striper gear

[marcq]

i have a spot that i go to every summer in jersey where i can catch schoolie bass all night. im thinking about trying to get them on a fly this year. could someone give me some gear info i have an 8wt rod but reel and line i need help with. im think any around 200 to 250 i dont know where thats going to get me though.

 

[gfen]

Surf or estuaries?

Intermediate sinker (sa striper taper) for streamers, floating for poppers.

I have a Cabela's XSS reel I bought for this purpose last year. It works and was on sale for $105.

FWIW, I was guided into buying a 10wt because I didn't know better, and it's too much but an 8 would be perfect.

 

[sight_nymph_17109]

I thought this thread was "stripper gear". My mistake, I don't fish saltwater. Continue on.

 

[Fishidiot]

Usually the term "schoolie" implies small fish (under about 25" in length). For these fish, in the calmer conditions of summer, a 8WT rod is perfect. I prefer a 10WT or 11WT for big surf and jetties in the fall where one is usually throwing big flies at big fish in windy, rough conditions. However, for what you describe, an 8WT is fine as this isn't a FFing scenario requiring specialty or complex gear. Any decent reel will work with a 100yds of backing; I'd set it up with a floating WF line, unless this location you fish has water deeper that a few feet in which case some sort of sinking line would obviously be better. Of course, you'll want to clean your gear after fishing the salt.

 

[skiltonian]

i use a 9' 7wt with a 30' sink tip without any problems, so long there is some kind of flow where you're fishing you can still get them if they,re close to the surface by just striping up current. I have an older STH reel (cortland) reel with an 8wt cortalnd rocket taper floating line on it I could sell you cheap. the drag is pretty much blown from catching salmon, but maybe you could get it fixed, just palm the reel, or just use it for the floating fly line. shoot me a PM with your e-mail and i'll send you some pics, if interested. Also, where at in NJ, I know a few spots where its not just the little guys to catch with some blues in the mix.

 

[sandfly]

Mininum an 8 wt. for bass at the shore( weakies, blues, flounder) if going after big fish (albies, bonito, shark, or big bass ) then a 9-12 wt. will do. I fished the coast for 30+ years and still get down once a year. Back bay a floating or intermediate will work. A sink tip in the 300 grain will get you down in the holes and smaller channels. For reels any reel will do but better if made for the salt envioment. 100 yards of backing will do..

 

[marcq]

thanks for all the info guys. im thinking on a Cortland Precision XC Fly Reel large arbor or Lamson Konic. thanks for the offer on the reel skiltonian but im been dying to get some new gear. an cant give away the spot but i will say fish bridges at night. i think one time i fished it about two hours and caught 30 bass all above 25 inches. all on soft plastic in the middle of augest.

 

[gfen]

No one suggested a shooting head, but the possibility of making your own from a left over line a few weights up from the rod's rating.

There's alot of discussion on the Intertubes about it, I don't have a direct link to something, but have actually taken the time to try and cut one up to check it out. I have not, however, actually tried to fine tune it as of yet, so YMMV.

 

[scotto]

9 foot 9 wt fast action w/ large arbor reel & shooting head system covers my large fish use in both fresh(muskies) & salt(stripers)

 

[Pittflyguy]

A few thoughts. If you are fishing the surf, I tend to stay away from floating lines and go with an intermediate slime line as it cuts through the waves much better. It is also good if you are fishing a little deeper water. If you have an 8 weight rod, I would also recommend either a shooting head or a line like the Teeny 350. If you have never thrown one before, it will take some practice but you can really throw it a long ways once you get it down. Pair it up with a clouser and you have classic striper "chuck and duck" fishing!

As far as the reel is concerned, for chasing schoolies I really don't think it matters much. For schoolies you can really hand strip in almost any fish you are going to hook up with. Having said that, you never know when something bigger might come along so I would go with something that at least has a stout disk drag. It's not like fishing for Tarpon, Bones, or Permit where you are looking at 100 yard runs.

Also, depending on where you are fishing, bringing along a stripping basket can really save the day! Good luck and tight lines!

 

[marcq]

what about tippit and leaders is there one made of just one you make your self.

 

[Pittflyguy]

If you are fishing an intermediate or sinking line, a few feet of mono and a shock tippet will do just fine.

 

[GreenWeenie]

Scientific Angler has what is called a Quad Tip line. It is a floating belly line that connects loop-to-loop and comes with 4 different 15’ long tippets. The tippets are floating, intermediate sinking, fast sinking and neutral mono. I have this line and I can say that while it’s not good for surf fishing, for casual once or twice per year salt water fly fishing in backwaters, it’s perfect and also serves as a freshwater water bass line. I think it runs around $125 and is a good bank for the buck for the right fishing situations, as you get 4 different lines without having to get additional spools or changing lines.

 

[JustFish]

marcq wrote:
i have a spot that i go to every summer in jersey where i can catch schoolie bass all night. im thinking about trying to get them on a fly this year. could someone give me some gear info i have an 8wt rod but reel and line i need help with. im think any around 200 to 250 i dont know where thats going to get me though.

Your lucky b/c Jersey for the most part sucks for striper fishing compared to spots north and south depending on time of the year. Jersey is more of a rest stop on the turnpike of stripers.

The advice above is good. I, however, wouldn't go cheap on a saltwater flyrod.

 

[CLSports]

All great advice and I have very little to add, but I will mention what I have been using as well as the flies I have tied.

I use a 9' 7wt and a 9' 9wt depending on the size of fish I may be targeting. I use a large arbor reel with a sink tip line, but I also have a reel with intermediate sinking line. I use the intermediate line for unweighted flies and shallower water in the back bays and the sink tip for the surf with weighted flies. I prefer to use the 7wt rod over the 9wt, but I have never even caught a striper on either one yet!!! I have caught snapper blues and that is it.

As for leaders, I tie my own and I try to keep them relatively short (8 foot) to make casting the heavier flies a bit easier. I have found long leaders to be harder to cast a weighted fly with any distance. I taper them down to a 12lb. florocarbon tippet or sometimes just 10 lb for small blues. It may be good to go heavier if you plan to catch larger stripers though.

I have tied the standard Clousers and Deceivers in various colors and sizes as well as some sand eels (weighted and unweighted) and some peanut bunker. My flies look kick a$$, but I need to find these fish which seems to be the hardest part . . .

I fish mostly at IBSP in NJ and I will go out onto the beach or even in Barnegat Bay with my kayak.

If any of you want to hook up and do some beach fishing, let me know. I am somewhat new at fly fishing the surf. A new challenge for me.


Rob