Top Water Pike Baits

[hoppe56307]

I have a lake that has excellent pike fishing with casting Dare Devils up to the cattails that cranking them back in. So I was wondering if this same lake could produce with top water baits as well, and what baits should I try?

I was thinking of trying these, Whopper Plopper or Mini Crusader , but I am having a hard time spending $15 on one.

Anybody know where I could find them cheaper or a similar option?

[JBMasterAngler]

Save your money and use buzz baits, skitter props, and torpedoes.

[Bobby Bass]

I second the buzzbaits, dressed them up by putting on 7 inch skirts and 5 inch grubs. Makes them a big bait that rides high on the water and calls Pike from afar.

[JP Z]

overstockbait has a deal on 60% a bunch of salmo baits and many are their muskie topwaters.

[Nick Kuhn]

Save your money and use buzz baits, skitter props, and torpedoes.

Or this biggest DTFAT1/Mann's 1-Minus you can find.

[mainbutter]

My go-to lures for pike fishing when I was a kid were:

1) buzz baits

2) jointed balsa rapalas

I was convinced these were the only things that would work when I was 6. I've since proven myself wrong, but they still hold a special place for me.

So yeah, topwater lures? Buzz baits.

[JPenny]

Catching big pike on top does present it's own challenges. Lots of lures can be used to catch them but of course not all are created equal. No doubt that buzzbaits trigger a lot of strikes. The problem lies with the accuracy of the pike's strike. And the reason for that lies in the speed of retrieval. Buzzbaits that sink on the pause must be retrieved quickly to keep them on top. If it's moving too fast, particularly early in the season, pike will miss it more times than not. A better bet is a floating prop bait. My favorite is a Poe's Ace in the Hole. Sadly, they are not in production anymore but there's lots of prop baits out there. They float and can be reeled in at a snail's pace. Later in the season I upsize my lures and like to use one of the "ploppers" that muskie guys use. Like a TopRaider. I try to find smaller sized ones if possible though. I see that Dahlberg has a new size Whopper Plopper out his year and at just 4" it will catch a lot of pike this year.

[bobberineyes]

My go-to lures for pike fishing when I was a kid were:

1) buzz baits

2) jointed balsa rapalas

I was convinced these were the only things that would work when I was 6. I've since proven myself wrong, but they still hold a special place for me.

So yeah, topwater lures? Buzz baits.

couldn't agree more. The buzz baits with a higher pitch from the blades were the ones we liked using. Another thing we did was add a trailer hook on them by simply dunking the loop of the hook in plasti dip and sliding it on...That really helped with the faster retrieves.

[fishuhalik]

Two hands-down favorites are buzz baits & Zara Spooks. Buzzbaits when they're going nuts & Spooks fished a little slower when they're striking short on the buzzbaits. I think topwater pike is one of the things I miss most about MN. :'(

[delmuts]

One lure I'll add( although not yet proven!!) is the new wake baits that are out. Bought one to try. Think it should be fun for bass and northern. Will let you know!

[delcecchi]

Yeah, I want to try those too. A friend has good luck with the Jawbreaker spoon.

[SwimbaitChucker]

Spro BBZ Rat

MS Slammer

Black Dog Baits Lunker Punker