Sometimes big sharks want big baits and you have to give them what they're feeding on and want.If you can figure out what the big sharks are feeding on when you're out on a shark fishing adventure then you have learned one of the keys to success in this sport(half the battle is getting the shark to bite).Back in the early 80's me and my buddy Rene de Dios were fishing Bahia Honda quite a bit and we were getting tired of getting spooled by the giant hammers every April so I came up with the idea of using a nylon rope with a thick cable rig to stop a monster.In 81 I caught a big tiger 11 ft (485 lbs)on a rope and a half a 50 lb AJ as bait.The following year my brother Jorge hooked one on the rope that probably went 1200 t0 1500 lbs at the same spot "the hump" on Bahia Honda bridge ,,,,,,they could not lift the rope off the rail once the shark got hooked and eventually the cable rig parted .Me and madman Rene were awestruck by the tale of the beast and we wanted that monster back so on one of our many trips to the legendary bridge we caught a blacktip that was close to 6 foot, we put 4 -16/0 triple strength Mustad hooks in it with another fatter cable rig and we flung it into the deep waters of Bahia Honda channel.Nothing ate the huge bait and we never did see that monster tiger again but we were hoping it would eat that 80 lb blacktip.
Killing a tarpon for shark bait is illegal and we do not condone it, but back then is was perfectly legal and we had less fishing regulations to navigate.
What's your biggest bait ever?
My friend Seaweed trying to rope the shark.
I was also in the water trying to tail rope the tiger.
the biggest bait (Bahia Honda)in the picture Rene ,Jd and Nelson
Hoping to hook Big Mo on Bahia Honda Rene puts out a big tarpon on a 50 foot leader
Jd with a big tarpon perfect for a big shark
Seaweed sr with a couple of fresh tarpon (circa 1982)
A Sometimes we will use Amberjack either whole (up to 40 lbs)or cut in half head section last longer then the tail end.
SOUTH FLORIDA SHARK CLUB -President SFSC-Founding Member est 1983 SFSC-Website Administrator BIG HAMMER SHARK TOURNAMENT -Founder Rene Memorial Sharkathon -Founder NMFS Shark Tagger
The biggest bait I have ever used was a 65 inch black tip that got hit while we were reeling it in ... It was definitley one of the scarriest baits I had to take out being that I had to tie it with a rope to the kayak and it dragged alongside me. The second biggest bait we ever put out was rhe head of a Warsaw grouper which weighed about 50 lbs that we had picked up from the docks one day. We didn't have a hit on either baits but I always try to put out the biggest baits I can possibly find hoping to someday hook up on a monster.
Colby Uva : Bullbuster Team Captain
https://plus.google.com/u/0/b/107013063084498996341/
SFSC-Tagging/Fishing Science Coordinator
I have to agree one day i might catch a big shark all about beingin the right place at the right time i think there is no such thing as luck when your trying to catch a 30 year old shark they are not dumb animals by far
"2017 Team little rock
Never test the depth of the water with both feet"
I DO NOT SWIM IN THE OCEAN
GO BIG OR GO HOME
Biggest bait would have to be a 30-40lb ummmmm yeah "aj" whole, and got burrnnnedddddd ended up getting cut off on a crab pot
2009 Team Hammer N The Phenoms
Go BIG or go home
The biggest bait i have ever used is a 80 lb. southern ray
Get a hit on it?
Colby Uva : Bullbuster Team Captain
https://plus.google.com/u/0/b/107013063084498996341/
SFSC-Tagging/Fishing Science Coordinator
Back in my days with the Tpa bay shark club we had a guy who used to catch 200lb sharks and cut a couple of sides off and throw in the cooler.He would then hang the rest of the shark over the side the boat for chum and wait for a big tiger to come by and rock the boat.Then he would rig up one of the sides with hook and hang on.(he had 8 of 10 top spots for tigers in the club)Well my fishing buddy and I tried this afew times with 4-5 foot bts whole and did have some hook ups.But we always lost them after1-2hrs,threw the hooks.(big boys run off Tarpon springs)So started using just section of the sharks and always got them to the boat.But never found the big ones again just 8ft tigers....Dave
Get a hit on it?
nope it soaked for 3 days
whole black tip
I put the rest of my already chomped 5ft blacktip out for bait in stuart, and hooked something huge with it but the hooks pulled.
