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I have probably received more emails about this page than any other on the web site. The majority of the emails have been short thank you messages but two of the best ones goes like this: "I was just hanging on for dear life praying that the High Low rig or my line wouldn't break. After 20 minutes she was on the beach, 46 pounds! I've been fishing for 32 years and never caught a bass over 30 pounds. I've had a lot of break offs but not anymore, Man what a great rig, Thank You Bob!"
Next there's that picture of Mike on the right. Mike is from NJ, can't say where he caught this fish but he did write the following which just makes me feel that all the years of StriperSurf.com have and continue to be worthwhile!
"As a matter of fact I studied your site and read most of the articles before buying any gear or going out to the beach. Well, the results speak for themselves. Thanks for sharing your years of experience and making a surf fisherman out of me."
I did thank Mike and told him he deserves 99.99999% of the credit - after all HE caught it!
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Why use the StriperSurf High-Low Rig™ design?
There are several different types of bait fishing rigs, the basic rig is the three-way swivel with a foam float. I never use it because:
- The weight is not at the end of the
rig so when you cast there's resistance caused by the bait and/or float,
trailing behind resulting in the crazy spinning called "helicoptering." The three-way swivel rig gets twisted, in the air during the cast and even more twisted in the water. That is especially true when there is a good current. You need to fish in moving water! Current flow is super important!
- Once the three-way swivel rig is in the water the weight is located between you and the fish making it often difficult to detect a hit....
- Or you are too late to set the hook because the fish has felt the pull of the weight and already dropped the bait. If you are using a three-way swivel rig with a circle hook you ain't catching fish because in order for a circle hook to work properly the fish must pick up the bait and make a turn away.
- Worst of all with three-way swivel rigs is that there's the high probability of gut hooking a fish, EVEN with circle hooks.
The StriperSurf High-Low Rig™ will work with different baits and more than any other rig, it
catches fish. It's not a true "bottom rig", 75% of the fish go for
the top hook, theoretically, three feet off the bottom! See picture above.
Major Benefits:
- You can cast it up to 20% further than a standard High-Low and there are no darn neon red or green floats. "Helicopter" casts are eliminated!
- The use of heavy duty 150 pound test Sampo Rosco® Crane Live Bait Barrel Swivels at each end prevents the whole thing from twisting and tangling in the water and won't fail under pressure.
- The Sampo Rosco® Duo-Lock Snap attached to the bottom swivel is rated at 150 pounds and makes it simple to change weights. Commercial rigs do not have a snap of any kind, just a small loop.
- The short dropper loops prevent twisting, dramatically improve casting distance, eliminate a terminal knot and normally eliminate the need for bait holding thread.
- Gamakatsu® hooks are super sharp and strong. More fish are lost due to dull hooks than any other reason!
- Momoi Hi-Catch® Monofilament line is the choice of custom rig tiers for offhsore big game species such as Tuna and Marlin. In my opinion it's about 10,000% better than the mono used in imported commerical rigs.
- It holds the bottom in the roughest surf.
- It is easier to detect the lightest of strikes.
- Catch and Release, the fish are never hooked deep or in the gut, 99% are hooked in the corner of the mouth or in the lip. (The rig used in the picture above was made with Gamakatsu® Octopus Circle hooks. The hook is through the lower jaw).
Why buy the StriperSurf High-Low Bait Rig™?
There are many companies making "high-low" rigs but the StriperSurf design is unique. It is a 50 year old design developed by three NJ fishing buddies who developed it by trial and error in the 1950's. Take a quick look at this picture of the StriperSurf High-Low Bait Rig. Now compare that to the commercially made rigs you buy. They are too short, they are horrible to cast, most of them use very cheap and very dull hooks, there is no barrel swivel or snap on the bottom and the top swivel is too light. The dropper loops are far too long, made with as few as two turns on the line and the line used is usually a "hard" grayish colored monofilament which even a half blind fish can see underwater.
New York's most famous striper fisherman, the subject of the book, Night Tides, Billy "The Greek" Legakis said: "When you're fishing bait for stripers, you can't go with a better pre-tied rig than Bob D'Amico's Saltwater High Low. With fresh chunks on both hooks, I've consistently landed doubles of 25 pound + fish without any problem. Give me this classic combo of simplicty matched-up with quality components any day of the week!"
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| Bob Roy |
Mike Kasser |
Beating on the Beach |
Team StriperSurf REPEATS! For the second year in a row, Team StriperSurf defeated Team BassBarn for the "Beating on the Beach" trophy at the NJ Angler Classic Surf Fishing Tournament at Island Beach State Park. Each member of the team exclusively used StriperSurf High Low Bait Rigs™.
You can learn more and purchase three different types of rigs, Saltwater, "BJPF" (Boat, Jetty, Pier & Freshwater) plus Tournament Trophy™ Saltwater Surf High Low Bait Rigs hand tied by yours truly.
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