Who doesn't like gulp

[killitfillit]

I hate the stuff.
The packets leak, it stinks,they are bent and dried out,the curly tails don't work, you use them once and they are stuffed, they go mouldy and i think they are over priced.
May as well put on a slab of bait in my humble opinion.
Other than that they are great fish catchers and that smelly scent is loved by the fish.
I know they are biodegradable and all that i just wish they could make them more user friendly.
I find other ordinary soft plastics a lot better value and i don't like to add scent or use packets that are full of juice either.
Is it just me?
What are your opinions.

[softplasticsdude79]

my opinion is totally opposite to yours -

The packets leak when left opened only.they are always primed,juicy and ready to use,95% of the tails work and i wont fish without them,and i dont recall ever seeing a moldy gulp.they are reusable and i have often used 1 packet to catch up to 20 flathead,so as far as value for money goes,i have no problems,i dont remember in my bait days of catching 20 flathead on 1 or 2 packs of prawns,i actually have never caught that many on bait in 1 session,where as i consistently do it with the gulp.

[Funchy]

I agree with softplasticsdude, I find if you take a little care to keep the pack sealed, don't mix other placcies in with them and store them away from sunlight/heat for extended periods they keep well. I have caught fish consistently on them for a while now in both fresh and salt. I used to be a dedicated Yabby man poo pooing lures and plastics but I must say I am converted now and it is Gulp that converted me. But hey, each to their own.

[NAGG]

I know what you mean ......... except for the part of not working .
I have a love / hate relationship with them ....... they were the first placcy that I used for bream / flatties ( ideal plastic for a newby) ...... they worked.
Over the next 5 years they were pretty well forgotten till last winter ... when I tried the shrimp on Jews and they worked a treat. My last trip up North fishing creeks I tried the shrimp again & had a cracker with all sorts of species including barra falling to them. :happy: the best result I have had by far in that system.
So , how ever much I hate buying them for the reasons mentioned (storage , drying out , leaking , longevity) - ...... by gosh they work .

Chris

[softplasticsdude79]

try putting your gulps into a airtight screw jar or one of those gulp storage trays with lids,i have most of mine in a $4 screw jar from woolies and have had for years with no leakage,BTW i still have plenty in packs to that dont leak.

[Yellowjack]

Once you go Zman you never go back ;D ;D

[alleycat]

I used to use the 3 inch swimming mullet for snapper and sometimes flathead but now i use atomics, i too was often dissapointed with the tails of some of the gulps not working..

[netmaker]

i'm over them. just turfed packets of em 2 week ago. had a good collection in the shed but when i checked em out i had packs of dried (unopened) ones, moldy ones (had been opened) and then just those that were all bent out of shape brand new in the pack. a few of them had zip locks that were only attached on 1 side of the pack. had a bit of a run of packs that had 2 or 3 out of the 5 that were all bent. been through 2 of their screw top containers that cracked and leaked (not uv resistant) and then bought one of their 3 packs of press seal lids that dont leak (yeah right). tried those with water first and they went back the next day. totally over the leaking and stinking (almost like using bait - only more expensive). zmans and snapbacks dont dry out (just leave em on the jighead till next time), they dont stink, no liquid to leak everywhere and super strong and economical. only thing is they will melt if left in the sun in the packets (which ones dont tho?). and in deep water jigging apps i know that my plastic is intact - no need to check for tail nips = more time in the water and less winding. i owe my sp conversion to gulps but thats it. they sure dont stand up to many snapper bites. really got the craps going through 3 packs in 1 session all with tails trimmed short.
but, as funchy says - whatever floats your boat.
cheers

[Peter4]

I agree with netmaker. We moved away from Gulps about three years ago due to the price, leaking issues, stinkiness and 'drying out' characteristics.

Now use Zooms, Atomics, Squidgies and Zmans. We still catch fish and have even managed PBs with alternative plastics.

Gulps are more bait than lures whereas the other plastics mentioned are more lures than bait IMHO. We concentrate more on how we work our plastics rather than deadsticking Gulps...

