# Black Drum Tips and Tactics



## DrumintheSuds (Nov 19, 2007)

Thought I would start a discussion on one of if not my favorite fish to target in the surf. You see plenty of info and discussion on Pompano and Sea Mullet and other species but rarely read much on Black Drum......Perhaps we can get some good input on tips and tactics for these dudes

I enjoy targeting these fish because you can pretty much catch them year around on the beach. I tend to catch them where there is "defined" structure like points and sandbars with steep edges and in and around smaller pockets flanked by these structures. Pretty much anywhere you get current......I also do well with them on hard bottom flats where you get constant churning, sudsy water that keeps the feeding area flux with crabs, coquina clams and sandfleas. They are also a species that you will easily "overthrow" adn never know they were even feeding in front of you.

As far as bait goes sandfleas, blue crab and shrimp all produce but sometimes they prefer one of the three and nothing else so I keep all three handy.

I fish them like sea mullet with longer drops and prefer circle hooks (VERY SHARP CIRCLE HOOKS). These dudes can be sneaky light biters and will often pick the bait up and swim off to eat it which is another reason I like the longer drops on bottom rigs. Since I switched to lighter action steelhead rods I have found that I increased my catch ratio with these fish more than any other which I attribute to better bite detection. They seem to prefer a naked rig over a beaded rig (don't know why) but purple or green seem to be the colors of choice if you want to try a bead.

Anybody else have some input or tips? We need a fresh new discussion!


----------



## Raymo (Jan 11, 2011)

crab.crab.crab. /thread


----------



## DrumintheSuds (Nov 19, 2007)

And just to clarify I am referring to the smaller class fish under 10lbs not the 100lb brutes!


----------



## solid7 (Dec 31, 2010)

We use clams, crabs, dead shrimp.

Of all the fish that I've ever tried to catch, black drum seem to be the most sensitive to tides. Is it just me, or is that true?


----------



## DrumintheSuds (Nov 19, 2007)

solid7 said:


> We use clams, crabs, dead shrimp.
> 
> Of all the fish that I've ever tried to catch, black drum seem to be the most sensitive to tides. Is it just me, or is that true?


I agree. They can be like ghost showing up out of nowhere. I have caught many within an hour of the tide starting in and within an hour of turning out


----------



## DrumintheSuds (Nov 19, 2007)

Another tip....

You will often times find "craters" on the bar where black drum have been rooting and feeding........Look for them at low tide of course.


----------



## RuddeDogg (Mar 20, 2004)

I have had the best luck with FRESH clam, although frozen will work as well. I use the Mustad Demon circles now in 10/0 with a six inch 50-80lb leader. Suds your last post says it all. That's exactly what I do.


----------



## solid7 (Dec 31, 2010)

RuddeDogg said:


> I have had the best luck with FRESH clam, although frozen will work as well. I use the Mustad Demon circles now in 10/0 with a six inch 50-80lb leader. Suds your last post says it all. That's exactly what I do.


Dang, that's a big hook. I actually use really small hooks for black drum. I use #1-#3 (2X strong) circles, and hide it really well in a half clam.

You throwing a whole clam?


----------



## DrumintheSuds (Nov 19, 2007)

RuddeDogg said:


> I have had the best luck with FRESH clam, although frozen will work as well. I use the Mustad Demon circles now in 10/0 with a six inch 50-80lb leader. Suds your last post says it all. That's exactly what I do.


My best holes have craters, ruts, ripples and ditches like somebody was mining for gold......This is also what creates the "chop" in the water as the waves roll over the swashbar.


----------



## DrumintheSuds (Nov 19, 2007)

solid7 said:


> Dang, that's a big hook. I actually use really small hooks for black drum. I use #1-#3 (2X strong) circles, and hide it really well in a half clam.
> 
> You throwing a whole clam?


I think rudde fishes for the bulls?


----------



## solid7 (Dec 31, 2010)

DrumintheSuds said:


> I think rudde fishes for the bulls?


