I've been seeing guys post they are fishing with live shad for Striper and Hybids.

How do you catch them?

Dip net or cast net?

Where do you find them?

I've seen some flicking on top of the water, but never seen a "ball" of the them. I'm guessing you you could throw a cast net over the one you see on top.

I've never had much luck catching shad even in saltwater. The sabiki rig was my best tool for live bait.

Any way...wanting to try drifting shad for Hybids. Just need some shad!

Get a 5' cast net at BPS or Academy, the one with lead weights. Watch some youtube video's on how to use it. Once you've conquered that PM me and I'll tell you where to catch them. If I can do it you can do it. I'm assuming you have a bait well in your boat. If not forget it. Shad are very hard to keep alive unless you have a real good bait well with good pumps.

GIG'EM AGGIES is over their Private Topic limit.

I caught them in a cast net before in the pass I run out offshore. I know if you look at one cross eye'd he will die instantly...lol...

My boat has a huge live well and the pump will easily flood it. It's nearly as big as the one in my offshore boat. So that I have covered.

Finding the little devil's is what I need to know. The ones we would catch in the pass before running offshore were only there for the first couple weeks of June. Then they would move out into open water.

I can handle up to an 8' cast net...so a 5 footer is a piece of cake!

Freshwater regulations says 7 ft max cast net in Texas. Oklahoma is larger though. Look for shad flipping on top. Throw the net on them. Watch sonar. If you see a school of bait throw the net on them.

Freshwater regulations says 7 ft max cast net in Texas. Oklahoma is larger though. Look for shad flipping on top. Throw the net on them. Watch sonar. If you see a school of bait throw the net on them. Or go to lighted docks at night or early morning. Throw around the dock lights. It�s easier usually.

Cleared my PM's, didn't know I was over. Don't know what lake you fish but at Tawakoni I find them in 2-4 foot of water in sandy areas. My best spot for catching 3-4 " shad is in the mouth of Rabbit Cove but the State Park cove is also an excellent area. At PK I find them in the back of Hells Gate and in the back of Brushy Creek.

I'm fishing lake somerville. It is a very shallow lake compared to many lakes in Texas. The deepest water is 25 feet.

I think I have a spot near the marina that sounds just like what you describe. There is a flat that is very shallow with a sandy bottom.

You can use a 14 foot diameter cast net/7 foot radius net in Texas. That is what I use and recommend. The smaller nets just won't work unless you are in really shallow water. Look for windblown areas as wind concentrates plankton which concentrates shad. Windblown points, flats and contours changes, or coves can be productive. Going after dark/before sun gets up can produce lots of shad around lights such as bridges, marines, and docks. Even knowing these things you still have to learn your lake and figure out where they are and when which is a huge learning curve and no easy task. I strongly recommend keeping notes over your fishing successes and failures including where you found shad and what the time of year, time of day and wind was doing. This will help establish patterns and be priceless if you plan to get good a fishing a body of water.

Monday I found lots of them on a wind-blown point by the boat ramp at FPH while just days later there was nothing there and I found them scattered over a flat and the only way I could catch them is figure out where on the flat they are a little more ganged up, go upwind and drift through the area throwing the casting net a four or five times with the wind as i drifted until I finally got on top of a school in the areas I found them ganged up.

I use a "Bait Buster Cast Nets 1/2" sq. Mesh" 7ft radius/14 foot diameter net off of Amazon for $140. A lot of money but money well spent for your fishing!

Good Luck!

I catch most of my shad with a castnet at places like boat ramps, boat docks, tire barricades, and shallow coves.

Sometimes if I'm fishing at a barge or a dock, I'll use the smallest gold hook that I can find and they'll hit it.