When to start using artificals for stipers & what types.

[LunkerBunker]

I always can't wait for the time to start using artificial baits for stripers. I usually find once the fish start hitting sandy hook down to manasquan, it is time to put down the clams and grab a plug.

I found last year the blues and the bass started hitting the deadly dick early April around this time. They started hitting the pencil pencil poppers and danny lures not to far after that.

What also works great are buck tails and zoom. You will not get the biggest fish in the world unless your using a super large yamamoto rubber. But the bucktail is probably the best lure for the whitewater in the surf if you just want lots of medium to large fish. What is more important is the retrieve. You can figure out which is the best way to catch fish but let me tell you this. I have been in situations where i let someone borrow the same spro zoom i was using while i was catching a ton of bass, and because that person didn't listen to me on how to reel it in he dint catch nothn.

If you want the monster fish, they love to take nice wooden poppers, and swimmers and also yo-zuris. You will not catch as many fish as the bucktail but the ones you do catch are always nice. Just know if there are blues around they do love the pencil popper, and they will take that 20 or even 30 dollar lure and destroy it. When that is the case i have a cheap pencil popper i throw out so i can keep my bass once nice and pretty.

This year I am also starting to fish with eels a little more. I have caught a couple of bass with fake eels but was never excited about them. Although, everyone that fishes with eels (fake or real) always say they catch the biggest fish with them. O yea and the eels really only work at night. I have had success with the vision eels, but there are ripoff and i would rather use a spro with a zoom.

I also like metals, like the ava, crippled herring, krocs, and other types of metals. I find they work better for bluefish but bass also do like these. I do make my chances a lot better by sticking a bucktail on the hook of my deadly dick and throw a teaser on top.

I know this doesn't have anything to do with lures, but after i stop clam fishing every so often I will throw a bunker head out there and let it sit while im casting lures. You aint going to catch a lot with them but if you use a good size bunker head, it has got to be a big fish to eat it

I can believe i forgot mention the snag hook. Always have your snag hook ready, because once you have the chance to snag a bunker they will go away as quick as they came. Live lining will also bring in monster fish as well. And if you snag a bunker while the bass are feeding there is a 99% chance you will catch something. I have to clear something up though. When you are snagging bunker, you leave it out there. I have seen people bring them in and try and re hook them which is wrong. The point is to have a wounded fish on your snag hook, while in the school the bass are feeding on so they immediately take that wounded fish. If you reel the bunker in to try and re hook it on a differnt rig, you will most likely lose the chance to get it back in the school.

[Gerry Zagorski]

Some great tips here Lunker. Thanks for sharing and posting them here.
Going to move a copy of this over to the Fishing Tips section.

[broken bobber]

Bass have been on Plugs ALL WEEK