starter trolling lures

[mada]

Looking for some suggestions for a "starter set" of trolling lures. I'm in south jersey and will be fishing inside of 30 miles most of the time.

[Fubar512]

Squid spoons and drails, Cedar plugs in both red/white & unpainted, and Jap feathers in assorted sizes. That should cover everything from Blues to Bluefin

Of course, we need to rig you up for stripers, too.....

[mada]

Fubar, what is a drail and a squid spoon? can you post a picture of each?

thanks for the help.

I'm all set for stripers -> it's everything else I need the input for.

[Fubar512]

Squid Spoon (Clark Spoon):

Trolling Drail:

I prefer to rig my spoons on light, single-strand wire. I tie a fairly large offshore loop on the spoon end (to give it a free-swinging action), and finish it off with a haywire twist. I then haywire twist a barrel swivel to the bitter end, and snap the trolling drail on to that.

It's a simple combination that will catch the eye of many inshore gamesters, including Atlantic bonito, Spanish mackeral, bluefish, bluefin tuna, skipjack tuna, little tunny (false albacore), etc.

[Marlintini]

I prefer to rig my spoons on light, single-strand wire

Ed... how light do you go?

[Fubar512]

#6 for inshore, #8 for offshore.

This applies soley to spoons, I rig my cedar plugs on #10 & #12 with forged needle-eye hooks, and the Jap feathers on leader that's proportional to their size.

[rainmaker]

Gotta have some SEA WITCHES pink, and blue and white. 1 1/2oz are good , 8to10 ft. of 90 to 130 lb leader and a7/0 mustad 7691 southern tuna hook. use a bait spring for the hoo's nose and hang on.

[TG_190]

Gotta have a couple of Mann's Stretch 25s at least one in chartreusse. Everything will hit them, and it is a cheap and easy way to get something in your pattern down a little. They do force you to keep the speed down a bit, but they catch fish. Keep them in close off of flat line clips.

I would say an assortment of skirts, eggsinkers, wire etc. for pulling ballyhoo. Just about everything will eat a ballyhoo. Buy a couple of packs of rigged ones first to get the idea. Soften up the spines, put a skirt (weighted or not - just enough to stay on surface) Break the bill off, pull skirt over. Check to see that they will run without twisting and flipping by handholding the leader alongside the boat at trolling speed before letting them out. skirts of yellow and green seem to work best for me during the day, darker when the light is less.