What lures do you guys troll for Stripers?

[YakMan1731]

Thank you! Ordered from the site you recommended. Looks like a great one stop shop for a lot of the highly recommended gear I've read about on this site and in books I've been reading.

Happy to give my two cents. You're definitely in the right place to ask about gear and tactics. SnaggedLine is a wealth of resources and I've learned so much from asking the salty veterans on this site. The guys here have truly helped me become a better fisherman, and I'm always grateful for their advice.

Jigthebay is definitely an awesome place to go. It supports so many small and/or local tackle-makers, and Matt runs it like a well-oiled machine. Good luck out there!

[Mark]

A three inch Fat Sam Mullet from 12 Fathoms will catch most any fish we chase locally. I've caught LM and SM bass, pickerel, channel cats, countless stripers, specks and even a few very aggressive white perch with it. In FL I've caught species I could not even identify. You can toll it or cast it. Most of the time, I use it on a jig head like this:

P1000892.jpg

It comes in a variety of colors. Sometimes color matters but most of the time, I'd say it does not. I think the pulsating tail, size and the silhouette it provides in the water makes it attractive to fish.

I'll vary the weight for the jig from 1/8 to 1/2 oz. depending on the application I am using it for. I've even fished it with no weight on a weedless hook in ponds. It's fun to drag over pads and through spatterdock. Bass and pickerel will crash on it.

If I was going to carry only one lure it would be a Fat Sam.

[J.A. Veil]

Several previous posters talked about different jigheads. When trolling from my kayak, I am not real fussy about jigheads -- I typically use whatever has the lowest cost in the size range of 1/2-oz to 1.25-oz or whatever I find in my existing tackle collection. On my garage fishing shelves, I have a few plastic yogurt containers containing jigheads, each labeled with different weight. At the winter shows, you can often buy bags or boxes of assorted larger jigheads at a low price, particularly at the end of the shows when sellers want to get rid of merchandise.

Several of our local jighead makers (for example Hard Head Custom Baits, Coach Jigheads, G-Eye Jigheads) make an excellent product. Local tackle vendor Jig the Bay (Matt) is not a lure maker, but does sell products from a variety of jighead manufacturers.

Much of my fishing from my boat involves casting light (1/8-oz to 3/16-oz) jigheads with soft plastic tails. I am more particular about those jigheads. I like the Mission Fishin jigheads and used them for several years. Then I was given some samples of Eye Strike jigheads to use with a guide in Florida. They come in three series (Trout Eye, Redfish Eye, and Striper Eye). They have a high quality strong hook, and although the heads are unpainted, the large eyes really sparkle in the sunlight. I use the 3/16-oz Trout Eye jigheads with 2/0 hooks here for stripers and bluefish, and in Florida for specks, snook, and redfish. You can buy directly from the manufacturer (Eye Strike Fishing) or can buy them at retail as Zman jigheads. Zman markets these jigheads in 3 packs with the Zman label on the pack. Typically the retail price ranges from $4.99 to $5.49. If you are willing to buy 25 or 50 of these at the same time, you can get a huge reduction in the cost per jighead buying directly from Eye Strike. Several years ago I bought 50 of the Trout Eye size for $1 each -- well below the cost of what other local quality jig makers are charging. I used about half so far and will plan to reorder when necessary.

Other poster have mentioned Zman jigheads. The Eye Strike jigheads are not the only jigheads that Zman sells under their label. Take a look at this page on the Zman website https://zmanfishing.com/store/categories/jigsspinners. You will see several types of jigheads marketed by Zman. I do not know if Zman makes these internally or licenses them as they do the Eye Strike jigheads.

To summarize, there are many choices in jighead styles, colors, weights, hook types, etc. There are also many places to get them and many different vendors for moderate quality and high quality jigheads. Nearly all of them will work and will catch fish.

[DanMarino]

So I bought some larger x raps for Stripers but I've been seeing people post about smaller ones.. so if you guys can , post up what lures you use and when/what time of the year

I have had success with the Lucky Craft Pointer 78. Caught stripers, pike, bass, white perch, yellow perch, and crappies on it.

[Mark]

I make my own jig heads from Do-It molds. I have molds that use heavy wire gauge hooks and others that use lighter hooks. I vary their use based on application.

I've used commercially available jigs too. I've noticed no difference in their effectiveness between the Do-It products. That may be a function of what I am used to and have confidence in. Also, I use jigs more often in tidal waters than freshwaters. In my experience, tidal fish hit paddletails so aggressively, they rarely miss the hook. (Except bluefish which have a knack for biting through the plastic just short of the hook!)

However, if you have missed a few hits and are concerned about the effectiveness of your jig or even a fly, a little twist of the hook point with pliers to offset it slightly, can improve hookups. Sharpening the hook will also help. It's good to carry a hook file or stone for that purpose.

[mjkeith13]

I agree with Big Mike. Zman plastics are quite durable and are a great choice when bluefish are around. In my opinion, they do not swim as naturally as some other brands. I use 12 Fathom plastics, primarily the Fat Sam mullet and Buzz Tail. This brand of lure is not available in any local stores, but can be ordered online. Both styles have a marvelous swimming action. If blues are really thick, I will begin using Zman plastics. I have caught over 30 stripers on the same Fat Sam mullet here in the Chesapeake, and over 15 speckled trout on the same Fat Sam mullet in Tampa Bay. They are durable for almost anything other than blues.