Me too... Well, OK, I fish for 5-7 lb'ers, (table fare) but it's not uncommon to pick up something in the 50-60lb range. Those little circles work just fine in a black drum. Now, I'm not saying I'd use them in all baits, but for soft baits like clams, it actually works pretty well.

Last year, I had a rig with a #1 light mutu - wasn't even drummin' - and I got a big black that hit me like a great white. We were on a pier, middle of winter, wind out of the east at about 25 mph, (right in our faces) blowing rain, with the occasional "supersonic" wave ripping under the pier. That bite was HOT! Ended up tearing up a school of big black drum, just hitting them one after another....


----------



## DrumintheSuds (Nov 19, 2007)

Black drum can be a "reliable" fish on those nasty days......


----------



## solid7 (Dec 31, 2010)

DrumintheSuds said:


> Black drum can be a "reliable" fish on those nasty days......


That's the only time that I fish the pier. Nobody but a few of the most die-hard... (and me)


----------



## RuddeDogg (Mar 20, 2004)

solid7 said:


> Dang, that's a big hook. I actually use really small hooks for black drum. I use #1-#3 (2X strong) circles, and hide it really well in a half clam.
> 
> You throwing a whole clam?


Yup. The whole clam. Go big or go home. but that is just me. We had some nice 50 pounders taken in the surf early on. One of the best spots I fish is at the mouth of the Cape May canal. There is a sink hole just off the ferry side jetty. Good sized Striper and Drum hold up inthat hole and then get stuck in there at low tide. I went to the Mustad after having issues with the Gammi's First time ever since I started using them. Had a few hooks fail and some were duller than a butter knife. I just started using the Mustads this season and I have to day I am impressed. I like them because they are smaller than the Owner 9/0 and 10/0 SSW which I use as well.


----------



## SALTSHAKER (Dec 5, 2002)

I am with you dogg, along the east coast, as you well know, 10/0 is about the only way to go. Most of my rigs are no smaller than 9/0. Never caught a Black Drum, go some Reds, but they say they will give you some pullage...


----------



## solid7 (Dec 31, 2010)

solid7 said:


> Dang, that's a big hook. I actually use really small hooks for black drum. I use #1-#3 (2X strong) circles, and hide it really well in a half clam.


Sorry, I lied... My hooks are 1/0-3/0. 

I guess if I thought I could reliably catch big drum all the time, maybe I'd go bigger. On my beach, a whole clam is just an invitation for a school of pinfish, most of the time. LOL


----------



## RuddeDogg (Mar 20, 2004)

solid7 said:


> Sorry, I lied... My hooks are 1/0-3/0.
> 
> I guess if I thought I could reliably catch big drum all the time, maybe I'd go bigger. On my beach, a whole clam is just an invitation for a school of pinfish, most of the time. LOL


That's what is so cool about fishin I think. We all go after the same type of fish, but tactics differ according to where you are from. In my neck of the woods I make "site specific rigs". Grant it I have all kinds of beaches to fish from but not all rigs work the same.


----------



## solid7 (Dec 31, 2010)

SALTSHAKER said:


> Never caught a Black Drum, go some Reds, but they say they will give you some pullage...


Considering they get much bigger than reds, I'd have to agree with that. There are a few blacks out there that never paid me for their lip piercing...


----------



## JamesRiverVa (Apr 24, 2012)

I am loving this thread. For me, black drum have always to this point just been an accidental bycatch when fishing for pompano, sea mullet or "whatever is out there" with 2 hook bottom rigs and (usually) fresh-dead shrimp.


----------



## DrumintheSuds (Nov 19, 2007)

James

Black Drum can be difficult to target in the surf as they are almost ghost like at times. When I started targeting them more I took into account where most of the guys that fish our island had the greatest success with them on a consistant basis. What I found was a narrowed down area of 2-3 miles......What is unique about this "beach zone" is that it doen't vary much structure wise other than the holes, pockets, ditches and points might move up and down the beach a bit. It is always flat, always has been and you can count on the coquina clams and crabs being plentiful. The beach is hard and the swashbars are most often soft and you can count on it staying that way. 

