live bunker

[Alberto]

When i see a blitz, My buddy and I motor up (not through) and we snag a few bunker. Here's the question. where do you hook the live bunker? how do you rig it? and how do you handle it, like feeding line out or keep it tight to the boat?

Every time I've tried this I come up with half a bunker, and no fish

[angus63]

Small bunker I lip hook, larger bunker I hook thru the back about 2-3" behind the head. Seems more effective to me.

[RJ]

Single Hook or Treble Hooks?

Single Hooks trough an OPEN mouth and out the nostiril or throgh the back in front fo the dorsal.

Treble Hooks through an open mouth and out the nose or in the back

If you hook any bait fish through both lips you are essentially sewing his mouth shut and he won't be able to breathe...

[cowkiller]

wHEN YOU APPROACH A SCHOOL OF BUNKER, Stay close but not to close.Use a 7/0 bunker snagger, snag the bunker and put the reel in free spool.Do not reel in the bunker and re hook it, Let the bunker swim with the snag hook in him.
The bass will swallow the bunker and snagger. Try to pull the bunker AWAY from the school , as the bass will be on the outside of the school picking up the pieces left over from the bluefish. If the bluefish are a problem you gotta get the bunker down below them. You could add an egg sinker for added weight.
The schools of bunker you want to fish look like a whirlpool very tight and on the surface, stay away from the schools that are just flipping around. Find a school that is very tight and on the surface in a whirlpool, you will notice they dont flip when there are big bass under them.Snag one with the snagger and hold it there in free spool and hold on it wont be long until a bas sniffs him out.
Now if you are getting bunker to take to another location to fish (not the bunker schools) a good live well is important.Dont put to many bunker in the well at one time, They shound be able to swim freely without touching each other.Hooking a live bunker should be done one way and that is through the nostrals never through the mouth like rich says it will kill them. Depending where you hook your bunker will effect ho it swims, If you hook a bunker near the tail he will always swim upwards. If you hook a bunker in the belly he will go down to the left or rite.Hook em in the nostral and he swims as natural as ever, especally in a good running tide. Less stress on the bait as well this way as you are not drifting a bunker sideways in the tide.
Try these tips this season and I will bet you put more and bigger bass in the box,, joe

[Clam I am]

You may also want to attach a piece of wire onto a weighted snagger for those pesky bluefish

[Alberto]

if there are blues around i should use and egg sinker.... so if Im all set and i snag a bunker, I should already have an egg sinker on??? or re tie a rig..

[cowkiller]

Alberto, it depends if the blues are there or not.Sometimes its just bass on those pods of bunker, you will know once you get BIT OFF.If there are no blues just snag and hold, if the blues are present use the lead and get it down underneath them for the bass,,joe

[Alberto]

thanks Joe..