[624731]

Ha! Made you look.

This topic was an idea I got by talking to one of the sharpies on this website. (It wasn't his idea)

I felt this site needed a place for beginner anlgers to have a place for "beginner" questions without feeling like a beginner. Did that make sense?

This is is the place where anyone could ask a stupid question without feeling stupid. AND, a place where anyone can be a sharpie! (cuz most of the questions will be stupid)

One Caveat: You CANNOT ask questions which require LONG answers like: How do I catch bigger fish? Just short and sweet please......

So here's the first stupid question for all you wannabe-sharpies (and not so wannabe-sharpies) ???

Q: What's the first target species for you when it gets warmer? (Water temp > 50 degrees consistently)

 

[MakoMatt]

Mackerel

MakoMatt

 

[624731]

Macks?

Where do you fish for them? I went out of sheepshead once in Jan.

How long does the mack bite last into spring? I was told macks taste better in winter.

 

[MakoMatt]

Do I win a prize or something??? Do I have to answer it in the form of a question??? If so, what is a Mackerel???

MakoMatt

 

[620427]

why do fishing lures that are 4-8 inches in length need 3 sets of treble hooks, providing 9 hook points ??

why do the same people who use those plugs fish a live bunker that is 8-14" in size and only use a single hook or 1 treble hook ???

why do a lot of those same people tout the virtues of circle hooks for their bait fishing , but have no problem sticking a fishes face full of treble hooks when fishing with plugs ?

 

[624731]

No prize...

No prize yet sorry,
Can answer w/o Q'???'s

 

[MakoMatt]

Megalodon, you're in the wrong discussion room, can't you see we are playing "Fishing Jeopardy"

MakoMatt

 

[MakoMatt]

CoolAngler, you eat Mackerel???

MakoMatt

 

[624731]

yes

Yes, prepared in only two ways. One is spicy, the other is not.

 

[620427]

fishing jeopardy

would better describe the yearly gauntlet of regulations and closures that the NMFS , DEC and all the other wonderful regulatory agencies create.

or better yet,
the current state of our fishery is without a doubt in "JEOPARDY"

 

[624731]

Rubber Hooks?

Anyone have days when it feels like you're fishing with rubber hooks? Is it my hook setting skills? or lack of?

 

[LkyLindy]

fish in jeopardy

Cool- forget those Macks and the face full of hooks- Once those waters get to 50 you want to be fishing for winter flounder.Now, since this fishery is in the crapper,its more of a challenge to catch those tasty blackbacks(not like the good old no limit days)
However it takes a lot of bait, chum and perserverance,but thats what fishing is about isn't it?

 

[Hunt n' Fish]

Too many trebles

Megalodon,

A lot of surf fisherman, and I am sure some boat fisherman (I know I do), alter their plugs to reduce the damage done to the fish. A single on the back with some hair or a feather. Take out the middle hook. Replace the front with a double. Many of us do think twice.

Also, with bait, you usually let the fish run with it to swallow it before you set the hook. With a lure, the fish gets hooked on the strike, usually in the mouth, and don't have as much of an opportunity to swallow the lure. (but I am sure you know this already)

CoolAngler,

You, and anyone else here, should feel comfortable to ask any "stupid" question here or in one of the other general forums. No one will jump down your throat for it. If it is a question that has been beaten to death in the past, you may be referred to a past discussion, but don't take that as an insult. People can only say the same thing so many times. Sometimes asking beginner questions will help some of the "sharpies" as well, or at least refresh their memories to something they may have forgotten.

 

[togmaster]

Doughboy is that like?

Hey Chris is that like leaving your icecream cake in the back of your truck and trying to remember its 34 DEG on your girls birthday?

 

[Hunt n' Fish]

Didn't you know that the Ice Cream Birthday Soup is a German tradition. Break out the ladel.

 

[baywatch]

Flounder

When you can find em.

BUOY 15 C/M bay on the mussel beds, incoming with at least 2 chum pots.

 

[624272]

heres one, whats the best bait for early spring stripers on open sand beaches?

 

[620427]

doughboy

"Also, with bait, you usually let the fish run with it to swallow it before you set the hook. "

if you ask some of the best pinhookers when they set the hook when fishing live bunker, they will tell you as soon as they feel the hit. they do not wait for the fish to run.

i fish this way as well, and miss fewer fish this way then letting them run with it before setting the hook.

so using this example i still beg to differ on the theory that you need all those hooks on a plug is because the bass only hits it once.
in my example the way i fish a much larger "lure" with just single hook and my hook setting style is the same as fishing a plug basically.

years ago before the "invention" of super sharp hooks out of the pack, most treble hooks points from years ago were blunt compared to these. many fisherman are too lazy to sharpen them as you know. in this situation you would want and need more hook points.
today with the sharp hooks and non stretch lines, you can set the hook with much more authority. you do not need as many hook points to catch the fish.

i know you and many other fisherman modify their lures, but many do not, and most boat fisherman using plugs rarely make any changes to the lure.
i find all those hooks works against you.

another case for single hook use,
the wildeye shads you use are 5-6" in size with a single hook, they offer the same size or profile as many of your plugs, and they work really good with a single hook.

one other point,
as you are well aware a bass is capable of inhaling any plug you might fish with, or any bunker or even a 14+" blackfish. so think about the need to let that bass swim the bunker so he can "swallow it" he already swallowed it, its in his mouth now, why wait for the run to set the hook. ?

ask togmaster about how many of the pinhookers in the bay fished live bunker. hit them right away, no waiting.

 

[Capthookem]

As long as we are asking stupid questions....

Why do they have jumbo shrimp ??

Capt. H

 

[Hunt n' Fish]

NOT letting it run

That is a method I will gladly try. I hate letting the fish run with the shad/bunker only to have it spit it for some reason. If I can nail it on the pick-up that will be much better.

My only question is: It is a pretty common belief that the bass is taking a live bait (shad, bunker, eel, etc) and holding it in it's lips for a moment, not simply inhaling it. You seem to disagree.

I would believe you are correct. I have seen many shows where stripers are inhaling their pray whole, such as lobsters and fish. When I use the rubber shads, I occasionally hook the fish deep in the throat, so that would go along with that idea as well. But there is a big difference between a 6 inch rubber shad and a 15 inch hickory shad.