I use a trot line and limb lines. My local Kroger carrries chicken hearts and gizzards. I like them because they hold on the hooks a lot better. I have also used gold fish with really good luck. I use big hooks. My buddy gave me 50 or so salt water hooks that work great. I also use 4/0 circle hooks. You can buy limb/trot line at Walmart I believe it’s rated for 235 pounds. I will usually only keep the ones that are as large or larger then a basketball. My biggest so far hardly fit into the bottom of a 55 gallon drum. He was huge. I grabbed his tail then had my brother put the oar under his body to get him in the boat. I use a old broke chest deep freezer to clean them out. I drilled a hole in the bottom and installed a drain. That way I can change the water when it gets dirty. The easiest way I have found to clean them is cut there heads off and stick a garden hose in there neck. Fill them with water till there skin separates from the meat then take a disposable sliding razor blade and cut the skin and shell away from them. A K-bar works great for the snapper shells but the razor blade works great for soft shells. My family likes the meat but I have some friends that don’t. They claim it tastes fishy.
I step on the shell so they stick their head out and tee off with a 2x4 to smash the head, break the neck, and kill. I then remove the claws with shears as they don't know they are dead for hours...I string a trot line from a stump using small cut up bluegill for bait. I absolutely love turtle soup but absolutely hate cleaning them. It totally creeps me out when they keep moving hours after dead. I also use the hose method stated earlier. I completely cleaned one with nothing left but the tail attached to the shell and the tail was still moving. Creepy. It was the big one in the picture. Biggest turtle I've ever seen.
I string a trot line from a stump using small cut up bluegill for bait. I absolutely love turtle soup but absolutely hate cleaning them. It totally creeps me out when they keep moving hours after dead. I also use the hose method stated earlier. I completely cleaned one with nothing left but the tail attached to the shell and the tail was still moving. Creepy. It was the big one in the picture. Biggest turtle I've ever seen.
This is the method I use as stated by 66chevelle. To dispatch the turtle, I wait till the turtle sticks its head out and then I use a small piece of 2x4 and smack it square on its nose, breaking its neck. Then cut the head off and stick the hose end without a nozzle into the neck and wire it for a fairly tight fit. Then I turn on the water full blast for a minute or so.