Emerald shiners vs Fatheads

Thought this be a great thread since so many of use  the Emerald shiners and Fatheads on the Tribs. I use Both from time to time and i think the Emerald has just Little more advantage flash wise,,,,,but die rather fast. I usually take whatever i have left home with me dead then soon as a get home i use coarse table salt, salt them down really heavy let them sit in a gallon bag  I  then take them out put new salt on them then take them and seal them in a vacuum sealer,,,,store in the freezer till i need them....Wow boy do they work great for those stockies come trout season i use about 4 pounds a year fishing stockies....give it a try, be great to hear what ever one has to say! thanks...................Centerpin_drift                                                      Get the Drift!       

this is gunna sound dumb but i think the life of minnows depends on where you get them, i love poor richards but their minnows die really fast, smiths...i dont buy em there at all anymore except if im perch fishing...but BAC's minnows have lasted the longest for me (the one on presque isle)...i have two dozen i got there from saturday and only two have died..

i have had the same bucket of fatheads and shiners going on 4 weeks. I have not had one die (except for the ones i use). I change the water in the bucket every day, have a bubbler going all day , and feed them once a day. Keeping them cool helps. What i have found is that if you are willing to put in the time they will last very long

A drop or two of hydrogen peroxide (topical solution for cuts) in the minnie bucket you carry, will keep minnows/fatheads alive and kickin'.
Heat is the big killer.
I live on a farm and I'm lucky to have spring where I keep my minnies, but when I transport them I always use an airator/bubbler.
Those plastic buckets that kitty-litter comes in are great. They are large, rectangular and have a flip-top lid.
Drill a small hole for the air hose, attach the air stone, duct tape your airator on top.

I personally prefer the fatheads because I have found the bigger the minnow the more fish react positively towards it.  I have fished with smaller fatheads out of the same bucket and can drift for a half hour with no response from the fish but as soon as I put a large fathead on they will slam it... Maybe its just in my head but its hard to beat a fathead for just about any fish especially steelhead...IMO

 
Still head would that law apply to using single eggs u buy in the bait store in Erie, during spring trout season down here?

I do not know, good question.  All I know is what is in the link I posted earlier. 

What  I do know is, many of the Salmon eggs you buy in Erie bait and tackle shops are chinook eggs(some coho) from New York and Michigan( there may be some from other places as well, I don't know,  you'd have to ask the baitshops).  Technically the PA law states fish and fish eggs from the Lake Erie watershed, I believe there is a federal law that covers bringing them across state lines, but I don't know whether that covers eggs or just live fish.    

Perhaps I'm reading it wrong, but if it's a "fish or part of a fish including it's eggs" that originated from the lake Erie watershed, then you can't use it for bait outside of the Lake Erie watershed.

If they don't want the eggs from lake erie fish being used elsewhere, I'm sure the eggs from lake O are the same.


Maybe a WCO will read this and help clear things up.

Salted Emralds, and chemically/salt CURED eggs would be safe for use outside the Erie watershed although it is a bit of a gray area as to if it is legal. Salting kills the virus, freezing does NOT. Also the law applies to fish taken from ANY great lake watershed, not just Erie.

Thanks, Andy. That is a change from the initial proposal.

Center,
 
Do you WANT to put your fishery at risk. The law isn't intended to make your life miserable, it is to protect YOUR inland waters. There ARE Emeralds available from certified dealers. Andy could provide more info in that regard than I.

Fathead minnows hands down!  Esp early season low/clear water.
 
-Tim
 
 

i don't mean to be rude, but do you really NEED minnows to catch steel in the Pa streams-- especially with thousands of fish? i have seen jigs/streamers outfish minnows time and time again. just a pain to carry around and unnecessary IMO....

I think it's like fishing anything else that you have confidence in.  I can't fish a jig to save my life, but emerald shiners seem to always, always work, especially later in the season.  Dunno dude...
 
As far as carrying them around...I put them in Ziploc sandwich bags with a little bit of water and I keep them in the pockets of my vest.  I change the water every so often.  When I need one, I just reach into the bag.  It's easier than opening a fly box, LOL.

Fatheads for me.

I like golden shiners.  some flash, nice size, and very hardy.