Cheers

Pete

[netmaker]

spd and funchy - guess you also have to consider the target species. those flatties have small grinding teeth and swallow prey whole. a lot of fishos are using them around reef where the teeth are a bit more of an issue. if your getting 20 fish to a bait thats great and you would have no reason to look elsewhere. that would be unattainable around the bay islands. dont even know if the zmans would go that high. i loved my gulps for a long time despite the downsides and still use them (got plenty left) from time to time. i just prefer the more hardy baits that can be glued to the jighead (no "pants pulled down") and used for trip after trip with minimum fuss. dont really think the fish care too much about the brand. i reckon the only way to compare them for fish catching would be to set up a 2 jig leader and fish 2 baits at once. in fact next time i am out i will have a stab at that.
and i still reckon stickin me hand in a gulp tub aint that different to diggin it into my squid bucket;)
cheers

[reggy]

keep them in the fridge

[Billy C]

I find the bigger ones (7") to have zero durability. Pickers will destroy them in seconds.

[Worky83]

Gulp was starting to really annoy me (for reasons already mentioned) so I changed to Squidgy a few months back. They catch just as many fish, and I know that when I open the pack that I will be able to use every plastic in it. Throwing away the buggered gulps was as good as throwing away money... money that could be put into more fishing trips.

[MudRiverDan]

I'm a always trying new plastics.
I like gulps though like all things that come in a little plastic bag they will have a limited life once they are removed from the shelf and placed in our tackle bags.

I would like to see more variations on the Sandworm as in colour variations.

It has always been a stealthy favourite of mine for fishing structure and holes from the shore, has caught me flathead bream and Jew, the odd estuary cod.

The scent seems to work over the gulps poor shape, but they always say simple is best.

Slam and a few like that have also worked for me, including squidgy and atomic, though gulp have caught me some beauties.

The only ones I will not touch is Kokoda, I dont think the plastic quality is good enough as it stinks like old rubber, but then in saying that you could always add some squidgey scent to em or some other scent (I have about 6 tubes of x-factor unused).

[john b ward]

lm impressed wiht the Nuclar chicken 4" mino and the new 6" grub , but as siad i dont much like it when they go stiff and mouldy
some of my best flat head have been taken on these but i do prefer the squidge ....

[softplasticsdude79]

i also agree with all other comments,some of my other go to lures are squidgy,atomic and zman,I like the fact that they dont dry out and smell,and yes,pickers can hammer gulp like no tomorrow and theres been plenty of sessions where i lose a packet for no reward,but my opinion still stands.

I love using gulp lures,and it usually pays off.

[TimD]

I LOVE GULP :thumbsup:

[tunaticer]

The gulp thing never really took off for me, I started with real plastics and tried a few packets of gulp but was very unimpressed by their action. The only gulp I now use is the worms for summer or winter whiting and that is very occasional.
Snapbacks, Z-Man and Squidgies are my usual go to plastics now. Would love to know what the actual plastic is they use in snapbacks or z-man because I am going to make some killer molds for pouring long life baits soon.

[Horse]

Would love to know what the actual plastic is they use in snapbacks or z-man because I am going to make some killer molds for pouring long life baits soon.

I love the stuff as well but I have no idea how you can get the product unless you melt down a few of the bigger models. Strike King use the same stuff in their ZTOOs

[FishHunter]

Cant stand the Gulps for all the reasons mentioned before. Use mostly Squidgies when I use plastics

[Funchy]

;D
......in fact next time i am out i will have a stab at that.…………

Great idea Davo, would be very interested in your findings. I cant really talk to other placcies cos I havent tried them but I am willing to be edjamacated ;D

[Si]

I use to use gulps nearly all the time but use zmans more often now. I think the gulps have a great scent and as someone said, their scent is probably their best and worse feature depending on how you look at it. The smell and leaking packets use to drive me up the wall too so went and bought plano liquid locker which makes things alot easier.

Seeing how zmans work through the water when perfectly rigged with their tails vibrating even on their simple jerk shads was impressive. Their (zmans) paddle tails retrieved very slow are just an awesome lure to swim past some snags. I carry some superglue in my tackle box to keep things rigged right and im not buying packets every week which is good.

Having said all this, i did throw on a 4inch minnow gulp in watermelon and caught some average flathead last weekend after throwing z mans around for a good two hours for not a touch. As someone said early, they (gulp) work and have an uncanny ability to do so, so they will still have room in my tackle bag - just.

[Crunchy]

Gulps suck and rule all at the same time.

