Article by Larry Jock
Over the last couple of years, anglers trolling for stripers in the fall has really taken off. Most will troll either Stretch 30’s and/or Mojo rigs, otherwise called Parachute rigs.
Mojo rigs can vary in style. I like to make mine with a 3-foot drop from a 3-way swivel and a 6-foot leader to my trailing lure. At the end of the 3-foot leader is the heavier of the two lures, sometimes going as heavy as 24 oz. The trailing lure is lighter, usually in the 6-12 oz. range.
Obviously, when you want to get right on the bottom, a 20-oz. bullet head, rigged with a 9-inch rubber shad is the way to go.
Binnacle Custom Tackle, well known for their custom dyed gem hair, has just come out with 20 oz., 6 oz. and 3 oz. Mojo lures. They are not only beautiful, but they are very well made. I used to travel to Crisfield to get my Mojo lures from a gentleman who made really nice lures, but from what I can see, the Binnacle lures are just as nice, and you can get them locally.
The really cool thing about Binnacle’s lures is that you can mix and match from 14 different head colors, 11 different hair colors and 6 different eye colors. Binnacle even allows you to mix 2 different hair colors on the same lure.
The lures retail for $19.99 and are worth every penny. They can be found in local tackle shops or you can purchase them online at www.binnacletackle.com.
There is no denying that the Berkley Company changed the way anglers think about soft baits with the launch of their Gulp! artificial baits a few years ago.
This year, they added a Gulp! Alive! 7-inch belly strip to their line-up. This bait comes packaged in the Gulp! Alive! oval bucket, suspended in their patented Gulp! juice that the company claims is 20% stronger than the original Gulp! sold in packets.
Successful, local anglers will tell you that one of the best baits to use, especially for flounder, is flounder belly cut into strips. Strip baits are also ideal for tipping your bucktail or just a plain hook when fishing for stripers, croaker or practically any other species.
The nice thing about these Gulp! Alive! artificial baits is that you can recharge them by simply placing them back into the “Magic Gravy”.
The new Belly strips come in pink, pearl white and chartreuse (pictured) and retail for $19.99.
Another innovative product from Berkley is their Bio-Dip paint that will instantly change the color of your Berkley Gulp! and Gulp! Alive! artificial bait.
All you need to do is pat the bait dry and dip it into Bio-Dip container.
I haven’t tried the Bio-Dip yet, but I can see where it would come in handy if the fish are hitting a color that is different than the bait you are using.
Bio-Dip comes in red, blue, orange and chartreuse. The 4 oz. bottle retails for $6.95. Call your local tackle shop for availability.
