This supplements my book, Fishing the Bucktail tinyurl.com/FishingTheBucktail. This video shows fishing for striped bass with bucktail jigs. How to catch striped bass in bay waters on bucktails. .
Now you know why that fish only weighed 15 lb. They can’t gain any weight eating Bucktails. Seriously your fish should have weighed about 18 lbs. I’ve caught Stripers 36 inches and they weighed 20 lbs. or better .
I use the clips on everything. Who's to say they don't help the action? My main reason is flexibility. I don't want to have to cut into my leader and tie a knot with every lure change.
Tight lines! Nice video, refreshing you have some class sir. We have a lot of poachers in CT, good thing they are limited to knowledge. Read your book a while back great winter read. : )
Love how John uses a kayak to get that far out to a rock, not a coastguard hazard or a boat hazard even a dingy with a paddle and a light is so much more sensible then swimming a half mile offshore I consider myself a extreme surf fisherman due to my success and how wet I get but throwing a wetsuit on and swimming to a rock you can see just seems like a bad idea when it’s dark with a current even the best have a bad day
haha alright cool...ill definitely look into it. Im 23 and need to start familarizing myself with the surf because ive only fished the bridges from a boat my entire life and i havent been pleased with the results....its always a spot that everybody is at and knows about. Thank you for the advice, and keep up the great videos. Just bought your book off amazon 2 days ago, cant wait to start reading it...i hope you dont let me down! hahahah
Skinner your videos are awesome , its guys like you that make me never forget about the hair , still to this day my biggest bass in the surf is on a 2 ounce andrus , praying I top that fish this year !
Great video! I’ve read your striper pursuit book and took a lot away from it. The bucktail has always been my favorite plug, insanely versatile and catches every kind of fish. I am on the west coast and nail halibut, rock & ling cod, stripers of course, and even salmon! All on a 1oz bucktail. One of my favorite ways to fish a bucktail is to cast a plain white 1oz into heavy current and let the current do the work while i just twitch it. For the bottom fish a strip of anchovy is killer and you just let the boat rocking give it the action. The bucktail is the lure to rule them all and you continue to prove that!
Look at 10 and 11-footers from Penn, St. Croix, and Lamiglas and choose what feels right. I've been very impressed with the Penn rods they've come out with in the last couple years.
Thanks for all that you do for the fishing community. I'm a big fan and have learned a lot from your books and videos. Just one question. What size TA clip would use for lighter bucktails?
Thanks much, John, for all of your fine videos which are most helpful and interesting. I'm staying and fishing in Ocean City NJ and it doesn't seem as if many stripers are in the area just yet. I have been fishing the ocean in front of my rental and also the inlet and nothing much thus far, but I have the bucktails an porkrind you suggested and am ready. There is 4 x 4 access only at the southern tip of the island. Wish I had one but I don't, so I have to hump my gear down to the surf. At age 69 it can be a bit of an ordeal at times, but its always worth the effort.
if you are in jersey you know of a place called ocean city, maryland. the bridge that lights up blue at night has a coast guard station by it fish their my freind on low or high tide with bucktail and you will get monster stripper and blues and flounder it was the most fun i have had with my dad in a long time. its best to go at night trust me its over crowded in the day time.
Although I'm not familiar with that area, I do know a lot of bass are passing through there in October, and bucktails are always a good option when bass are around.
John I’ve been reading your articles and books since your first book. Bucktails are almost an elusive type of thing. Meaning it is very difficult to fish them properly without enough practice. I’ve been surf fishing my whole life and I always knew they were the best lure for bass. But I never committed to using them enough to learn. Well all of that has changed. I fish a similar spot to the one in this video. I’ve only been using Bucktails at this spot. In terms of consistent catching, I’ve been doing the best I’ve done in years. I’ve been experimenting all spring. I can tell you that the twitch and quick pause triggers a better bite. It 100% makes a difference. I pretty much mimic your retrieve and the twitch, keeping the bucktail in the zone through the whole retrieve. The rod definitely makes a difference too. Im addicted to Bucktails. Thanks for all the books and videos.
John is a great fisherman because he put the time in and learnt where the fish are. There is no science to catch bass you need to put the time in and figure it out. I spent 5 years figuring out my area but when I go fishing I catch a lot of bass as well. 3 to 10 fish a night. I also live near you.
I credit your lessons on bucktailing with my first striped bass from the surf last month. I modified your approach and added a puglisi-style baitfish (I am primarily a fly-fisherman and fly tyer) teaser about 2 feet up from my bucktail. My first catch was a double header! Do you ever use teasers when bucktailing for striped bass?
Okay I got more into it after watching all your videos . How can I determine the size of buck tail to unknown depth of water I'm fishing at to where I don't know the depth of water .
...John, I've really enjoyed your bucktail book. In this video you mentioned this stretch of beach doesn't look fishy-no birds, bait breaking the surface, ect- so what is it about the bottom structure that makes the fish want to congregate here? Thanks again for the great videos on how to work the bucktail.
so do you work them like you do a soft plastic? been thinking of using them herr down under for a few things like beach jewfish and salmon, kingfish,salmon,snapper,cobia off the rocks.