2nd biggest bait was a 42 lb cuda whole.
3rd biggest bait was a 35 lb jewfish, no im sorry gag grouper head i put out and caught a Big Hammer.
SFSC -East Coast Events Coordinator
Biggest bait I ever used was a 5 foot wide southern ray. Didn't have a scale, but was probably close to 100. Used it in boca grand, about 150 yards out on my 14/o. Leader was about 14 feet of 600lb test cable, with two 12/o Mustads. One in the head, one in the tail. Wings trimmed back and guts opened up. I wrapped my leader in electrical tape 8 feet up my leader around the hooks and everything. Stuck a bracelet glowstick inbetween the turnbuckles and wrapped my 130 dacron around it so the current wouldn't pull clicker. The rod was in pvc sticking up in the sand. When it got hit, the glowstick got flung straight up into the air a good 15-20 feet and landed in the sand about 10 feet behind the rod, the rod was partially lifted out of the rod holder and the reel was facing the opposite direction, and I had about 50 feet of slack laying on the beach. I reeled in the slack and my bait washed up onto the beach about 20 minutes later 100 feet down from my rod, and all the tape was ripped clean off my leader where the bait was, the bait was still in tact, but there were scrape marks like it had been dragged across concrete for a good 30 minutes on both sides. Big jewfish, anyone? 
the half of the midsection of a southern ray (without wings) was about 40lbs, put out on the west coast, got slammed, took out line slow and steady, i only had 1 small hook in it, i tried to hook him but i slipped and hit the bridge hard, it did hook him though, he was on for about 30 seconds and it spit...
Just an average fisherman.
Biggest bait I ever used was a 5 foot wide southern ray. Didn't have a scale, but was probably close to 100. Used it in boca grand, about 150 yards out on my 14/o. Leader was about 14 feet of 600lb test cable, with two 12/o Mustads. One in the head, one in the tail. Wings trimmed back and guts opened up. I wrapped my leader in electrical tape 8 feet up my leader around the hooks and everything. Stuck a bracelet glowstick inbetween the turnbuckles and wrapped my 130 dacron around it so the current wouldn't pull clicker. The rod was in pvc sticking up in the sand. When it got hit, the glowstick got flung straight up into the air a good 15-20 feet and landed in the sand about 10 feet behind the rod, the rod was partially lifted out of the rod holder and the reel was facing the opposite direction, and I had about 50 feet of slack laying on the beach. I reeled in the slack and my bait washed up onto the beach about 20 minutes later 100 feet down from my rod, and all the tape was ripped clean off my leader where the bait was, the bait was still in tact, but there were scrape marks like it had been dragged across concrete for a good 30 minutes on both sides. Big jewfish, anyone?
a jewfish that could eat a 5 foot ray would be unstoppable lol
Just an average fisherman.
Biggest bait I ever used was a 5 foot wide southern ray. Didn't have a scale, but was probably close to 100. Used it in boca grand, about 150 yards out on my 14/o. Leader was about 14 feet of 600lb test cable, with two 12/o Mustads. One in the head, one in the tail. Wings trimmed back and guts opened up. I wrapped my leader in electrical tape 8 feet up my leader around the hooks and everything. Stuck a bracelet glowstick inbetween the turnbuckles and wrapped my 130 dacron around it so the current wouldn't pull clicker. The rod was in pvc sticking up in the sand. When it got hit, the glowstick got flung straight up into the air a good 15-20 feet and landed in the sand about 10 feet behind the rod, the rod was partially lifted out of the rod holder and the reel was facing the opposite direction, and I had about 50 feet of slack laying on the beach. I reeled in the slack and my bait washed up onto the beach about 20 minutes later 100 feet down from my rod, and all the tape was ripped clean off my leader where the bait was, the bait was still in tact, but there were scrape marks like it had been dragged across concrete for a good 30 minutes on both sides. Big jewfish, anyone?
It was a Jew Fish for sure.
I think the biggest bait i've used was a Huge AJ head. This one didn't get hit, and when we called it a night i couldn't bring it up. I had to drop the gaff and gaff the AJ head
I've also used Big Cudas whole with out the tail and that's probably my favorite bait.