Hey guys,
I can pretty much catch them with live shrimp, but I want to get better at artificials for reds, trout, and blacks. I'm down there tomorrow and want to know what you'd use.

I'll swing by Academy to get some and will document it on my youtube channel.

Thanks for your help!
Tim

Tim I'm no pro but there's basically soft plastics and hardbaits. The soft plastics I would definitely get gulp shrimp (you can throw this on a jig head or under a popping cork) and I like DSL Chicken of the C color. Trout Support Grasswalker is also a great redfish bait but not sure if you'll find those at Academy. Depending on where you'll be Tackle Town in Rockport has them or you can order them here. You really don't need more than that. If you're fishing in 2 foot of water a 1/8 oz jig head will work. If you want to fishing deeper channels a 1/4 oz should do unless the current is ripping. Hardbaits the super spook jr is a solid topwater bait. The Strike Pro Hunchback is good and so is the Yo-Zuri Pins Minnow Floating Diver Shallow Diving Crankbait in silver/black. If the water is murky it never hurts to have a Rat-L-Trap on hand. A shop along the coast light Tackle Town is actually going to have a better selection than maybe an Academy (unless you go to the one in CC).

Honestly it's more about finding the fish than it is the lure. But there are times when the right lure can coax them into biting when they aren't.

Best of luck!

Hard to go wrong with a paddle tail like a DSL or Saltwater Assassin on a 1/8 ounce jig head. A silver or gold spoon wouldn’t be a bad idea either. If you can work a walk the dog style topwater, that’s a good thing to have in the box.

Doesn’t Tobin and most all the guides repeatedly say it’s much more about finding the fish than what you throw at them?

Sometimes, going from live to artificial you might have to vary your presentation. Seems like some regular bait users tend to work arties awfully fast at times or not at all.

Jerry,
Awesome advice. I was late getting out of Austin so didn’t make an Academy run. I have a few bass lures and down south plastics. I’ll try as you stated above. Thank you for your advice.
Tim

Agreed. It is about finding them, and have some of Tobins recommended lures. I’m basically going to do some basic bass lures like the top waters and really want to catch one on a spoon.... thanks for the great advice. Tim

OK, so I tried artificials this weekend. I tried DOA shrimp, down south plastic lures (3 sizes), crank bait, spoons. My son and his girlfriend were on board and I let them use live shrimp. Although I managed to catch 1 on the down south; the rest of the limit and all the black drum were caught on live shrimp. I'm still convinced that if I can learn to use lures, it'll be a good thing. But man, was it tough....

https://texasfishingforum.com/forum...ockport-fishing-report-8-17#Post13252530

Tim

The best way to learn to use artificials is to leave the bait bucket at home. Good job putting the girlfriend on fish though. Looks like a great trip!

I always try to build on whatever worked. So you got the one red on artificial. How exactly did you make the particular presentation that worked?

Presentation can make a huge difference. Just a little slower retrieve or longer pause might make all the difference. I’ve seen this play out many times.

I remember back to 1982 when I had very little experience fishing saltwater with lures. I went on a wade with a couple of experienced lure users, that day fishing gold spoons, and all of us wading the Greens bayou area side by side. They caught 5 fish for every one I got. That day, it was my presentation that was just off. I didn’t understand how to vary it up until I got it right.

More recently, I’ve been fishing off a boat in a tidal river several times where two out of three people were experienced and the one wasn’t. Who do you think caught the fish? Same water, same lures, subtly different presentations made the difference.

The best people I’ve ever fished with, all artificial lure users, are good at finding fish and they are good at understanding how to fish the water column to find the payoff zone.

Black drum can be caught on plastics, but not as easy as redfish, trout, and flounder. I can count the times I've caught black drum on artificials. DSLs, chickenboys, 1/8-1/4 oz jighead, and maybe some Pro-Cure if you like. Target structure, depth changes, marsh drains, but most important, find the bait. Now figure out how they want it ie: depth, presentation, and retrieve speed.

I just started fishing salt bout 5 years ago, primarily in Baffin Bay. Before that I fished solely for largemouth bass. Coming from that background chunking hardware wasn't anything new. A lot of what I learned as a bass fisherman applies to salt. Build confidence in a lure is your first step. I would suggest you wait till fall when live bait isn't as abundant as it is now in the bay. Fish won't have so many options then and you can start building confidence in the artificial baits you are using. Top water bait is a must, I like she dogs. Paddle tail is another, down south lures chicken on the chain is a great all around lure. I would suggest wading, it gets you into the element. You feel the bottom, the water temp, more stealthier of an approach and it slows you down so you can cover the water thoroughly. As you build confidence in lures you can start adding more, I have personally fell in love with trout support lures recently and having a blast using them. It's all about the confidence!

Black drum are tough on lures because of how they feed. For the others, I always try a good 3/4 oz. Johnson gold spoon to start inshore. It is good for redfish, trout, ladyfish, Spanish mackerel, and my favorite, jack crevalle. As mentioned above, Mirrolure She Dogs are great top water lures, especially for redfish. But nothing beats a live mullet or shrimp for the big boys.

Yep, that's a good policy. Then you're forced to stick with it to learn it. One day, I'm going cold turkey!
Tim

Yep, I'm also a largemouth bass fisherman, so I get the presentation aspect. I wished I had an experienced lure user on board to learn something new. Thanks for your input.
Tim

Agreed. I actually bought some pro-cure and squeezed some onto the lures. Still not alot of luck changing presentation depth, color, and speed. Thanks for your comments.
Tim

That's actually a really good point to wait until the fall. I'd track a school of reds, have the inexperienced person throw in a live shrimp, and hook up right away; try for 10 minutes to catch them on artificials... It must be the time of year where live shrimp just plain ole out fishes artificials; at least for me.....
Thanks for your comments.
Tim