WD 40

[the butcher]

I get it.. fishing is both a science and an art. However, every now and then we come across information that is extremely contradictory....

A few years back I attended a saltwater salmon workshop at the Vancouver Boat Show. The presenter was definately a seasoned salmon fishing veteran... After the presentation and workshop, he went around the room to answer questions... I don't recall what the question was but somehow it went off topic ... he stated that we are all now making things more complicated than it needs to be.. He said even to this day, there are often days where he has the most success using a 30 year old metal flasher(no glo, no UV) that he polished to a shiny gloss.. He would put WD40 on his flasher and lures and said he had VERY good success with that simple setup..

And so here's where the contradictory information comes in... We all know that salmon have an incredible sense of smell... and that's why using bait works so well during certain times of the year.. There is also information out there stating that humans release chemicals/odours from our skin which repel fish, especially salmon.. In addition to human scent, there are other un-natural and unfamiliar to salmon scents which supposedly repel them as well such as grease/motor oils etc....

So my question is, does WD40 repel salmon due to it being an un-natural scent or does it attract? My swivels on my flashers and fishing gear some some WD40 treatment to keep them spinning properly. I am wondering if I need to be very thorough with cleaning up the WD40 from my gear or whether it makes no difference.

 

[Rockfish]

https://forums.iboats.com/forum/fishing/saltwater-fishing/166483-wd40-as-fish-attractant

 

[Rockfish]

In my view if you want an attractant/cover scent for salmon lures/equipment why not use Herring oil extracted from a major salmon prey/food species. Works as a lubricant on flasher swivels etc. in addition to lures.

 

[the butcher]

Thanks for the link rockfish. I do use herring oil scent in my lures. My original post was not intended to suggest or ask whether I should use WD40 instead of herring scent. My question revolves around the idea of whether I should aggressively remove excess WD40 that has been sprayed on the barrel and ball bearing swivels over and above a quick wipedown with a paper towel. I guess from the looks of it a small bit of WD40 remaining on the flasher and swivels doesn't hurt.

 

[Cookie's Cutter]

I once met a guy river fishing that always carried a can of wd40 with him. He would spray his lure before every cast.

He swore by it.

 

[pacemaker]

xxx

 

[Brian Reiber]

I'm sure someone here can confirm or deny this but I think the deal with WD40 is that it had fish or herring oil in the original formulation. I doubt that it still does and I am skeptical that it has any value as an attractant today.

 

[advTHXance]

I know a few well-respected fisherman that swear by it. I dont really use any of those oils or scents, once in a while Ill use a UV brine. I think we put enough pollutants into the ocean, and also Im not superstituous.

this is from the wd40 website:

"Myth: WD-40® contains fish oil.

Fact: Consumers have told us over the years that they have caught some of the biggest fish ever after protecting their fish hooks and lures with WD-40®. We believe this legend came from folks assuming that the product must contain fish oil since it appears to attract fish. Sorry Charlie®, it just ain’t so.

WD-40 Company has taken steps to respect and conserve the environment, and encourages its users to do the same. While WD-40® can be used to help protect fishing equipment from rust and corrosion, WD-40 Company does not recommend using WD-40® to attract fish."

 

[wolf]

You might as well just dump a can of oil in water guys that use WD-40 is doing one thing hurting the environment . IT DOES not contain fish oil so please dont put in ocean, like someone else said use herring oil... I dont use any sprays and seem to get fish... fish bite lures and the way one spins bait...

 

[Normfish]

I spray my flasher swivels with WD40 after every outing . I still catch fish , so who knows .
That being said , years ago my buddy , who may have had a few beer, put some Coconut Tanning oil on his herring while fishing at the Capilino in the summer . He did catch a fish on it , so who's to say . Was it luck , or is there something to this .

 

[wolf]

https://www.wd40.com/myths-legends-fun-facts/

READ what a fish story and this is from WD-40 it contains some nasty **** , ask yourself why would I want to harm my place where I fish...

 

[eroyd]

Maybe it's more about masking human scent. Do banana's repel fish?

 

[Rain City]

I had a wink-wink nudge-nudge from a guide that was giving me some help getting my gear set up when I first started 5 years ago. "Spray the **** out of all your gear with WD40". I never questioned why nor did I ever try it. I remember someone telling me once that it was "illegal because it worked so well" but that was years and years ago and from nobody I'd consider credible now. I was so green I just believed what anyone told me.

 

[Brian Reiber]

Maybe it's more about masking human scent. Do banana's repel fish?

You tell me

 

[bryce]

I heard fish oil usto be used in wd40 it no longer is for sure don’t dump oil in the ocean ...it’s 2019 figure it out there is more then enough natural scents out there for you to try .... most of the spoons you buy besides ap and Tomic don’t last long enough to worry about scents anyways now ....

 

[walleyes]

View attachment 49706



You tell me

Lol,, I fish with them in the boat sometimes and have a couple for a snack just to make a point. Superstitions are for people that need excuses, nothing more.

And I use WD40 on my flasher swivels regularly, more oil residue and toxins go into the water from your exhaust and gets into the water from any little lube on your swivels I’ll guarantee you that. Anybody that adds oil to the engine on an inboard where do you think that oil goes, through the rings, into the combustion chamber and out the exhaust, Same as any oil injected 2 stroke, what do you think that purple slick is behind your boat. How about when you grease up the Gimble on your leg or out drive where does that go when it gets washed off, and they are greased until grease comes out. I’m not into soaking my baits or lures in it but a little sprayed now and then on your swivels absolutely negligible in the big scheme of things.

 

[Steplift]

I remember watching Charlie White videos as a kid he used WD-40 and bilge water as experimental scents. He did ok with them as I remember. Enough nasty shat goes into the water I don’t want to add more if I can help it though.

 

[MongooseX]

I was jigging bottom fish last week. Wasnt catching anything Had a nearly empty can of wd40 rolling around from unsiezing some pliers earlier. Never tried using it for attractant. Always heard the tale. Sprayed some on, Caught a large charbozen within seconds. Then next spray i sent it down caught a nice cod. Can was emtpy by then and the weather picked up. Worked for me

 

[wolf]

Enough nasty shat goes into the water I don’t want to add more if I can help it though.

thank you someone that finally gets it....

What area were you fishing for cod?Mongoose

 

[scott craven]

I know where this is going ....