A GULP! Substitute? Maybe So . . .

I have a theory in fishing that if it's attracting big fish consistently I stick with it. I keep my an assortment of Gulp Alive in their container on my boat during the season, and they work fine. Yes, they are a few bucks more and don't hold up as well as in the past, but for me, I wouldn't change a thing. If it's not broke don't fix it, and I love my Gulp.

Great thread!

Sage advice Founding Father and I'm sure that you also adhere to the "Yang" of that wisdom's "Yin" and do experiment with new fangled things as do I.

I routinely buy 1 of each of the newest poppers out there to experiment with. My latest shipment of 2 dozen Creek Chub Striper Strike 2500s in Blue Flash pretty succinctly summarizes the results of the 2018 experimentation with Maine's Midcoast striper population. That friggin lure is as old as I am and at 1/2 the price of many of the newer ones, it's a bargain to boot!!

. . . . I've been trying to find a hardbait that fluke will hit consistently...

Have you tried dogfish bellystrips Roger? One strip lasts all day 😛

remember this stuff... cellfish...
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Have you tried dogfish bellystrips Roger? One strip lasts all day 😛

It's a great bait for sure, but I haven't tangled with a doggie yet from shore/kayak (fingers crossed)...

These are the deep jerkbaits I'm gonna play around with this year. There's a certain shallow flat in NJ that has little current but generally fishes well if you can cover ground, and a few shore spots that should come alive during the mullet run (when the big ones hold right at the lip). Not expecting too much success, but if I pick and choose my conditions wisely I hope to connect with a few flatties...would be a blast!

Hey Roger - can you please show some pix of the blade-type lure you were pulling those sea bass with in your deep fluke vid?

Also, how about one of the tiny lure you were getting those porgies on from your kayak?

I find that sort of stuff fascinating. . .

Hey Roger - can you please show some pix of the blade-type lure you were pulling those sea bass with in your deep fluke vid?

Also, how about one of the tiny lure you were getting those porgies on from your kayak?

I find that sort of stuff fascinating. . .

Me too! Here's the seabass baits:



and the porgy baits:



They're all pretty much variations of lipless crankbaits/blade baits. Some are made from metal/lead, some from ABS...some have great swimming action on the fall, some just drop like a stone. The same place you purchased your carbon fiber handles have a TON of selection. The bottom silver one from first photo came from the PRC; quality is outstanding. Having said that, the Ima Kuome 90 (middle first photo) saw the most seabass...but I'm not paying $20+ for another one haha...

The best porgy crankbait I've tried is the Rapala Slab Rap, the larger size. That's the middle bait in second photo.

Here's the video where I break down the slab rap and method...if you find your porgy shallow, you will clean up the biggest ones fishing this crankbait lol:

remember this stuff... cellfish...
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View attachment 1427

I still have some yellow w/hooks. Part of the classic Tony Aceta Pet Spoon combo, yeah I'm showing my age...

BTW, does that GULP thing catch quality Fluke or just those 20 inch things... cellfish???

BTW, does that GULP thing catch quality Fluke or just those 20 inch things... cellfish???

I caught my PB on Gulp.

BTW, does that GULP thing catch quality Fluke or just those 20 inch things... cellfish???

Good question.

All caught from my deck on GULP!:

A few more GULP! victims:

Yeah, I'd say it puts some decent fish in the box, no? :cool:😛:cool:

It's always been my go-to

Yeah, I'd say it puts some decent fish in the box, no? :cool:😛:cool:

Great, reel good, got this 29”, 9 pounds on a 2.5oz “ Krockodile” casting distance from the ankles., didn’t even need to buy gas... cellfish...
👍

Great, reel good, got this 29”, 9 pounds on a 2.5oz “ Krockodile” casting distance from the ankles., didn’t even need to buy gas... cellfish...
View attachment 1787👍

Even a blind squire find a nut every now and then 🙂 I'm still waiting for mine! Nice one.

Great, reel good, got this 29”, 9 pounds on a 2.5oz “ Krockodile” casting distance from the ankles., didn’t even need to buy gas... cellfish...
View attachment 1787👍

The "Hot Kroc" is always in the lure box!!!

My "big fluke" catch ratio has REALLY hit the shitter the last few seasons and I'm not going to make excuses besides I just might be losing interest in our local fishing. HOWEVER, I have watched MANY of my friends on many of the boats I fish on from Brooklyn to Montauk beat the tits off fluke with Gulp baits. Gulp mullet and ESPECIALLY the 6" "woims" doing the majority of the damage! Main colors being pink, pink shine, chartreuse, nuclear chicken & white. Now, I'm not excluding myself from this group, I've caught TONS of great fluke with Gulp baits and I cannot think of a single bait I've ever fished that can outperform it from 5' of water to 90' of water and everything in between.

I've been using GOTCHA 5 & 6" grubs for almost 20 years when I first started to jig fluke and was excited about that design because the fish loved them. I remember using "fluke balls" to get them on bottom and thinking, "Hey, we have a great new way to catch these fish!" When Gulp came along I was very skeptical about the claim that a bait dunked into the saltwater would be able to "maintain" a scent & consistently catch fish. Needless to say, I was proven wrong...VERY wrong. Gulp is the most significant thing to happen to fluke fishing since I began doing it almost 40 years ago. I wish my friend Anton's father was alive to see it. He was a VERY PASSIONATE fluke fisherman, long before fluke jigging was a thing and I know he'd be tremendously excited to catch fish the way we do today.

Several years ago when Pete (Lep) turned us on to the 6" pink shine bait he couldn't stop singing it's praises and we eventually started to employ the baits on every trip. Our success rate went through the roof and we have never looked back since. From what I can see, there is no bait on the market that comes close and regardless of what it's made of, I'll be using them and catching fluke with them!

When I get that 10+ you boys will be seeing the pics right here on Lep's board!!

You probably don't need any more evidence of the outstanding results most have Fluke fishing with Gulp baits. As others have noted while many of the varieties will catch a ton of Fluke, I personally believe the 6" Grubs (worms) in the colors mentioned by Eddie above are among the best. Last season we made 6 trips to the south side of Montauk and I considered myself very fortunate that we landed 3 DD Fluke during that time. All 3 wee caught on the 6" Gulp worms, various colors.
Much like the old "American Express Travelers Check" commercial used to say "Don't leave home without them"!!!

All these were on Gulp. You can see the Gulp with the Back water Poison Tail jig.

Ha, ha,ha..tooo funny ? ... cellfish...