Shops that stock eelskins

[Pete F.]

Some shops will gladly sell you the monster eels. I bought 2 dozen at the end of last season and that reminds me.

[luds]

Spot burners .......................

[Mr. Sandman]

I bet if you are a regular...the shop owner would give you a few dead ones you can skin...it is not that hard. I know you want the real big diameter ones and you could ask for them to be put aside in the freezer...perhaps pay him in advance for them or spend some real coin in his shop.... and ask him to freeze the giant snakes for you as he comes across them.

He is right, they last a long time in and out of the bait freezer. I don't use the kosher salt storage method as I find the salt is too harsh on the plug hardware.

That said, I haven't fished them in a 3 or so years. They are a little cumbersome to deal with. But they do indeed work esp when you have the wind at your back.


Now we have to worry about "shop burning"

[l.i.fish.in.vt]

makes me sad to think of all the big dead eels i throw away last season

[numbskull]

Big eels for an eel fisherman and big eels for a plug guy are two separate things. If you want an skin to go over an Atom 40 or large Danny you are going to have to trap it yourself, or maybe get some from a fish market.

Skinning them alive is stupid and unneccesary, which is why Flap advocates it. Better to just throw them in a bucket with some dry Kosher salt........kills them and gets the slime off in about 15".

[PaulS]

Originally Posted by numbskull

Big eels for an eel fisherman and big eels for a plug guy are two separate things. If you want an skin to go over an Atom 40 or large Danny you are going to have to trap it yourself, or maybe get some from a fish market.

Skinning them alive is stupid and unneccesary, which is why Flap advocates it. Better to just throw them in a bucket with some dry Kosher salt........kills them and gets the slime off in about 15".

I was going to comment on the skinning them alive method but didn't. A painless way to kill them is to put them in a bucket of water and slowly (over 10 -15 min.) add kosher salt. I think dropping them in dry salt would hurt them needlessly. Freezing them doesn't take that long either.

[Flaptail]

Originally Posted by numbskull

Big eels for an eel fisherman and big eels for a plug guy are two separate things. If you want an skin to go over an Atom 40 or large Danny you are going to have to trap it yourself, or maybe get some from a fish market.

Skinning them alive is stupid and unneccesary, which is why Flap advocates it. Better to just throw them in a bucket with some dry Kosher salt........kills them and gets the slime off in about 15".

It's so nice to be loved.

[piemma]

Another way to get eelskins is to ask your local bait shop. I asked Beverly at Big Bear in Glocester RI and she got me 2 dozen from her bait supplier. They were big skins that had been salted and dried. I still have a few and they are perfect after 5 years.