A and U rigs.....Advice / Pics needed

[EL JEFE]

Hello all--

I've been reading several posts about the effectiveness of Alabama and Umbrella rigs for striper trolling.

1. Are you guys making your own rigs or purchasing pre-made?
2. If pre-made, which model/size/brand? If custom made, what is the process (with details on line, hooks, etc...)
3. Baits used, sizes, colors, soft/hard, etc..
4. How are these rigs fished (techniques, speed, depth, leadcore?, etc)
5. Rod / reel selections for these rigs.
6. Any other advice is appreciated.

Pics of A and U rigs you're using on DVL would be great

Thanks in advance!

[EL JEFE]

130+ views and no response? :Sad:

Someone out there knows these rigs well. Hey Hardcor, I know you catch quite a bit on these rigs, what the dope:Envious:?
Thanks

[HawgZWylde]

Picasso 5 wire, 13 bait rig is what I use. Tie leaders (12-18 inches long) on the middle and two bottom wires and use those for your three hooked baits. I troll this rig with good success. Go to this link to see it;

http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Picasso_Bait_Ball_Extreme_Rig/descpage-PBBE.html#multiview

Hardcore isn't here anymore...

[flyhigh123]

Picasso 5 wire, 13 bait rig is what I use. Tie leaders (12-18 inches long) on the middle and two bottom wires and use those for your three hooked baits. I troll this rig with good success. Go to this link to see it;

http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Picasso_Bait_Ball_Extreme_Rig/descpage-PBBE.html#multiview

Hardcore isn't here anymore...


what happened to hardcor?

@el jefe : i learned everything i know from Trout only, and most of us on this board that troll stripers learned from T/O, so honestly its unfair to him if i post what i learned from him. I would suggest maybe contacting him and doing a half/full day with him to learn the ropes.

[DarkShadow]

Google is a great resource when it comes to learning the basics when it comes to techniques and rigs.

[vegas fish slayer]

[QUOTE=flyhigh123;711920]what happened to hardcor?

@el jefe : i learned everything i know from Trout only, and most of us on this board that troll stripers learned from T/O, so honestly its unfair to him if i post what i learned from him. I would suggest maybe contacting him and doing a half/full day with him to learn the ropes.[/QUO

You don't need to pay someone to show you. Bass pro has umbrella rigs with different sized lead and spread. They are in the salt water section. Its common sense how to use them. For us fishing Lake Mead we troll them at about 1.5 to 2.5 mph. We don't use lead core or down riggers we flat troll them. The further back you run them the deeper they go. I use 8ft heavy fast rods with 65lb power pro and level wind clicker reels. I don't use a leader with them I tie a good swivel super glue my knot and away we go. I always run a bigger bait on the middle one and smaller on the outsides. They catch fish there is no doubt about that. What ive noticed is that they pretty much will catch you small schooler fish. I have never got any big ones on them at all.

[EL JEFE]

Thanks guys, appreciate the feedback.

BTW...what happened to Hardcor?

[flyhigh123]

[QUOTE=flyhigh123;711920]what happened to hardcor?

@el jefe : i learned everything i know from Trout only, and most of us on this board that troll stripers learned from T/O, so honestly its unfair to him if i post what i learned from him. I would suggest maybe contacting him and doing a half/full day with him to learn the ropes.[/QUO

You don't need to pay someone to show you. Bass pro has umbrella rigs with different sized lead and spread. They are in the salt water section. Its common sense how to use them. For us fishing Lake Mead we troll them at about 1.5 to 2.5 mph. We don't use lead core or down riggers we flat troll them. The further back you run them the deeper they go. I use 8ft heavy fast rods with 65lb power pro and level wind clicker reels. I don't use a leader with them I tie a good swivel super glue my knot and away we go. I always run a bigger bait on the middle one and smaller on the outsides. They catch fish there is no doubt about that. What ive noticed is that they pretty much will catch you small schooler fish. I have never got any big ones on them at all.

im not saying to pay to learn, but it makes the learning curve at lot easier... sure did change my whole outlook on fishing...

[EL JEFE]

I don't mind paying a guide for a service. In fact, I hired a guide earlier this year as I wanted to learn more about fly stripping techniques.

This post was a simple request for info on A and U rigs. I don't need to hire a guide for this. If I want a hands on approach on implementation of A and U rigs, I will hire a guide.

