Leeches: Gulp! Alive! vs. The Real Thing

[Geezle]

So ever since I was a kid, when baitfishing I have always used real bait.

I've glanced at the Gulp Alive products before, but never looked too seriously at them because of the price, and because I'm not really familiar with them.

Where I fish on the NSR I've mainly been using dew worms for sturgeon, but I'm going to be going into walleye mode right away so I'll probably be changing some things up.

That got me thinking about leeches. Leeches are great bait, but they're expensive, and aren't available all the time. Then I saw the tubs of Gulp Alive leeches, and suddenly they don't seem like such a bad idea. They definitely have a good 'look' to them if nothing else. The fact that they can be stored and won't go bad is another plus.

So for anybody who has used these, or any other flavor of the Gulp Alive products, what did you think of it? How's the action?

After searching through the forum I did see that it's a good idea to 'recharge' them in the tub of juice after about 10-12 casts. How well do they hold up to being taken off and put back on to the hooks? Do they get tore up or are they pretty solid?

I'm thinking I'll at very least pick up one of the ziplock packs of them to try out, but if I get enough positive feedback on them, I may splurge and get the tub so I can recharge them.

[Wulfespirit]

I've used them on two occasions this year. Both times were when the wally bite was pretty good. The gulp alive leeches seemed to produce pretty well - maybe just a touch slower than the real thing. On the positive side, they don't get shredded near as fast as the real thing (though they do eventually get chewed up) and you don't have any issues keeping them on barbless hooks.

[Smokey]

Used the in Northern Saskatchewan. The fish weren't buyin them. I would not bank on them as my only bait.

[Geezle]

Used the in Northern Saskatchewan. The fish weren't buyin them. I would not bank on them as my only bait.

No, I definitely wouldn't bank on them as my only bait...especially since I've never used them before! I'll still be tossing real worms and minnows out there, just thought that these Alive! leeches might be a good option to have on hand as well.

[bsnyder]

:wave:I have had some sucsess with the 5" ones. They look very real and if towed behind a spinner rig they work quite well, but if you are doing a slow presentation like a lindy or slipbobber i prefer the real thig, the bigger the better:DVanity Cup comeing up , Ill be useing the real thing:wave:

[Geezle]

:wave:I have had some sucsess with the 5" ones. They look very real and if towed behind a spinner rig they work quite well, but if you are doing a slow presentation like a lindy or slipbobber i prefer the real thig, the bigger the better:DVanity Cup comeing up , Ill be useing the real thing:wave:

I just noticed on TFH's website that both the 3" and 5" ones are on sale...might have to pick up a tub!

Not sure really how they'd work for presentation in my situation.

For lack of a better description I'd be using them on something like a drop shot rig, so they'd be sitting up off the bottom in the current of the river.

Any thoughts on that particular presentation?

[bsnyder]

I just noticed on TFH's website that both the 3" and 5" ones are on sale...might have to pick up a tub!

Not sure really how they'd work for presentation in my situation.

For lack of a better description I'd be using them on something like a drop shot rig, so they'd be sitting up off the bottom in the current of the river.

Any thoughts on that particular presentation?

:wave:if there is current to put a little movement in them I would try them, use the 5" , blck with gold flecks.Seemed to work the best.:DI thought they would let go with the unnatural texture but they actually will hold on and swaller them.Good LUK:D

[Geezle]

:wave:if there is current to put a little movement in them I would try them, use the 5" , blck with gold flecks.Seemed to work the best.:DI thought they would let go with the unnatural texture but they actually will hold on and swaller them.Good LUK:D

Cool, thanks for the advice...one of the things I wasn't sure about was which size to get. I suppose if I really wanted both sizes I could always just get a tub of one size, and then a smaller bag of the other just to try both out. I don't want to overdo it though, in case I decide that these things just aren't for me.

From what I've read while searching the forum, it seems like with the Gulp Alive products, either people like them, or they don't.

[Wulfespirit]

They don't outfish the real thing as Berkeley claims but they don't seem too far behind in my experience. I will certainly use them again.

I'd grab both sizes and try them in different situations.

The one gulp product I will never buy again is there small sized earthworms (in a jar). I've been in situations where small perch were biting like mad.. and then another time where rainbows were biting like mad... tried the gulp worms and it was like the fish disappeared.

[SCRUB]

I used the gulp 5 and 3 inch ones trolling for walleye with a bottom bouncer and they worked very well, I did have some of the real ones but they didn't produce any more then the gulp leeches.

[bsnyder]

Cool, thanks for the advice...one of the things I wasn't sure about was which size to get. I suppose if I really wanted both sizes I could always just get a tub of one size, and then a smaller bag of the other just to try both out. I don't want to overdo it though, in case I decide that these things just aren't for me.

From what I've read while searching the forum, it seems like with the Gulp Alive products, either people like them, or they don't.

