Striper Surf Fishing - Dawn Bucktail Bite and Rod Review

A blustery morning produced plenty of striped bass while fishing bucktails in current. The Lamiglas GSBSKINNER is reviewed.
Affiliate links to the gear:
Rod: bit.ly/2QoXGRZ
Reel: bit.ly/2EPKtQS
Bucktail Lure: bit.ly/2EGtb8O
bucktail trailer (similar): bit.ly/2A4uk6t
Line: bit.ly/2GxpZIc
Leader Material 50#: amzn.to/2SdcWCX
Tactical Anglers Clips (75#): bit.ly/2GwiZvf
Swivels (180#): bit.ly/2n0WMBk
John Skinner Striper Book: amzn.to/2k9a620
Video Camera: amzn.to/2GxJfWk
The above are affiliate links.

[@Bsprecksfishing]

Nice work John, every lecture I’ve sat through I’ve learned so much from you

[@arnpad1969]

Thanks much for all your vids. Always a pleasure to watch.

[@FishHawk]

Awesome video John! Thanks for sharing!

[@sandreoni1]

Gotta love the fall. Thanks for sharing John.

[@mikeyfred1]

This past Saturday and Sunday out there was one heck of a crazy bite. It reminded me of the olden days

[@michaelcelotto6743]

I just discovered your vids and really enjoy your work THANK YOU SIR 🐟

[@yellostallion]

Good video and very informative talk thanks!

[@josephmasone1478]

I still have an old fish stix rod built by John. I loved that thing, spent many dark nights on a rock in Montauk with that rod in hand - sturdy as hell and and even doubled as a walking stick through the boulder fields in a pinch - it really did excel at throwing eels. Unfortunately both throwing eels and building specialty rods for specific situations are both dying arts. Everyone now wants that one universal do it all rod for bucktailing, Pencil popping, throwing eels, chunking, plugging both shores - it’s crazy what I see out there and has definitely taken some of the finesse out of surfcasting. Just because you can hammer the square peg through the round hole doesn’t mean it’s the right way of doing it. Custom builders will still help you meet a demand or need for specialty rods but the lack of a manufactures warranty from a custom build has really put people onto stock rods by lami and st croix that can cover many different situations and come with peace of mind warranty if/when if breaks from trying to chunk a bunker head and lead using a rod meant for plugging the back bays lmao.

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

But those old (and new) custom lamiglas GSB rods don't break. I still have my original 1991 11-footer and it's been through a lot. They're doing a beautiful job on their new GSB factory rods too. The 8-footer is awesome.

[@jasonlima9264]

Great video

[@thehbcrew]

got the rod last year, great rod except the butt fell off couple weeks ago, got to bring it back to j&h but still need it for the rest of the season

[@KA-hd6mi]

Hello John, Do you normally try to follow any rhythm to lifts and twitches of rod when bucktailing? Can you give any detail. You usually get a fish on so fast it's hard to see. Thank you

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

No real rhythm. It's almost like I feel it would be too predictable.

[@anthonygregorio2208]

Hi John. Enjoyed your video as usual and when you mentioned the guides on your new rod it made me think of a question I've wanted to ask you. I was just wondering if you've ever used any of these spinning rods that have the lowrider guides on them. I own a 9' St. Croix Mojo Surf Rod and the first guide above the reel is so small and flipped backwards I thought it was a casting rod when I first bought it. Do you have any thoughts on this style like advantages or disadvantages and the proper applications for this design.

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

I have a St. Croix with those guides and they're fine. You should have no reservations about them if you like the rod action.

[@anthonygregorio2208]

John Skinner Fishing I do love the action of the rod and it casts great. Though sometimes when I start my retrieve the line will almost wrap around the rod right between that first guide and the reel. So I always have to make sure I have tension on the bail before I start reeling especially in the dark.

[@Bobbybaitz]

Hey John, Im curious as to what you think are the pros/cons of a swing hook vs fixed hook on a bucktail. What would you prefer?

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

There's not a huge difference for striper fishing, but more of a personal preference. For fluke jigging with bucktails heavier than 2 ounces I definitely want a swing hook because they're easier to put action on when vertical jigging.

[@Bobbybaitz]

@@JohnSkinnerFishing Thank you.

[@RobertJohnson-nk6mz]

Thanks John. Do you ever reduce the leader size to 30lb test when buck tailing or would it increase the chances of a break off?

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

In the spring on lighter tackle.

[@xclusivereef5805]

Geeze man every cast you land a fish.. if you ever decide to do a charter outing i would be interested.

[@gennerobootz6490]

I’m debating between getting the lamiglass super surf 2 g pro or the new gsb what do you recommend

[@derekalexander4030]

The guy in the boat probably saw u catching and wanted to beach his boat and start surf casting next to you. Great video thanks.

[@dhags1960]

John great videos . Do you or can make a video on how you tie your set up , the knots you use and so forth . Thanks

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

clinch on the leader material, palomar on the braid. You can find some nice instructions for those online.

[@KA-hd6mi]

Hello John, Can you say how many wraps you like for clinch Thank you

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

9 on 50#

[@gothivore277]

Hi John , what happens to be the lure rating on that rod? Could you throw the heaviest superstrike needle fish with that?

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

That's 3 ounces. Yes.

[@marshallbrooks8896]

Legend

[@geraldswain3259]

Hi John really enjoy your vids,could you tell me what these striped bass eat like, as their cousins over the pond are much sought after by restaurants etc, although a little overrated I think.regards from a Limey b from across the pond.