I second John's 12 Fathom recommendation. I started using them last year, mostly 3" and 4" Fat Sams and Shadzillas and had my best year by far for catching stripers. They are more durable then they appear/feel. Lots of good color choices as well. As John said, they work well in many places. I've caught specks and reds down in SC with the Fat Sams.

[Cowpokey]

What lures do you guys troll for Stripers?

1/2 oz shad jig with 4” or 6” Zman paddle tails are my main lures for trolling. Opening Night and Pearl Blue Glimmer are the best producing colors.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[J.A. Veil]

In my earlier replies to this post, I mentioned that I typically use inexpensive jigheads and 12 Fathom plastics for trolling. This morning I fished in the Eastern Bay area and trolled three lines from my 11' Native Manta Ray 11 paddle kayak. I caught three stripers (2 on a white 1/2-oz jighead and 4.5" white 12 Fathom Buzztail, and the third one on a Rat-L-Trap). The biggest fish was a fat 22" football that hit the Buzztail. It was good to feel a strongly shaking rod and get to wind in an energetic striper. It was long overdue for this spring. All fish were returned to the water quickly and after gentle handling.

2003-08-01 00-00-05.jpg 2003-08-01 00-00-05 (2).jpg

[rob-kayak]

@John...
I was there last week (I guess I should have posted a report).
I caught nine fish at the boat... 4 more that shook off.
White color didn't get a hit all day.. at the very end I put on a chartreuse bucktail with a chartreuse soft paddle tail and caught one near the pier.
Rootbeer (Houdini), dark blue and silver soft paddle tails, and diving blue and silver rat-l-trap type were all successful.
Jigheads on all were chartreuse.
It was a semi-cloudy day.
Fish were caught in 50', 30'-20', 10ft, and 4.5' feet of water.
I had a double (two rods) at one time..
After having lunch on a small sandy beach.. in about 4.5' of water was a small splash.. then right in front of me a fish jumped completely out of the water.. it was so cool.. first time I have seen one come completely out of the water and somersault all on it's own.
He had to be about 20inches.
The fish I caught were healthy at 16 to 18 inches.
Glad you had a fun day.. I did also.. especially seeing the jumper.

[J.A. Veil]

@John...
I was there last week (I guess I should have posted a report).
I caught nine fish at the boat... 4 more that shook off.
White color didn't get a hit all day.. at the very end I put on a chartreuse bucktail with a chartreuse soft paddle tail and caught one near the pier.
Rootbeer (Houdini), dark blue and silver soft paddle tails, and diving blue and silver rat-l-trap type were all successful.
Jigheads on all were chartreuse.
It was a semi-cloudy day.
Fish were caught in 50', 30'-20', 10ft, and 4.5' feet of water.
I had a double (two rods) at one time..
After having lunch on a small sandy beach.. in about 4.5' of water was a small splash.. then right in front of me a fish jumped completely out of the water.. it was so cool.. first time I have seen one come completely out of the water and somersault all on it's own.
He had to be about 20inches.
The fish I caught were healthy at 16 to 18 inches.
Glad you had a fun day.. I did also.. especially seeing the jumper.

You did quite well. Considering the success that most of are having this spring, catching 9 stripers in one outing is pretty good.

[MonstBlitz]

A three inch Fat Sam Mullet from 12 Fathoms will catch most any fish we chase locally. I've caught LM and SM bass, pickerel, channel cats, countless stripers, specks and even a few very aggressive white perch with it. In FL I've caught species I could not even identify. You can toll it or cast it. Most of the time, I use it on a jig head like this:

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It comes in a variety of colors. Sometimes color matters but most of the time, I'd say it does not. I think the pulsating tail, size and the silhouette it provides in the water makes it attractive to fish.

I'll vary the weight for the jig from 1/8 to 1/2 oz. depending on the application I am using it for. I've even fished it with no weight on a weedless hook in ponds. It's fun to drag over pads and through spatterdock. Bass and pickerel will crash on it.

If I was going to carry only one lure it would be a Fat Sam.

These look like they would be great for pike and walleye too. In for a couple bags! This thread is costing me money but I love it! 😆

[Mark]

These look like they would be great for pike and walleye too. In for a couple bags! This thread is costing me money but I love it! ��

Those are two species I have not caught with Fat Sam. But I have no doubt Sam would work if I targeted them.

Good luck,

[ronaultmtd]

DOA swimbaits...Bass Assassin swimbaits, 360 search swimbaits, Redfish Magic swimbaits, Fat Sam swimbaits, ZMan swimbaits...Elias Swimbaits...all soft plastic, all mimic small baitfish...and guess what? They ALL work...they all catch fish...grab a bag of whichever you have faith in, fish with them and catch fish...every major bait company pours their own “special formula” plastic swimbaits...I started out using “Sassy Shads” years ago..amazingly they caught fish (still do)...same story on hard baits...Yozuri, Rapala, Bomber, L&S, Diawa, Halcon, Strike King....all make a jerk bait swimming Minnow hard body lure...and they all catch fish if you use them...and know how to...like top water “walk the Dog” lures...L&S has made a fortune copying the old Zara Spook with its “Dog” series lures...and they all catch fish if you can “walk the dog”....

[MonstBlitz]

Sorry for bumping a year old thread, but I just wanted to comment on how helpful the information in here has been for me this year. I actually ended up getting rid of my kayak not long after I posted here, but I've applied the lure recommendations to trolling with my boat (18' tiller) and I've been having a lot of success with the Z-Man Paddletails, especially on the Candy Corn jig heads. Thanks again for the great advice, and hopefully it will help someone else out who might be looking for advice on how to catch these stripers trolling.