belly strips

[home cookin']

I would appreciate you collective wisdom on how you cut your strips.

do you go for length, or more like chunks?

I often skin my flounder--will just skin do, or do you need to leave a lot of meat? How much?
Or are you basically taking the white side fillet and stripping the whole thing out?

For croaker strips, same thing--looking for length, or a triangle fillet?

Seems to me the thick ones don't swim naturally like a squid strip does--does that matter? especialy croaker

do you hook a live gudgeon on the same hook, or is that too much going on?

How often do you change the bait? mine get pretty tired looking after a while.

Thanks!

[Finfever21]

I strip my flounder using the white side of the belly about 1 inch to 1 1/2 wide and about 4 to 6 inches in length. The key is to make the tail end tapered so it flutters in the water and looks natural. The same goes for croakers depending on the size of the fish depends on the length of the strip baits. If im getting little nibbles from croakers and other small then i will put on a minnow and that usually not all the time keeps them away til the notorious blues come in too play. I change my baits pretty reguarly especially if the tide is really ripping my squid and minnows tend to get pretty washed up.. good luck

Brandon

[Sportin' Wood]

Big baits= big fish. Remember that. Long cut with a tail notch for swimming effect works well. I use as big as I can cut (8-12 inches). You'll catch smaller fish on that too, so you know the doormats won't have an issue sucking it down. The actual flounder belly (with the ruffles from the fin) works the best, but it's all about visibility when you get deep in low vis water. The white skin w/o meat works too. Throw on a minnow or mullet (dead or alive) and standby to get slammed! Live spot/pinfish/croaker/snapper bluefish for strictly doormats. Tear 'em up!

[ccx2]

About six inches long, 1 1/2 to 2" wide, about four baits from a flounder belly, and the same from the back, the back works as good as the belly . Some will scoff at the dark/back usage but I'll say they probably haven't tried it.

[ssellard]

When cleaning flounder, I cut the fillet off all the way to the fin and then cut the part with the revels (what I cal it) off and keep for bait. The key for me is that what ever you put on the hook does not spin when pulled through the H20. I keep sharp scissors on boat and trim as need. This is much easier and less messy then cutting with knife. Dark side and white work. Some hook the thin part of the bait on the hook with the thick part trailing. As for croaker, I will trim some meat off with scissors to make it swim correctly. Put your bait in the water and pull it, if it looks goo, probably is. Remember it is illegal to have flounder meat and no carcus, just saying.

[captdavdavis01]

Same as CCX... maybe a tad longer. But given the option, Ill take a strip of buefish over anything for flounder, shiny, smelly, and usually easy to get.

I also take care to trim the strip so it doesnt spin, that means the end with hook is cut as flat as possible and hooked squarely, straight edges and tapers down to a nice point. Im a tad anal over my strips, but to me, a spinning bait just doesnt look natural.

To me, gudgeons are for smaller fish, the legal size to 20-21 inches, I use them up around Hampton and oceanview, and drifting back in Lynnhaven. Around the tunnel/bridge complex, its #1live spot then #2 jigging. I feel like the bigger baits get bigger bites. I dont add a gudgeon to my strip, but lots of folks do, again, Im particular, some days it probally makes all the differance. In my mind, its alot of bait on the hook, takes a few more seconds for the flounder to swallow, and something else to foul the hook preventing a hookup.

As for changing bait, if its lookin anything other than prime, grade A condition, it gets replaced.

If you have a cutting board full of strips, be sure you have a legal size carcass onboard incase the fish cops board you...

edited...I was typing as sellard was posting.

[bob tytus]

Remember to have a legal size flounder that you cut the strips from with you,there is a real DH with the Va.Marine police out of Cape Charles that loves to write citations for using flounder belly and no carcus.

[Persistence2]

Same as CCX... maybe a tad longer. But given the option, Ill take a strip of buefish over anything for flounder, shiny, smelly, and usually easy to get.

I also take care to trim the strip so it doesnt spin, that means the end with hook is cut as flat as possible and hooked squarely, straight edges and tapers down to a nice point. Im a tad anal over my strips, but to me, a spinning bait just doesnt look natural.

To me, gudgeons are for smaller fish, the legal size to 20-21 inches, I use them up around Hampton and oceanview, and drifting back in Lynnhaven. Around the tunnel/bridge complex, its #1live spot then #2 jigging. I feel like the bigger baits get bigger bites. I dont add a gudgeon to my strip, but lots of folks do, again, Im particular, some days it probally makes all the differance. In my mind, its alot of bait on the hook, takes a few more seconds for the flounder to swallow, and something else to foul the hook preventing a hookup.

As for changing bait, if its lookin anything other than prime, grade A condition, it gets replaced.

If you have a cutting board full of strips, be sure you have a legal size carcass onboard incase the fish cops board you...

edited...I was typing as sellard was posting.

100% agreement with this post. Bluefish is great, prefer it to just about anything...white flounder "wings" are my #1 but bluefish is great, I just don't have it with me all that much as I don't stop to catch them (really need to do this...they are all over the place on the ocean).

Take the time to trim your bait, put it on the hook and swim it alongside the boat before you drop it. If it looks bad, fix it...when jigging, learn what the bait feels like when it is sitting correctly on the hook/jig. Many times, the bait gets wrapped around your hook and you can feel this if you pay attention. You won't get bit with a big ball of meat wrapped around the hook. Also, this happens when you go with a bigger, meatier strip. Many times, I'll shave some of the meat off the skin so it is able to "flutter" more easily.

Taking care to have fresh bait and cut/put them on the hook properly will increase your catch rate dramatically.

[Semper Fidelis]

That is one srewed up regulation, can someome please explain the sense in it.

[jogrun10k]

If your strips are longer then 16 1/2 inches, you will be legal without the carcass.