[NAGG]

There is no doubt that there are many more placcies that have a better action than a gulp ....... way more.
When I was back in sydney I went away from the gulp shrimp or craw and went to the squidgy lobby and had a ball on the bream - but it was more to so with how i fished it :P
I only did a couple of bream trips up here & the lobby continues to work.

Now the Gulp shrimp has no action - it's stiff as - so what I do is snip the slits in their back (1/3rd the way through) - this improves the action when flicked like a prawn. Now I have fished the Atomic prong & Z Man shrimp alongside the gulp shrimp for bugger all fishing it the same way ( jig head etc) 1 rod rigged with the gulp & the other with another prawn imitation .......... the results were in favor of the gulp by a country mile ..... if not by a light year (28 to 0 on the jews last winter) - so come this winter those gulps will be on the end of my line again :P

Chris

[killitfillit]

Excellent feedback from everyone , good to see.
There is no doubt that gulp flat out catches fish and in some situations you can't avoid using it if you wan't to catch fish.
Sometimes it's a good challenge if your mate is using gulp and your not just trying to keep up or even get a run on the board, but oh so satisfying when you find something that leaves it behind.

[alleycat]

If you like the gulp shrimp that has no action then you will love the atomic prong, it the first lure i grab for no matter if it flathead or snapper or trevally, and in guzzler its biodegradable, try a pack of 3 inch prong and you will see what i mean..

[lee8sec]

Just getting in to plastics & went out with a mate on the weekend for a fish. He was using gulps in nuke chicken & i tried sqiggy in white & he got all the bites until i changed over to use gulps aswell.
Part of it may be my rod action isint very good when using plastics but at the moment the gulps worked. Leigh

[Mossy247]

Once you go Zman you never go back ;D ;D

Another convert LOL

[Mossy247]

;D

Great idea Davo, would be very interested in your findings. I cant really talk to other placcies cos I havent tried them but I am willing to be edjamacated ;D
One trip on mossy's boat and you'll be a zman too LOL.

[Funchy]

One trip on mossy's boat and you'll be a zman too LOL.

Bring it!!!! LOL

[alleycat]

Zmans? ive tried a pack and its my last, cant get them to stay up on jighead, way too soft , they just pull down from head..

[netmaker]

Zmans? ive tried a pack and its my last, cant get them to stay up on jighead, way too soft , they just pull down from head..

thats what the tube of super glue is for.
cheers

[Mossy247]

Zmans? ive tried a pack and its my last, cant get them to stay up on jighead, way too soft , they just pull down from head..

Yep, tiny bit on the jig and its good as gold alleycat, I swear by them just the cheapo 8 pack for 2 bucks super glue from the cheap shops.

[chris69]

Love the gulps once i open a pack its into a big gulp tub of juice and they dont eat through plastic like others brands its all a trade off, something natural ...starch i belive.... or something toxic that eats through plastic,in the estuaries cant bet them and yes a bit of a pain with the peckers in the bay.

[HeadBanger]

Use to use Gulp more than any other type of lure, but nowadays I seem to buy a pack and leave them sitting around until they dry out. I much prefer Squidgeys and Zman plastics. Like others have stated, the tails on Gulp are often bent in un-fishable ways. Nothig like buying a pack of 4" minnow and only being able to use 2 of them because the rest spin in the water.

Cheers,
Kaidon

[davo]

I'm not a fan either. Even as a fish catcher, for quality snapper I would rather Zoom, Bass Assasin, Exude over them. Bream are different they love Gulp but I too have thrown out most of them.

[softplasticsdude79]

just brought a packet of 4 inch Shrimp,are they new ? hadnt seen them before,i got Sugar spice colour,cant wait to throw them around chasing clarence river jewies in february.

[killitfillit]

Just seen a new pack of gulp shrimps the other day and they were all individually packed so they stay straight.........things are looking up.

[Stik-ugly]

A fan of every thing else but Gulps

[004dam]

I hated gulp when I first started plastic fishing so many bent plastics that are no usable made the action horrible I was using squidgies etc etc. Untill recently I tried the shrimp and minnow grubs in the moulded packs and love them, Every single one works and are alot ALOT softer which is good and bad though I still average 3 fish per plastic have caught 6 bream on one shrimp before I retired it. I have been hammering a few trevs,bream, even got a jew on them. As for storage buy a plano screw lid container and poor a bit of juice/water in there you never have any issues with leaking and you can throw all your colors together.

