# Eel for Drum



## Mumbo_Pungo (Dec 8, 2014)

Was reading a thread in the open forum where someone mentioned using Eel in the surf. Was wondering if any of you had experience using this. I have used it to catch large stripers in the ocean and large Catfish in rivers. I would think a Drum would readily hit one but i doubt its a food source they often see in the surf (i could be wrong). Have any of you ever fished Eel in the surf or do you think it could work? Would be nice because its tough as nails and stays on a hook great.


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## Benji (Nov 19, 2014)

I've seen it work on a pier. Cut like catfish bait. Butch on seagull used it all the time.


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## Hikes run (Aug 9, 2015)

Was gifted a few one time after letting a fellow use my cutting board on the beach. I chunked it and caught some blues......wasn't anywhere near drum season. I don't think they're overly oily which is why I think mullet/bunker/tuna belly work so well. Will they eat it? Yah, I think so. When they're around and feeding they'll eat just about anything that smells fishy. I've seen them throw up whole baby stingrays already so they certainly aren't afraid of live baits.


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## gshivar (Aug 29, 2006)

Mid '90's till ~2005 spent a week striper fishing from surf Oregon Inlet area. Live eels were preferred bait. Caught no drum on them. Did catch a few drum on cut mullet. Eels would pour out Oregon Inlet on Falling water. Many stripers had eels in their stomach. Also, have used live eels for cobia. This is by no means conclusive, but I choose cut bait / heads for drum. good luck - glenn


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## ASK4Fish (May 4, 2005)

Yeah as you saw in that thread I used to use them on seagull pier up here in VA. Used to save all the eels all summer long that were leftovers from cobia fishing or ones that had been killed by sharks and rays on the bottom or blues on top. Put em in the freezer individually and would always carry a few as back UPS to fresher spot/mullet that would end up getting chunked up through the night. As was also mentioned, Butch would even buy live eels from time to time to chunk up. That said again I've never tried them from the beach, but in response to the guy about them not having much scent, after being frozen and thawed, they STUNK... drum didn't mind, and even throwing eel chunks as a back up bait against fresh baita like spot heads/ mullet/ tuna belly I'd still get plenty of hits and caught drum on the old chunked eel...


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## Mumbo_Pungo (Dec 8, 2014)

Thanks for the responses. I tried some cut eel when bottom fishing for drum last year in the pamlico sound. If I remember I think we caught a big sea turtle on it.... Nothing caught drum that day though.


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## Blueberry (Oct 16, 2018)

As a cut bait, I am guessing that they are just that. As far as a live bait? I have two words; cobia candy. The trick is using them for sight casting. When I fish them on a bottom rig I can't keep the sharks off of them.


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## Benji (Nov 19, 2014)

Blueberry said:


> As a cut bait, I am guessing that they are just that. As far as a live bait? I have two words; cobia candy. The trick is using them for sight casting. When I fish them on a bottom rig I can't keep the sharks off of them.


under a float 1 to 2 foot from bottom. More cobia less sharks.


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## Scooter (Mar 6, 2005)

I would rather use them than nothing! Drum will eat about anything they can catch. Always prefer the usual suspect (mullet, shad (menhaden/bunker), spots, bluefish, and pinfish). We've caught plenty of old drum on trout (speckled and gray), croakers, bluefish, spanish mackeral, sea mullet (whiting), wiffles (Atlantic threadfin herring/grass shad), hard crabs, and soft crabs.


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## beagle (Jun 9, 2009)

....And an extremely tough and long lasting bait. Cut one up, keep in ziplok with pogey oil, and all is well.

Long ago and far away I used to have several eel pots that I ran and the biggest eels, (24" +), would be sold to a couple of special folks, surf fishers, who would skin the eels, one cut around the neck and pull the whole thing off like a sock. Then remove the hooks from their biggest popper, slide that up and choke tie it to the swivel ring, cut tiny slits and re-attach the hooks and come back in a couple of days from a trip and holler, "Comere kid!" while I was delivering papers and slip a filet as long as my leg wrapped in newspaper into my newspaper sack. Striper fillet. 
I used that some years later and the action on it is something to behold. I have always wanted to try it on Cobia but just cannot seem to find any big eels enough. I have rigged some skins for white marlin some years ago for pitched baits and they were struck.
Everything eats an eel.


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## Mumbo_Pungo (Dec 8, 2014)

beagle said:


> ....And an extremely tough and long lasting bait. Cut one up, keep in ziplok with pogey oil, and all is well.
> 
> Long ago and far away I used to have several eel pots that I ran and the biggest eels, (24" +), would be sold to a couple of special folks, surf fishers, who would skin the eels, one cut around the neck and pull the whole thing off like a sock. Then remove the hooks from their biggest popper, slide that up and choke tie it to the swivel ring, cut tiny slits and re-attach the hooks and come back in a couple of days from a trip and holler, "Comere kid!" while I was delivering papers and slip a filet as long as my leg wrapped in newspaper into my newspaper sack. Striper fillet.
> I used that some years later and the action on it is something to behold. I have always wanted to try it on Cobia but just cannot seem to find any big eels enough. I have rigged some skins for white marlin some years ago for pitched baits and they were struck.
> Everything eats an eel.


Gonna need a picture or be more descriptive on that rig. Sounds interesting!


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