Does anyone know how to target black tips. I keep hearing how delicious they are and I'm ready to try one.

Don't think that's possible.....unless your diver.

Usually when I catch black tips I will catch gaff top, reds, jacks and even bonnet head before I get a black tip. The best way I have found is to use cut mullet Carolina rigged with a 1 oz. egg sinker (depending on the current) and a 12/0 circle hook. It will be a little harder to catch them now that the reds are starting to show on the piers. Use a steel leader or you will get cut off. I will probably be out the this weekend trying to get some.

Boat or no boat?
If boat, good times are late April/to close of shrimping season fishing the inshore shrimp boats, from just off the beach to 4-5 miles out. Spawning happening then, can find females up to 100+ lb's.

When shrimp season reopens in mid July, try same thing shallow shimpboats.

During closed shrimp season try drifting a bloody bait at the state water rigs, use wire leader.

If boatless the beach during April/May spawn will produce Blacktips but get the bait out a ways. June & early July you'll find the BT pups in the surf, 24"-40" 2-10 b fish. They'll bite anything but live or fresh dead is best.

One shrimp season re-opens most BT's will locate and follow the shrimpboats until boats move further out.

Bleed any BT you keep before icing down, they are good eats.

Good luck!

Thanks for the tips. I heard the shrimp boats are in close in Venice right now. I will see what I can find behind them.

Yep.

First of all, your chances to catch a black tip are better in the surf or beyond. Fish the bottom with cut mullet or whiting. The problem is that you will have to deal with bait thieves such as hardheads and gafftop because they are going to get to your bait before the black tips can. My recommendation is to oversize your gear and bait. Put a big hook, heavy leader, large spider weight, and half horse mullet or other bait fish. Of course, you are going to need a rod and reel to match your oversized bait. You are going to lose some bait, but you won't hook as many small fish. You may even catch a few bull reds. The Texas Sharkfishing site still have the great handbooks. Check out the Surf Fishing Handbook. No need to buy the hardcore stuff on the Shark Handbook.

http://www.tx-sharkfishing.com/surf-fishing/

We have always done good with large live mullet free lining drifting the surf. Especially behind the shrimpers. They are a lot fun with live mullet as they will come out of the water like Tarpon. Jetties,passes and the color changes are always good spots as well

We always just went to a place blacktips were known to hang out and fished there. One of my favorite places years ago used to be between the old A&M buoys off of Freeport. A black tip was almost guaranteed. Not sure if the buoys are still there, but there was a trench that ran between two of them where blacktips seemed to hang out. BTW, if it jumps out of the water, it's probably a spinner shark, not a blacktip. They look almost identical.

Or a Mako.

I just want the best tasting one I can find.

Makos don't have black tips on their fins, spinners do

Anchor up and chum like crazy. You will have blacktips at your transom. Easy peasy .
Mo

The guys in Florida say if you go out planning to catch a certain type of fish you usually catch the opposite. So if you go out there trying to catch a tarpon you'll probably end up catching a black tip

Put out a laundry bag full of fresh menhaden and had all the blacktips and jack crevalle we could want within an hour. Took about 60 seconds from the time the bait hit the water until we were hooked up once they arrived.