To sum it up...I like flat, hard beaches with soft sand swashbars and the closer I can locate this structure to a major inlet the better


----------



## mote1977 (Jun 7, 2012)

I'm heading down to Virginia to the southern end of Assateague in early Sept. to do some surf fishing. Is it worth targeting black drum there at that time of year?


----------



## greg12345 (Jan 8, 2007)

I rarely fish for them but catch them by "accident" on the pier when sheepshead fishing. I'm talking <10lb fish. The good thing about this fish is that it hangs around for most of the season in NC, here early and stays late. In the early spring when there aren't pinfish around I like fresh shrimp on circles on a regular bottom hook rig, that's pretty much the only time I fish for them. The rest of the year I catch them on sand fleas or fiddler crabs on the bottom directly under the pier while sheepshead fishing...using owner ssw or owner mosquito hooks, both j-hooks, on fishfinder rigs with a short 6" leader. They are usually pretty shallow. I have caught sheepshead suspended in the water column but I usually keep my sheepshead bait on the bottom b/c that way u get reds and black drum as a byproduct. The nice thing about black drum is they feed well at night too...never caught a sheepshead at night yet. I think a sheepshead eats much better than a black drum IMO....pulls maybe a little better too...

oh yeah i have seen big black drum pulled out of the surf right in or behind the breakers...DiTS isn't kidding about overcasting them


----------



## RuddeDogg (Mar 20, 2004)

Mid to late April through May is Balck drum season up here. Best place for them is at Slaughter Beach on the Delaware side of the Delaware bay. Night time is the best time for fishin them. Seems the bigger ones come out then.


----------



## solid7 (Dec 31, 2010)

greg12345 said:


> I think a sheepshead eats much better than a black drum IMO....pulls maybe a little better too...


Taste is subjective, but the pullage is not. Black drum are real bruisers. 8lb of drum vs 8lb. of sheephead is no competition.

Both are equally a PITA to clean, however.


----------



## RuddeDogg (Mar 20, 2004)

Never had sheeps head, but drum is dam good eatin. It has been my experience that the pups fight better than the bigger ones. The big ones fight for a little bit but come belly up after a while.


----------



## DrumintheSuds (Nov 19, 2007)

Black drum to me taste just as good as a puppy drum. They are definitely harder to clean and the larger they get the coarser the meat gets but I throw back any fish much bigger than 10lbs anyways.....

Greg great point about nighttime which is a prime time to fish for them!

Another tip....They love shrimp and make sure you peel it. If you leave the shell on the shrimp these rascals can suck the meat right out. I didn't believe it til I got a lesson on it one summer by an old timer.

Something else you can also look for. If you are scouting the nearshore bars and you have nice, pretty, clean water (doesn't have to be gin clear). You might see what I call a "drum cloud" in the water which is stirred up sandy bottom from feeding drum below.


----------



## surfchunker (Apr 10, 2006)

amen to the hard to clean part


----------



## phillyguy (Aug 9, 2010)

Never had so many "double-headers" as last years fall excursion to Nags head, all black drum and few bigger than 1lb. Lot of fun tho.


----------



## surfchunker (Apr 10, 2006)

phillyguy said:


> Never had so many "double-headers" as last years fall excursion to Nags head, all black drum and few bigger than 1lb. Lot of fun tho.


us too they were plentiful and like you said small but big enough to clean ... I starting casting away from them and got into big Pomps and Mullet ...


----------



## greg12345 (Jan 8, 2007)

the other good thing about black drum is they can feed in all kinds of water conditions, clear, muddy, calm, rough, cold, hot, inshore, surf...if there's structure and/or the right bottom it's worth trying to catch them


----------