I dont think there is anything more deadly then a lightly weighted shrimp on a HWS jig head drifting down the face of a pontoon.

[chop]

People say that gulps really smell. I can't smell them though? Do they really smell? Non fishers say they stink I can slightly smell them. I can smell things fine just not gulps.

[chop]

Zmans? ive tried a pack and its my last, cant get them to stay up on jighead, way too soft , they just pull down from head..

I usually cant get gulps off the jighead without ripping them and nearly hooking my fingers.

[squizzytaylor]

Im over gulp, just threw a leaky packet out along with a 4 month old Iphone due to the crap leaking.

[MudRiverDan]

As far as flathead go, they seem to hit anything if the right color and worked correctly.
Here is one I hooked a few weeks ago on the Hornibrook sand flats (was about 40cm).

Caught the fish after about 5 minutes casting into waist deep water on a white Slam minow.

The Slams are Ok but do not seem to have much resilience as they seem a bit crumbly and tend to tear easily.

Check out the camo.. and yes I tried to edit the image to make the fish stand out more though that is the closest I could get (cheap camera phone, lot of glare).

Cheers

76943

[softplasticsdude79]

Slam are the best VALUE plastic going,get a pack for around $3 on ebay.tough enough for a fish or 2,large scent trail,all colours,and did i mention CHEAP.

[Linedropper]

Pulled a brand new pack of Gulps (about 4" pumpkin seed thingos with tails) this morning and they were all really soft and sticky. Half of them unusable and the rest only lasted a couple of casts each until they started pulling off the jighead.

I purchased them maybe 2 months ago and they have been in my plastics box since then. They might have got a bit warm on a couple of trips but that would be my only explanation why they were a write off.

[Goodoo haven]

my opinion is totally opposite to yours -

The packets leak when left opened only.they are always primed,juicy and ready to use,95% of the tails work and i wont fish without them,and i dont recall ever seeing a moldy gulp.they are reusable and i have often used 1 packet to catch up to 20 flathead,so as far as value for money goes,i have no problems,i dont remember in my bait days of catching 20 flathead on 1 or 2 packs of prawns,i actually have never caught that many on bait in 1 session,where as i consistently do it with the gulp.

In what kinda bait do you recommend to use to catch flathead? ie: worms, fish, grubs and what size is the preference.

[Funchy]

In what kinda bait do you recommend to use to catch flathead? ie: worms, fish, grubs and what size is the preference.

I consistantly catch flatties on 4inch Gulp Minnows in Smelt. They look like little mullet and flatty's love em. As soon as I buy them I put them in the bar fridge in the shed. I keep them in a small air tight tuppaware container in the fridge when not in use. They are not as tough or stable or robust as other placcies but I definitely catch more fish with them. If you look after them they produce.

[kingcray]

Funchy i use the same one, also in pilchard and pumpkinseed i must agree .. gun baits for flatties.
My favourite lately are the squidgey pro wrigglers in all colours.. i think theyre 80mm & 100mm. Great for flatties but also catch a LOT of little ones.

[phantomphisher]

Mister twister double tails are an all time flatty fave for me. Ive tossed them in rigjt next to people using gulp and caught twice as many fish on numerous occasion. Using a bit of squidgy scent to sweeten them up helps, they're plenty tough enough amd don't burn a hole in you're back pocket (if you can find them)

[Jackson 53]

While Gulp are really not soft plastics but more an artificial bait I made the transition from real bait to Gulp and caught a lot of fish on them.

I have since migrated from Gulp to soft plastics and prefer to use Squidgies (100mm Wrigglers and 70mm Fish) and Atomics (3" Prongs) which have been very successful for me. The Z man lures look good and I'm about to give them a go.

Gulp, while effective need a fair bit of maintenance and handling not associated with soft plastics. They require storage in the juice, can't be left rigged on a jighead for any length of time and even in the packets (which can be difficult to open) they are susceptible to damage from exposure to heat and sunlight. Most of them at their best have little action and can bend in the packet into shapes which render them useless to fish effectively.

I believe there are better alternatives to Gulp.