Good info as always Cornell! Last time (and the only time, lol) I made a dough bait I just made boilie dough. It smelled terrific! All I caught on it were Catfish though

So I'll share my secret dough ball recipe. As a kid growing up in Central Indiana, the only real fishing I could do with my friends was on the banks of the then polluted White River, and carp were the only fish to target. I got this recipe from an old man I would seek out in the early mornings after I finished my paper route. I'm talking early 1960s:

In a sauce pan, pour one can of creamed corn, and one can of water. Bring this to a boil. Stir in one can of corn meal, stirring constantly until thick...about 10 minutes. Let it cool (that was the hard part) before spooning it into tin foil.

My family would wake up to a corn filled household, but I was long gone by then. The sinkers I used were dead spark plugs I got from the local gas station in exchange for a few newspapers I had left over from my route. I'd find a forked stick to prop up my rod with the bail open, and wait for the line to spool out. Pick-up the rod, close the bail, and strike hard...they seemed like torpedoes to a 10 year old.

Thank You kaboboom!! I may take you up on that offer soon. I plan to be in Dallas mid April for about a week.

Oh, what a beautiful memories!!
Thank you so much for sharing!

Kind of surprised the buffs and carp here in Hubbard are so cookie-cutter in size...buffs in the mid 20s/carp between 8-12 lbs. And the carp and buffs, despite the size difference, fight about the same. I still like my level winds better than spinning reels when fishing vertical with a tight drag. Slamming the handle in a rod holders when I get a sustained but light bite is still working, and I get most hook-ups on the upper lips with no gill fouled buffs since I went to a short hook link up from the sinker.

Since people feed the carp for fun at the Lynn Creek Marina at Joe Pool Lake,
you cannot see the water for the carp