[jerryG]

This video really provides some great info on fishing and rigging the Alabama Rig. I think this is what your looking for..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwZIMwqXP5k (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwZIMwqXP5k)

JerryG

[EL JEFE]

Thanks Jerry. Good video, very informative and technical. Since this video was about bass, I would also like to know how the A/U rigs rigs are adapted for DVL striper fishing (are they trolled with leadcore...or trolled with mono/braid...which would make them swim near the surface)?
Thanks

[HawgZWylde]

I use 15lb fluorocarbon line tied straight to the rig. I use a rubber centered weight that I twist on the line about 6 ft in front of the rig and the depth the fish are at will determine the amount of weight. With the rig I use at 3mph, I put a 2 once weight on and run the line out about 130ft, it will run about 30ft deep. More line=deeper run. If the fish are in the top 20ft of the water column, I run it weightless. You can run slower and increase the depth as well but I found I get more bites at that speed. As far as leadcore goes, I don't really like it, with the weight of the rig and the weight and lack of any sensitivity of the leadcore line, you feel like you're pulling up a rock instead of fighting a fish, unless of course you caught a fat lunker. When Stripey goes deep, I go back to Green Carp, I'm not big on B/W and if I do want to target deep Stripey, I'll go with a spoon or deep swimmer...

[bassoholic]

Thanks Jerry. Good video, very informative and technical. Since this video was about bass, I would also like to know how the A/U rigs rigs are adapted for DVL striper fishing (are they trolled with leadcore...or trolled with mono/braid...which would make them swim near the surface)?
Thanks

The guys I see at DVL trolling are using U rigs with the longer trailer in the middle and flukes. The hardcore guys have downriggers, the other guys use the weights, like someone mentioned already. The guys catching the bigger fish are trolling swimbaits and flies. I don't know anything about the flies they are trolling and everyone keeps those a secret. There's a guy in San Diego or the Temecula area that makes the flies for DVL and are very productive. Someone that has one of these flies post a pic will ya? My two cents bro good luck!

[EL JEFE]

I use 15lb fluorocarbon line tied straight to the rig. I use a rubber centered weight that I twist on the line about 6 ft in front of the rig and the depth the fish are at will determine the amount of weight. With the rig I use at 3mph, I put a 2 once weight on and run the line out about 130ft, it will run about 30ft deep. More line=deeper run. If the fish are in the top 20ft of the water column, I run it weightless. You can run slower and increase the depth as well but I found I get more bites at that speed. As far as leadcore goes, I don't really like it, with the weight of the rig and the weight and lack of any sensitivity of the leadcore line, you feel like you're pulling up a rock instead of fighting a fish, unless of course you caught a fat lunker. When Stripey goes deep, I go back to Green Carp, I'm not big on B/W and if I do want to target deep Stripey, I'll go with a spoon or deep swimmer...


Thanks HawgZ and bass ......this gives me a good idea on the various tackle and methods.

I have stripped flies and although very effective, it can be tiring...unless of course you land a big one, which hasn't happened for me yet! Basically, I am looking for trolling options without having to strip flies every time I go out.. When I take my kids fishing they will not strip for very long. So, a nice effective trolling rig will be great for my kids. I am also going to look into down riggers as well.

[TroutOnly]

Hardcor is out there trolling and killing just like I taught him now days he runs cool custom made rigs him self I run custom rigs also there's a lot more to it than the responses on here .there's different weight rigs many different configurations colors sizes swimbodys jigbodys blades in different shapes sizes.right now its about the six oz rig or lead core but I prefer my two down riggers of striper death. T/o

[EL JEFE]

Thanks TO. I've been reading and researching info on down riggers. These are of interest to me, as I mentioned in my previous post, as the stripping can get tiresome after a few hours.

[Stormcrow]

Go on YouTube and search Alabama Rigs and you will find a video made by a guy named Matt. He is a southern looking younger guy with longer hair and a baseball hat. The background looks like a Golf course or something. He gives VERY good advice on those rigs and he also does a video series. I cannot look it up for you and link it because YouTube is filtered out here but you will know it when you see it.

It will help you out...

Jason

[EL JEFE]

Thanks Jason, I'll check it out. I'm also going to start looking in down riggers! Can't have enough tools and toys! As I have said before, this freshwater fishing is a lot more involved than saltwater! Saltwater terminal tackle is pretty basic and it's either live bait or some basic iron and jigs and you are set for about 90% of our local So Cal fishing. I guess that's why when you visit a tackle that specializes in both, the freshwater section is 2-3X as large!