As for my bait of choice it's a punch bait that's a south Texas thing called "Big Marv's."
Sure, you still can't beat live bait, or fresh cut bait for the bigger cats, but if you are looking to fill a freezer with eaters, you can't beat a stinky punch bait like Marv's.
There have been times while fishing for those eaters, those big blues will eat a #6 treble of Big Marv's if you are fishing in the right spot! My biggest on that punch bait was 25# and several in the teens. You think you hooked the bottom when you set the hook, until it starts to move off, and you struggle to keep the fish off the bottom and not break your 12# test line.

Nightcrawlers. I catch more fish of every type with nightcrawlers, especial European nightcrawlers. You won't catch many monsters, but you will catch a lot of fish.

I don't really have a favorite. Over life I have used everything. So the bait I like the most is the one turtles will leave alone.


Game fish being illegal in Texas. But fish waste isn't. The heads left over from cleaning fish. The parts you throw away.


The mean and nasty catfish love a fish head.


Found a dead lizard in the outside AC. He was still fresh but dead. Frozen and thawed by casting him in the water. Something bit him off and left his head on the hook while reeling him in. Pretty sure that was a bass.

WHAT THE HELL???? ..... shrimp is the #1 bait for everything!!!!!

liver on circle hooks
night crawlers

One the better baits I've seen. Especially used on a trotline. Grasshoppers

Caught late at night with a flashlight and a milk jug. Holes stabbed in the jug. Picking them off tall weeds.

Stuck in the fridge when you get home. They go silent. Dormant. But once they warm back up. They start clicking.

It's not a super bait but it'll catch eaters. Sorta clean and doesn't sink that bad. Hook them right behind the head. Through the main body.

I'm sure some of y'all have heard about preserved Asian carp slabs.

About two months ago. I plopped down $10 plus $5 shipping for a package of the stuff. Just to try. Have something easy at arms reach early in the morning. I watched all the videos. Read all the reviews.

Long story short. I haven't caught anything besides...Turtles...with it. I've tested it against fresh cut bait and dough bait. Carp on one pole, the other baits on another. Fished the same time. Everything but the carp got bites.

Maybe it's where I fish. Maybe the time of the year. Or maybe it's complete garbage and I would have had better luck. Putting the $10 bill on the hook instead of the carp.

I've used it by itself and smeared with some Pro-Cure anise. At a different time, the Crappie formula. Still nothing.


I'm not trying to roll the company that makes it but this is that Dark Water Premium Baits. Plain asian carb. No extra flavoring added. I've had zero luck with it.

Danny kings punch bait for eater catfish

For channels I would normally use big marvs punch bait, but apparently he isn’t able to make it anymore. I still have about 3 gallons left so I will have to find another punch bait to take it’s place
For blues it used to be shad but for the last year or so I’ve been doing really good with chicken breast flavored and unflavored , doesn’t seem to make much difference

The best bait for MONSTER catfish is a big ole chunk of smelly cheddar cheese. I caught this one on it, and had an epic battle getting it to the shore *.



* then I woke up!

Question about this... Specifically the part about game fish waste.My read on bait regulations states that it is illegal to use game fish or parts of game fish as bait. Thus, I do not think you can legally use fish waste in Texas.

We used to run short lines when I was young, and we used grasshoppers often. Basically a short trot line. 5-6 hooks. We'd just wade out about thigh deep with rebar at each end of it, hammer it in. Put out 4-5 of them. Simpler times. Used to wear 'em out.