Quote Originally Posted by Rob1678 View Post
Guys, first of all, thanks so much for the great advice. I really mean it! I am a newby to the striper game. I am usually pulling bait or u-rigs during the daytime. So many things to consider. My boat was about 35 feet out perpendicular and we would cast like old bass fishing techniques. Many times within 2-6 ft from the bank the lures would hit. Scared of getting hung up! There were 2-3 problems right off the bat. I was using a black light with white green and red burning as well. I have looked up the gizz4 and assume it is made by smacktackle. The sliver, not a clue. I did keep one of the shad last night to get a good look at size shape and color. As far as the two boats out that only caught one. I was worried when we got there that an obvious skilled striper hunter was parked on the ramp watching his boat tied up at the dock of the dam and not fishing. I am making this judgement by the tackle and how nice the boat was. Again, Thanks for the info.
Fishing 35 ft out means your bait was maybe in the zone for two or three seconds. You can't be afraid of getting hung up or hooking the bank. It's just part of it. I really don't know how the stripers would feel about a black light but my guess is they wouldn't like it much. Yes, it's a blind cast. Just practice everything in the daylight before it gets dark. Even with bad casts, I rarely get hung up and even then it's pretty easy to get off. You really can't go wrong with the Gizz 4. The issue with those baits are durability in my opinion. Last time out I had a fish take the entire rear hook and eye completely out of the bait. I had another fish break off two of the three hooks on a treble. They are expensive but invest in several. Get the one with the slight purple on the sides. Others will work but that is the go to color.
Here's a link to the Sliver:
http://www.basspro.com/Rapala-Saltwa...uct/8502/46022

The 01 or 20 both work well but the 01 is the go to. This is a sinking bait and can be worked the same as the Gizz 4 only a touch deeper.