:wave:we use them as an alternate when other things arnt working so well or at Pigeon and Slave when your catching 100 small fish a day.I have a tupperwhare container in the boat with a good lid and dump 5: leeches, white hollow bodies, white grubs and 3-5" minnows all in the same stinky tub.Works grat, but they do stink:tongue2:

[Geezle]

They don't outfish the real thing as Berkeley claims but they don't seem too far behind in my experience. I will certainly use them again.

I'd grab both sizes and try them in different situations.

The one gulp product I will never buy again is there small sized earthworms (in a jar). I've been in situations where small perch were biting like mad.. and then another time where rainbows were biting like mad... tried the gulp worms and it was like the fish disappeared.

How small are the small size earthworms?

I'm just curious since it seems like earthworms are pretty much the standard bait where I'm usually fishing. I was looking at the bigger ones when I was at The Wal earlier today, but wasn't sure, and real earthworms are always available.

[Geezle]

:wave:we use them as an alternate when other things arnt working so well or at Pigeon and Slave when your catching 100 small fish a day.I have a tupperwhare container in the boat with a good lid and dump 5: leeches, white hollow bodies, white grubs and 3-5" minnows all in the same stinky tub.Works grat, but they do stink:tongue2:

Wait, so you just have a tupperware container full of the juice from one of the tubs, and then just toss some regular plastics in there for flavor? :confused:

[Wulfespirit]

They're a tiny bit smaller than the 'trout worms' you'd buy at the fishing hole. Once again - DO NOT USE them. Terrible bait - my 90% full jar was tossed into the garbage bin after two uses. In the hot bite situations I was in, I'm sure I would've gotten bites on a rolled up piece of toilet paper yet the worms got nothing.

[Geezle]

They're a tiny bit smaller than the 'trout worms' you'd buy at the fishing hole. Once again - DO NOT USE them. Terrible bait - my 90% full jar was tossed into the garbage bin after two uses. In the hot bite situations I was in, I'm sure I would've gotten bites on a rolled up piece of toilet paper yet the worms got nothing.

Ok, so not too big...I normally only buy the jumbo dew worms from TFH, but I've looked at the trout worms so I've got an idea.

I think with the worms anyway, it's just as easy to pick up the real ones, they're always available and not terribly expensive...and if I don't use them up fishing I can feed them to my lizards!

[Wulfespirit]

No arguements but it'd be nice if Berkeley came up with something that'd let me catch 80-100% of the fish I'd catch with real worms yet saved me a trip to the tackle shop.

Even the gulp maggots (while being better than the worms) ended up fishing a fair amount slower on the perch. Though I didn't have real maggots to compare at the time. I'm going to give them a shot this winter most likely.

I'm not a gulp/powerbait hater by any means though. I use plenty of their products for trout and, as I said, the leeches did pretty well for me this summer.

[jrcw]

I use Berkley products fairly often and agree that they are sometimes close to as good as the real thing. I've considered using the leeches but haven't yet. I'd like to use them with a slip bobber rig for walleyes, but like 'bsynder' said they probably wouldn't have the right action.

[bsnyder]

Wait, so you just have a tupperware container full of the juice from one of the tubs, and then just toss some regular plastics in there for flavor? :confused:

:wave:i get a tub each of our favorites and mix them all together, and yes ill even throw in other plastics as well;)you pay a lot for the stink, might as well get as much use out of it as possible:D

[Waxy]

:wave:I have had some sucsess with the 5" ones. They look very real and if towed behind a spinner rig they work quite well, but if you are doing a slow presentation like a lindy or slipbobber i prefer the real thig, the bigger the better:DVanity Cup comeing up , Ill be useing the real thing:wave:

This is my experience as well -

If it's a reaction bite - trolling bouncers/spinners, working jigs, etc..., they work pretty well, almost as good as the real thing, but never as effective.

If it's a subtle bite - rigging, slip bobbers, dragging jigs, etc..., they simply can't compete with the real thing.

That pretty much goes for all the Gulp/Powerbait stuff.

Waxy

[jesse34567]

It's not say they don't out fish the real thing i have had plenty of times were i have been fishing with minnows and caught nothing especially on the days were there just nibbling on it

With gulp they inhale it every time and my catch to lost ratio has improved greatly.

[Cal]

I'v used the 3" leaches, 3" florescent yellow curly tail grub/minnow things and texas rigged 5" plastic worms . Other than the worms I fish them on a spinner rig behind a bottom bouncer and while I dont think they outfish the real thing I think often I can catch more fish on them because I do not waste time rebaiting between fish and if I miss a strike I dont have to pull my rig up and see if the bait is still on. The slower the presentaint and the slower the bite the worse they work though.

The gulp trout worms are complete garbage though, I took some allong on my alaska road trip and they were pretty much the only thing in my tackle box that the fish WOULDNT bite. In the Yukon grayling would sometimes hit a bare hook and they still wouldnt bite those worms!