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

It would be easier to list what they don't eat. I don't think they eat jellyfish. Otherwise if they can fit it in their mouth, it's something they might eat. That said, they're a challenging fish to pursue. They just have a wide-ranging diet.

[@geraldswain3259]

@@JohnSkinnerFishing Hi again John what i actually meant was ,what are they like as a table fish !.You must have misunderstood the question ha ha . Regards Gerald swain.

[@geraldswain3259]

@Ny Jeep Adventurer many thanks for the reply, God bless you.

[@jrod1077]

Hey John - you mentioned keeping the bucktail down far enough in the water column, but I wanted to know how you avoid getting hung up, especially in many of the locations on the Sound that have boulders all over the place. One second, you're near the bottom and the next, you're snagged on a boulder.

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

You need a bulky bucktail that will swim above it. Most years I do not lose any to the bottom. Swim the jig above the structure.

[@jrod1077]

@@JohnSkinnerFishing Will give that a try...thank you!

[@aantonio4985]

How far are you casting out?

[@brianoleary3312]

Why the need for 3 ft leader? I uniknot directly to bucktail and just landed a 33 incher the other day.

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

For one thing I want to be able to grab the leader, not braid.

[@brianoleary3312]

@@JohnSkinnerFishing ok. Thank you. I truly enjoy the videos and am learning a lot.

[@frankrizzo3350]

Are you leaving the buck tail on the bottom or are you reeling it in and casting it back out and repeating?

[@shortyetm3190]

Has plenty of vids on his channel about fishing the bucktail

[@Sandstorm9562]

If you watch the video he tells you exactly how he fishes it.

[@borisgurgov5127]

I just wanna know if it was in the morning early or late afternoon? Hi tide or Lowtide!

[@killerxela]

says early dawn in the title. check the tide times for long island should get your answer.

[@klarkgoros2343]

It's literally in the title, at the start of the video, and he even says what time of day it is.

[@christopherfelser]

No idea where or when though... Tide tables arent so helpful.

[@klarkgoros2343]

@@christopherfelser there are so many resources to learn about these things. No one's going to give you handouts

[@sandreoni1]

@@christopherfelser Chris Fisherman rarely, if ever, reveal their fishing sites....get used to it. You have to find them yourselvf. Sometimes it takes years, but once you've discovered them yourself, you'll understand. Tight lines.

[@kevinfoss9074]

John is a structure and baitfish hound. He has done his homework and has put his time in, thus knowing where to be and when to be. Giving too much info would not be helpful. His books give people a lot of very helpful info gained from experience.

[@camklues]

John, how would you characterize the health of the striper population now when compared to your decades of observation?

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

3 on a scale of 1-10, where 10 is great

[@rickfreeda5845]

Guys on the bunker are really taking to many big fish gust pull up to any dock on a weekend in NJ or any where sad to see

[@afusmackdown]

Does your style and lure selection work in California? If not any suggestions?

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

Absolutely bucktails work there. I've had plenty of positive feedback from CA.

[@afusmackdown]

@@JohnSkinnerFishing how about the pork?

[@MegaOhmylord]

If u took me along with u to fish one day id be forever grateful

[@joenoze66]

Notice that there is no other guys fishing nowhere nere him!! Secluded areas where nobody could fish and he gets in them!!!!Lol very nice

[@ATREZ0123]

John why 180lb swivel?

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

That's a high-quality swivel, so it's pretty small. I've broken a few swivels in my life. They start off at a certain pound test, but with time in the salt can weaken. I use Tsunami stainless or SPRO only.

[@ATREZ0123]

@JohnSkinnerFishing Thank you for the timely response. Have you ever used the Spro Power Swivels? They are extremely small compared to others of the same pound strength. I bought some and would love to use them but I'm concerned about losing my rig. They are just so much smaller compared to say the Tactical Anglers barrel swivels.

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

SPROs are good, but I use at least 80#.

[@jacobh9628]

Where is he I need fall fishing

[@smadi1232]

Ninja fortnite

[@joenoze66]

Long island sound!

[@joenoze66]

Very hard place to fish

[@DukeNukem713]

You heard him; a rocky point with current.

[@jimgreenfield1320]

He lives on eastern LI. Unless John traveled to CT, don't think it could be the Sound.

[@moist_minister1902]

Would you fish a striper buck tail the same you would fish a fluke buck tail

[@Marceldbd]

No... steady retrieve rare twitch if hitting bottom for stripers. atleast it works for me.. good luck

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

What he said.

[@alleykat6145]

@@JohnSkinnerFishing why do you use ottertails instead of gulps for a trailer

[@JohnSkinnerFishing]

Gulps would work but are not as durable and would end up costing a lot.

[@alleykat6145]

@@JohnSkinnerFishing I know you like gulps for fluke I figured they would work just as good with the stripers

[@j121212100]

I'd like to know at least if it is north or south shore, bay or sound. I know it's not good etiquette to reveal your location but some basic general regional information would be helpful.

[@ronsuda7555]

Not the sound land too close probably back side of a south shore inlet moriches ot shinnecock

[@17yrsofcollege]

Ron Suda ughhhh. No

[@adaml1856]

John is from Greenport and most of his fishing is from there... I would venture to guess that that is the south shore of the north fork.

[@mr.c1987]

Definitely facing north/northeast. Sun coming up on right side. Could be south fork/north shore as well. But I am not trying to guess his spots...............oh hell......of course I am.

[@skyler4980]

i cant get anything but rats on a bucktail only seem to get big girls on bait

[@robertgerber2533]

John Skinner the fish whisperer. Give him a piece of water and he can tell you if it's worth fishing.