Scent for Squid Jigs

[The Asian Squid]

Hi guys. 

Just wanted to know if there were any squid jig scents that you used that work especially well, could be store bought or even homemade. 

I saw AKA Mikes use a sauce, but i wanted to make it at home, any suggestions?

[Restyle]

I think it’s just another fishing marketing scam, squid are mostly a sight hunter and don’t have that great of a sense of smell. 

[faker]

They say em at tackle store but waste of time. Just slap some s factor on

[The Asian Squid]

Thanks guys, I'll probably use one of those pro cure scents.

Would the scent in the image work on some squid jigs?

[DerekD]

Hi @The Asian Squid,

I agree with @Restyle that squid are a visual predator so movement is probably a far more effective way to get a squid's attention. By the time the squid smells the scent the lure is probably meters away and again it comes to sight hunting. There are probably a lot of other scents in the water so why would they zero in on yours. Early in my squidding career I tried using scent but then decided I didn't like the way it stains my jigs so stopped using it.

How well a scent works is a difficult question to respond to as you have insufficient information to make an good decision. Considering the only data points you have are you and maybe a fishing mate, how do you test the effectiveness of a scent? If you cast it out without scent and don't get a squid then is it the lack of scent or are they not there or not playing. You would have to head out multiple times with multiple jigs with a mixture of scented and unscented and then cast to the same location and work the lures back in the same way to start to build up some data. Personally I couldn't be bothered so this will likely remain an academic question for me.

The biggest impact of the scent is probably on you. Maybe it gives you that extra bit of confidence so you work that lure a little better. Maybe the scent convinces the squid to hold on that bit longer but if they are close enough to grab the jig then they usually will at some stage.

Good luck and I'm interested in how your data collecting goes.

Regards,

Derek

[The Asian Squid]

Thank you for the detailed response Derek, much appreciated.

Taking in what you said it probably isn't worth the 20 bucks that they cost and I already have a wide variety of squid jigs.

Thanks

[sashkello]

Never did I have a session when scent produced some bite when there was none before. All it did was give me false hope. Same algo: I start normally, begin losing hope, add scent, still nothing. When I get one squid I typically will get another 2-3 in next 30 minutes, and forget about the scent completely. 

Oh, and it does give your jigs hard-to-remove unpleasant odour which permeates everything, so there's that... 

Edited March 26 by sashkello

[DerekD]

Hi @The Asian Squid

BTW did you read this one yet?

 

[The Asian Squid]

On 3/27/2024 at 9:59 AM, sashkello said:

Never did I have a session when scent produced some bite when there was none before. All it did was give me false hope. Same algo: I start normally, begin losing hope, add scent, still nothing. When I get one squid I typically will get another 2-3 in next 30 minutes, and forget about the scent completely. 

Oh, and it does give your jigs hard-to-remove unpleasant odour which permeates everything, so there's that... 

Thank you for the tips, again, I have decided to probably not use the scent and this just reaffirms my decision. 

Thank you

[The Asian Squid]

On 3/27/2024 at 10:18 AM, DerekD said:

Hi @The Asian Squid

BTW did you read this one yet?

 

Yes, and thanks Derek, I have just about read all the squidding articles across the community and have gathered some decent information.

Any tips on colours for jigs and what conditions to use them for?

Plus, is the piers a good spot for squid, and if so which pier?

I was looking to head out Sunday to catch some kingies with live squid and butterflied yakkas.

Thanks

[sashkello]

Regarding colours, yeah, another thing to catch people rather than squid... 90% of the time pure white works just as well as any other (or even better than any other). Black might be better at night. Pink or other bright maybe with a pattern is an option for higher visibility in murky water. If going out in the dark, good glow is more important than colour, so get a UV torch if so and make sure your jigs glow. I'm hardly a seasoned squidder, but all I have ever caught was on the three aforementioned colours, plus red/white half-and-half which is also pretty popular. I've noticed pink sometimes scares smaller squid away, but on the other hand when they seem not to see black/white, pink produced a reaction, but that happened like 2-3 times for me. Would guess other bright colours might work similarly in such situations... But as I said, white should be your go-to and the probability that colour change will be essential is not high...

More important is the size actually - don't stock up on those 3.5 giant ones, they will scare majority of squid away. To start, you want to get the feel for it and catch something instead of targeting giants... Get a range of sizes from 1.5 to 3 - any squid would typically take 2.2, even tiny ones, but also you will find that in different conditions you will prefer to use different sizes based on how quickly they sink and where and how fast the current is flowing. Tiny jigs can be used in still water with extremely sluggish retrieve. I.e., if it's shallow and the weed is like a meter down, then large jig will sink too fast and you'll have to pull it at a very high rate, and get snagged all the time anyway. But if there's current, you'll have to use a heavier one to be able to work it properly.... A lot can be said about it, just try different ways and see how it goes at your location. Sometimes you simply suspend it off the edge and they take it, sometimes they will not commit unless you speed it up and make them think it will flee unless they grab it in earnest. 

For places, they can be found almost anywhere with weedy bottom / kelp forests - just look at satellite images on google maps. If you're looking to go to a pier, then they like structure, and in all likelihood any pier would do. I reckon more important is to cover some ground - from what I've noticed they can hang in water static or move around 10-20 square meters area for hours, so if you cover all area around and get no touches or follows, then move. Take polarized sunnies if it's daytime and you'll be able to see shapes moving after your jig if they are interested. If they simply aren't there, they won't touch the juiciest jig you've got... 

 

[The Asian Squid]

Thank you for this response sash, I have definetly gained some info, appreciate the words and I will try some of this advice out of my next squidding session.

Thanks