John, great stuff! I do have a question though. When you fish from a Kayak or a boat, do you always anchor or can you the same methods while drifting ?
Try your best to use a local shop. They can help you out with info, and you can handle the equipment before buying. Many products, such as the Penn Reels I use, are the same price whether you buy them online or in a brick and mortar shop.
John I have a question, buck tails have one hook and I was just wondering would you ever put one hook on one of your DAIWA MINNOW lures. Would you or wouldn't you put just one hook on that lure? just curious if it would work.
I'm local to the central NJ shore and a good friend turned me on to your videos. Do you think using the Gulp Alive minnow on a bucktail (as when fluking) would be as effective for bass as the Uncle Josh?
I recently got the new st croix avid MHF 7' 1/2-1 1/4 for shoreline fluking. Do you think it would suit this fishing (in the video) as well? Should I have gone lighter with a more moderate bend opposed to fast? Also, thank you for signing my book at striperday pleasure to have met you.
Hi John, quick question, I am intrigued to know when to utilize the twitching action as you are doing here. A lot of guys tend to say use a steady retrieve, In what type of conditions would you say I should employ a twitch on the action?
hi mr skinner im a fellow long islander just wondering what rod and reel combo do you prefer when using bucktails in moriches inlet from the jetty.Thanks for the awsome videos.
Hi John, I'm wondering, do you let the bucktail hit bottom before you start your retrieve? I was recently out and ppl near me were catching schoolies on bait, but I couldn't buy a hit. I wonder if In those cases, I should keep the lures closer to the bottom
Mr. Skinner what knot would you use to tie the leader to the tactical anglers clip. Sometimes the knots I tie move on the clip and I don't believe that should happen
hey im headed to greenport on sunday to try my luck of the surf on the sound side.. as you know alot of structures over there I have fished this spot my whole life but never this time of year any suggestions on time and bait and what species to target
Mr. Skinner i am a big fan and want to know how u catch fish so fast very time you go fishing i go fishing in the long island sound from the surf do you have any tips thank you
Hey John, I'm going to buy a surf casting rod this week at Dicks/Modells or one of those sporting goods stores...Im just curious at what type of rod and reel combo you've found to be your favorite or just the best all around for a reasonable value. Thanks man
John I’ve noticed that bass really like very “gradual” slopes. I’ve not had as much action on steep drop offs. Steeper drop offs seem to be hard to fish. Any advice for the steeper drop offs using Bucktails?
John, I fish off a boat in Mashpee, MA on the cape. Would you recommend bucktail, shad or hogys for stripers? I use an Ugly Stik with 40 lb test and Penn Spinfisher V. I will be looking for big stripers and bluefish. Thanks so much.
hey John, can I do this at horseshoe cove in sandy hook? I've never tried but I'd really like to give it a shot this September/October. Any tips on rigs/bait I can use during that time of year at the hook. thank you!
do you recommend using a tactical anglers clip for lures as well as jigs or do you prefer tying direct to lures? a lot of people tell me that tactical angler clips affect the action of most lures. Thanks
I'm new to buck tailing is it best to swim the buck till at any depth or it base to be at the bottom I hear a lot of guys tell me if ur not on the bottom ur not buck tailing . Does depth make a important matter to it and retreve speed as well ?
which bridge are you fishing? 2nd or 3rd? and where are you usually looking to anchor yourself? I've tried that before and i struck out...maybe i picked a bad day to go but ive been there with bucktails and white pork rinds, ive been there with live eels at night and like i said, i usually go with bellies and chum pretty heavy.
hi John can you tell me exact Uncle Josh Product that you use is I can seen to find it or post a link to the product also what color smiling bill are best to use? thank you
Would this type of fishing work well off of a beach like Democrat Point or by the Fire Island Inlet, or would I be better off say on the shore under the Robert Moses Bridge or at the State Channel. If you don't know the specific spots, I understand of course, just wondering if bucktails in the surf would work as well as calmer waters of the bay.
So you were crank, crank and then stop, then crank, crank and stop again? Because I’m kind of confuse because one of your videos, is you said swim Bucktail at bottom but on this one, you crank and stop. When to apply swim and when to apply crank/stop?
i catch them all the time on clam bellies, but nothing of good size. and i was asking for info about catching them from the shore and what type of structure to look for aside from the bridges. idk if you kno, but it gets old fishing the same spots everytime you go out..ya digg?
Hi John do you fish in NJ bay? or NY bay? I love your videos and moving to PA it's 2 and half hours to NJ and little long to NY planing on getting a Kayak and start fishing. is NJ better or NY? to start exploring? Thank you
when you're looking for spots what you go to method to find them. I fish around fairfield and westport ct and im having trouble finding spots. I fish many different areas on boat and shore and cant seem to find stripers consistently. Wether im fishing a wreck or rock structure i can never seem to find the stripers. Theyll be blues and other fish around, so when you look for striper spots how do you do it apart from obviously just fishing everywhere