[Wulfespirit]

The gulp trout worms are complete garbage though, I took some allong on my alaska road trip and they were pretty much the only thing in my tackle box that the fish WOULDNT bite. In the Yukon grayling would sometimes hit a bare hook and they still wouldnt bite those worms!

Haha... that mirrors my experience pretty well. Did berkeley bother to test these things?

[slickinfinite]

I am not a fan of gulp power baits, used the maggots/minnows/worms and havnt caught a single fish on them in places where real worms/minnows have landed me a few. I do use the gulp alive spray where allowed and it does seem to work well on the bait as I do seem to get more bites.

[Geezle]

In the Yukon grayling would sometimes hit a bare hook and they still wouldnt bite those worms!
Wow, those worms must suck even more than I expected...I'll definitely be avoiding them!

[Geezle]

Well, I was by TFH earlier today and grabbed a little 'bucket' of the 5" Jumbo Leeches in black (they didn't have the ones with the red flecks, but they did have a couple other oddball color combos) while they're still on sale. I was thinking about getting a bucket of the 3" ones as well, but I think I'll try these ones out first before I invest too much money into them. I might get a bag of the 3" ones with the black flecks and just toss them in the stink juice though.

Also, does anybody actually know how many of these things come in a bucket? I tried searching the net but all I'm coming up with is that it's a 12oz bucket.

[dodger]

Gulp Maggots work for me with the Perch, and as mentioned no time wasted rebaiting after every nibble. The leeches work real good for me and I also have thrown all my plastics into one stinky tupperware.
Dodger.

[Geezle]

Good to know, I'm sure I'll be looking at the Gulp! maggots come hard water season :)


Also, for those of you using the leeches, do you just stick them on the hook like you would a live leech, or do you thread them on more like a regular plastic? :confused:

[dodger]

I thread my Gulp Leech like a regular plastic on black jig heads.
Dodger.

[Cal]

I thread em on the hook like a jig. Seems like I get less short strikes and it makes it harder for the fish to pull them off.

[Geezle]

I thread my Gulp Leech like a regular plastic on black jig heads.
Dodger.

I thread em on the hook like a jig. Seems like I get less short strikes and it makes it harder for the fish to pull them off.

Thanks guys, I was thinking the same thing as far as less short strikes and them staying on better...just wanted confirmation, especially since I'll be using mine a little differently, on a snelled hook out in the current, instead of on a jig :)

How do you guys find they hold up after being put on/taken off the hook a few times that way to 'recharge' them? Do they stay pretty intact or do they get kinda shredded?

[bsnyder]

Thanks guys, I was thinking the same thing as far as less short strikes and them staying on better...just wanted confirmation, especially since I'll be using mine a little differently, on a snelled hook out in the current, instead of on a jig :)

How do you guys find they hold up after being put on/taken off the hook a few times that way to 'recharge' them? Do they stay pretty intact or do they get kinda shredded?

:wave:I use a double hook setup like a crawler harness idea , put the first hook through the sucker and the second 1/2 way down , that way it looks exactly like the real thing with an extra hook:D

[Geezle]

:wave:I use a double hook setup like a crawler harness idea , put the first hook through the sucker and the second 1/2 way down , that way it looks exactly like the real thing with an extra hook:D

Okay, I think I follow...do you use this kind of a setup in the river?

Right now what I'm using is basically like a drop shot rig, with a weight at the bottom, and a snelled hook a few inches up...should I just put on a second snelled hook and put one at the front and one half way down?

[Dougie55]

I have spent the last few months researching how the 'Gulp' products, as well as well as a few other brands of artificial baits match up to the real thing.
I fished Slave, South Buck, NSR, Red Deer River, Sturgeon Lake, Pine Lake, Pigeon, and Gull Lake for my test sites.
My findings are as follows:
When the fish are really biting, the different 'enhanced' products worked well, although I was catching equally amount of fish on almost anything I used.
The 'Gulp' Worms though, were a total waste. I caught more fish on a jig with a tail than I did with these. I tried them in almost every situation and method you can name, and they just did not produce.
It is easy to say that these products work well when the fishing is hot, but for the most part, color and size of regular lures seems to do equally, or better than these innovations.
I found on the rivers, that the scent products were far inferior to real bait. It was not even a close comparison in the difference in live bait vs the others.

We had more than one slow periods over the last months due to the heat factor, wind, etc, and I put this all into my comparisons.
In my semi-final decision, the price of these baits far out ways the price you have to pay for them.
Another bad feature of the 'Gulp' Products, which has been brought up before, is that their containers leak terribly.
I have used the various maggot baits at least 50 times over the last two years, and again, find them OK as a backup, but have never found them to match the real thing..this is not even once!!! In particular, I went on three separate ice fishing trips, and when trying everything, even small bacon pieces outfished the new products.
I will use up the different bait products I have to see if I have missed anything, but do not think I will spend the money again to buy these products.
This, as always, is just my opinion.
Doug