Best lure for casting long distances (surf fishing)

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I would be comfortable . . up to 12 inches

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Corkies carry a long way

Braid marauder - man they appear to run $30-$50 might be out of my price range for a shore casting bait.

Corkies - nice call, never fished one of these but they look like they would be perfect to imitate a mullet or pogey.

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I have a 12' rod with 20 pound mono and I just tie on the appropriate leader based on bait/target species.

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Why do people use surf casting rods?
I would think a big swim bait would be the easiest to work with that big rod.
If you switch to 30lb braid you could probably really throw whatever lure you want a mile.
I can cast a 1/2oz mirrolure with a 7' rod, further than I care to reel in.

Tight lines!

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Casting in the surf is a totally different animal know what I mean

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There was one day where I was wade fishing grand isle by the water tower. Fish were holding about 10' past where I could cast. Very frustrating.

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If you switch to 30lb braid you could probably really throw whatever lure you want a mile.
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Yeah braid with a leader would be the way to go but I only surf fish occasionally and I had some mono laying around. I may eventually switch over but I mainly bottom fish and the mono with a leader was doing the job.

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What kind of fish are you trying to catch?
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Anything that will bite.

We usually go to the beach pretty early and sometimes I will see fish striking on the surface. From what I can see there are 3 generic sizes to the fish: bait (2-6 inches), small predatory fish like jack/bluefish/mackerel/ladyfish (typically 8 inches up to 20 inches), and the 'bigger fish' which appear to be feeding on both the bait and/or the mid size fish.

What I am looking for is a couple of lures I could cast out and put in the area where the fish are surfacing.

I keep my bottom rig on a swivel so I would just keep a leader attached to the lure of choice and have the ability to reel in my line, snap the bottom rig off snap the lure on and cast out when the fish start to hit the surface.


And to answer the question earlier the surf rod is a must. If you are wade fishing the flat water on the gulf side a surf rod may or may not be the best option. On the Atlantic side it is a must. Plus if you are fishing on the beach it is necessary to have a tall rod so you can spike it in the ground and people can walk under your line.

Any baits with this weight transfer system cast a mile.
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This looks great, getting a larger lure with the weight transfer system should allow me to cast that thing into orbit.

Nice find.

Since I am locked on shore I need something that I can reach out as far as possible with.

To the poster earlier that mentioned I would tire out casting a heavy lure and surf rod - this is very true. When the water is calm i use a bubble rig and I tend to ware down fairly quick. As mentioned above it would be a situational thing. Think more on the lines of sitting in the beach chair under the umbrella watching the kids play and then seeing a large strike off shore and picking the rod up to take a half dozen casts.

Thanks, Nado Jenkins83

I think i am going to go with a kastmaster spoon and yozuri plug with the weight transfer system as my first purchase.

After that I will explore some other options like the corkies and swim baits.

Upgrade to braid will probably happen down the line when I catch something on sale.

So you fish strictly from the beach?
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I only fish from the beach on our 'beach' trips which usually occur every other weekend. Up to this point I usually just either buy some shrimp/squid or use the cast net to grab whatever I can get a hold of. Then bottom fish by casting out and leaving the pole in a sand spike.

It is fun and allows me to relax play with the family while casually fishing.

Plugs would just be something to change things up by giving me something to cast and work when fish are active on the surface.

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You never go into the water and wade fish?
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For wade fishing. This is the preferable method for fishing however I can't hang out with the family and wade at the same time. Also we usually go to the Atlantic side so it is very difficult to stand in waist high water with 2-3' waves crashing into you. On the gulf side I tend to see much smaller waves and I normally will take a 7' rod and wade fish with artificial baits in more reasonable sizes. (typically a bubble rig or a jig head and paddle tail)