up your boat.
On occassion I bring a 1gal ziploc with 2:1 ratio clay:meal dry in case I need more bait. Just dump it in 5gal and add some good ole seawater. This helps avoid making too many bait balls and wasting bait.
I use to make mine in a cement mixer and let them dry in the sun on a pc. of plywood on 2 saw horses. Came home the next afternoon and they were all gone! Made some more and caught my dog eating them.
I got the bright idea of getting out of the boat and setting the poles above the water line at dead low tide one time. I carefully laid my bait balls on the mud in front of each pole with precision. Then I got back in the boat and watched the seagulls have a feast on my baitballs! Won’t do that again!
spec
1980 Skandia 21 w/ '93 JohnRude 150 gas drinker
I make mine on the boat on the way to the spot. I use a 5 gallon bucket to mix the ingredients and make the patties afterwards and let them sit while we set the poles
quote:
Originally posted by specI got the bright idea of getting out of the boat and setting the poles above the water line at dead low tide one time. I carefully laid my bait balls on the mud in front of each pole with precision. Then I got back in the boat and watched the seagulls have a feast on my baitballs! Won’t do that again!
spec
1980 Skandia 21 w/ '93 JohnRude 150 gas drinker
^^^Ha! Now that’s a funny story!^^^